Vikings draft preview Part I: A look at the specialists

Note: For the next nine weekdays, we'll take an exclusive look at the Vikings' draft. We'll combine positions on some days in order to address as many areas as possible. Check for a new post each day through April 28.

The issues: Ryan Longwell, a 14-year veteran, will be an unrestricted free agent when a new Collective Bargaining Agreement is reached. The Vikings also would like to settle on a punt return man.

What they have: Chris Kluwe finished 10th in the NFL last season with a net punting average of 38.9 yards and was 21st in gross average at 43.0 yards. However, former special teams coordinator Brian Murphy encouraged Kluwe to work on his hang time and directional punting, rather than worrying about simply booming the ball as deep as possible.

There is no reason to believe that new coach Leslie Frazier isn't happy with Kluwe, who received a contract extension in October 2007 and is signed through the 2013 season. Kluwe is scheduled to make a base salary of $1.18 million in 2011.

Cullen Loeffler has turned into one of the NFL's most reliable long snappers in his seven NFL seasons and will make $775,000 in the final season of his current contract in 2011. That's a small price to pay for the peace of mind that Loeffler's presence on the 53-man roster provides.

Frazier admitted at the NFL owners meetings last month in New Orleans that he would give thought to using Lorenzo Booker on kickoffs this season in order to give wide receiver Percy Harvin a break.

Harvin was a Pro Bowl kickoff return man as a rookie in 2010 and averaged 23.3 yards with a touchdown on 40 returns in 2011. Harvin averaged 27.5 yards with two touchdowns on 42 returns the previous season.

The change in NFL rules that will move kickoffs from the 30- to the 35-yard line also could increase touchbacks and mean fewer return opportunities across the board. Booker, signed by the Vikings last December after playing in the UFL, looked at home in the kick return role, averaging 23.8 yards on 18 returns with a long of 49 yards.

What they need: New special teams coordinator Mike Priefer, who spent the past two seasons in the same role with the Denver Broncos, is going to have a say in these matters but there is little question that the most pressing issue when the lockout ends will be resolving who handles the kicking duties.

Longwell spent the past five seasons with the Vikings and while his kickoffs might not have boomed into the end zone – that could change with the ball being moved 5 yards – he did prove to be extremely reliable on field-goal and extra-point attempts.

That was a big difference from what had happened when the Vikings seemed to go through kickers on a regular basis during Mike Tice's time as coach. Longwell, who will turn 37 in August but is confident he can kick for several more seasons, made 17 of 18 field-goal attempts in 2010 and 30 of 31 extra-point tries.

Longwell had made 28 of 30 field goals in 2009 as the Vikings advanced to the NFC title game, but the decrease in his numbers had nothing to do with him and everything to do with the Vikings simply not being as good last season.

The Vikings toyed with the idea last season of having a kickoff specialist when they signed free agent Rhys Lloyd but ended up cutting him before the season. The reality was that having another kicker eat up a roster spot just didn't make sense. The fact that kickoffs have been moved might eliminate the need for such specialists.

As far as punt returns, the Vikings used wide receiver Greg Camarillo in this role for much of last season. Camarillo averaged 9.2 yards on 39 returns with a long of 52 yards and had 20 fair catches. Wide receiver Bernard Berrian returned a punt 82 yards for a touchdown in 2008 but last season he averaged 0.7 yards on three returns.

Conclusion: Longwell will be playing somewhere in 2011 – provided the work stoppage comes to an end – and the Vikings will have to think long and hard about keeping him. The Vikings have nine picks in the draft, including two in the fifth, sixth and seventh rounds, so it's conceivable they could elect to take a kicker.

The top two rated kickers by Pro Football Weekly are UCLA's Kai Forbath, who won the Groza Award in 2009 but missed five of 18 field-goal attempts in 2010, and Nebraska's Alex Henery, who made 18 of 19 field goals last season and also can punt. Both would be late-round picks.