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Before joining our Access Vikings team, Dan Wiederer covered Atlantic Coast Conference basketball for the Fayetteville (N.C.) Observer and was named North Carolina's top sports columnist in 2010. His previous reporting experience includes covering the Chicago Bears. Follow him on Twitter @StribDW.
Mark Craig has covered football and the NFL the past 20 years, including the Browns from 1991-95 and the Vikings and the NFL since 2003. Since 2008, Craig has served as one of the 44 Pro Football Hall of Fame selectors. He can be followed on Twitter at @markcraignfl.
Webb is learning on the job
Posted by: under Off the field, Quarterbacks, Vikings, Brad Childress, Vikings players, Ben Leber, Brad Childress, Sage Rosenfels, Vikings training camp Updated: August 1, 2010 - 12:52 PM
MANKATO -- Only one practice this afternoon in Mankato (3 to 4:55 p.m.), so let's take a look back at what happened Saturday night.
There appeared to be a capacity crowd in the 7,000 seat Blakeslee Stadium as the VIkings moved inside the venue for much of the practice. The practice was followed by Vikings players being introduced to the crowd and throwing footballs into the stands and then a fireworks show.
While the fireworks certainly attracted some fans, the crowd was the biggest I can recall seeing here in recent years and created energy that often doesn't exist during training camp. Comming off the field, linebacker Ben Leber commented on the energy level and how nice that is for players to experience.
Working in shorts and shoulder pads, Saturday's practice had its good and bad moments. Quarterback Sage Rosenfels really struggled, throwing four interceptions. Rookie quarterback Joe Webb, meanwhile, showed off his arm strength. His best toss might have been a 40-yarder that he completed to wide receiver Marko Mitchell along the sideline with cornerback Marcus Sherels in coverage.
Coach Brad Childress said Webb was "just kind of rough" in his performance. "[That's] like most first-year quarterbacks that are taking third-string turns," he said. "But he's got an aptitude. You can see the arm strength. Now you see some balls scuff, but a lot of times guys are thinking so much that they can't let their God-given athletic ability come out. You just want to keep accelerating that curve."
Childress said he has seen Webb progress since the Vikings gave him a chance to throw the ball in their rookie camp -- that is the reason he wasn't moved to wide receiver -- but added, "typically, you want to see them with pads on and you want to see them pass under pressure because 7-on-7 ain't the real world. But he's got good presence and he an see. He'll learn the offense as he goes."
There were moments Saturday when Childress seemed less than pleased with what he was seeing. I asked him about it.
"Just because you get into some of the third-down stuff and our first go-around with the blitz drill and some of those guys that don't have experience with it, they can get out-tempoed," Childress said. "A competitive period is just that so they'll be wiser next time around."
Don't forget to follow us on Twitter for in-practice updates from Mankato. I'm at www.twitter.com/juddzulgad and Chip is at www.twitter.com/chipscoggins.
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