VIKINGS DRAFT CHOICES, NOTES & BIOS VIKINGS DRAFT QUOTES NFL DRAFT RECAP

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1 2011 NFL DRAFT VIKINGS DRAFT CHOICES, NOTES & BIOS VIKINGS DRAFT QUOTES NFL DRAFT RECAP

2 2011 VIKINGS DRAFT CHOICES FIRST ROUND - 12th CHOICE, 12th OVERALL Christian Ponder, Quarterback, Florida State SECOND ROUND - 11th CHOICE, 43rd OVERALL Kyle Rudolph, Tight End, Notre Dame FOURTH ROUND - 9th CHOICE, 106th OVERALL Christian Ballard, Defensive Tackle, Iowa FIFTH ROUND - 8th CHOICE, 139th OVERALL Brandon Burton, Cornerback, Utah SIXTH ROUND - 3rd CHOICE, 168th OVERALL * DeMarcus Love, Tackle, Arkansas SIXTH ROUND - 5th CHOICE, 170th OVERALL * Mistral Raymond, Safety, South Florida SIXTH ROUND - 7th CHOICE, 172nd OVERALL Brandon Fusco, Center, Slippery Rock SIXTH ROUND - 35th CHOICE, 200th OVERALL ^ Ross Homan, Linebacker, Ohio State SEVENTH ROUND - 13th CHOICE, 215th OVERALL D Aundre Reed, Defensive End, Arizona SEVENTH ROUND - 35th CHOICE, 236th OVERALL ^ Stephen Burton, Wide Receiver, West Texas A&M * From Cleveland Browns ^ Compensatory Selection

3 2011 VIKINGS DRAFT NOTES The Vikings drafted 10 players in 2011, the most since their 10 picks in 2000 and twice the five picks in The Vikings selected two of the 43 underclassmen who were taken in the 2011 Draft - TE Kyle Rudolph and CB Brandon Burton. T DeMarcus Love was one of the SEC s 38 players drafted in 2011, topping the ACC by three picks for tops in QB Christian Ponder is the first FSU QB to be drafted in the first round and the third QB the Vikings have selected in the first round, joining Tommy Kramer (#27, 1977) and Daunte Culpepper (#11, 1999). TE Kyle Rudolph was selected with the 43rd pick, same as Notre Dame offensive lineman Dave Huffman by the Vikings in TE Kyle Rudolph is the second-highest drafted TE in team history behind Hal Bedsole (#19, 1964) from USC. He went one position before Jim Kleinsasser in 1999 (#44) from North Dakota. The Vikings selected two players from Division II schools in 2011, Slippery Rock s C Brandon Fusco and West Texas A&M s WR Stephen Burton. C Brandon Fusco is the highest-drafted (#172) player in Slippery Rock history and the fifth player overall drafted from the Rock. WR Stephen Burton is the third player drafted from West Texas A&M in the past two seasons, joining St. Louis Rams DE Eugene Sims and Chicago Bears OT J Marcus Webb in 2010.

4 CHRISTIAN PONDER Quarterback Florida State University Seminoles #7 6: Colleyville, Texas Colleyville Heritage High School OVERVIEW Ponder started the first nine games of the 2009 campaign before suffering a season-ending injury. The team's undisputed leader, whom coach Jimbo Fisher said was the finest quarterback he has ever coached, returned to the gridiron in 2010 with a vengeance. A finalist for the prestigious Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award and Wuerffel Trophy, Ponder started 12 games for FSU in his final season and finished his FSU career with 596 completions (third all-time), 6,872 yards (fourth) and 49 touchdowns (tied for fifth with Ward). Ponder was an outstanding student who boasted a 3.7 grade point average over the course of his collegiate career. He entered the 2010 season as the lone active Football Bowl Subdivision player to have earned his master s degree before playing his final season. In fact, the quarterback had received his bachelor's degree in finance in two and a half years. The well-rounded student-athlete was heavily active in community service endeavors and was university legacy, as his father, David, was a standout defensive tackle at Florida State from Ponder was a three-star quarterback prospect who earned Texas Top 100 honors (rated 50th) by Rivals.com. That recruiting service rated him the 16 th -best quarterback prospect in the country. He added All-District honors in one of Texas' toughest districts in suburban Dallas while competing for Heritage High School. Scout.com also accorded him with a three-star ranking and placed him 20 th among the nation s prep passers. As a senior, Ponder threw for 2,214 yards and 20 touchdowns on 190-of-340 passes (62.5%) in nine games during the 2005 campaign. He also rushed for 911 yards and 12 more scores. His highlight performance was a 318-yard, threetouchdown passing game against the eventual state champion Southlake Carroll. As a junior, he passed for 1,500 yards and seven touchdowns, connecting on 98-of-182 attempts (54.0%). Heavily recruited by most of the major universities, Ponder narrowed down his selection list to Florida State, Oklahoma State, Arizona, North Carolina State and Georgia Tech. On July 29, 2005, Ponder signed his letter of intent to attend FSU. Ponder redshirted in 2006 and was seldom used in 2007 before being forced into action during a road contest vs. Virginia Tech. In his only appearance that year, he completed 8-of-18 throws for 105 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions and gained 51 yards on five rushing attempts. That showing was enough for former head coach Bobby Bowden to name the youngster the Seminoles starter entering the 2008 campaign. Ponder started all 13 games as a sophomore and led the team to nine victories, FSU s most since the 2004 season. He connected on 177-of-318 passes (55.66%) for 2,006 yards and 14 touchdowns. He rushed 119 times for 423 yards (3.55 avg.) and four scores. His 144 yards on the ground vs. Miami was the most by a FSU quarterback in a game since Ken MacLean set the school rushing record for quarterbacks with a 146-yard effort vs. Cumberland in Despite missing the team s final four games of the 2009 season, Ponder was named the squad s Most Valuable Player. He threw for 2,717 yards with 14 touchdowns and just seven interceptions on 227-of-330 tries (68.79%). He finished fourth on the team with 179 yards and two scores on 72 carries (2.49 avg.), generating 2,896 yards in total offense ( avg.) before suffering his shoulder injury vs. Clemson. As a senior, Ponder completed 184-of-299 passes (61.54%) for 2,044 yards, 20 touchdowns and eight interceptions. He picked up 180 yards while finding the end zone four times on 100 rushing attempts (1.8 avg.), collecting 2,224 yards in total offense, an average of yards per game. He was the recipient of the James Tatum Award, given to the top football student-athlete in the Atlantic Coast Conference. CAREER NOTES Ponder started 24-of-37 games at Florida State, completing 596-of-965 passes (61.76%) for 6,872 yards, 49 touchdowns and 30 interceptions Carried 296 times for 833 yards (2.81 avg.) and 10 scores Generated 7,705 yards of total offense on 1,261 plays, an average of yards per game Also recorded a pair of solo tackles His pass completion percentage of.6176 rank third in school history behind Charlie Ward (62.32%, 473-of-759, ) and Danny Kanell (62.16%, 529-of-851, ) Became just the fourth player in school history to throw for over 6,500 yards in a career, joining Chris Weinke (9,839; ), Chris Rix (8,390; ) and Drew Weatherford (7,567; ) Only Chris Weinke (650) and Drew Weatherford (644) completed more passes for the Seminoles than Ponder s 596 His 49

5 touchdown passes tied Charlie Ward for fifth in FSU annals His 227 pass completions in 2009 tied Danny Kanell (1994) for seventh on the school season-record list Ponder s 20 touchdown passes in 2010 tied Peter Tom Willis (1989) for 13th place on the FSU annual record chart His career-best 395 yards passing vs. North Carolina in 2009 tied Charlie Ward (vs. Maryland in 1992) for the 15th-best game performance by a Seminole His 98-yard touchdown pass vs. North Carolina in 2009 tied the school and Atlantic Coast Conference record, first set by Chris Weinke vs. Clemson in 2000 Ran for 144 yards vs. Miami in 2008, the most by a FSU quarterback in a game since Ken MacLean set the school game rushing record for quarterbacks with a 146-yard effort vs. Cumberland in 1948 Gained 7,705 yards in total offense at Florida State, as only Chris Weinke (9,473; ) and Chris Rix (9,213; ) generated more yards for the Seminoles in school annals His 2,896 yards in total offense for the 2009 campaign ranks 11 th on the school seasonrecord list His 409 yards in total offense vs. North Carolina in 2009 rank 18 th on the FSU game-record chart SEASON Named a National Football Foundation NFF Scholar-Athlete Recipient of the James Tatum Award, given to the Atlantic Coast Conference s top football student-athlete) Added Allstate American Football Coaches Association Goodworks Award and first-team CoSIDA Academic All-District honors Finalist for the Lowe s Senior CLASS Award, the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award and the Wuerffel Trophy Became the first FSU quarter-back since Chris Weinke in 1999 to defeat both Miami and Florida in the same season, delivering the Noles their unofficial state championship by a combined 52-point margin; the largest ever recorded Is the first Seminole quarterback since Gary Huff in 1971 and 1972 to score two career wins at Miami The team captain was the lone active FBS player in the country to have earned an MBA degree (spring 2010) before playing his final season Started twelve games, missing the Clemson and Virginia Tech (ACC title game) clashes due to a right elbow injury that required three surgical procedures during the course of the year Despite his season-long injury battle, Ponder completed 184-of-299 passes (61.54%) for 2,044 yards, 20 touchdowns and just eight interceptions Rushed 100 times for 180 yards (1.8 ypc) and four scores On 399 plays, he amassed 2,224 yards in total offense, an average of yards per game Threw for at least two touchdowns in six contests, including a season-best four scoring strikes vs. Samford Was especially effective on third-down plays, converting 41-of-46 chances into first downs or touch-downs Sixteen of his touchdown passes came inside the red zone SEASON Finalist for the Wuerffel Trophy, which weighs athletic, academic and community service efforts...semi-finalist for the prestigious Maxwell Award as well as a semifinalist for the Manning Award...The offensive captain earned All-Atlantic Coast Conference honorable mention, starting the team s first nine games before missing the final four contests due to a shoulder injury Completed 227-of-330 passes (68.79%) for 2,717 yards, 14 touchdowns and seven interceptions His 227 pass completions rank seventh and his 2,717 yards rank 13th on the school season-record list Finished fourth on the squad with 179 yards and a pair of touchdowns on 72 carries (2.49 avg.) Participated in 402 offensive plays, generating 2,896 yards of total offense ( avg.) Also made one solo tackle ACC recognized his league-leading total yards a game, which was the sixth-best season average for total offense in league history...was the only ACC quarterback to average more than 300 passing yards a game ( avg.)... Threw for at least 250 yards in eight of the nine games he started and threw a career-best five touchdowns in the Georgia Tech loss His 98-yard touchdown pass vs. North Carolina tied the school and Atlantic Coast Conference record, as he gained 395 aerial yards vs. the Tar Heels to earn ACC Player of the Week accolades Named to the ACC All-Academic football team SEASON Ponder started all 13 games as a redshirt sophomore, leading FSU to its first nine-win season since 2004 Named the team s Offensive MVP and Seminole Warrior...Gained 2,006 yards with 14 touchdowns and 13 interceptions on 177-of- 318 pass attempts (55.66%), as he became the first FSU quarterback since Charlie Ward in 1993 to rush for more than 400 yards in a season Collected 423 rush yards with four touchdowns on 119 carries (3.55 ypc) Rushed for 144 yards in a win at Miami, the second-best game performance by a Seminoles quarterback (Ken MacLean holds the QB record with 146 yards vs. Cumberland in 1948) SEASON Ponder appeared in one game, completing 8-of-18 passes (44.44%) for 105 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions vs. Virginia Tech Carried five times for 51 yards (10.2 avg.) and recorded a solo tackle vs. the Hokies, as his first career touchdown toss went to De Cody Fagg for 8 yards SEASON Redshirted as a freshman. CAMPUS AGILITY TESTS 4.72 in the 40-yard dash yard dash yard dash yard shuttle 6.93 three-cone drill 30-inch vertical jump 8 10 broad jump Bench pressed 225 pounds 15 times 31 5/8-inch arm length 10 1/8-inch hands.

6 HIGH SCHOOL Attended Heritage (Colleyville, Tex.) High School, playing football for head coach Chris Cunningham Was a three-star quarterback prospect who earned Texas Top 100 honors (rated 50 th ) by Rivals.com That recruiting service rated him the 16 th -best quarterback prospect in the country Added All-District V and All-Region I Class 5A honors in one of Texas' toughest districts in suburban Dallas Scout.com also accorded him with a three-star ranking and placed him 20 th among the nation s prep passers As a senior, Ponder threw for 2,214 yards and 20 touchdowns on 190-of-340 passes (62.5%) in nine games during the 2005 campaign Also rushed for 911 yards and 12 more scores His highlight performance was a 318-yard, three-touchdown passing game vs. eventual state champion Southlake Carroll As a junior, he passed for 1,500 yards and seven touchdowns, connecting on 98-of-182 attempts (54.0%). PERSONAL Ponder graduated from Florida State after just two and a half years in May of 2008 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Finance, compiling a 3.73 undergraduate grade point average He then completed his MBA degree at FSU last May, compiling a cumulative graduate GPA Currently enrolled in Florida State s graduate program in Sports Management Two-time All-Atlantic Coast Conference Academic Football ( ) team member Named this year as one of the recipients of the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame s Scholar-Athlete Awards Also been to the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team and is a two-time finalist for the Wuerffel Trophy (2009, 2010) Named to the CoSIDA Football All-Region III Academic team and is a candidate for CoSIDA Academic All-American honors Recipient of the James Tatum Award, given annually in memory of the late Jim Tatum to the top senior student-athlete (in athletic eligibility) among the league's football players. Tatum, a two-time ACC Coach of the Year, coached in the fifties at both Maryland and North Carolina and believed strongly in the concept of the student-athlete The well-rounded studentathlete is heavily active in community service endeavors...son of former Florida State defensive tackle David Ponder ( ) Born 2/25/88) Resides in Colleyville, Texas. PLAYER STATISTICS PASSING STATISTICS STATS ATT COMP PCT YARDS TD YD/ATT YD/CMP INT I/PCT LG GM/AVG TOTAL RUSHING STATISTICS STATS GP GS NO YARDS AVG TD LONG TOTAL TOTAL OFFENSE STATS GM PLAYS PASS RUSH YARDS TDR P/AVG GM/AVG TOTAL ADDITIONAL STATISTICS-Recorded one solo tackle vs. Virginia Tech in 2007 and one solo tackle vs. Clemson in 2009.

7 KYLE RUDOLPH Tight End University of Notre Dame Fighting Irish #9 6: Cincinnati, Ohio Elder High School OVERVIEW Rudolph s comparisons to New England s Rob Gronkowski are inevitable. Both are blessed with that impressive combination of great size, strength and deceptive speed, along with displaying tremendous ball skills when attempting to snatch football out of air. Regarded as the best tight end to suit up for the Irish since the glory days of Mark Bavaro ( ), he carries on the storied tradition of Notre Dame tight ends who have excelled in the trenches, as he s favorably compared to the likes of Bavaro, Dave Casper ( ), Ken McAfee ( ), Derek Brown ( ) and John Carlson ( ), all who went on to star in the National Football League. Despite playing in just 29 games for the Irish, Rudolph ranks fourth all-time among Notre Dame tight ends with 90 receptions for 1,032 yards. His career-best 33 catches during his sophomore campaign placed seventh among tight ends on the school s season-record chart. He set the Irish game-record for tight ends by gaining 164 yards vs. Michigan in 2010, as his eight receptions in that contest rank second among ND tight ends on that same game-record list. He also boasts having the second-longest catch of any Irish player, coming up with a 95-yard snatch in that Michigan clash. I believe that Kyle is the best tight end in the country, Notre Dame quarterback Dayne Crist said. I honestly believe that. He provides a great deal for us and he's incredibly explosive. He's great in the run game and great in the pass game. Kyle really does it all. He s a great leader and huge part of this team and part of this offense. At Elder High School, Rudolph earned All-American first-team honors from USA Today and Scout.com. He was considered the nation s top tight end by Rivals.com, Scout.com and Tom Lemming s Prep Football Report. He was one of five future Notre Dame players named to the EA Sports All-American squad and was the lone tight end among the finalists for the 2007 high school Maxwell Award. Rudolph was named the second-best player and top tight end in the Detroit Free Press' Best of the Midwest Top 20 list and rated the 20 th -best overall prospect in the country by Tom Lemming. Both Rivals.com and Scout.com afforded him five-star prospect rankings, as he placed second on Rivals Ohio Top 50 squad. Sports Illustrated rated the tight end as the nation s 23 rd -best overall prospect. The Associated Press All-State choice added All-Southwest Ohio honors in each of his last two seasons. He was also chosen to play in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl in San Antonio after his senior campaign, closing out his career with All-Conference and All-City accolades. As a junior, Rudolph caught 30 passes for 400 yards and seven touchdowns. He added 37 receptions for 673 yards and eleven scores as a senior. During his senior season, he made four catches for 57 yards, including two touchdowns, to help Elder defeat Charlotte (N.C.) Independence, in overtime, ending Independence's 109-game winning streak (at the time, Independence was ranked third in the nation). That season, Rudolph also gained 111 yards receiving and a touchdown to help the Panthers knock off powerhouse Moeller High School. He caught five passes for 120 yards and three touchdowns in Elder's victory over Cleveland Benedictine, as he helped lead the team to the playoffs where they lost in the first round to the eventual state champions. Rudolph was also an accomplished basketball player who played center for his high school team. He was named his conference s Player of the Year three times and All-South-west Ohio in He is still ranked as the second-leading scorer in school history and became just the second Panther to surpass 1,000 career points. Rudolph set the school record for most career rebounds when he corralled his 568th rebound on January 11th, In the Moeller High clash (opponent was rated the best basketball team in Ohio and ninth in the nation) on January 25th, 2008, he scored 25 of Elder's 52 points as the Panthers almost upset the top-ranked team in Ohio,

8 Rudolph joined the Irish program in 2008, becoming the first freshman to ever start a season opener at tight end for Notre Dame. He would go on to start all thirteen contests, earning Freshman All-American honors from The NFL Draft Report. He finished fifth on the team with 29 receptions for 340 yards (11.72 ypc) and a pair of touchdowns. He also saw brief action on defense vs. Boston College, recording a 3-yard sack. The following season, Rudolph appeared in ten games. He placed third on the squad with a career-best 33 receptions for 364 yards (11.03 ypc) and three scores. Rudolph received All-American honorable mention and All-Major Independent first-team honors from The NFL Draft Report. He was also the only sophomore named a 2009 John Mackey Award semi-finalist and would be the only tight end on that list to return to college for the 2010 campaign. A consensus All-American first-team pick entering the 2010 season, Rudolph was limited by a hamstring injury that eventually would end his season. He would undergo surgery on October 15 th, 2010, bringing his junior season to an end with 28 catches for 328 yards (11.71 ypc), including three touchdowns, after six games. Despite missing the team s final seven contests, he was still named a semi-finalist for the John Mackey Award. CAREER NOTES Rudolph stared 28-of-29 games at Notre Dame, becoming the first tight end to make a debut as a starter for the Irish and the first freshman to start every game in his first season at the university (2008) Registered 90 receptions for 1,032 yards (11.47 ypc) and eight touchdowns, adding a pair of solo tackles that included a 3-yard sack Ranks fourth among Irish tight ends with his 90 receptions Also ranks fourth among Notre Dame tight ends with 1,032 yards receiving His 33 receptions in 2009 rank seventh, his 29 catches in 2008 rank ninth and his 28 snatches in 2010 are tied for tenth among Irish tight ends on the school season-record chart Set the team game-record for tight ends with 164 yards receiving vs. Michigan in 2010, topping the previous mark of 155 yards by Anthony Fasano vs. Purdue in 2004 Rudolph s eight receptions in the 2010 Michigan contest are the second-highest total in a game by a Notre Dame tight end, ranking behind Ken MacAfee s nine receptions vs. Purdue in 1977 His 95-yard touchdown catch vs. Michigan in 2010 was the longest by an Irish tight end and second-longest overall in school annals. Only Joe Howard (96 yards vs. Georgia Tech, 1981) had a longer reception for Notre Dame and Rudolph s 95-yarder topped the old tight end record held by Mike Creaney (78 vs. Pittsburgh, 1970) SEASON A consensus All-American first-team preseason selection, Rudolph is rated the best tight end prospect eligible for the 2011 draft by The NFL Draft Report Semi-finalist for the John Mackey Award, given to the nation s top tight end, despite missing the team s final seven contests after undergoing surgery on his hamstring Was named John Mackey Tight End of the Week and Rivals.com Independent Player of the Week for his record-setting performance vs. Michigan The Lombardi Award Watch List selection started the first six games, as his 28 receptions still ranked third on the team, despite missed action in the second half His 28 catches are tied for tenth on the school season-record list for tight ends Gained 328 yards (11.71 ypc) with three touchdowns, including a 95-yarder vs. Michigan that was the longest catch by a tight end in school history and the second-longest overall reception by an Irish performer Also recorded one solo tackle Caught 28-of-49 passes targeted to him (57.14%), as the opposition deflected three of those tosses Recorded thirteen first-down grabs Had eleven catches for at least ten yards, including two for 20 yards or longer In addition to his three touchdown snatches, he had key receptions that set up five touchdown drives and on one possession that resulted in a field goal Six of his catches came inside the red zone, including two on goal-line snaps Broke free from the initial tackler on four receptions and was penalized once (vs. Stanford) SEASON All-American honorable mention and All-Major Independent first-team selection by The NFL Draft Report Was the lone sophomore to be named a semi-finalist for the John Mackey Award and was the only player on that list to return to school for the 2010 season Was voted by his teammates to represent tight ends on the Irish Leadership Committee...Totaled 275:59 of playing time and made 57 special-teams appearances, as he started nine of ten contests that he appeared in Ranked third on the team with a career-best 33 receptions, the seventh-best season total by an Irish tight end Gained 364 yards (11.03 ypc) with three touchdowns, as seventeen of his receptions resulted in first downs Named Mackey Award National Tight End of the Week for his performance vs. Michigan State Averaged better than 10.0 yards a catch in five games (Michigan, Michigan State, Purdue, Washington, Boston College) SEASON Freshman All-American selection by The NFL Draft Report Started all thirteen games for the Irish, become the first freshman to accomplish that feat Was also the first tight end to ever make his debut as a starter for the Irish Finished fifth on the team with 29 catches, the ninth-best season total by a Notre Dame tight end Generated 340 yards (11.72 ypc) with two touchdowns Also saw brief action on defense, recording a 3-yard sack in the Boston College contest.

9 CAMPUS AGILITY TESTS 4.64 in the 40-yard dash yard dash yard dash yard shuttle yard shuttle 7.25 three-cone drill 33-inch vertical jump 9 4 broad jump Bench pressed 225 pounds 16 times 32 7/8-inch arm length 9 5/8-inch hands. HIGH SCHOOL Attended Elder (Cincinnati, Oh.) High School, playing football for head coach Doug Ramsey Earned All-American firstteam honors from USA Today and Scout.com Was considered the nation s top tight end by Rivals.com, Scout.com and Tom Lemming s Prep Football Report One of five future Notre Dame players named to the EA Sports All-American squad and was the lone tight end among the finalists for the 2007 high school Maxwell Award Named the second-best player and top tight end in the Detroit Free Press' Best of the Midwest Top 20 list and rated the 20 th -best overall prospect in the country by Tom Lemming Both Rivals.com and Scout.com afforded him five-star prospect rankings, as he placed second on Rivals Ohio Top 50 squad Sports Illustrated rated the tight end as the nation s 23 rd -best overall prospect The Associated Press All-State choice added All-Southwest Ohio honors in each of his last two seasons Was also chosen to play in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl in San Antonio after his senior campaign, closing out his career with All-Conference and All-City accolades As a junior, Rudolph caught 30 passes for 400 yards and seven touchdowns Added 37 receptions for 673 yards and eleven scores as a senior During his senior season, he made four catches for 57 yards, including two touchdowns, to help Elder defeat Charlotte (N.C.) Independence, in overtime, ending Independence's 109-game winning streak (at the time, Independence was ranked third in the nation) That season, Rudolph also gained 111 yards receiving and a touchdown to help the Panthers knock off powerhouse Moeller High School Caught five passes for 120 yards and three touchdowns in Elder's victory over Cleveland Benedictine, as he helped lead the team to the playoffs where they lost in the first round to the eventual state champions Was also an accomplished basketball player who played center for his high school team Named his conference s Player of the Year three times and All-South-west Ohio in 2007 Still ranked as the second-leading scorer in school history and became just the second Panther to surpass 1,000 career points Set the school record for most career rebounds when he corralled his 568th rebound on January 11th, 2008 In the Moeller High clash (opponent was rated the best basketball team in Ohio and ninth in the nation) on January 25th, 2008, he scored 25 of Elder's 52 points as the Panthers almost upset the top-ranked team in Ohio, National Honor Society member Graduated with a 3.4 grade point average. PERSONAL Enrolled in the Mendoza College of Business, majoring in Management Consulting Oldest of three children of Jamie and Dan Rudolph Born 11/09/89 in Cincinnati, Ohio. PLAYER STATISTICS RECEIVING STATISTICS R/PG indicates receptions per game...gm/avg indicates average yards gained per game. STATS GP GS NO YARDS AVG TD LONG R/PG GM/AVG TOTAL DEFENSIVE TACKLES STATS TK SO AS FR SACK TOTAL

10 CHRISTIAN BALLARD Defensive Tackle/Defensive End University of Iowa Hawkeyes #46 6: Lawrence, Kansas Lawrence Free State High School OVERVIEW Throughout his career with the Hawkeyes, Ballard has displayed versatility that has allowed Iowa to use him in multiple spots along their defensive front. He spent the first two years of his career at left defensive end before moving inside and starting all 13 games of his junior season at defensive tackle. In his final season, Ballard rotated often at both spots, starting eight contests on the outside and five more inside. Ballard s versatility makes him one of the more intriguing defenders available in the 2011 draft. The mammoth defensive lineman lacks great pass rushing skills off the edge, but is very stout at the point and has proven himself a force against the run. His size and strength could see him earn a spot as a five-technique defensive end for teams employing a 3-4 scheme. Ball clubs that utilize the 4-3 defense will prefer him along the interior as a run-stuffing defensive tackle that can also generate a bit of an inside pass rush. Ballard has helped Iowa produce some of the nation s elite front walls. In his inaugural season with the Hawkeyes, the team gave up rushing yards per game and ranked 24th nationally. When Ballard moved into a starting role in 2008, Iowa produced the nation s ninth-ranked run defense, allowing just 94.0 yards per game on the ground. The Hawkeyes placed a respectable 34th in 2009 after surrendering rushing yards, but posted their highest ranking during his senior campaign in 2010 by placing sixth in the country after allowing yards per game. Over the past two seasons, Ballard has registered 94 stops vs. the ground game, holding runners to just 195 yards and 2.07 yards per carry. He allowed just one run of 10 yards or longer during that span, and took down 13 ball carriers at the line of scrimmage for no gain. In his 49-game career, he s managed 12.0 sacks for minus 78 yards and 21.5 stops for losses of 99 yards. Ballard was a three-sport athlete at Lawrence Free State High School (KS), lettering in football, basketball and track and field. As a senior on the gridiron, he earned first-team All-State and All-Conference honors while leading his team to an 11-1 overall record. The team captain hauled in 23 passes for 287 yards (12.48 ypc) and five touchdowns from his tight end position. Ballard concluded his prep career with 50 receptions for 558 yards (11.16 ypc) and six scores. He was one of the nation s most highly regarded prospects, earning four-star ratings by both Rivals.com and Scout.com. Rivals ranked him as the 10th-best tight end in the country and the fourth-best recruit in the state of Kansas, while Scout recognized him as the nation s 10th-best defensive end. Ballard enrolled at the University of Iowa in 2007 and was one of 11 true freshmen to see game action that season. He played in 10 contests and registered 15 tackles (five solos), including 2.5 sacks for minus 23 yards and 4.0 stops for losses of 25 yards. He also returned two kickoffs for 32 yards. As a sophomore in 2008, Ballard earned a starting spot on the defensive line during spring practice. He started all 13 games at left defensive end and ranked 11th on the team with 41 tackles (14 solos), including one sack for minus nine yards and 3.5 stops for losses of 16 yards. He also blocked a field goal attempt and forced one fumble, adding five quarterback pressures and one pass deflection. Ballard moved from defensive end to defensive tackle during 2009 fall camp and started all 13 games there during his junior campaign. He had a breakout season, registering career-highs with 54 tackles (18 solos), 5.5 sacks for minus 27 yards and 9.0 stops for losses of 35 yards. He added five quarterback pressures and garnered an All-Big 10 Conference honorable mention by the league s coaches. As a senior in 2010, Ballard rotated between the interior and the outside of the defensive line. He started eight contests at left defensive end and five others at defensive tackle. He ranked 11th on the team with 43 tackles (23 solos) and placed fourth among Hawkeyes defenders with 3.0 sacks for minus 19 yards and 5.0 stops for losses of 23 yards. He added two pass deflections and a forced fumble, and earned an all-conference honorable mention for the second-straight season. CAREER NOTES

11 Ballard started 39-of-49 games for Iowa (21 at left defensive end, 18 at defensive tackle) Recorded 153 tackles (60 solos) with 12.0 sacks for minus 78 yards and 21.5 stops for losses totaling 99 yards Forced two fumbles and blocked one field goal attempt Deflected thee passes and tallied 10 QB pressures Added two kickoff returns for 32 yards SEASON All-Big 10 Conference honorable mention choice by the league s media and coaches One of five recipients of Iowa s Coaches Appreciation Award Started all 13 games (eight at left defensive end, five at defensive tackle) and ranked 11th on the team with 43 tackles (23 solos) Placed fourth among Hawkeyes defenders with three sacks for minus 19 yards and five stops for losses of 23 yards Part of a unit that ranks sixth in the NCAA allowing just yards per game on the ground Made 42 stops vs. the ground game, holding those ball carriers to 105 yards (2.5 ypc), as the defender limited those runners to 10 first downs while producing six third-down stops Took down seven ball carriers at the line of scrimmage for no gain Made one stop vs. the aerial attack, holding the receiver to one yard on that reception Deflected two passes and forced one fumble SEASON All-Big 10 Conference honorable mention choice by the league s coaches Started all 13 games at defensive tackle and ranked 10th on the team with 54 tackles (18 solos) Placed third among Hawkeyes defenders with 5.5 sacks for minus 27 yards and fourth with 9.0 stops for losses of 35 yards Part of a unit that ranked fifth in the conference and 34th nationally, allowing yards per game on the ground Made 52 stops vs. the ground game, holding those ball carriers to 90 yards (1.73 ypc), as the defender limited those runners to six first downs while producing nine third-down stops and two more on fourth down Posted 11 total (assists/solos) stops for losses and took down six ball carriers at the line of scrimmage for no gain Made one stop vs. the aerial attack, holding the receiver to one yard on that reception Added five quarterback pressures, with three coming on third-down attempts SEASON Started all 13 games at left defensive end and ranked 11th on the team with 41 tackles (14 solos) Delivered one sack for minus nine yards and 3.5 stops for losses of 16 yards Part of unit that ranked ninth nationally, allowing just rushing yards per game Blocked one kick and forced one fumble Added one pass deflection and five QB pressures SEASON One of 11 true freshman to see game action Played in 10 contests and recorded 15 tackles (five solos) Ranked fourth on the team with 2.5 sacks for minus 23 yards and tied for fifth with 4.0 stops for losses of 25 yards Part of a unit that ranked third in the Big 10 and 24th nationally, allowing yards per game on the ground. CAMPUS AGILITY TESTS 4.85 in the 40-yard dash. HIGH SCHOOL Attended Lawrence Free State High School (KS), playing football for head coach Bob Lisher All-State and All- Conference first-team selection as a senior and honorable mention choice as a junior and sophomore The team captain played tight end and defensive end and concluded his prep career with 50 receptions for 558 yards (11.16 ypc) and six touchdowns Led the Firebirds to an 11-1 overall record as a senior while registering 23 receptions for 287 yards (12.48 ypc) and five scores Rated a four-star prospect by Rivals.com, as that recruiting service ranked him as the 10th-best tight end in the nation and the fourth-best recruit in the state of Kansas Also given a four-star rating by Scout.com, who listed him as the nation s 10th-best defensive end Also earned two letters in basketball and four in track and field. PERSONAL Art major Parents are Denise and Casey Ballard Born 1/3/89 Resides in Lawrence, Kansas. PLAYER STATISTICS DEFENSIVE STATISTICS STATS GP GS TK SO AS FR FC INT TFL PBU SACK PRES TOTAL KICKOFF RETURN STATS NO YARDS AVG TD LONG ADDITIONAL STATISTICS Blocked one kick vs. Northwestern in 2008.

12 BRANDON BURTON Cornerback University of Utah Utes #27 5: Houston, Texas Clear Creek High School OVERVIEW Utah has sent four members of its secondary to the NFL over the past two years, but the best may be yet to come. After two successful seasons as a starter, including a junior campaign that garnered an All-Mountain West Conference secondteam selection, Brandon Burton is set to take his talents to the next level and is sure to warrant high draft consideration. As a redshirt freshman in 2008, Burton waited patiently behind Sean Smith and Brice McCain while Utah produced the nation s 33rd-ranked passing defense, allowing aerial yards per game. Despite graduating two NFL draft picks at cornerback at the end of 2008, Utah actually improved vs. the pass with Burton in the lineup the following season. The Utes surrendered just yards per game through the air in 2009, placing 16th in the country. Burton is at his best in man coverage, showing the speed and quickness to run with any receiver. At the line of scrimmage, he shows tenacity when pressing the receiver and is willing to challenge anyone that lines up opposite him. Once the ball is in the air, Burton uses his exceptional height and timing skills to compete for the football. In two seasons as a starter, he s notched 18 pass deflections and three interceptions. Burton s speed was well-documented during his prep career at Clear Creek High School, as he excelled as a sprinter on the Wildcats track and field squad. During his junior season, he won the district title in the 200-meter sprint after turning in a time of 21.3 seconds and qualified for the Junior Olympics. On the gridiron, Burton was a standout cornerback and return specialist. The two-time team captain notched 11 career interceptions while recording 10 touchdowns on punt and kickoff returns. Burton earned All-District accolades on defense during his final two seasons and was also a special teams honoree in each of his last three campaigns. He was named Clear Creek s Defensive Player of the Year in Burton enrolled at the University of Utah in 2007 and retained eligibility by redshirting as a true freshman. The following season, he was on the depth chart behind starting cornerbacks Sean Smith (Miami Dolphins) and Brice McCain (Houston Texans), seeing the majority of his action on special teams. He played in 11 games and contributed three tackles (two solos). With Smith and McCain moving on through graduation, Burton earned a starting role in The sophomore placed fourth in the Mountain West Conference in passes defended (0.85 per game), as he deflected 10 attempts and notched one interception. He ranked seventh on the team with 47 tackles (35 solos), including one sack for minus six yards and four stops for losses totaling 10 yards. He added two punt returns for seven yards (3.50 avg). Burton enjoyed his best campaign as a junior in 2010 after entering the season as a member of the Jim Thorpe Award Watch List (top college defensive back). He started all 13 games and earned All-Mountain West Conference second-team accolades after notching career-highs in tackles and interceptions. Burton placed sixth on the team with 51 tackles (34 solos), including one stop for a 10-yard loss, and picked off two passes, gaining 69 yards on returns. He added eight pass deflections, two blocked kicks, a forced fumble and a quarterback pressure. Burton earned Mountain West Conference Special Teams Player of the Week honors in the regular season finale vs. Brigham Young. He posted five tackles (three solos), but his biggest impact was made in the waning moments of the game. Burton blocked a 42-yard field goal attempt by the Cougars as time expired to seal the victory for Utah. CAREER NOTES Started 25-of-37 games at cornerback for Utah Recorded 101 tackles (71 solos) with one sack for minus six yards and five stops for losses totaling 20 yards Deflected 18 pass attempts and intercepted three others, gaining 69 yards on returns Caused one fumble and tallied one quarterback pressure Blocked two field goal attempts Gained seven yards on two punt returns Tied for 12th in Utah annals with 18 career pass deflections Ranks 15th on the school s season record chart with 10 pass deflections in 2009 Tied for eighth in Utah game annals with three pass deflections vs. Brigham Young in 2010.

13 2010 SEASON All-Mountain West Conference second-team selection Member of the Jim Thorpe Award Watch List, presented annually to college football s top defensive back Earned Mountain West Conference Special Teams Player of the Week honors vs. Brigham Young Started all 13 games and ranked sixth among Utes defenders with 51 tackles (34 solos), including one stop for a 10-yard loss Caused one fumble and had one quarterback pressure Led a secondary that ranked seventh in the conference and 73rd nationally in pass defense ( ypg) Deflected eight pass attempts, including three on third-down and another on fourth-down Intercepted two passes, gaining 69 yards on returns (34.50 avg.) Placed sixth in the conference and tied for 100th in the nation in passes defended (0.77 per game) Made 36 stops vs. the aerial attack, holding receivers to 385 yards (10.69 ypc.) and 19 first downs on those receptions, as he made eight third-down stops and two more on fourth-down Made 14 stops vs. the ground game, limiting runners to 68 yards (4.86 ypc) and three first downs, as he made one third-down stop and took down one ball carrier at the line of scrimmage for no gain Delivered four of his hits inside the red zone, including three on goal-line plays Tied for eighth in Utah game annals with three pass deflections vs. Brigham Young SEASON Played in all 13 games and started 12 contests, as Utah started four linebackers vs. Air Force Ranked seventh among Utes defenders with 47 tackles (35 solos), including one sack for minus six yards and four stops for losses totaling 10 yards Deflected 10 pass attempts and intercepted another Placed fourth in the Mountain West Conference and tied for 73rd in the nation in passes defended (0.85 per game) Also gained seven yards on two punt returns (3.50 avg) Ranks 15th on the school s season record chart with 10 pass deflections SEASON Played in 11 games, seeing the majority of his action on special teams Registered three tackles (two solos) Stopped Trevyn Smith after a two-yard rush and brought down Mike Phillips following an eight-yard reception vs. Weber State, as he finished with two tackles (one solos) Had a solo stop after a seven-yard rush by Devin Moore vs. Wyoming SEASON Red-shirted as a freshman. AGILITY TESTS 4.52 in the 40-yard dash yard dash yard dash yard shuttle yard shuttle 6.93 three-cone drill 32-inch vertical jump 9 6 broad jump Bench pressed 225 pounds 18 times 31 ½-inch arm length 8 ½-inch hands 74 1/8-inch wingspan. HIGH SCHOOL Attended Clear Creek High School (League City, TX), playing football for head coach Darrell Warden All-District selection at cornerback as a junior and senior, as he recorded 11 career interceptions All-District choice as a return specialist during his sophomore, junior and senior seasons, returning 10 punts/kickoffs for touchdowns Named the Wildcats Defensive player of the Year as a junior Two-time team captain Rated a two-star cornerback prospect by Rivals.com and Scout.com Chose to attend Utah over scholarship offers from Southern Methodist, Tulane and Texas-El Paso Also excelled as a member of the Track and Field squad, where he won the district 200-meter championship as a junior with a time of 21.3 seconds, qualifying for the Junior Olympics. PERSONAL Economics major Made the Athletic Director s Honor Roll in 2007 Son of Mark and Shawn Burton Father is an engineer and mother is a doctor Has one sister named Ashley Born 7/31/89 in Germany Resides in Houston, Texas. PLAYER STATISTICS DEFENSIVE STATISTICS STATS GP GS TK SO AS FR FC INT TFL PBU SACK BK PRES TOTAL INTERCEPTION RETURNS PUNT RETURNS STATS NO YARDS AVG TD LONG NO YARDS AVG TD LONG TOTAL

14 DE MARCUS LOVE Offensive Guard/Tackle University of Arkansas Razorbacks #65 6: Lancaster, Texas David W. Carter High School OVERVIEW With experience at both offensive guard and tackle, Love offers a National Football League a youngster who can provide immediate depth behind a veteran offensive line. Earlier in his career as a guard, he utilized his foot speed and initial explosion to clear rush lanes used by the Razorbacks stable of power runners. With the era of Felix Jones/Darren McFadden/Peyton Hillis having past, Arkansas became a more predominant passing attack, abandoning the inside running game for the passing game. That required quicker tackles to protect the pocket and the coaching staff felt that Love s kick slide and ability to mirror edge rushers were more suited for the demanding left tackle position. The two-time team captain adjusted quickly to his new environment. His further development as a senior allowed the staff to reinstitute the running game back into the offensive game plan. With Love protecting the blind side, not only did quarterback Ryan Mallett go on to set the school season-record with 3,869 yards passing, but behind the left tackle s drive blocks, Knile Davis exploded for 1,322 yards on the ground, the fourth-best rushing total in a season by an Arkansas ball carrier. In Love s sophomore season at David W. Carter High School, he started at offensive tackle, showing solid pass protection skills. One of his teammates was present San Francisco 49ers receiver Michael Crabtree.. He returned to form as a senior, showing marked improvement as an interior blocker, helping his team to an 11-1 record and a second-round state playoff berth in the state's largest classification, Class 5A. His senior season helped Love improve his prospect ranking, as Rivals.com placed him 57 th among the nation s offensive linemen and 99 th among the state of Texas overall prep players. Scout.com rated him 97 th among Texas prepsters and 68 th among the nation s interior blockers. He was also tabbed the 68 th -best prospect on the Dallas Morning News All-Area team. Love was recruited by Kansas, Arizona, Texas-El Paso and Kansas State, but decided to accept a scholarship offer from the University of Arkansas. The coaching staff decided it was best that he bided his time with the scout team in 2006, as he worked in the training room to gain more strength. He appeared in eight games in 2007, starting two regular season contests and the Cotton Bowl vs. Missouri at right offensive guard. Love appeared in eleven games in 2008, starting eight contests at strong-side offensive guard. He was on the field long enough to contribute to a revived passing attack that set a then school season-record 3,115 yards, in addition to opening holes for Michael Smith registering the ninth 1,000-yard rushing season in Arkansas annals. With Ryan Mallett taking over quarterback chores in 2009, Love shifted to left tackle. Named the team s captain, he blocked for seven 100-yard receiving games and three 100-yard rushing performances by Razorback individuals. Arkansas led the Southeastern Conference and finished tenth in the nation with an average of aerial yards per game. Love continued to hone his pass blocking skills, as the two-time team captain picked up All-Southeastern Conference firstteam honors in In addition to Mallett s record-breaking campaign, the Razorbacks again led the SEC in passing, ranking fourth in the NCAA ranks with an average of yards per game. The team also placed ninth in the nation in total offense ( ypg). CAREER NOTES Love appeared in 45 games for Arkansas, starting 37 contests 26 at left offensive tackle and 11 at offensive guard Recorded 203 knockdowns and 27 touchdown-resulting blocks SEASON All-Southeastern Conference first-team selection by the league s coaches and the Associated Press Earned SEC Offensive Lineman of the Week honors vs. Mississippi State Delivered 80 knockdowns and twelve touchdown-resulting blocks while starting all thirteen games at left offensive tackle The two-time team captain led a young offensive line that

15 helped the offense s skill position players set 24 game and season records His solid blocking in the trenches saw Arkansas boast their first season that featured a 3,000-yard passer and 1,000-yard rusher. Quarterback Ryan Mallett set the Arkansas season passing yards record with 3,869 and runningback Knile Davis posted the fourth-highest season rushing yards total in program history with 1,322 yards The Razorbacks were the only team in the country to boast a 3,000-yard passer, a 1,000-yard rusher and five 600-yard receivers His SEC Offensive Lineman of the Week honors came when Arkansas piled up 488 yards of total offense on 61 plays, an average of 8.0 yards per play vs. Mississippi State, as Love was key in blocking for Knile Davis 187 yards rushing and Ryan Mallett s 305 passing yards. MSU came into the contest ranked 16 th in the nation in scoring defense The Razorbacks finished the season first in the SEC and fourth in the NCAA in passing ( ypg), becoming just the third team since 1992 to lead the league in passing in consecutive seasons ( ypg in 2009).Arkansas also ranked second in the conference and ninth in the country in total offense ( ypg) and second in the SEC and 17th in the NCAA in scoring offense (36.46 ppg) SEASON Love was named team captain, as he shifted to left offensive tackle, starting all thirteen games Registered 73 knockdowns along with ten touchdown-resulting blocks, as he led an offensive line which blocked for a unit that led the Southeastern Conference in scoring offense (36.0 ppg) and passing offense ( ypg), and was third in total offense ( ypg).the Razorbacks were tenth in the nation in passing offense, 20th in total offense, ninth in scoring and 11th in passing efficiency The line did not allow a sack vs. Missouri State, Eastern Michigan or East Carolina, as Love blocked for seven 100-yard receiving games and three 100-yard rushing performances His blocking helped Arkansas set school passing records for yards in a game (447 vs. Missouri State), passing yards in a season (3,842), passing yards average (295.5), passing touchdowns in a season (32) and passing first downs in a season (147) He also protected quarterback Ryan Mallett, who set or tied 16 different records SEASON Love appeared in eleven games, starting eight contests at strong-side offensive guard Collected 34 knockdowns with four touchdown-resulting blocks, as he helped Michael Smith become the ninth 1,000-yard rusher in school history, finish the year second in the SEC and 22nd in the nation with 207 carries for 1,072 yards and eight touch-downs Love also helped protect QB Casey Dick, who completed 205 passes, and threw for 2,586 yards and 13 touchdowns. The completion total was a school record (since broken), the yardage total ranked second and the touchdowns tied for eighth before Ryan Mallett shattered those marks in 2009 and 2010 Arkansas' 3,115 yards passing was a then school record and the 4,477 yards of total offense ranked ninth SEASON Love played in eight games during his first varsity season, earning starting assignments at right offensive guard vs. Mississippi State, Louisiana State and Missouri in the Cotton Bowl Earned a season grade of 80.2% for blocking consistency with 16 knockdowns, as he helped Arkansas' line pave the way for an SEC-leading and school-record 3,725 rushing yards, an average of yards per game, which was fourth in the nation Played 28 snaps against North Texas, grading 87% on running plays and 85% for the game with a season-high five knockdown blocks Played 62 snaps vs. Mississippi State in the first start of his career with an 82% overall grade to go with four knockdown blocks SEASON Used his redshirt season to gain more strength and get valuable snaps on the practice field. AGILITY TESTS 5.31 in the 40-yard dash yard dash yard dash yard shuttle 7.84 three-cone drill 26 1/2- inch vertical jump 8 1 broad jump Bench pressed 225 pounds 27 times 35 ¼-inch arm length 9 ½-inch hands 83 ½-inch wingspan. HIGH SCHOOL Attended David W. Carter (Dallas, Tex.) High School, playing football for head coach Allen Watson Was a teammate of San Francisco 49ers receiver Michael Crabtree In Love s sophomore season, he started at offensive tackle, but shifted to offensive guard for his junior and senior campaigns In 2005, he helped his team to an 11-1 record and a secondround state playoff berth in the state's largest classification, Class 5A Rivals.com placed him 57 th among the nation s offensive linemen and 99 th among the state of Texas overall prep players Scout.com rated him 97 th among Texas prepsters and 68 th among the nation s interior blockers Tabbed the 68 th -best prospect on the Dallas Morning News All- Area team. PERSONAL Kinesiology major, enrolled in the Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences Son of Marcia and Martin Reise Born 3/07/88 Resides in Dallas, Texas.

16 PLAYER STATISTICS BLOCKING STATISTICS...Based on review of game film by our scouting department...sgp-season grade percentage...gm-games played...play-amount of snaps played in...kb-key blocks (pancake/ knockdowns)...tdb-touchdown resulting blocks... DWF-downfield blocks... PRS-pressures allowed... SKA-sacks allowed...high Grade Game-best graded game for the season. STATS GM SGP PLAYS KB TDB DWF PRS SKA High Grade Game % vs. Tulsa % vs. Missouri State % vs. Mississippi State TOTAL % vs. Mississippi State

17 MISTRAL RAYMOND Defensive Back South Florida # / 192 Palmetto, Forida Palmetto High School Ellsworth Community College Joined the South Florida program as a walk-on in Earned a scholarship and was named team captain in Second-team All-Big East as voted on by the conference coaches after his senior season. Played in 34 career games at South Florida recording 15 starts. Appeared in 12 games as a senior making 11 starts. Tallied 56 tackles, 4.5 TFL, 1 INT and 7 PBU in the 2010 season, his finest as a collegiate player. Career game came at Cincinnati where he posted a career-high 10 tackles, 2 PBU and his only interception of the 2010 season. Complied 4 tackles and a TFL in the Meineke Car Care Bowl win over Clemson to finish his USF career. As a junior he played in all 13 games making 4 starts at safety. Saw action as the nickel back as well. Even as a walk-on he appeared in nine games during the 2008 season mainly on special teams. Earned the Green & Gold award as the programs top walk-on. Spent two seasons at Ellsworth Community College. Led the defensive squad with 62 tackles in Majored in communications. RAYMOND S CAREER HIGHS Tackles at Cincinnati, 2010 INTs times; at Cincinnati, 2010, vs. Western Kentucky, 2009 TFLs times; most recently vs. Clemson, 2010 QB Hurries vs. Northern Illinois, 2009 PBUs times; at Cincinnati, 2010, vs. Connecticut, 2010 RAYMOND S CAREER STATS DEFENSE Year Team Tkls TFL INT PBU Sack 2007 Ellsworth CC South Florida South Florida South Florida Total

18 BRANDON FUSCO Offensive Center/Guard Slippery Rock University The Rock #74 6: Cranberry Township, Pennsylvania Seneca Valley High School OVERVIEW The 2010 Gene Upshaw Lineman of the Year Award recipient (given to the top NCAA Division II blocker), the three-time All-American has been the anchor for an offense that struggled to generate much of a passing game since his freshman campaign. After red-shirting as a freshman offensive tackle, he went on to start his next 44 games at center, as the twotime team captain collected 332 knockdowns with 42 touchdown-resulting blocks. Fusco did not play football until his junior season at Seneca Valley High School. He lined up at offensive tackle for the Raiders and despite performing for a team that won just one of eighteen contests during his two varsity seasons, Fusco earned All-WPIAL Class AAA-1 and honorable mention Quad North All-Star honors. With a lack of experience at the prep level, Fusco enrolled at Slippery Rock in 2006, spending the season as a red-shirt on the scout team, where he performed at offensive tackle. In 2007 spring drills, Fusco shifted to center. Having added 25 pounds to his frame, he posted 53 knockdowns for an offense that generated 5,099 yards and scored 52 times, including 29 touchdowns on the ground. As a sophomore, Fusco received All-American honorable mention, All-Super Region I and All-Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference first-team honors. He started all eleven games, delivering ten touchdown-resulting blocks for a unit that rushed for 29 scores. He had 74 knockdowns to help The Rock rank second in the conference with an average of yards per game. Fusco received All-American, All-Region and All-PSAC first-team accolades as a junior. Named the team captain, he also received squad MVP honors. He led the PSAC Western Division with 98 knockdowns and eleven touchdown-resulting blocks, despite the team s lack of a strong aerial game that ranked 59 th in the nation. It was his drive blocking skills that helped The Rock finish fifth nationally in rushing ( ypg) and seventh in total offense ( ypg). Fusco became the 19 th player in school history to garner All-American first-team honors more than once in a career, as the 2010 Gene Upshaw Award winner and team captain captured All-PSAC honors for the third consecutive year. With a limited passing game, The Rock again relied on his drive blocking skills to place tenth in the Division II ranks with an average of yards per game rushing. He capped off an excellent career by becoming the first player in school history to compete in the Senior Bowl. CAREER NOTES Fusco started all 44 games of his Slippery Rock career at center, recording 332 knock-downs, 42 touchdown-resulting blocks and 28 blocks down field Also experienced a lineman s dream by catching a pass for 9 yards vs. Edinboro in 2010 Is the 19 th player in school history to earn All-American first-team honors at least twice in a career ( ) The 2010 Gene Upshaw Award winner was the first player in Slippery Rock annals to compete in the Senior Bowl SEASON Fusco earned All-American first-team honors from The NFL Draft Report, the Associated Press, D2football.com, the American Football Coaches Association, Daktronics and Don Hansen's Football Gazette.Named as the 2010 recipient of the Gene Upshaw Division II Lineman of the Year Award, the Dave Rimington Award as the top Division II center in the nation and as a member of the Associated Press Little All-American team for players at NCAA Division II and Division III and NAIA schools The first-team All-Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference-West selection each of the last three seasons, Fusco was also the first Slippery Rock player to attend the NFL Scouting Combine The team captain for the second-straight season, the center also received invitations to participate in the Cactus Bowl, and East/West Shrine game Started all eleven games at center Did not allow a quarterback sack or pressure, as he delivered a career-best 107 knockdowns, adding seven blocks down field and thirteen touchdown-resulting blocks, as he also caught a 9-yard pass in the Edinboro contest Paved the way for The Rock to lead the PSAC and rank 12 th in the Division II ranks in total offense ( ypg) and place tenth nationally (second in the conference) with an average of yards per game rushing SEASON First-team All-American selection by The NFL Draft Report, Daktronics and Don Hansen's Football Gazette Added firstteam All-Region honors and finished third in the Super Region One voting for the Gene Upshaw Division II Lineman of the

19 Year Award...Earned first-team All-Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference-Western Division honors for second consecutive season...named The Rock s Offensive Most Valuable Player and was elected by teammates to be one of the team captains...started all eleven games at center, posting 98 knockdowns with eleven touchdown-resulting blocks for a unit that led the PSAC and finished seventh in the nation with an average of yards per game in total offense The rock also ranked fifth in the Division II ranks in rushing (239.54) as he led a front wall that allowed the sixth-fewest quarterback sacks in the nation (0.92 spg) SEASON Fusco received All-American honorable mention from The NFL Draft Report Was a third-team All-Super Region One choice by Don Hansen's Football Gazette Added first-team All-Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference-Western honors Started all eleven games in the middle of the line, producing ten touchdown-resulting blocks and 74 knockdowns, as The Rock averaged yards per game in total offense, including yards on the ground, the second-best average in the PSCA and 12-best in the NCAA Division II ranks SEASON Fusco took over center duties as a red-shirt freshman, receiving All-PSAC second-team honors Credited with 53 knockdowns and eight touchdown-resulting blocks, as the offense generated 5,099 yards and 52 touchdowns in eleven games SEASON Red-shirted as a freshman. AGILITY TESTS 5.21 in the 40-yard dash yard dash yard dash yard shuttle 7.29 three-cone drill 28 1/2- inch vertical jump 9 0 broad jump Bench pressed 225 pounds 26 times 33 ¾-inch arm length 10-inch hands 80 1/8-inch wingspan. HIGH SCHOOL Attended Seneca Valley (Harmony, Pa.) High School, playing football for head coach Ron Butschle Did not play until his junior season...lined up at offensive tackle for the Raiders and despite performing for a team that won just one of eighteen contests during his two varsity seasons, Fusco earned All-WPIAL Class AAA-1 and honorable mention Quad North All-Star honors Also was an Honor Roll student. PERSONAL Safety and Environmental Management major Son of Debbie and Stephen Fusco Born Brandon M. Fusco Resides in Cranberry Township, Pennsylvania. PLAYER STATISTICS BLOCKING STATISTICS...Based on review of game film by our scouting department...sgp-season grade percentage...gm-games played...play-amount of snaps played in...kb-key blocks (pancake/ knockdowns)...tdb-touchdown resulting blocks... DWF-downfield blocks... PRS-pressures allowed... SKA-sacks allowed...high Grade Game-best graded game for the season. STATS GM SGP PLAYS KB TDB DWF PRS SKA High Grade Game % vs. Kutztown % vs. Clarion % vs. Lock Haven % vs. C.W. Post TOTAL % vs. C.W. Post

20 ROSS HOMAN Outside/Inside Linebacker The Ohio State University Buckeyes #51 6: Coldwater, Ohio Coldwater High School OVERVIEW Homan helped the Buckeyes lead the Big Ten Conference in total defense the past two seasons and finish fifth in the nation in 2009 ( yards per game) and fourth in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision ranks in 2010 ( yards per game). Homan appeared in 54 games for the Buckeyes. The Lott Trophy quarterfinalist closed his career with 287 tackles (155 solo), and 17 tackles for loss, three forced fumbles, five fumble recoveries seven interceptions and 10 pass deflections, seven of which came on third down. At Coldwater High School, Homan was a three-time first-team All-Ohio selection. He was named Ohio s 2005 Division IV Player of the Year as he led his team to the Division IV state title. He received a four-star rating from Rivals.com, which listed him 11th among the nation s outside linebackers and eighth on its Ohio Top 60 List. Scout.com rated him the 14 th -best linebacker in the country and also accorded him four-star prospect accolades. During his career as a linebacker, he recorded 482 tackles (300 solo) and 25 tackles for loss. At running back, he gained 2,418 rushing yards and 40 TDs on 382 carries (6.33 avg.) and caught 43 passes for 737 yards (17.14 avg.) with nine TDs. Homan posted 234 tackles (137 solo) with 13 tackles for loss while totaling 806 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns on 167 carries (4.83 avg.) as a junior and 249 receiving yards and five touchdowns on 12 receptions. In his final prep season, he registered 204 tackles (119 solo), 17 tackles for loss and one interception, which he returned for a touchdown. On offense, he rushed 215 times for 1,412 yards (6.57 avg.) with 26 touchdowns and caught 31 passes for 488 yards (15.74 avg.) with four scores. In 13 games in his rookie season, he totaled 28 tackles (15 solo) with one sack and one interception. Homan appeared in four games and posted 12 tackles (6 solo) in 2007 but was granted a medical hardship due to injury. Homan emerged in 2008 as the new starting weak-side outside linebacker. He finished fifth on the team with 67 tackles (35 solo), including one sack and six tackles for loss. He recovered two fumbles, including one that preserved a decision over Wisconsin. Homan led the Buckeyes to a Rose Bowl victory in The All-Big Ten Conference second-team choice enjoyed his finest season, leading the team with 108 tackles (57 solo), the eighth-highest total in the league. He registered two sacks, five tackles for loss, five interceptions and five pass breakups. In 2010, Homan was named All-Big Ten Conference first team. He ranked second on the squad with 72 tackles (42 solo), caused two fumbles and recovered one fumble. He defended five passes with one interception. CAREER NOTES Started 30-of-54 games at weak-side outside linebacker Recorded 287 tackles (155 solo) with five sacks (35 yards) and seventeen tackles for loss (55 yards) Caused three fumbles and recovered five Deflected 10 passes Intercepted seven passes for 56 yards (8.0 avg) His 108 tackles in 2009 marked the eighth consecutive season that a Buckeye registered at least 100 tackles during a campaign SEASON All-America honorable mention by The NFL Draft Report and Sports Illustrated First-team All-Big Ten Conference choice Academic All-Big Ten member Defensive co-captain Lott Trophy quarterfinalist and a member of the watch lists for the Nagurski, Lombardi and Butkus awards Started 11 games at weak-side outside linebacker Finished second on the team with 72 tackles (42 solo), including one sack (one yard) and two tackles for loss (two yards) Caused two fumbles and recovered one Helped the Buckeyes lead the Big Ten Conference and finish fourth nationally in total defense ( yards per game) OSU led the Big Ten and finished third in rush defense (96.69 yards per game) and scoring defense (14.31 points per game).

21 2009 SEASON All-Big Ten Conference second-team choice Received the team s Randy Gradishar Award (outstanding linebacker) Earned Big Ten Player of the week honors vs. Wisconsin and Player of the Game accolades vs. Toledo, New Mexico State and Iowa Led the team with a career-best 108 tackles (57 solo) with two sacks (13 yards) and five tackles for loss (17 yards) Recovered two fumbles and caused one Deflected five passes and posted five interceptions for 44 yards (8.8 avg.) His 108 tackles marked the ninth consecutive season the Buckeyes had a player reach the 100-tackle mark Had at least 10 tackles in three games Led a unit that ranked fifth in the nation in total defense ( yards per game), seventh in run defense (90.77 yards per game) and fifth in scoring defense (12.54 points per game) SEASON Played in 13 games and started six at outside linebacker Finished fifth on the team with 67 tackles (35 solo), including an eight-yard sack and six tackles for loss (17 yards) Deflected one pass and recovered one fumble SEASON Appeared in four games before being granted a medical hardship due to a turf toe injury Finished with 12 tackles (6 solo) SEASON Played in all 13 games as a reserve outside linebacker Recorded 28 tackles (15 solo) with a 13-yard sack and two tackles for loss (15 yards) Intercepted on pass Posted a 13-yard sack vs. Cincinnati Registered a season-high seven stops vs. Minnesota Played in the BCS Championship game. CAMPUS AGILITY TESTS 4.68 in the 40-yard dash yard dash yard dash yard shuttle 7.21 three-cone drill 35.5-inch vertical jump 9 2 broad jump Bench pressed 225 pounds 32 times 30 ½-inch arm length 9 7/8-inch hands 74-inch wingspan. HIGH SCHOOL Attended Coldwater (Oh.) High School Three-time first-team All-Ohio selection Named Ohio s 2005 Division IV Player of the Year after leading his team to the Division IV state title Received a four-star rating from Rivals.com, which rated him 11 among the nation s outside linebackers and eighth on its Ohio Top 60 List Scout.com rated him the 14th-best linebacker in the country as a four-star prospect During his career as a linebacker and running back, he recorded 482 tackles (300 solo), 25 tackles for loss, 382 carries for 2,418 yards (6.33 avg.) with 40 TDs and 43 receptions for 737 yards (17.14 avg.) with nine scores Registered 234 tackles (137 solo) with 13 tackles for loss, 167 carries for 806 yards (4.83 avg.) with 14 TDs and 12 receptions for 249 yards with five TDs In his final prep season, made 204 tackles (119 solo), including 17 tackles for loss Returned one interception, which he returned for a TD On offense, rushed 215 times for 1,412 yards (6.57 avg.) with 26 touchdowns and caught 31 passes for 488 yards (15.74 avg.) with four scores. PERSONAL Graduated in December 2010 with a degree in Family Resource Management Earned Academic All-Big Ten Conference honors Cousins, Tom and Bobby Hoying played at Ohio State Son of Alice and David Homan Born 3/05/87 Resides in Coldwater, Ohio. PLAYER STATISTICS DEFENSIVE STATISTICS STATS GP GS TK SO AS FR FC INT TFL PBU SACK PRES TOTAL INTERCEPTION RETURNS STATS NO YARDS AVG TD LONG TOTAL

22 D AUNDRE REED Defensive Line Arizona # / 260 Moreno Valley, California Rancho Verde High School Was a fifth-year senior defensive end appearing in 47 games making 8 career starts. As a senior recorded 40 total tackles, a career-high. Also set career-highs with 32 solo tackles and 6 TFLs in his final year as a Wildcat. As the third DE, Reed found a way to collect 6 sacks, 2 FF, 2 PD and 1 FR during his career. Finished his Arizona career with a career high 6 tackles at Oregon. Appeared in 13 games as a senior making 1 start. Fellow DEs Brooks Reed (Texans, 2nd) and Ricky Elmore (Packers, 6th) were also members of the 2011 NFL Draft class. Coming out of high school was the top defensive lineman in the Southland list according to the Los Angeles Times. Redshirted the 2006 season at Arizona. Majored in sociology CIF Southern Section Division V First-Team defense. Received accolades as a safety prior to his switch to defensive end. Saw action as a tight end during his junior season of high school, finishing with 16 rec. and 2 TDs. Finished his high school career with 29 TFLs and 12 sacks. Ranked in the Top 10 of the discus throw in the Southwestern League. REED S CAREER HIGHS Tackles at Oregon, 2010 Sacks times; most recently at Washington State, 2010 TFLs at Washington, 2010 Fumble Recovery at Washington State, 2010 PBUs times; most recently at Toledo, 2010 REED S CAREER STATS DEFENSE Year Team Tkls TFL FF PBU Sack 2007 Arizona Arizona Arizona Arizona Total

23 STEPHEN BURTON Wide Receiver West Texas A&M # / 224 Lakewood, California Artesia High School Long Beach Community College Was named First-Team All-LSC South after his 2010 season with West Texas A&M. Appeared in 24 games making 18 starts during his West Texas career. Transferred to WTAMU from Long Beach CC where he spent 2007 and 2008, earning team MVP in 07. Led West Texas and set career highs with 70 receptions for 1,021 yards and 11 TDs during his senior campaign. Helped lead team to Division Playoffs in 2010 and finished with an 8-4 record to close out his career. Earned LSC South Offensive Player of the Week honors for his efforts against Tarleton State. He finished with 5 receptions for 144 yards and 2 TDs including a 99-yard TD reception. It was the longest play in school history. Eclipsed the 100-yard receiving mark 6 times in two seasons at West Texas. Led the team in all purpose yards with 1,350 during During the 2010 season he led the team in punt returns with 10 returns for 98 yards. Finished second on the team with 10 kickoff returns totaling 231 yards. Earned First-Team SCFA All-Southern Conference honors after his 2008 season. He averaged 21.1 yards per catch (39 rec., 823 yds) and also returned kicks for 551 yards averaging 23.9 yards per return. Was named Long Beach CC team MVP in 2007 as a freshman. Earned Second-Team All- Conference honors as a receiver. BURTON S CAREER HIGHS Receptions at East Central, 2010 Receiving Yards. 168 vs. Texas A&M Kingsville, 2009 Receiving TDs times; most recently at East Central, 2010 Long Reception vs. Tarleton, 2010 BURTON S CAREER STATS OFFENSE Year Team Rec. Yds TD LG Avg Long Beach CC Long Beach CC West Texas West Texas 70 1, Total 203 3, KICK RET Year Team Ret. Yds TD Avg West Texas West Texas Total PUNT RET Year Team Ret. Yds TD Avg West Texas West Texas Total

24 2011 NFL DRAFT QUOTES Tuesday, April 26, 2011 Vikings Head Coach Leslie Frazier - Pre-Draft Press Conference Vikings VP of Player Personnel Rick Spielman - Pre-Draft Press Conference Thursday, April 28, 2011 Vikings Head Coach Leslie Frazier - Press Conference Following Selection of QB Christian Ponder Vikings VP of Player Personnel Rick Spielman - Press Conference Following Selection of QB Christian Ponder Vikings First Round Draft Choice QB Christian Ponder - Conference Call Friday, April 29, 2011 Vikings Head Coach Leslie Frazier - Press Conference Introducing QB Christian Ponder Vikings First Round Draft Choice QB Christian Ponder - Press Conference Vikings Second Round Draft Choice TE Kyle Rudolph - Conference Call Vikings Head Coach Leslie Frazier - Press Conference Following Selection of TE Kyle Rudolph Saturday, April 30, 2011 Vikings Second Round Draft Choice TE Kyle Rudolph - Press Conference Vikings Fourth Round Draft Choice DT Christian Ballard - Conference Call Vikings Fifth Round Draft Choice CB Brandon Burton - Conference Call Vikings Sixth Round Draft Choice T DeMarcus Love - Conference Call Vikings Sixth Round Draft Choice S Mistral Raymond - Conference Call Vikings Sixth Round Draft Choice C Brandon Fusco - Conference Call Vikings Sixth Round Draft Choice LB Ross Homan - Conference Call Vikings Seventh Round Draft Choice DE D Aundre Reed - Conference Call Vikings Seventh Round Draft Choice WR Stephen Burton - Conference Call Vikings Head Coach Leslie Frazier - Post-Draft Press Conference Vikings VP of Player Personnel Rick Spielman - Post Draft Press Conference

25 TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2011 Vikings Head Coach Leslie Frazier It s great to be back in this facility talking football and not some of the other things we ve had to talk about over the last few months. Knowing that in a couple nights our fans will be filling this building, it s going to be an exciting time for us. I ve enjoyed the last few weeks of sitting down with Rick and our scouts and our coaches in preparation for this year s draft. It s been a great experience and it gets me excited about what s going to occur on April 28th. I m looking forward to who our pick is going to be and what he s going to contribute to our football team. There are a lot of good players on that board that we re discussing and I m excited about what s going to happen in the days ahead and it should be a great time if you re a Minnesota Vikings fan. It should be a great time. Q: Who came in today? Did you talk to him? What exactly transpired? A: We had one of our players that stopped by. Erin Henderson stopped in and I had a chance to speak with him. [A] very brief conversation, but as far as I know that s the only player we ve had to stop by. Q: How odd is it for you to have a player there and not be able to have direct communication with him? A: It s a little different, as you guys well know. This time of the year they re usually around and doing things with our team and our strength coaches. So it s been different but it s been different for all 32 teams. It s just the way it is. Q: Is the draft process as a head coach something you ve always looked forward to? How has the draft preparation been going for you compared to what you imagined it? A: It hasn t been a whole lot different than I thought it would be. I m very fortunate to be in a situation where I m around some experienced guys such as (VP of Player Personnel) Rick (Spielman) and (Director of College Scouting) Scott Studwell and (Director of Pro Personnel) George Paton and others who ve done it before and have had success in doing it. So it s made my job a lot easier, for myself and the coaches. It s been just about everything I thought it would be. We re not quite there yet. We re still going through the process and looking forward to the 28th and 29th and 30th just to see how everything comes together. But so far so good. Q: Are you still wondering who your starting quarterback will be? A: Right now, Joe Webb is the guy. We ll see what happens in the weeks and months to come. Q: Last time you said your ideal would be to get a rookie quarterback who you could groom. Since then there have been reports that Donovan McNabb has been discussed before the lockout began. Are you still thinking that ideally at most you get a bridge veteran guy. McNabb still might have some time left, so it seems like he might be more than a bridge. A: What I said earlier about ideally being able to draft a guy and develop him, that would be the ideal situation. I referenced three guys who ve done it in the last couple years: (Mark) Sanchez, (Joe) Flacco and Matt Ryan down in Atlanta. Hopefully that ll be the case for us, but who knows who s going to be there at 12 and if the guy we want is going to be there at 12 or not? We ll have to wait and see what happens, and play it by ear from that point on. But who knows what s going to happen at 12. And you really can t get into speculation about other people s players of other teams, you can t even go down that road. But hopefully things will fall where they should for the Minnesota Vikings at pick 12 or whatever pick we use. Q: Do you believe that the QBs from this class can make that transition? A: Rick referenced it earlier that the thing that whoever you draft this year may not have is the OTAs (organized team activities), the minicamps. It s really hard to predict whether or not that guy will be ready to play on Day 1 just because of the uncertainty of this offseason. It s hard to project.

26 Q: More so at QB than any other position? A: I think you have to factor in every position. When guys hold out at other positions and they miss training camp, you see the effect that it has on their performance. So I wouldn t say it would just be the quarterback position, but that position maybe more so than others because of what he s asked to do. He has to know everybody s role and their responsibilities, more so than a defensive tackle or a running back. It s a little more on that quarterback s shoulders. It could have an effect on all the players. Q: What kind of role have you played in the college scouting process? How different has it been for you personally, now that you are a head coach? A: You go from being a defensive coordinator, where you re working just one side of the football, although in the role of assistant head coach I would have discussions on occasion with Rick and others about other positions. But my primary responsibility was working on the defensive side of the football. Now, to have to look at it globally when it comes to special teams, offense and defense, that s a little bit different but it s not something I ve never had to do before. I really enjoy doing it. I like being able to have some say in who we re looking at as a return specialist, who we re looking at other positions other than just defense. I ve enjoyed it, it s been good. I ve enjoyed it a great deal. Q: Now that you ve seen every QB, is there one or two guys that you have narrowed down to being a good fit for this team? A: We re still having discussions as Rick mentioned earlier about different scenarios and where guys might fall. We have some ideas about some people that we really, really like and we ll just have to see how things play out. Some of what you like depends on what happens ahead of you and sometimes behind you. We ll just have to see how things go. Q: How realistic is it that Joe Webb could be your starter? A: As we speak today, it s extremely realistic just because we don t know what s going to happen with the draft, we don t know what s going to happen with free agency. There are so many unknowns. And you can only in my case deal with what you see. Right now our roster says Joe Webb and Rhett Bomar are the guys. Q: Do you have confidence in Joe? A: Yeah, I have confidence in Joe. You take a look at what he did late in the season. He gives you some hope. Our players really rallied behind Joe and were very supportive of him. He just has to get the experience you need at that position, but he showed glimpses of a guy who has a chance to be successful. Q: Has there been a period of time when you ve talked to players about the offensive scheme? A: No, we haven t had a chance to talk to any of our players about what we re doing with our new staff and what we want to get done. But hopefully that s going to happen in time. But at this point, no, we haven t had a chance to do that. Q: Are you under specific guidelines from NFL on what you can and cannot say? A: We are, we re still in lockout mode. Everything is like it was 24 hours ago for us as coaches and as an organization. Nothing really has changed in that regard as far as communication with our players and what we can and can t do other than the fact that guys are able to come in the building. But that s the extent of it. Q: Does that make it awkward, with someone like Erin coming in and having to be worried about what you can and cannot say? A: The one good thing about a guy like Erin is he s such a loveable guy it s easy to communicate and be around him. Those of you that know him know exactly what I m talking about. It wasn t awkward in that case. We ll just see what happens in the days and weeks to come with the remainder of whatever happens. Q: Have you drawn up a preliminary schedule for minicamps? A: We ve actually had some discussions today about the what-ifs depending on what the ruling will say. We re in some discussions about a plan, but we do have to kind of temper that until we find out what direction to go. But we have had some discussions about what direction we d go.

27 Q: Have you come up with a plan with what you will do in the first hours of a league year? A: We ve gone through so many different scenarios, even if things were to change today how we d handle it if things were to change today. We ll have those discussions on-going until we find out what is what. I think you have to do it that way so you re not caught off-guard and still you don t know if the direction you re going is the correct direction, but you have to have a plan and we re trying to develop plans as we go along, like every team is doing. Q: After all you ve gone through when you first came in as coach and now with the lockout, does anything surprise you at this point? A: A few people have asked me that, just the way things transpired in that interim role and now. I m fortunate. I ve got some good people around me and we ve got a great staff. I believe we ve really assembled a terrific staff, so I have a lot of confidence in our coaches, our scouting staff that s under Rick s tutelage, the support I get from (Director of Public Relations) Bob Hagan and so many in our offices. I really don t get intimidated by the circumstances because so much of it is out of my control. But I just know that when you ve got good people around you, you ve got a chance to be successful. I m fortunate in that regard. I m surrounded by a lot of good people. Q: Everyone is talking about the QB, but you will need to find a way to protect him better, aren t you? A: No question, whoever you have at the quarterback position, you better have a way to protect him. There are different ways to do that. Sometimes it s getting the ball out of his hand quicker. Sometimes it s being able to have a good running game. There are different things that you have to be able to do. But we definitely want to make sure we have the right left tackle, the right left guard, right guard, center, right tackle to help our quarterback. But having Adrian Peterson in the backfield tends to help a quarterback and we ve got to do a good job in all areas, but in our league, until you answer the bell at that position, it really doesn t make a great deal of difference about some of the other positions. You really want to identify and get the right guy under center. That is key in our League to long-term success. Q: Do you feel significantly differently about the roster this year compared to last year? A: You know, a year ago my focus was primarily on one side of the ball, where now seeing the entire team, you re right we have a number of areas we want to address. And that s one of the reasons, with the nine picks that we do have, we re confident we re going to get some good football players in this draft, it s just a matter of where we re taking them at. We re going to have a chance to address some needs; very grateful we ve got a chance to have nine new players on our football team. The fact that we re not able to concentrate on just one position, you re really enthused about the fact we re going to be able to add nine good football players along the way. Our roster will be different, but that s the National Football League. It rarely stays the same from year to year, but we ve just got to make sure we hit on the right guys and we ll make an improvement from last season. Q: How will you guys be better prepared than other teams coming out of this off-season? A: I don t know everything that other teams are doing, I just know that with the communication that we have in place on our staff and in our organization, we ll be as prepared or better prepared maybe than some other teams just because of the communication alone and the fact that I m encouraged by the guys that are a part of our football team; our veteran players. We have solid veteran leadership. I have complete confidence that when this thing is up and going again, it s not going to be like we re behind X,Y,Z team, because of our leadership. The fact that we have solid people in our organization. I don t know what other people are doing, but I just have a lot of confidence in our people, our players and the people within our organization to make sure we don t miss a beat.

28 TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2011 Vikings Vice President of Player Personnel Rick Spielman I would like to start by thanking all the hard work that has been put in place over the last couple of months. Our coaching staff and working with Leslie (Frazier) has been outstanding. We have had very productive meetings. I think everybody has felt very openly about discussing and not holding back anything on what we felt about these players. Our trainers, our psychologists, our player programs guy. Everybody has a major part in this process as we put these pieces together. Just seeing what our scouts have done; Scott Studwell (Director of College Scouting), George Paton (Director of Player Personnel) all of our support help from Kelly Wilske (Executive Assistant, Player Personnel) on down through our interns really put a lot of effort for this. We are very excited about the draft coming up. Q: How did the Vikings deal with the ruling that was handed down yesterday? A: We were instructed on how to handle that and we handled that accordingly. There was a player in but I will have Leslie (Frazier) handle that when he comes up. There are specific ways on how to handle that and we will abide by what the NFL is telling us. We will continue to abide by what the NFL is telling us to do until we hear anything further. Q: Are you able to complete trades at this point? A: No. As of right now, from what we understand, everything is status quo. We have not heard anything different or been instructed from the NFL on anything different than it has been from a business standpoint. We will continue to abide by all those rules. Q: Do you have any idea how long these current rules will be in place? A: I have no idea. We are sitting here waiting as you guys (media) are as well. When they tell us something changes we will act accordingly. I can tell you this though, from all of our preparation and how we have prepared for free agency and how we have prepared to help this team all of that is done and in place. All the plans are in place, now it s just a matter of when you can implement those plans. Q: Are you able to bring draft picks into the Vikings facility after being selected? A: We can bring players in that we draft into the facility. You guys (media) will get a chance to meet those (picks). Basically that is all we can do with those players. It is for media purposes only. We will talk to the kid but we won t give them any kind of playbook or anything related to football. So basically we are bringing them in so you guys (media) can talk to them because we are a nice club. Q: How has preparing for this draft compared to previous drafts? A: There is no difference in the preparation. All the preparation is the same. What will be different in this draft than a previous draft is as you game plan and as you put up scenarios, in the past you can say, well this was a need but they were able to fill it in free agency, or they were able to fill this with a trade. Now going into it this is the first opportunity any team in the NFL is going to have to start filling needs as they get ready to prepare for the next season. I think from a strategic standpoint you look at it a little differently because you don t know what is going to happen. To give you an example, you could have four players on your board and four different positions all of equal value. You could kind of dictate what teams may take those guys but this team s not since they just did something in free agency. Now that eliminates one of the potential teams of taking the player that you like. You have to weigh in everything that has not been done yet and what can potentially happen during the draft. Q: Are you still working under the 2010 CBA? A: Nothing has been told to us anything different. We are going about business as we have all off season. If something changes we will adjust accordingly. Right now we are going into it with how everything is in place right now.

29 Q: Do you have any idea how many draft scenarios you currently have in place? A: Coach Frazier has been involved for the first time as a head coach so we have been pounding it pretty hard and a lot of different scenarios. In fact, before we came down here we were just going through potential second-round scenarios. What can we do there? Can we move back there? Can we pick up another pick? Would we definitely stay in this position for this player? I think at the 12 th overall pick, I know one thing that we are going to get a very good football player. What position, I don t know what that is going to be? I know we have six or seven options at that pick, all different positions. There are a couple multiple players at the same position there. We have stacked those guys on if both of them are there how we would take them off accordingly. We have also been very active on the phones trying to look to trade back. We have had three or four teams already call us on potentially moving up in the draft to our 12th spot. We are going to look at all those options but a lot of that will not happen, more than likely, until we are actually on the clock. Q: What is your overall view of this year s quarterback class? A: I think when you look at this draft class, there s going to be a lot of quarterbacks taken, and taken early just because of how many teams need quarterbacks. We ve done an extensive study, and every one of these guys has a strength and a weakness. We are identifying what those strengths are and what those weaknesses are. Specifically, if any of these guys weakness can be corrected, or is it an off-the-field weakness, or a leadership weakness, or an on-the-field issue. Everyone has different issues, we ve been through that and what we feel comfortable with. I would say in this draft in particular, I don t know if there is a Sam Bradford per se, but even he had people questioning him about his durability. We analyzed all this and went through every guy s strength and weakness, and everyone got an opportunity to speak their mind. We feel very confident with where we have these quarterbacks stacked. Q: How prepared are you for free agency, should a scenario come about in the next 48 hours where the market opens? A: It would be tough to take them out to dinner Thursday night if that would happen. Our free agency board is already set. We implemented a lot of things, where if it was a normal year, what we would be doing. It would be pretty difficult to have free agency going on at the same time as the draft. We ve talked about that with our ownership and what we would do if that happened. We have looked at it every way, shape, and form it could come down and hit us, and how we would handle that. We have discussed that and have a plan in action for every one of those phases. Q: Is there a specific directive from the league that prevents you from negotiating with your own players and free agents? A: I don t want to get into all of the lawyer stuff because I m not a lawyer. I m going to take directions from what the League says. Right now everything is remaining at status quo and we are going along with what the League is telling us to do. Q: Are you confident the other 31 teams are doing the same thing? A: I can t answer that on what the other 31 teams are doing. I know the Minnesota Vikings are going to stay far away from that bright line and follow the rules accordingly. We re not going to do anything like that and try to do something that isn t right. Q: Can you discuss trades with other teams and be ready to roll when the current rules lift? A: We can discuss trades on picks, but not players. Q: You discussed in January possibly trying to get a third round pick back, is that something that is something that is still on your radar, and how important is that to you? A: If we can get a pick we like and get a third round pick, we think we will have had a very successful draft. There are players we ve already talked about, that if he is available at the number 12 pick, we aren t going to move, we are going take that player because we think that he s significant enough to take him and not trade out. We have been through scenarios where we ve looked at our team if we move back, lost that player, but picked up a third-rounder. We have also looked at scenarios where we didn t move back, didn t have a thirdrounder, picked that player and how that player would impact our football team.

30 Q: How hard has it become to judge what the first eleven teams will do in front of you? A: You have an idea, but I don t know because sometimes there s some pretty good players up there, and where they are going to come off. Now if one of those players that we have in the top five, comes to us at 12, I can tell you we aren t going to trade out, we re going to take that player. You re going to have to sit back, be patient and wait. Then you re going to have to weigh in when you re on that clock and look at your options and how many bodies you have left so you could potentially move back, pick up a third round pick, and still get one of those three or four players that you would ve taken at 12 anyway. Q: Does not having a third round pick make it less likely that you would try to move up if one of those guys you have in the top five is still there? A: I would say, if we feel that strongly about a player, that would not prevent us from moving up. I don t want to say we would never move up because we might, but I would say the more likely scenario is to stay put or move back. If there is someone that is falling down that board and he is that significant of a player, we may say that this is too good of an opportunity to get a difference maker, we may say that we need to go do what we have to do to get it done. Q: Do you feel significantly different about your roster than you did a year ago? A: I think it s just retooling what we ve talked about. We are going to have to have some young guys step up. We knew last year that we pretty much had the same roster, and the rookies that we brought in were more role players. Some of them ended up being starters and contributing. I think this year, the guys we are looking at, are guys we are planning on coming in and making a contribution either as a starter or a role player. The other thing you have to look at in this draft, that is so much different than the drafts in the past, is that the rookies you bring in, if they re not here, and they re not here until August, they have missed all that time with the coaches, all of the OTAs and mini-camps. I believe that they will be significantly further behind than a normal rookie class would be because of the lack of working with our coaches, lack of knowledge of the system, and getting acclimated to our game. We will have to be more patient with our rookie class; if the scenario comes up that these guys don t show up until sometime in August. Q: How many quarterbacks on your board do you realistically want? A: How many have you guys written about? There s a significant amount of quarterbacks throughout the draft. Not only early, but there s some guys middle and some guys late that we really think have an opportunity to be decent quarterbacks in this league. Q: How do you evaluate a need based on a player that might leave from free agency? A: You go taking the best player available. Say a receiver falls to 12, do you pass up that guy if you think he s that significant of a player. I go back to when we took Percy (Harvin) or Adrian Peterson, when a player is that significant, you re not going to pass that player up if you feel that he s going to be an impact player. Q: Do you think there will be greater temptation to reach for a quarterback because you haven t had free agency to address that and there are so many teams that have that need? A: That will be an interesting thing to watch, it will give you something to write about this year.

31 THURSDAY, APRIL 28, 2011 Vikings Head Coach Leslie Frazier We selected our first round pick, a quarterback from Florida State that we re excited about. Christian Ponder has done a great job in college and we fully expect him to do a great job for us as well. I think it s a great night for the Minnesota Vikings, I really do. We get a chance to solidify, in my mind, the most important position on a football team, the quarterback position and the guy who is the leader, not necessarily by choice of your football team, but he is the recognized leader of your team. We were able to address that tonight and drafted Christian Ponder, who I really believe is going to do a great job in the National Football League. Q: Once Jake Locker was off the board, did you take a step back? A: Not really. Rick is taking us through a thousand different scenarios over the last few weeks and I don t think anything happened in those first eleven picks that we didn t anticipate or hadn t talked about at some point. So, there was nothing that made us take a deep breath along the way. Q: Is Christian Ponder the starter or is it an open competition? A: Well, I still want it to be an open competition with the guys that are on our roster right now. There s Joe Webb, there s Rhett and of course Christian eventually. So, it will be those three and what happens with free agency, who knows? We ll eventually get to that point, but right now it s a competition between those three and we ll line up with the best guy against the Chargers. Q: Did his football IQ prove to be a major positive in your eyes? A: That s a tremendous asset in his case. He s an extremely intelligent young man and the fact that he would be able to pick up an offense in a short period of time, that s an asset in the situation we re currently in the National Football League. So, it didn t hurt the fact that he was an extremely smart individual, so we ll see what that translates to, based on what happens to our league over the next few weeks and months to come, but it s definitely a plus. Q: What s the plan for bringing guys in to work out? A: You know I ve talked to a number of our players this afternoon, just making them aware of the fact that they can come over and work out and our coaches are talking with them as well, making them aware that they can come over and work out tomorrow and starting next week, hopefully being able to be around the building. So, we ve already begun the process, introducing them to the fact that we re open for business and we d like to begin to look towards mini-camps and OTA s and we re waiting on some word regarding that, but right now we are making plans to put in place some OTA s and mini-camps. Q: You met with Ponder before the draft. What are your thoughts? A: Had a chance to spend time with him at the Senior Bowl. We spent time with him at the combine and then also down at his campus at a pro day, so we got a chance to get to know him quite well and obviously we were extremely impressed with him and we feel good about where he is and what he is going to bring to the table. Q: What characteristics did you like about Ponder? A: I like the fact that, first of all, he s an extremely smart guy and at that position, that s a plus. That s a major plus, along with the fact that he s extremely accurate with the football. He s a tough guy. Has good leadership qualities, things you look for in a quarterback and his intangibles, the fact that he gets along with everybody on the football team. Other guys gravitate to him whether they are on defense, whether its on the offensive line or

32 running back, I mean guys wanted to be around Christian. Those qualities were some of the things you look for beyond the talent at the quarterback position. Those are some of the things that really impressed me. Q: Did you and Rick Spielman have him ranked the same? A: I didn t think we had to sell one another on Christian. We were excited about him all along and when we went down to the pro day and had a chance to spend time with him. We went out to dinner. We talked a lot. We went over a lot of things on the football field. I think we all came away from that visit saying man, if that guy is there it would be hard to pass him up and fortunate for us he ended up being there at 12. Q: Coming from a defensive background, were you surprised at the depth of defensive talent left at pick 12? A: You know that s the way the Draft goes. Some years there s a run on certain positions and other years it s not always as predictable as you d like it to be. So not completely surprised, but as it unfolds, there usually are some surprises along the way. Q: Do you sense that a new coach is tied to his highly chosen quarterback? A: That may happen but I feel good about it. That s one of the reasons I endorsed this pick so that s not a problem for me. I m looking forward to Christian being our quarterback and doing a great job for us for a long time to come. Q: Reactions from the fans seem mixed. What is your response to the fans? A: Our fans love the Minnesota Vikings. They want to see the Vikings do well so we have to go out and perform and if we don t perform well this next season, emotions will be mixed also. As a team we ve got to make sure we are doing the right things for our fans to be supportive and be cheering. We plan on getting that done over the course of this next season. Q: When in the process did you feel you were going to take a quarterback? A: I don t think there was ever a time where we said we have to take a quarterback. Even right up until yesterday afternoon we were going through different scenarios again. We kept looking at different scenarios and trying to paint a picture, if a quarterback is not there or if a quarterback is there, what direction we will go because we knew at our pick number 12 there were going to be a lot of good football players on the board, but we also had guys ranked by position along with best available so when Christian was there at our pick, for us it was just in a lot of ways a no-brainer to take him understanding what our situation is and where we want to go as a football team. Q: How many quarterbacks were in the draft that you felt comfortable with? A: We took the guy that I m the most comfortable with. I mean that s the guy that I have confidence who is going to do a great job leading our football team, although he s a rookie and he ll be in competition for the starting job when we get ready to open against San Diego, I have confidence that we took the right guy. Q: Do you have expectations for him to start? A: Well some of it will depend on when we actually start football. If for some reason everything is delayed and we re not doing this and we re not back together again until July or August or whenever, then your expectations change a little bit so it s kind of mixed right now. We have to kind of wait and see what happens with our League. Q: If he Ponder comes in tomorrow can he get the playbook? A: Yeah. We re going to spend time with him talking about our offense and Craig Johnson, our quarterbacks coach along with Bill (Musgrave), they re going to spend the time that we have him in the building talking football and trying to get him up to speed not knowing when we are going to see him again. Q: How do you balance on when you should wait and when you should play him? A: Yeah, you got to gauge your quarterback and determine, based on your football team, is that the right fit for him? You got to make sure you got all the parts around a guy if you re going to put him in that situation, otherwise we all know you can ruin a young quarterback and he fails too often so we got to be smart and we will. We ll take a look at where he is and how he s progressing and we ll make a decision based on that.

33 THURSDAY, APRIL 28, 2011 Vikings Vice President of Player Personnel Rick Spielman We were very excited with what we were able to do in the first round. Quarterback was a huge need for us as everybody knows. We are very excited to get Christian Ponder; he was one of our top-rated quarterbacks. After watching how well he played during his 2009 season, he had an injury this year which affected some of the throws he made. But after he was able to get healthy through the season he did an excellent job, and that was especially true in the Florida game. Then we saw him at the Senior Bowl and thought he was the top quarterback there. Then we watched what he did at the combine and finished up with his evaluation down at Florida State. Myself, Leslie (Frazier) and (Offensive Coordinator) Bill Musgrave were able to spend a day and a half with him. Christian is extremely bright. He is one of the smartest guys we evaluated and spent time with. He s an A+ character kid. Football is very important to him and he has a passion for the game. You not only see that by talking to him, but also by how he played through the injuries he had. As we look at how this draft unfolded, we started to see the quarterbacks start to go. What we were looking at was when Washington traded back to number sixteen, knowing that they would potentially take a quarterback in that spot, we didn t want to go beyond that point. We tried to look at some options of moving back, but we did not have any takers when we were on the clock. We were put in a situation where we had a couple good players at other positions on our board, but we had the quarterback rated right up there with those other positions. You very rarely get a chance to take a swing at a young quarterback, and we felt that it was a no-brainer to take Christian Ponder. Q: Were you worried about his injuries over his past two seasons? A: Our doctors looked at that and there was nothing significant. This year, he got hurt at the Oklahoma game when he took a severe hit on his throwing tricep and it eventually ended up as a bursa sac situation. He played with that throughout the year. He struggled with that injury but then played extremely well towards the end of the season. The other thing is that, that tells you how tough he is. When we visited with the coaches down there (Florida State), they couldn t get him off of the field. They would try to monitor him during practices, but he would stay out there and he was not going to miss a game regardless. He played at a high level with that injury as well. Q: You mentioned that you wouldn t reach for a quarterback. Is this a reach in your mind? A: No, not on our board. We felt very confident where we graded him. We graded him worthy of that spot. As the draft started to unfold, you see all the top guys going where we predicted they would go. Christian Ponder was right in the mix from where he was stacked on our board with those other players. Q: You said you didn t want to go below Washington at 16. Did you get offers from teams lower than that? A: No, we got a couple before the draft, but once we were on the clock, we had no options to trade back. Q: Did you talk about trading up with Dallas at nine to get Blaine Gabbert? A: We talked about that as well. I know Jacksonville ended up giving a first and a second round pick for Blaine, and we weren t going to be able to do that.

34 Q: Will he be your starter, or will you bring in a veteran? A: That s Leslie s (Frazier) question, but I know we are still going to keep all avenues open about potentially bringing in a veteran. I know Leslie has spoken previously about having an open competition. We are still very excited about Joe Webb. Leslie and our coaching staff will make that determination. Q: How does Christian rank with the other quarterbacks that were selected ahead of him? A: He was ranked in there with those guys. Q: Was he one of your top twelve players on your board overall? A: You have to look at the guys that had potential medial concerns that were slightly ahead but we wouldn t have taken because of potential medical concerns or character concerns. When you eliminate those guys, yes, he became one of the top twelve guys for us. Q: Did you think about taking Nick Fairley knowing the outcome of the Kevin Williams court case? A: The thing we went back and forth on was when are you going to get another chance to swing? If Ponder was gone, are you going to get another opportunity to take a quarterback in this draft? We didn t want to take that risk.if we don t get a quarterback this year that we like, who knows what the quarterback class is next year. We are planning on not picking in the 12 spot again next year. Especially at the quarterback position, if you have a guy graded on your board that you think is worth of taking. We felt very confident Christian Ponder was worthy of that twelfth pick, so you have to take a shot at him. Q: Will Ponder s intelligence help his learning curve with a new offense? A: He is extremely bright. One of the top quarterbacks as we went through this process. He graduated in two and a half years. He has his M.B.A. and is working on his second Masters. After talking with their coaches, he knows their offense inside and out. He has also worked in a pro-style offense. He has taken some snaps from center and you can see how accurate he is when he gets back and sets his feet. All of them are going to have some things to work on, but we felt he was NFL-ready. Q: Was Andy Dalton in the mix with Christian Ponder when you were looking at quarterbacks? A: I m not going to tell you who was in with who, but I will tell you Christian Ponder was the guy we wanted. Q: How crazy of a day was it for you with the NFL labor ruling and the NFL Draft? A: I never would ve guessed that at 1:00 that (Vice President of Football Operations) Rob Brzezinski, Leslie Frazier, our ownership and (Vice President of Legal Affairs & Chief Administrative Officer) Kevin Warren would be all sitting together going through all of the legal stuff and what we can and cannot do with the players and how it s going to open up tomorrow. It s just another exciting part of the day. Q: Are you going to open up the facility to the players tomorrow? A: Leslie will address that, but I think we will open our facility up for voluntary workouts tomorrow. Q: Are you able to sign any free agents? A: No, there are no transactions going on at all. Q: Was there an opportunity to move up in this draft? A: We looked at every opportunity and felt that what we did by staying patient and going to get the guy that we really wanted was right. There was really no discussion; Christian Ponder was our guy. Q: You know that taking a quarterback with the number twelve pick will be a defining moment in your franchise. Are you comfortable with that pick? A: Of course; if we weren t comfortable, we wouldn t have taken him. That will determine itself three or four years down the road. When a franchise needs to take a quarterback and you like that quarterback and everything he brings to the organization, I don t think you can pass that opportunity up.

35 THURSDAY, APRIL 28, 2011 Vikings First-Round Draft Choice Quarterback Christian Ponder Q: Were you surprised to be selected with the 12 th pick? A: I really had no idea what was going to happen with the draft. You know how crazy it is. I am overly thrilled about it. Q: What feel did you get from the Vikings after you worked out for them? A: I felt the whole interview went great. The whole process was good. I was really impressed with Coach Musgrave and what he was doing on offense, Coach Frazier and Rick Spielman came in as well. I wasn t sure how interested they were going to be but I thought the whole process went well. Q: What did you do with the Vikings when they were visiting you on campus? A: We spent probably an hour in the film room, drawing on the board and going over plays. Went and did a 45-minute throwing session. We grabbed dinner the night before. We spent a decent amount of time together. Q: Did you get any sense on what the Vikings want to do on offense and how you will fit in? A: Me personally, I don t know what role I m going to have going in. Obviously they have two quarterbacks on the roster right now and I don t know if they are going to bring anyone else in. Whatever role I have, I will be prepared for. Offensively, the stuff we were going over on the board when they came in was very similar to what we were doing at Florida State, conceptually. That is a good thing for me as I feel like I am really prepared for what is going to go on in the next level with what we did at Florida State. Q: How important to you was it to show teams that the arm issues you had were no longer a problem? A: I think it was huge. I knew it was a big concern. Definitely my health was what guys were worried about. I think I was mislabeled as injury prone. I mean everything was bad luck. I had a third degree separation on my AC joint in my junior year and that was from throwing an interception and tackling the guy cause I was mad and then with the forearm elbow injury I had this past year was just a freak deal that wasn t a major injury, it was just a nuisance but I will tell you once the season was done and going into the senior bowl, going into the combine and then the private workouts and the pro day, I knew that I had to show that I was healthy and that my arm was back and I was fine. Q: Did you have three surgeries during the season on the elbow or when were the surgeries? A: No, well first it wasn t my elbow, it was my forearm. It was probably four inches below my elbow so it was never my elbow and it wasn t anything structural, it was basically fluid kept building up so I d go drain it and I d probably get it drained once a week with a needle but then at the end of the season they went in surgically and cleaned it up and got it ready to heal up after the ACC Championship Game and by the bowl game I was healed. I was fine. Q: What do you think you were able to do in the draft process to prove that the durability and the arm strength issues were not an issue for you? A: Well I think the biggest thing was the Senior Bowl and be able to get out in a live game and show that I was healthy and show that I could perform and make all the throws and even with the week of practice, going into the game and earning MVP, I think that was the start of it and after that just showing the guys during individual workouts what they wanted me to throw and at the pro day, what they asked me to throw and I threw everything and I thought it went well.

36 Q: With the labor situation going on right now, how important is it to get up here while you can and at least get the playbook and talk to Bill Musgrave and rest of the offensive coaches? A: Yeah, it s going to be huge and for me as a rookie quarterback, it s all about putting in my time and getting myself prepared for whatever role I m going to have this coming season. So I know I m going up there tomorrow and I already asked coach if I was going to have a playbook and he said yeah, there will be one ready for me and we re going to talk some ball once I get up there so I m excited about it, that starting tomorrow I ll be working on getting myself prepared. Q: Does it make it a little easier for you knowing that you have Adrian Peterson behind you? A: Yeah, you know one of the best running backs in the league is definitely not a negative to have and along with Percy Harvin and Sidney Rice, I mean there are definitely a lot of weapons at my disposal. Q: Have you had a chance to talk to any of your future teammates yet? A: No, I haven t. From the moment I ve been drafted this whole thing has been crazy so I will definitely try to get in touch with a lot of guys as soon as possible. Hopefully I will see some guys at the facility tomorrow. Q: They talk so much leading up to draft about finding a franchise quarterback. Do you sense the kind of the pressure that s going to come with that, that you re walking in to? A: I dealt with being the face of Florida State and handling the pressure there. Obviously, it s a whole other level in the NFL. I don t think anyone puts as much pressure on me, than I will myself. I m a perfectionist and I know I m going to put my time in to prepare. When I make a mistake, I m going to learn from it. Nobody s expectations exceed mine. Q: Did you have any idea where you might have gone? Was it late first round or maybe early second? What were you thinking? A: I wasn t sure. I heard from basically the number eight pick to anywhere to middle of the second. So, I really had no idea. I m just happy it worked out this way. Q: Did you have any idea what teams might have chosen you? A: You know I heard basically I talked to 10 to 15 teams during the whole process. I wasn t sure and I really had no clue? Just talking to my agent, we talked about Minnesota. We weren t really sure? I m loving every minute of it. I m extremely excited to be a Minnesota Viking. Q: How many teams did you have private workouts with? A: I probably had seven or eight workouts with a bunch of different teams. Q: As an owner of an MBA what do think of the NFL s labor situation? A: I don t know, I m just ready for it to be resolved and I m ready to get to work and get prepared for next season. Q: Were you invited to New York for the draft and why didn t you go? A: I was invited. Q: Why didn t you attend the NFL Draft in New York? A: I wasn t sure what was going to happen. My view was that I would rather be home with my family in a relaxed environment and get picked in the first round and be a little disappointed that I didn t go to New York then be in New York, you have to wait until the second. I m excited about the decision to stay home and be with my close friends and keeping it low key.

37 FRIDAY, APRIL 29, 2011 Vikings Head Coach Leslie Frazier I get the great pleasure of being able to introduce first-round pick of the Minnesota Vikings, Christian Ponder who I really feel like is going to be with us for a long time and really set a legacy as a quarterback that all of us remember for years and years to come and last night when we made that selection, it was something for me like just a relief that we got a guy who will solidify that position for years to come and I won t have to come back each year at the draft and wonder about our quarterback situation for the future. So, it is an exciting time for me in my first year as a head football coach in the National Football League. The fact that we drafted a quarterback who I have a great deal of confidence in and really am looking forward to watching him mature as a quarterback along with my maturation as a head football coach so it should be a lot of fun for anybody who is a Minnesota Viking fan so without any further ado, Christian Ponder, Minnesota Vikings quarterback. Post-Ponder Press Conference You can see exactly what we were talking about. He is a guy who will do a great job in the huddle and in the locker room with the teammates he will have. We are really excited about the fact that he s a Minnesota Viking and looking forward to watching him perform over the weeks, months and years to come. Q: Will you give him a playbook to take home with him? A: We do have some things that we want to give to him to take back with him. I know he had a chance to talk with Percy a little bit ago, as well. He s going to take some information back with him but he ll get the chance to work out together depending on what happens with this lockout. We ll definitely put some things in his hands to take back with him Q: Are you scrambling to get through everything with Christian because you don t know how much time you will have with him? A: You re right, we don t know how long this window will be open so we have to take advantage of every moment and try to get him the information that we think he ll need to come back, whenever that is, with a working knowledge of what we re trying to get accomplished. You do feel a sense of urgency around here about getting information out and we ve done that with some other players as well, just trying to get some things in their hands. Q: How tough has this gotten with the lockout? A: The thing that I end up having to do, and the same thing I told our coaches, is we ll get whatever the correct rules are from our ownership and from the League and based on that we ll proceed accordingly. There are a lot of things we can t control. We can t control when the lockout is lifted or when it s not lifted but when they tell us, like we have this window right now, we will take advantage of it and when it closes, we ll move on to whatever our next plan is but there are things we just can t control. Q: If you can, will you have your rookie mini-camp next weekend? A: We have talked about doing some things but we also have a plan if the lockout stays lifted, to move forward in some other areas. We have some contingency plans based on whatever we find out later on this week.

38 Q: What is the one thing with Christian that really made this decision the right one for the Vikings? A: Beyond the fact that he has the physical ability that you look for in a quarterback, it is his character. It s a big deal at the quarterback position especially when you have the talent that we have on our football team, particularly on the offensive side. You need a guy with strong character because if he doesn t have a lot of confidence in his ability, if he does not have the wherewithal to man up to a degree, he ll get swallowed up because we have some tremendous talent on that side of the ball. I just felt like his character is going to get him through some of the tough days that you go through as a young quarterback in the NFL or even a veteran quarterback. That was probably the determining factor. Not just his physical talent but he is a very high character individual. Q: Do you have an example, maybe from drawing things up on the board, that led you to think he might possibly be the guy? A: We had the chance to visit with a number of quarterbacks going through this process and sitting down with him and going through some plays with him when Bill (Musgrave) and Craig (Johnson) had him on the board and seeing him process the information in comparison to the other quarterbacks then going back to the board and regurgitate it back to the coaches, I m looking and going, I don t know if I could have done that. It was impressive, the way he handled it and it made me realize that the situation we re in with the uncertainty about this offseason, to have a guy with the physical talents that he has but also the intellect as well, will bode well for our football team. That was one thing but when we got to dinner he told us a story about some of his friends on campus and some of the friends he hung out with and you would be surprised. It s not just the football players that Christian hangs with, he is a friend to others on campus as well and I think that s a good thing because in the locker room, as a quarterback, you can t just hang out with the offensive line or the running backs or just go stand in the corner and say, I m the quarterback of this team. You have to mingle and get along with teammates. Just knowing how he is able to deal with people, I thought was a great thing if you re going to be in that position. Those are just a couple things that really struck me. Q: You have talked about Christian s ability to mingle with other teammates, with the current labor situation, do you encourage him to reach out to teammates and try to build relationships with teammates now? A: We have to leave that up to him. He s got certain things he needs to prepare for. He has an idea based on (Offensive Coordinator) Bill (Musgrave) and (Quarterbacks Coach) Craig (Johnson) have talked to him about what he needs to work on. He ll get those things taken care of, but if there are guys within close proximity like Percy (Harvin) will be, sure that would be a great opportunity for him to get a chance to work with some of his future teammates. But I don t think he has to do anything out of the ordinary. It s just such a fluid situation. It s more important that he takes care of Christian right now and handles some of the things we ve given him to go back with. Q: Given where you took Christian, if you do go get a veteran quarterback as well, is that a very short term guy that would only start four or five games? A: I hear that as well, as what we may or may not do. But for us, we are looking in the right now. We have three quarterbacks on our roster, and we have three guys we want to compete and find out who is going to be that guy to lead us against the San Diego Chargers. Not knowing what is going to happen with free agency or the League over the next few months or weeks to come, it s just not an area we are willing to explore. Especially when we ve got eight more picks today and tomorrow in the draft that we really want to concentrate on. It is kind of weird to talk about free agency on a day that we are going through the draft, but that s the way this League is right now. But it s something we will deal with down the line. But right now we are confident that we got the right guys on our roster to create the type of competition that will take our football team where we want to go. Q: How do you feel about the rest of the draft? A: I m excited about the fact that there still are a lot of good football players on the board. We ve got eight other picks to come. It s a chance for us to really address some areas for our football team to create that competitiveness that we want on our team. I m really excited about what s on the board and looking forward to tonight and tomorrow as well. Just to get some more football players for our team

39 Q: How much did you talk today about reconfiguring your board after round one? A: We talked quite a bit, and when we leave here we re going to go talk some more. As we anticipate what other teams are going to do and what we need to do to improve our football team. Q: Do you see Christian as the kind of guy that can win over skeptical fans quickly? A: The most important thing for Christian and our football team is to do the things that we have to do to be successful. And if we do that as a team, and that s the good thing about our game, it s not about one player. Christian will have great support from our defense, from our special teams, the other players on our offense. If we do what we have to do as a team, those people that are concerned, will love what we have accomplished. They will cheer, and that s our goal, to make sure they are cheering. Q: Can you tell us what time you have spent with Christian and the process you have gone through to get to know him? A: Between the Senior Bowl and watching tape, and trying to get to know him through other people that he s worked with in college. I even called one of my former players; he doesn t even know this, Corey Simon who I worked with in Philadelphia, just to get some background. I know Bob (Hagan) talked to Brad Johnson, and we went on and on. A lot of the time we spent with Christian himself, learning as much as we could about him and really that was all a part of us feeling confident that he was the right guy for us. So a lot of hours logged, but well worth it. Q: What is the concern that Kevin Williams will be suspended for the first four games of the season? A: We will have to wait and see. It s always been kind of hanging over our heads regarding that. But we will operate business as usual and we ll find out a little bit later on exactly what is going to happen.

40 FRIDAY, APRIL 29, 2011 Vikings First Round Draft Choice Quarterback Christian Ponder What a moment for me. I want to personally thank Coach (Leslie) Frazier for bringing me on board and the Wilf family and Rick Spielman for believing in me, to be a part of this organization and I am so elated to be here right now. First time to Minnesota, I m loving what I see. I m enjoying every minute of this and I m just extremely excited to be a Minnesota Viking and to be a part of this great organization and to get to work ASAP. Q: What number will you wear? A: Number seven I believe. Q: What do you know about the Vikings? A: I know a lot. I grew up watching the NFL. Obviously my dad played in the League for a little bit and the history with Brad Johnson who played quarterback at FSU (Florida State University). I know obviously Adrian Peterson, Sidney (Rice) and Percy Harvin who I have a history with him being at Florida and I was at Florida State and great team, great organization, a great fit for me. Q: With the pieces there on offense, will that make it easier for you? A: Oh yeah, my job s easy. I just got to hand the ball off to Adrian Peterson, throw the ball to Percy Harvin and Sidney Rice. I mean, what do I have to do? They got to do all of the dirty work so it s a great fit for me and it takes a lot of pressure off of me and I m going to be loving it. I ve never been around so much talent and again, it is such a great organization, a great team right now. Q: Were you a little surprised at where you went in the draft? A: I wasn t. With how crazy the draft is, you never really know when your name is going to be called but I had been hearing some positive things leading up to the draft and I thought I put myself in a pretty good position working myself through the pre-draft process and had a great meeting with Coach (Leslie) Frazier and Coach (Bill) Musgrave and the whole staff that came down to Tallahassee for my private workout and I thought we made a great connection so when it came down to the pick, I was kind of hoping that it would happen. Q: Have you had a chance to meet with coaches and have you gotten a playbook? A: I ve sat down with Coach (Bill) Musgrave a little bit and Coach (Craig) Johnson and we talked briefly about ball but haven t really had time to do a whole lot and maybe we ll talk a little more after this but there is a not a whole lot we can really do right now. Q: What is it about (Bill) Musgrave s system that makes you think you re a good fit? A: It s funny, when we were talking, sitting in the meeting room down in Tallahassee we were going over a lot of the same concepts that he did, it was the same stuff we did at Florida State. I mean we ran a lot of the same plays, did a lot of the same pass protections and so it was very similar and that gives me a lot of confidence in coming into this role right now. Q: Can you recap the process of how you ended up at FSU (Florida State University)? A: My dad played at Florida State. He played in the early 80 s and played for Coach (Bobby) Bowden and it was a dream for me to go there and they extended an offer. I tried to keep my recruiting process open but when that offer came in it was hard to turn down and it was funny actually, my eighth grade year I went out to

41 do a visit, my dad had a reunion with one of his teams and Coach (Bobby) Bowden actually grabbed my right arm and told me they could use this one day and ever since then I was dead set on getting there. Q: Who else offered you a scholarship? A: I had about 25 offers coming out. Florida State was probably the biggest. You know I was only one of those three star legacy players that wasn t supposed to do anything at Florida State. But I really liked Georgia Tech, especially the academic background but it was hard to turn down Florida State. Q: Were there moments when going through the 2010 season where you thought that you maybe should have left the year before? A: I never had any regret in coming back. We were winning more games than I had since I had been at Florida State and winning cures all so it was a little frustrating dealing with injuries but that s ball, so to make it to a game like the ACC Championship game and to make it to a game like the Chik-Fil-A Bowl, and to get that 10- win season is big and so I was definitely happy coming back. I know I didn t have that productive of a year, yeah we won games but a lot of people look at the numbers so I knew that maybe my draft stock was hurt a little bit and I had some ground to make up and was dedicated to it and went out to Phoenix, Arizona the first day I could and got ready for the Senior Bowl and the combine and took full advantage of each opportunity I had and did pretty well. Q: Do you feel like your smarts overshadow your athletic ability? A: I think my intelligence is a big advantage for me and puts me ahead of the game but I agree and I feel like I m a lot more athletic than people give me credit for. I feel like I can shake and bake a little bit. But I feel like I m really the full package at a quarterback and I m glad that Rick and Coach Frazier bought into me and brought me here. Q: With the labor situation going on, what will you take from this visit at the facility and the meeting the coaches? A: I m trying to get as much ball talk in as possible and get a feel for what s going on. It is tough, especially with the uncertainty. We have no idea what s going to happen and I m praying I ll be back here in two weeks for mini-camp or whenever we re allowed. We ll see and we ll deal with the issues as they come and go from there. Q: What is it that you did on the field that makes people say you are one of the more pro-ready quarterbacks in this draft? A: I was very involved. Jimbo Fisher who was our head coach was also our offensive coordinator and he put a lot of responsibility on us as a quarterback and with the mike calls on pass protections. We go up with two or three plays to the line to check to depending on what the defense showed me and made sure every run play we had it was run check so I had to make a lot of my own calls and get us into certain plays in certain looks and did a lot of stuff in gun and a lot of stuff under center so I think that put me in advantage of the other guys, having that preparation and doing it already at the college level. Q: Do you come here expecting to be the starter? A: The number one thing is that I have to earn my role. Wherever that may be. I am preparing myself like I m going to be the starter but like I said, I have to earn that role. Obviously, Joe Webb is here and Rhett Bomar is on the roster. Guys that are here that are a step ahead of me. I have some ground to make up and whether I have to sit behind a guy for a couple games, for a season or for a couple seasons, whatever that role might be I will be fine with it but I will prepare myself as the starter. If I do get that role for the first game then I ll be excited about it and I ll be ready to roll. Q: Who s your agent? A: Jimmy Sexton Q: How important is it for you to step in and be a leader right away with guys like Steve Hutchinson and Adrian Peterson on your team? A: I think it will be easier with guys like that. I know they are going to be helping me out and they are going to be taking pressure off of me and taking on more of that leadership role, but as a quarterback it obviously is a

42 natural position of leadership. It s going to be my job over the next couple of months to earn their respect, earn that role, and become the leader of this team. Q: How do you feel about having the opportunity to be the team s starter? A: It s exciting, it s what you dream for, being a starter in the NFL. Again, there is a lot of work to be done to get to that point, and it really starts today. Q: Do you embrace the expectations that come with being a first-round quarterback? A: Yes, it is something I embrace. I don t think anyone s expectations match what I have for myself. I expect perfection, I am a perfectionist. If I make a mistake, or I m not doing what I should, I m going to put in my time to correct it. I m an extreme competitor and I expect to be the best, and that s what everyone should expect as well. Q: Yesterday, were you convinced that you would be a first-round pick? A: In my mind I was. I never thought I wouldn t be. I always thought that I deserved to be in this spot. Q: Your selection has been criticized by fans and NFL analysts, what is your take on that? A: Number one, I have to earn my respect, from the fans and from my teammates. There is a lot of uncertainty with any pick in the draft. I know that on my personal level, I m going to put in my time to earn that respect and do what I have to do. I know what comes with this role. And I m going to prepare myself for it and I ll be fine. Q: What are some things that you have gained from your college experience? A: I ve dealt with a lot of adversity in my college career. A lot of ups and downs. It s really helped me grow and mature as a quarterback, a leader of a team, and as a face of a university. I loved every minute of being at Florida State, and I wouldn t be here where I am right now if the events I went through didn t occur. So yeah, there are some things, where I had some low times there, but it definitely changed me as a quarterback and helped me to grow and mature. Q: What do you know about Minnesota? A: The state of Minnesota, you know it s the first time I ve been here. The thing I m excited about is, I m huge into fishing, and the land of 10,000 lakes is something I m excited about. I m going to enjoy my time here. I ve been here for a short amount of time, but I ve liked it so far

43 FRIDAY, APRIL 29, 2011 Vikings Second-Round Draft Choice Tight End Kyle Rudolph Q: Were you surprised at all when the Vikings called? A: Definitely a little bit surprised. I met with them at the combine but it was one of my 15 meetings I had at the combine. I was just watching, hoping my name would be called and I got the phone call and I m super excited and I can t wait to be a Viking. Q: How much concern did teams express injury-wise? A: The hamstring checked out completely 100%. It was something that I got fixed over six months ago and by the time my pro day came around I was 100%. The MRI shows it s 100% healed and all the doctors dug and prodded on it and they can t find anything. Q: How exactly did that happen? A: I had a pulled hamstring and kept trying to grind through it and eventually over time, I did it originally in July, I tore it off the bone in October. As time went on I tore it completely. Q: If you could go back, would you have sat out longer? A: Yeah, I definitely learned a lesson from it. Now I would take the time and miss a few games instead of trying to be a tough guy and grind through it. I missed a couple plays against Stanford when I tore the first tendon and then ended up missing the last quarter of the Pittsburgh game. Looking back, it would probably be smarter and better for my leg if I would have just taken some time off when I did it originally instead of trying to grind through it. Q: Have you looked at the Vikings roster with three tight ends entering the final years of their contracts? A: Yeah, they have the three veteran guys there. I have a lot of respect for those guys and I m excited to learn from them. Like I said, I can t be more thrilled to be a Viking and I have a lot of respect for those three veterans and hopefully I can learn a thing or two from them and play as long as they have. Q: What do you know about Christian Ponder? A: I met Christian at the combine. He seems like a great kid. Obviously he has a lot of physical ability and I m excited to hopefully have long careers together. Q: When were you expecting to go in the draft? A: I was under the impression that it was more likely than not that I would go yesterday but my dream has come true and I m in the NFL now. Like I said, I m just excited to be a Viking. Q: Was it tough last night when you didn t get picked or were you expecting it because of your hamstring? A: It was definitely tough because my hamstring is not an issue anymore. It s something that is part of the past and it was a freak injury and it doesn t happen that often in football if ever. It was something that I got fixed and it s not a problem anymore so I was definitely disappointed but I have my family and friends around to keep me positive and we re really excited.

44 FRIDAY, APRIL 29, 2011 Vikings Head Coach Leslie Frazier Q: Did you feel you got a good value with your second-round pick? A: We are extremely excited about Kyle Rudolph. He ll be a guy that will come in and help us right away. I wasn t sure if he d be available at 43, but once we found out that he was, it was a great opportunity for us. Q: When you talked to Coach Musgrave about Kyle, what type of things does he want to do with him in the offensive game plan? A: One of the things he mentioned to me was being able to have him and Visanthe (Shiancoe) on the field at the same time. Would really create some mismatches for defenses. In our game, that s a big part of what we are trying to do, create mismatches. To have the opportunity to do that, to help our offense, which in turn helps our defense and our special teams as well. Q: When you talk about mismatches do you mean a tight end that s too fast for a linebacker and too big for a cornerback? A: You re exactly right. For the linebackers it s a tough cover for them and at the same time if you put your best safety on him and he s too much of a cover guy for him. The fact that he s 6 6 and runs as well as he does. He s such a big target. He catches the ball well. It s a tough matchup for linebackers and a tough matchup for safeties. You aren t going to see him on corners, but for those guys that have to cover him, it s a tough deal. Then he gives you another ingredient on the line of scrimmage being able to block. He s shown the tendency that he can block, and that s a plus for us. Q: When you did your research on Kyle, apart from the physical skills, what were some other things that attracted you to a player like Kyle? A: The fact that he s such an athletic player. This is a guy who received scholarship offers for basketball as well and could ve gone on to play major college basketball. He s a very athletic guy. But also when you talk to people they talk about his character, how great of a person he was, and then a top talent. The fact that you never felt that, as good as he was as an athlete, you never felt you were any less of a person than he was. You look at that and say that this guy is going to be a good locker room fit. So not only the fact that he was a good player, but he s going to fit in our locker room as well. Q: How is the dynamic in the war room? How has the board shaped for you guys and what has the atmosphere been like? A: It s been great. Working with (Director of College Scouting) Scott Studwell and with Rick (Spielman) throughout this process and our scouts. Just being a part of the entire situation from a different perspective, it s been good. We have a few more picks to go, but so far so good. Q: You guys have a lot of picks in upcoming rounds. Do you envision staying back and trying to address a lot of different needs or packaging those picks to get someone you like? A: We are getting ready to enter the third round now so we d like to be able to be a part of that round. If not, we still have some great opportunities with the picks that we do have. Still a lot of good players on the board and there s no sense of panic. We ll take a look at a bunch of different scenarios.

45 SATURDAY, APRIL 30, 2011 Vikings Second Round Draft Choice Tight End Kyle Rudolph Vikings Offensive Coordinator Bill Musgrave Let me start by saying we re excited to have Kyle Rudolph here today. Leslie Frazier, Rick Spielman, Scott Studwell, we re very excited to have a chance to select this young man last night in the second round. Kyle had a great career at Notre Dame. In high school, fantastic athlete of course, received numerous Division I scholarship offers to play football, selected Notre Dame, but he was also quite a basketball player. He was recruited by Brad Stevens at Butler to play basketball there. He received scholarship offers in the ACC, Wake Forest and things like that so clearly he has the traits to be a fantastic tight end in this League and have a bright future. With that, it s my privilege to introduce Minnesota Viking tight end Kyle Rudolph. Kyle Rudolph I would just like to start by thanking the Wilfs and Coach (Leslie) Frazier and Coach (Bill) Musgrave and Coach (Jimmie) Johnson for giving me the opportunity to be a Minnesota Viking and I couldn t be happier to be here. Q: What has this last day been like for you? A: It s been a whirlwind of emotions going from Thursday night and then all day Friday waiting around and then watching the picks go by Friday evening and then finally getting the phone call. It was very emotional. I couldn t be happier. Everyone kept telling me everything happens for a reason, you re going to end up in the right spot and I couldn t be happier with where I ended up. I really am excited to be here. Q: How did they (Notre Dame) move you around on offense? A: Everyone sees Coach (Brian) Kelly s offense, it s just spread it out and create mismatches and I was fortunate enough and lucky enough to be able to have the opportunity to play in that offense for one year and be able to be a receiver by myself on the weak side of a formation or be number one on the strong side of a formation or be in the slot or be in the backfield. Given that opportunity I definitely think it s going to help me a lot in getting on the field here. Q: What s your biggest strength? A: I think my biggest strength is just creating mismatches in the passing game. I feel like that s the best attribute in my game and something that I want to bring to the Vikings. Q: Is Coach (Bill) Musgrave s past with working with tight ends a plus? A: Definitely. I knew about it going into it and then when I got the phone call and you re starting to look into things and I can t be more thrilled and more excited to be here and to be able to play for Coach (Bill) Musgrave and be in the offense. Q: What interactions have you had with team officials over the last 30 hours? A: I just got here. I left at 8 AM from Cincinnati and then came over here and met them in passing, got to sit down with Coach (Leslie) Frazier for a little while and talked to him and then got to meet Coach (Jimmie) Johnson and obviously meet Coach (Bill) Musgrave and all of the other assistants as well as PR people and meet the secretaries and just meet as many people as I can while I am here in the building and my flight leaves here in a few hours and I ll be back home in Cincinnati.

46 Q: Did you find out about Minnesota through (Notre Dame receiver) Michael Floyd? A: I do, Mr. Floyd, Mr. (John) Carlson and Mr. (John) Sullivan as well. I got a lot of Notre Dame people from this area. Q: John Carlson was there when you were? A: John was the tight end at Notre Dame before I got there and Coach Weiss kind of anointed him as my big brother. So, any time I went to Notre Dame, I was under John s wing and he took care of me. Q: What kind of mismatches do you see with you and Shiancoe on the field together? A: I think it would be tremendous for us. You see teams out there going to that two tight end set. Having me and Shiancoe on the field at the same time. It ll be tough, because you don t know what were going to do. Both of us, big, athletic guys and can get down the field and we can run the ball as well. I definitely think that s something that s going to bring a lot to this offense. Q: Have you talked to John Carlson? A: I talked to John this morning. He was really excited for me and he told me that I was going to love the city. I couldn t agree with him more. So, I m very happy here in Minnesota and can t wait to get out there and get into the community and actually get a feel for it myself. Q: Did you consider basketball offers? A: Yeah, my freshman and sophomore year in high school I was about this height. I pretty much had my mind set that I was going to play basketball and went down to Wake Forest for a visit when coach (Skip) Prosser was there. I went to a Duke vs. Wake Forest game actually and I was pretty much set. I was going to go to Wake Forest and play basketball and then summer rolled around before my junior year and I went to a few football camps. Coaches convinced me otherwise, they said you should probably think about this football thing, it might work all right for you. I m still the same height now as I was as a sophomore in high school, so I think that had a little to do with it as well. I love them both the same and I m fortunate and blessed to have this opportunity to stand up here today and be in the National football League, be a part of the Minnesota Vikings. Q: You had a huge day versus Michigan how did you feel after that 95-yd TD? A: Tiring. It was awesome. It was a tough game back and forth the whole time. Then everyone kind of jokes around because during the 95 yard run, it was pouring down rain the whole game and during that 95 yard run, all of a sudden the clouds separated and the sun came out and everyone thought it was Notre Dame s day. Unfortunately we didn t win the game but it was something that I will remember for the rest of my life and from my college career. Q: If the lockout persists are you going to play hoops somewhere? A: I would love to. I love to play but with me right now, with the lockout, there s so much uncertainty and I m just focused on getting myself in the best shape as possible and being ready whenever we do, whenever we are allowed to come here so that s my main focus right now. Q: What about your blocking? Is there room for improvement? A: Definitely. I feel like I am capable. I don t feel like it s something that is going to limit me at this level but I go into practice every day trying to better all aspects of my game and be a tight end that you don t ever have to take off the field, no matter what the situation is. Q: Do you have concerns that the NFL lockout will delay things and put you behind? A: I have no idea. I know just as much about the lockout as you guys do. I was just excited to get up here and meet my teammates. I met Christian (Ponder) this morning, so he s the first teammate that I met. I can t wait until it (the lockout) is over, to get up here and get to work. Q: Are you looking forward to learning from Visanthe Shiancoe? A: Yes, and Jim Kleinsasser as well, both of them. They re veterans and they ve done it many of times. I ll be very happy if I can just take one or two things from them and apply it to my game. And play as long as they

47 have, that s my goal. To have a long career and be very successful, and I want to take as much from those guys as I can. Q: Do you have to meet with Christian Ponder in order to get your hands on the playbook? A: Christian and I are going talk and get together. Hopefully we can meet up and throw some. Like I said, I got to know him through the (Draft) process; I met him at the combine. Now that we re acquaintances, Christian has my phone number and I have his phone number, so hopefully we can get together and throw it around a little bit and get comfortable with each other. Q: How good of a wide receiver is Michael Floyd? A: He is special. Michael will have a great year this year, and I m excited for him. I m very close with Michael. I m expecting big things from him, so I m going to put a lot of pressure on him. He s a special player, he s a special talent

48 SATURDAY, APRIL 30, 2011 Vikings Fourth-Round Draft Choice Defensive Tackle Christian Ballard Q: Were the Vikings one of the teams you thought would pick you? A: I thought that was a possibility. You never know when you re going to get taken, but I m proud to be a Viking. I was honored, and I can t wait to get to work. Q: Did you have much contact with the Vikings before the draft? A: I talked to them down at the Senior Bowl and talked to them a little at the combine. We knew that was going to be a pretty good pick (of a team). Q: You played both defensive end and defensive tackle in college, which do you see as your more natural position? A: Right now I think they want me at defensive tackle, and I m just willing to play wherever they need me to play. Just playing both (positions) will give me the opportunity so that I can really take my game to the next level. Wherever they put me at is where I ll (be). Q: Are you disappointed that you dropped to the fourth round, or is this where you expected to go? A: I just was waiting to get the opportunity, to get a phone call. I probably would have liked to go a little higher, but that s okay. I m with a great program with a great coach, and I just thank them for picking me up. And I m just ready to get to work. Q: There were reports that you failed a drug test at the combine, do you think that caused you to slide in the draft? A: I m not really sure what caused that. I ve made mistakes in the past, but I m going to look to the future. I m a Viking now. Whatever happened in the past is behind me. Now all that s on my mind right now is trying to make the Vikings a Super Bowl team. Q: Were those reports accurate, that you tested positive for marijuana at the combine? A: That's confidential. I'm just not willing to speak on that right now. Q: Was that something that teams did ask you about that when you were at the combine? A: Once again, that is a confidential matter, I don t really want to speak about it. Q: Have you looked at the Vikings situation at defensive tackle with Pat Williams possibly leaving via free agency and Kevin Williams possibly facing a four-game suspension? A: I just got picked up by them, and I m trying to take the phone calls and trying to figure out what I m doing right now, so not really. Wherever it is I still got to earn a spot; I got to get better every day. I m going to get up there, work, learn from the veterans. Fortunately, Chad Greenway is from Iowa, so I can learn from him and be the best I can be. Q: With the uncertainty of the lockout, how are you approaching these next few days? Do you know when you will be in Minnesota? A: I have no idea. The only thing I can control is what I do. That s just working out, making sure I m in the best shape of my life before I get up there. I know that the team is counting on me, so I just have to do what I need to do so I can play and help the team out.

49 Q: Your uncle is a musician, can you talk more about that? A: My great uncle is Hank Ballard, a musician. He wrote The Twist. Hank Ballard and the Midnighters; I know a lot of older people have probably heard of him. That s something our family really takes pride in and we still try to carry that on. Q: Do you have a musical background? A: I play the cello and the bass, I do a little bit of the music and arts, so that part of my family definitely got passed down to me. Q: How did you get started playing those instruments? A: My mother actually put me on to the cello, and I was kind of just a natural at it. I ve really loved it ever since. I stopped of course when I was in college because I was playing football, but it still was a hobby that I want to continue. Q: He passed away in 2003, correct? A: Yes, sir. Q: Did you get the opportunity to get to know your uncle before then? A: I met him a couple times. One time at my grandfather s funeral and he sent us a couple tapes of his music. He kept in touch as much as he could. I knew him well but of course everyone wants to spend more time with their loved ones but it just happened that he passed and he was a great guy. Q: What do you see as the as the parts of your game that you need to work on to be effective at the next level? A: Probably just keeping my pad level down and work with my hands a little more. It s really not just one part of my game. I can get better at every part of my game and that s what I m going to try to do but definitely my pad level and improve my awareness and all that stuff is just going to come with the coaching staff they have with the Vikings. It s going to be easy. I m excited to get there. Q: You played half the season at end and half the season at tackle correct? A: Yes, sir. Q: Did you move inside because of need or because they felt that was a better spot for you? A: I moved inside because that s what the team needed. They wanted me to play both so I played both. It s just kind of a thing that I ve done, always helping the team out and they put me in a great position that I could excel at either one. I m definitely grateful for that and I have to thank the Iowa coaching staff for that. I m just excited to go. Q: What s the strength of your game right now? A: Probably my athleticism. I never played defensive line prior to college and the coaches put me in a position so I could succeed in the Big Ten. My fundamentals are good and I have a good base and I excel in that but I definitely think my athletic ability has definitely helped me out and I m just looking to refine my techniques. Q: What position did you play before you got converted? A: Tight end. Q: Is that what you were recruited as? A: Yeah. Q: How much did you weigh when you showed up at Iowa? A: About 260 pounds. Q: What do you weigh now? A: Between 290 and 295 pounds.

50 Q: What s it feel like emotionally when you see yourself slip a little bit in the draft? A: You get all kinds of emotions. Of course everyone wants to get taken earlier but this is motivation and this is going to fight for my next contract and do whatever I can to get on the field early and use everything I can and all my abilities just so I can play and help the team win. Hopefully, we ll keep this going and I ll be a good Viking in the future. Q: You didn t lift at the combine, was that a personal choice or an injury? A: It was a personal choice. Q: How come? A: After the Senior Bowl, getting ready for the combine I really never focused on the bench too much so I thought I would have better results at my senior day. So I just stuck with that. Q: When did they convert you from tight end to defensive line? A: They actually converted me a little bit before the season of my freshman year. I got up there to be a tight end and never really played defensive end and I really didn t have the hands to play tight playing behind Tony Moeaki and Brandon Myers, some of the greats that came through there so they made the decision to change so I could play early. Q: You had some ball skills though? A: Probably just not the best hands. I was a great route runner. I can say that. Q: When you met with the Vikings, did they talk about how they might use you considering your versatility? A: They are looking at me as a defensive tackle but maybe a little defensive end. I m not really sure yet. We ll see when I get up there and hopefully I can be an asset to the team. Q: Who s your agent? A: Neil Cornrich. Q: Are you looking forward to playing in the Metrodome in front of a friendly crowd? A: Absolutely, I cannot wait.

51 SATURDAY, APRIL 30, 2011 Vikings Fifth Round Draft Pick Cornerback Brandon Burton Q: Can you describe your style as a corner? A: My style as a corner is that I m really technically sound, I like pressing and playing man-to-man, I have very good balls skills, I m a ball-hawk and I play the ball real well when it s in the air. Some people say I m a finesse corner but I like to think I m a finesse corner and I can get nasty too sometimes. But if I had to describe my play, that s what I would say. Q: Were you surprised the Vikings took you giving their history in the cover 2? A: I wasn t. I was just happy that the Vikings picked me up. I know they play a lot of cover 2 which I played at the University of Utah. We played a lot of man and cover 2 there. Their concepts and schemes that they do is nothing new to how I played in college? Q: Are you looking forward to playing with Antoine Winfield? A: I m definitely looking forward to playing with Antoine Winfield. I know he s the vet on the team and he s one of the best players to ever play the game. I get his knowledge and pick his brain a little bit and see what he knows. It will be a great opportunity and I will be honored. Q: What motivated you to come out a year early? A: Going into my decision, I had pretty good feedback from scouts coming out my junior year and I got a second round grade coming out my junior year so I decided that was in the best interest of me and I feel like I was ready for the next level so I went ahead and made the decision to come out. Q: Is it a little disappointing given the feedback you got that you stayed until the third day? A: It s not really disappointing. I tried to go into this whole process with no big expectations. I just tried to stay humble about everything and getting drafted is an honor. It s a blessing getting drafted by the Vikings. Q: Are they expecting you to get a lot of special teams work? A: I would think so. I would think they would expect me to contribute on special teams which I did in college. I love playing on all the special teams so I would expect them to put me on special teams. Q: So the draft advisory board gave you a second round grade, why do you think you were still available in round five? A: I really can t put my finger on it. I m not exactly sure. You know, the draft is crazy and sometimes the results go awry but like I said, I wouldn t regret anything about coming out or anything like that. The Minnesota Vikings are a great organization and I couldn t think of a better situation. Q: Going from Houston to Utah, was that a culture shock for you? A: Yeah, a little bit. The people in Salt Lake City are great. I love the city but it was definitely a culture shock going up there but I made the decision wholeheartedly and I felt like it was the right fit for me so I never regret going to Utah.

52 Q: Did you have many one-on-one workouts and did the Vikings fit into that mix at all? A: I did have some one-on-one workouts with different teams. The Vikings weren t one of them but the scouts from the Vikings seemed very interested in me and Coach Frazier actually sat down with me at the combine so I know Coach Frazier from meeting with him and I feel honored that he picked me up. Q: You were born in Germany, is that right? A: I was. Q: Was your father in the service? A: Yeah, he was stationed there with the Army. Q: Your father in an engineer and your mother is a doctor, is that right? A: Yes, that s correct.

53 SATURDAY, APRIL 30, 2011 Vikings Sixth Round Draft Choice Tackle DeMarcus Love Q: Are the Vikings looking at you as a tackle, guard or both? A: I think I ll be able to play both positions. I don t know exactly what the coaches want me to play because I haven t talked to them about my positions but I played guard and tackle at Arkansas and I played both sides as well. I think wherever I m able to fit in, I ll be able to play and contribute to the team. Q: Do you feel more natural at one or the other positions? A: I feel good playing both, but the thing is I ve been playing tackle the past two years so I ll give tackle the edge on that. I ve been there the last two years and that s where I m more natural. Q: Do you think having played both positions actually hurt your draft stock? A: It probably does because I never had a chance to just lock in on one position and just master it. I m always flipping sides. Every series I m on a different side in coach Petrino s offense. One thing about that is that it helped versatility-wise, but it gives me an edge by knowing both. Q: You went back and forth, left to right side, last year? A: Every other play or series I lined up at each because I was a weak tackle, I played the opposite side of the tight end. Q: What was your primary running scheme there, did you do a lot of zone? A: We were an outside zone team, that was our bread and butter. That s coach Petrino s scheme, running the outside zone. Q: Did you prefer playing on the left or the right? A: It doesn t really matter. Either side is fine with me. Q: What is the strength of your game right now? A: The strength is versatility. You can slot me in at guard or tackle, either side, it wouldn t matter. Q: How about run blocking versus pass blocking? A: I think I can get better in pass blocking. I think my run blocking is a little better than pass blocking right now. Q: Did you spend some time with the Vikings in the pre-draft period? A: I talked to the offensive line coach, coach Davidson, at the Senior Bowl. We had a little talk about football and a little interview. That was basically it. We talked one time and after that I really never heard from the Vikings again, so it was a big surprise. Q: How would you assess your Senior Bowl performance, did they move you around? A: I don t feel like that was my best performance, but at the same time I don t feel like you should judge anybody off just one event. I don t think the Senior Bowl was good for me. I played in the Senior Bowl in January and I ve learned a lot from it and I ve been working on things to correct, the things I made mistakes on.

54 Q: Did you talk much to Christian Ponder at the Senior Bowl? A: I didn t talk much to Christian at all but he did play on the same team with us and he was killing their quarterback. I remember just saying, man, who is this guy. Being able to see him perform like he did, it was real good. I know he was proud, but I was glad to see him perform. He lead our team to a win. Q: What do you know of the Vikings? A: To be honest with you I grew up a Cowboys fan, I was born in Dallas. I know they have a good offensive running game, a good well-rounded team up there in Minnesota. I don t know a whole lot, like I would know about the Cowboys. But, Minnesota is a great franchise and they ve always been known to be a good team. Q: What position did you play in the Senior Bowl in the actual game? A: Right tackle.

55 SATURDAY, APRIL 30, 2011 Vikings Sixth Round Draft Choice Defensive Back Mistral Raymond Q: How much contact did you have with the Vikings before you were drafted? A: They flew me out for a visit in March. I was there for two days and it was a great experience. I had the opportunity to sit down and meet one-on-one with a lot of the guys in the organization. And like I said, it was a great experience for me personally. Other than that, I hadn t heard too much from them afterwards, but I heard from them at the right time. Q: You came in as a walk-on, after the tragedy with your family, how did being away from home during that incident affect you? A: There s one of two ways you can look at it. My first instinct was to look at it like I should have been there for my family, and I should have been there to protect them. But then again, as my grandmother told me, had I been there, maybe I would have done something trying to be heroic, going out of my way and maybe gotten myself injured or possibly killed. So I think everything happens for a reason. You know it was just a situation that made me a lot stronger as a person. It kind of influenced me to make the decision I had made to come home and be closer to my family, and it turned out to be one of the best decisions I made in my entire life. Q: What are your emotions right now, with being drafted as well as your sister being killed a couple of weeks ago? A: Just having my family here with me, having them see my name come across the screen and seeing the excitement that it brought them, I think it was a relief for all of us. It helped me realize what type of position that the Lord has put me in. He has blessed me to be an outlet for my family. For them to have excitement no matter what at any given time of the day. It s just a great feeling for me personally, and I m very grateful to be in the position I m in. Q: When you first arrived at school, did you always have the goal to get to the NFL? A: Definitely, the funny thing is, in childhood, college was the most exciting thing for me. I love college football s atmosphere. My goal growing up was the NFL, but I know to get to the NFL you need to go through college, so college was my number one goal. Once I got there, I started feeling the energy and seeing how things worked out. I definitely focused my attention on the NFL. It s something I ve always believed I was destined for. As humbly as I could possibly say it, it s kind of something I believe was for me. I was just walking the path that was laid out for me. Q: Was it difficult to be a walk-on when you were getting scholarship offers elsewhere? A: It was the easiest decision I could have made. Once that stuff happened with my family, there was no second guessing it. I was full throttle and I was all in behind my decision. I had some people support me with that decision. Like I said, it turned out to be one of the best decisions I ve made. Q: How would you describe yourself as a player? A: I think I m a guy that plays a lot off of instincts. I just have a great feel for the game. I ve studied the game indepth. I think that is something that helps me on the field. I think playing the cornerback position at my size, I think I bring some intangibles. Guys aren t used to seeing someone my size line up across the ball from them. My physical structure helps me. I m the type of guy that loves to bring energy to the field. It s something about when I feel the energy and the crowd is in to it, it really accelerates my play. It s something I take pride in, getting the fans involved. I just feel whenever I m on the field, it s a good situation for my team.

56 Q: Are you a guy who can play both corner and safety? A: I m a defensive back. I play corner, I play free safety, strong safety, I was our team s nickel for two years so I can play any position in the secondary. Wherever I can get on the field and help the defense and overall the team I m definitely going to work towards doing that. Q: Do you get a sense of where the Vikings want to put you yet? A: When I was up for the visit we talked primarily about corner but I know that if there was a need or interest in me playing safety that wouldn t be an issue for me. It s something I feel comfortable with. I m definitely looking forward to playing the cornerback position first, definitely looking forward to getting some snaps at nickel inside a little bit. Like I said, if they need me to move back to safety that is something that I would be open to doing. Q: Considering what you have gone through in the past, what has enabled you to get to this point? A: With everything I ve gone through, the thing about it is football has always been the thing that has kept me grounded. It always kept my head level despite everything I ve gone through. I could always get on the football field and forget about everything and just play the game. It s something that I found at an early age that I had an extreme passion for and it s carried me this far and I m excited to see how far it will carry me in the future. Q: Does today kind of validate everything that you have put into football? A: Absolutely. I always knew it would have. It s definitely a milestone for me. It s something I worked so hard for all my life to accomplish and having the opportunity to be drafted is so special. Regardless of not being drafted I would have looked at it the same way not being drafted. Just having the opportunity is what is special. You just have to make the best of it and when you get an opportunity to get on the field you got to be yourself and give your best effort. That s something I look forward to doing. Q: Were you confident you were going to get drafted? A: It s hard to say. I wasn t sure. I wasn t sure how to feel. The past few days have been an emotional roller coaster. I ve been up, I ve been down, I ve been hearing this, hearing that. The thing is, I just don t pay too much attention to that stuff. I just focus on the things I can focus on and the things I can control. I had done all I could. I had done all the running. I had done all the jumping, the catching and the film. The film speaks for itself. Like I said, regardless of where I can get my foot in the door, once I get my foot in the door, you just find someone to show you around the house then. That s what I look forward to, getting in and getting under some of those veterans and just learning from guys like Antoine Winfield and Madieu Williams and some of those guys who have such great knowledge of the game. That s the main thing on my list right now, just getting the opportunity to get familiar with some of the guys. Q: Do you feel like you had to grow up faster than most? A: Yeah, it s just the way I was raised. It wasn t just a situation where I had to cut the lights on at a certain point and time. I grew up in a house with so many siblings and with my sisters and my nieces and no father figure so I always had to be the man of the house so it is something that is second nature to me, just being mature and trying to show people a better way of living life and doing things the right way. Q: What was your primary position as a senior? A: As a senior, my primary position was corner. I started 11 games at corner and I started one game at safety. Q: Did you play outside in the base defense and the inside in the nickel? A: Yeah, I played outside at corner and when we brought in our nickel package I would just slide inside to the nickel position. Q: Who s your agent? A: My agent is Adam Heller and Melvin Bratton, who is a former running back the University of Miami.

57 SATURDAY, APRIL 30, 2011 Vikings Sixth Round Draft Choice Center Brandon Fusco Q: Position wise, it looked like you played center most of your career, you re listed as a center and a guard. I take it as you are mostly at-home at center? A: Yeah, played at center the last four years at Slippery Rock. Q: How did you end up at Slippery Rock? A: I really wasn t heavily recruited out of high school. I was about 6 4, 240 lbs., real skinny, built like a pencil, didn t take the weight room as seriously as I do now. Schools weren t really recruiting me, it was division two schools. The biggest look I had was Youngstown State and that was a walk-on job. Slippery Rock came to my house and I felt I really connected with the coaching staff. They offered me a scholarship and it s about 45 minutes from my house so the location was good and it was just a perfect fit for me. I really haven t ever regretted it since. Q: How much did you weigh when you came to college? A: I weighed about 250. Q: You didn t play football until your junior year of high school, what got you playing football finally? A: I wasn t really into sports that much. Sophomore year, didn t really do nothing and football just kind of came to my attention. I always watched it on TV and I sometimes got into a pissed off mood so I wanted to get out on the field and take my frustrations out on people. Started football and started it my first year and just really loved the sport. Q: What caused you to be in a pissed off mood? A: I don t know. I think I get it from my dad. He has a temper on him. I mean I m not like a pissed off kid but people piss me off and I like to take it out on people on the field. Q: You were named offensive MVP as a senior, that doesn t happen very often for centers. Guess you had to take that as a pretty high honor? A: Oh absolutely. I think I was the heart and soul of our offense. I took a lot of pride in our team and the team looked up to me a lot when times were rough. Slippery Rock, everyone means a lot to me and I took a lot of pride in football, football and everything, my life, since I was a little kid, but I just love football and I m just excited about being a Viking and starting my career. Q: What have you used as a spring board coming from a smaller school to get noticed? What is it the Senior Bowl? A: I played good at the Senior Bowl. I could have played a lot better but I think what really opened a lot of people s eyes was the combine. I had really good numbers and I really showed a lot of people my athleticism. I think the combine helped me really boost my stock. Q: Prior to the combine did you think you were going to be a drafted player or did you think you might be one of those guys in limbo with the lockout? A: In my opinion, I thought I really solidified myself being a draft pick. I played good in the Senior Bowl and had a really good combine so after that I was feeling pretty good and had a really good couple of workouts with teams and had nice visits. I figured I would be drafted, I just didn t know where. It was a waiting game for me the last three days.

58 Q: All of the scouting reports say that you size and toughness but not sure you have the athleticism to be a starter. What do you think? A: I disagree with that. I think I have the athleticism to play any position in the NFL, the guard, tackle, or center. Evidently the Vikings liked me a lot. If it has to be center, I ll play center; I ll play center. If it s to play guard, tackle, whatever. I think I have very good feet, good size. I think I can fit any way with the Vikings. Q: Where were you expecting to go today? Did you have a feeling? A: I had no clue, I really didn t. I didn t know what round. My agent was really curious. He admitted he wasn t sure either but it s been a crazy draft. It really has and I just wanted to be drafted today and the guys called me and I was excited. Q: What are your thoughts in coming to Minnesota and the situation you re walking into? A: You got a great running game. You ve got a great running back, Adrian Petersen. I know that. You have two centers right now in Sullivan and Cooper. I m going to be coming in and competing with those guys and I feel confident in my game. I think if I just learn the system, get used to this level, I think I can be pushing for a starting job soon. Q: What did you use for your primary blocking scheme at Slippery Rock? A: Zone blocking, outside and inside zone. I know the Vikings like to run the ball and that s my kind of offense. Q: Do you see your strength more in run blocking or pass protection? A: I d say more run blocking. I love to get after it. I think I m a physical player and I love the game of football. Can t wait to get out there in that purple, start going at it.

59 SATURDAY, APRIL 30, 2011 Vikings Sixth Round Draft Choice Linebacker Ross Homan Q: Were you surprised the Vikings were the team to take you? A: I really wasn t. I didn t have any indication of any team and once I got the call I was thrilled that it was the Vikings Q: Did you know where you might go round-wise? A: There was a chance that it could have been round five or six and it was round six but I really didn t expect any one team. Q: Do you have any idea how the Vikings may utilize you? A: I will do whatever they ask. They have two great linebackers Henderson and Greenway to learn from so I m excited for the opportunity. Q: What s the strength of your game? A: My instincts. I can read the play pass coverage-wise and help with the run. Hopefully I can utilize all my skills to help the team out. Q: Five interceptions as a junior. That s a big number for a linebacker. A: Yeah, I guess the ball just came my way and I took the opportunity and made the play. Q: How familiar are you with the Vikings? A: I m very happy. Coach Pagac is a legend at Ohio State. I know him and his son very well. Mike Singletary, his name pretty much explains itself. I m definitely thrilled to learn under him. Q: What s your background with Coach Pagac? A: He was a legend at Ohio State as a Defensive Coordinator. His son was a graduate assistant at Ohio State so he would always come back and he talked to our defense a couple times while I played there so I got to meet him a couple times. Q: You added ten pounds after the season. Did that affect you at all in your mobility? A: No it didn t. I put on weight and it was all good weight. I ate healthy and just wasn t eating fast food to try and gain the pounds. It was a gradual increase of weight and I ran a good time at the combine and felt good about all my position drills and I ve maintained that weight. Q: Did you primarily play on the strong side at Ohio State or how did you define those positions? A: In our 4-3 scheme I played the Will position. Our Mike and Will are very similar. Q: What weight are you at now? A: I m at 238 pounds right now. Q: Is that something you felt like you needed to show teams that you could get your weight up? A: Yeah, definitely. It s kind of hard to do it during the season to gain weight but after the season I really worked at it and I feel comfortable at that weight.

60 Q: Did you see yourself being a good fit in the Vikings cover 2 scheme? A: Definitely, with the 4-3 scheme which is very similar to what we ran at Ohio State. Hopefully I will be able to pick up everything very quickly.

61 SATURDAY, APRIL 30, 2011 Vikings Seventh-Round Draft Choice Defensive End D Aundre Reed Q: Were you surprised to be picked by the Vikings at all? A: Yes, I was. I was very excited. Q: The Vikings came down and worked out a couple of your teammates at Arizona. Did they have any up-close contact with you? A: Yeah, we worked out. Q: Did the Vikings put you through a private workout? A: Yes, we did. We had a private workout. Q: At this point in the draft were you still expecting to be drafted? Were you thinking you might have to go the free agent route? A: Miami called me and St. Louis called me and the Redskins said that they were going to try and get me so I was crossing my fingers for those or whoever and then the Vikings called me and they were the next pick and my heart dropped when they said they were going to pick me up. Q: You were part of a rotation. Was it difficult to impress scouts and coaches when you weren t playing full-time? A: It was a pretty good rotation but I knew what I could do in my heart so I knew I just had to keep working hard and put it on tape and people would see what I could do on tape. The tape doesn t lie. That s what I wanted to focus on, just keep working hard and put it out on tape. Q: Do you feel like you reached your potential at Arizona? You only started eight games in your career. Do you feel you got as much time and development as you wanted? A: Definitely. I think it s just the tip of the iceberg. I have so much more to show. That s another reason I am excited to go to the next level and show what else I can do. Q: Were you on special teams? Any coverage units or anything? A: Yeah, I played everything on special teams and towards the end of the year I just picked kickoff cover and punt as well as PAT. But throughout my career I did everything at the U of A. Q: What do you see as a strength of your game? A: I am a hard-nosed football player. I just play hard and come off the ball.

62 SATURDAY, APRIL 30, 2011 Vikings Seventh Round Draft Choice Wide Receiver Stephen Burton Q: What do you think of being a Viking? A: I think it is a blessing, and I can t wait to actually get up to Minnesota. Q: Did you think you were going to get drafted? A: I really didn t think into anything with the draft. I was just hoping that my name would get called. Trying to be patient and not get to crazy about the situation. No, I didn t actually. Q: Did you have any previous contact with the Vikings before the Draft? A: No, not any workouts. We spoke when I went to the Texas vs. The Nation game. We had all the scouts come in there and at my Pro Day. Not much more (contact) than that. Q: How do you describe yourself as a receiver? A: I would say big, physical, aggressive, work horse. I am very persistent. Q: Is there any current NFL receiver that you model your game after? A: I would say Brandon Marshall. Q: Are you mostly an outside receiver? A: I played a little bit of slot at my university so I am familiar with it. Q: How did you end up at West Texas A&M? A: It was kind of a long and bumpy road when I actually chose to go to West Texas. I was eventually going to go to the University of Oklahoma but I would have had to sit out the 2009 season to get the two classes necessary to transfer from my junior college. Why I decided to not sit out the 2009 season was because I love the game of football too much. My mother she said, If you are good you are going to be seen regardless of where you go. That is when I made my decision to not go to Division I and West Texas approached me and me being a receiver, I just felt like that would be home for me. Q: Was it a tough decision to not go and play for the Oklahoma Sooners? A: Yeah, it was. It probably took me almost a month to come to the final conclusion on whether or not I was going to sit out the 2009 season just to go Division I. Q: How much action did you get in the return game? A: Not so much. They saw the potential and the talent when I did get back there to return a kick but we had other weapons. I can t blame them for having someone else do the return game while I did the receiving. Q: What do you feel more comfortable with; punt of kick return? A: Kick return. Q: Did you handle any punt returns? A: Yeah.

63 Q: What kind of offense did you run at West Texas A&M? A: We were mostly a spread (offense). I would say we probably threw the ball 75 to 80 percent of the game. Q: What is your height and weight right now? A: The NFL says 6 1 but I would say 6 3 (laughs). I would say 6 1. Currently I don t know what my weight is but it is probably 217 to 219.

64 SATURDAY, APRIL 30, 2011 Vikings Head Coach Leslie Frazier I really believe the Minnesota Vikings got better in the 2011 Draft. To be able to come away with the 10 players we were able to draft, to create the competition that will be created in our training camps and OTA s, it s a real plus for our football team. One of our goals going into this draft was to create competition at positions and with that being the case and selecting some of the people that we have, there s no doubt in my mind that our team is better than it was prior to this draft and that s a good thing for our football team and for our organization. We are excited about what was able to be accomplished through our scouts and our coaches working as hard as they did throughout this process to select the young men that we have. We are looking forward to getting the chance to get on the field and get the things done that we want to get done as a team. Q: Where do you see Christian Ballard playing primarily? A: We are going to play him, to start off with, more inside and eventually work him outside but we want to start off playing him inside. He gives us some flexibility because of what he s able to do, the fact that we can play in the three-technique or play nose but he could also slide outside as a defensive end. He s one of those rare commodities when you talk about big men. He moves extremely well and that flexibility should really help our defense. Q: Being a head coach for the first time, how do you view a guy that has a positive drug test like Ballard? A: One of the things about all of our draft picks, our security staff, our scouts have done a great job along with our coaches of delving into every player s background and really having a great feel for what guys would fit our football team and what guys would not fit our football team. When we select a player, we are confident that we selected a guy that will fit what we want to do and really be a part of our situation and our team in a positive way. I feel good about all the guys we selected from a character stand point. Q: As a defensive guy was it hard to sit back the first two days and not select a defensive player? A: Well I knew we had a number of picks coming although in those first couple of picks we went offense and there still a lot of defensive players still on the board. It was just a matter of getting to those picks, the fourth, the fifth and the sixth round picks so I never really panic about that part of it. Plus, the offensive players we selected are top-notch players so we are feeling good about that part of it. It s worked out as well as it could be expected. Q: Was your first draft as a head coach about what you expected? A: It was very similar to years past when I was in that draft room. The difference now being, you are sitting through every pick which is a little bit different as opposed to when we are thinking about taking a defensive guy. The relationship with Rick (Spielman) and I has always been a positive one and the fact that Scott Studwell is in the room along with our other scouts, people I ve worked with throughout the years, it was smooth. There were not hiccups along the way. Plus, we had done so much work and preparation for the draft that there were really no surprises. It was pretty smooth.

65 Q: How do you feel being the head coach and creating competition between players and possibly having to cut some guys? A: During the stage when I was the interim head coach, our players were here. They understand how important competition is to me. If you look at our roster at the end of that season, how we moved some people around and did some different things playing some people who would not have been playing otherwise, they understand how I approach it. I don t think it will be a tremendous surprise to our players that were with us a year ago to see the fact that we have drafted some guys at their position. That s the only way we will get better as a team, if we create the right kind of competition and bring in the right guys to help us to move forward and continue to improve. It won t be a surprise to our players and it will always be that way. We will always be trying to better ourselves as a football team. You don t win in our League if you don t do that. Q: How familiar are you with Mistral Raymond s background? A: Our scouts and security people shared some information with me regarding his background and some of the things he had to overcome. My heart goes out to him and his family for what they ve experienced. It says a lot about him as a person, some of the adversity he s faced and he s stuck with it and has not given up on life or has not given up on himself. He s a tremendous young man and he s overcome a lot. Q: With the Kyle Rudolph selection, did you look at the Jason Wittens of the NFL and say we need a guy like that? A: When I started watching him on tape, I looked at him and said, You just don t see very many tight ends like this anymore. Everybody is going towards the hybrid-type tight end. A guy who s a move guy, sometimes he s in the backfield, sometimes at the line of scrimmage. It s hard to find guys like Kyle today. So many of those guys are playing basketball it seems so it s a little bit different. By the way, that is his background. He is a basketball player. I was watching him and I kept going, Man it sure would be nice to have guy like this. I know how hard it is for me when I m looking at offenses putting together a game plan thinking about that team s tight end. Is he a factor, or is he not a factor, because that enables us to some things with the receivers if he s not a factor. So I looked at him and said, Boy, if we were to get this guy, it would create some problems for opposing defenses. But I was thinking all along he wasn t going to be there because they are so rare but knowing he had a severe injury as well that it was a possibility. When the opportunity came, although there were other positions there we were looking at, there s no way you could pass on a guy like this. He s the top tight end in the draft and for good reason. We are fortunate that we have him. Q: Did you feel there were any needs that weren t addressed in this draft? A: I think we hit a lot of areas with the 10 players that we took. We tried our best to draft players that were the best available along with filling needs along the way. I think we did a good job of that in this draft. We ll see over time if we ve actually done what we set out to do. You usually can t judge these drafts in one or two seasons. I usually takes probably two or three years to be able to look back and just see if you really hit on the things you needed to hit on. We ll see, but I think we have. Q: Did you feel overwhelmed going into this draft or a sense of relief that the draft was over? A: Not a sense of relief, I just wanted us to get it right. It s not a lot of fun when you walk out there on a Sunday and you feel like you re a little bit short in some areas when you re trying to compete. I really wanted us to shore up our depth and create better competition at certain positions. All along the way, that was the one thing on my mind. Just ensuring our roster was more competitive than it was. I think we have gotten that accomplished. The energy that you get from going through the process is what motivated me along the way as I was looking at offensive players, looking at special teams players, looking at defensive players. Just knowing what we had to get accomplished as an organization, as a team. Q: How many guys did you meet with or talk to individually during the draft process? A: That would be a tough one. I haven t logged that. A lot, a lot. There were a lot of workouts, talked to a lot of guys individually, and watched a ton of tape. My approach, although my background is defense, I really believe that in the role that I m in, I need to have my hands in what we do offensively when you talk about selecting players. Specialists when you talk about selecting special teams players, as well as defensive players. I just feel like as a Head Coach you need to have a pulse on all those areas. I wanted to be a part of every selection we had without being overbearing, without trying to be a dictator. So, I spent a lot of hours in a lot of different areas.

66 Q: How important was it for you to get youth among your offensive line? A: It was very important to me. That was one of our goals going into this. We had a number of picks in order to get it accomplished. Fortunately we were able to draft a couple of guys who we think will really help us from a depth standpoint and eventually push our starters to improve or eventually be starters. I think it was good for us, that we were able to address that in our draft. Q: Do you feel good about the safety position, did you address that enough in this draft? A: I think so, (Mistral) Raymond has a chance, based on what we looked at on tape, to be a good transition guy to give us some flexibility. A guy who could play corner but also could play safety. And that s where we want to start him at we want to start him at safety to begin with, knowing he can play corner. I think we have addressed an area of need in our opinion and we ll see how he progresses. Q: If Ray Edwards were to leave via free agency would Brian Robison be your starting left defensive end? A: Well the fact that Ray is still our guy until we find out what the rules are. We ll deal with it down the line when we find out if we re going to be in a Collective Bargaining situation where guys are going to have to play for six years before they are free agents, or will we go back to the old rules where it s four years. We have got to go through all of that and make a determination. But right now Ray is still one of our guys, and we ll just have to see what happends. Q: Ross Homan has typically played weak side linebacker in college, do you see him possibly competing for the starting role at strong side linebacker? A: In our defense, Chad (Greenway) is actually our strong side linebacker who plays to the tight end side. Ben (Leber) is our open side linebacker in our scheme. We would like for Ross to end up lining up at that open side, to the Will side. Because he has played the Sam position in college, we know he s capable of doing it, but we will cross-train him. We ll let him work at both positions. We ll see what s the best fit for him, but right now we re thinking he can play that open side. Q: Is Homan s skill level to the point where he can be a starter right away in the NFL? A: Yeah, every guy that we drafted, we told them, it s going to be open competition. We didn t draft them to sit down. Whether you were Christian Ponder, (Mistral) Raymond, or in this case Ross (Homan). We wanted you to come in with the attitude that you re competing to start. Don t come in saying, I just want to make the team. That doesn t help the football team. Q: Who do you feel comfortable playing nose tackle? A: Right now we have Letroy (Guion) slated as a possibility, he could do it. Jimmy Kennedy of course, he s done it before. Fred (Evans) is a free agent, so we ll have to see what happens there. But we have some options between Jimmy and Letroy and we ve got some things that we ve thought about that we might be able to do. Q: Was the changing labor situation throughout the weekend, was this draft as crazy as it seemed to us on the outside? A: It s been a different offseason to say the least. This weekend was definitely different. We ll just have to see what happens in the weeks and months to come. It s just a different time in our league. Q: How much has the baptism by fire last season helped you deal with the uncertainty you are dealing with right now? A: I think it definitely has helped, not that I would have drawn it up that way. Or drawn up this offseason this way. But just dealing with that and handling it the way our team did, just gives me confidence that we ll handle this in the right way and be prepared when we find out what the rules are and what the parameters will be going forward. The fact that we ve experienced some adversity before, really helps to deal with some of the thing we re faced with now Q: Are you definitely looking to add a veteran QB this offseason, either as a starter or a backup? A: Not necessarily. When you look at the free agent market at quarterback, which we did prior to March 3 rd, when we didn t know what was going to happen. You got to determine is there a good fit for you. When we

67 were having those discussions, there had not been a draft at that point, and we were talking about what the scenarios would be if we were not able to get a quarterback in the draft. But now we have a quarter back, so now we have to go back and revisit that, and discuss whether or not it s to our advantage to bring in a veteran. Or do we want to let the competition remain against those three and maybe sign a free agent quarterback. So we ll go through all of those scenarios when we sit down now that the draft is over. Q: What is your gut feeling on that? A: Well it will help me when we sit down as a staff and talk about it as a group and just get some feedback from our staff. And just start ascertaining what s best for our young quarterbacks that are on our roster right now and what s the best thing to do.

68 SATURDAY, APRIL 30, 2011 Vikings Vice President of Player Personnel Rick Spielman Just to start off, again I can t thank enough the staff that I have in place with Scott Studwell and George Paton and all of our college scouts and pro scouts, everybody that contributed to this. I also can t tell you enough how well Leslie (Frazier) did through his first draft and how much the coaches worked at this because those guys put a lot of time into the tape work. Those guys did a lot of time going out this spring to work out some of these kids and that paid dividends for us, I think, in this draft. As far as the draft went, we were very excited to get eight players in that second day. We felt we got a lot of good value for the type of players that we took. We also were able to fill a lot of needs that we were looking to fill. In that fifth round, we had an opportunity to move back and pick up two extra sixth round picks so that gave us a chance to get three good players right in a row and we had enough choices and enough different scenarios where we knew we were going to get three good players because of how our board was stacked but overall said and done, to get ten players in here to come help the Minnesota Vikings win football games, we re very excited about each one of these guys. Q: Did you have a realistic chance to jump into the third round? A: We talked last night about potentially moving back into the third round but then we decided to stay put and see what kind of fell to us the second day. And the draft board, at least in our opinion, we felt very fortunate the way the draft fell to us this year. Everything just seemed to kind of click and hit right in place. Q: In trading down, how much of that had to do with the potential of not having undrafted free agency? A: Yeah, and that was a key too. To have that second day, or third day, to have eight draft picks and knowing that you don t have college free agency, we thought that was valuable because we know we have those eight guys for sure and actually right now I m going to go back up there. Our scouts and myself, we re going to go through and we re going to stack our free agent board so we ll stack our A, our B, and our C college free agents, I ll meet with the coaching staff tomorrow and go through that and then once college free agency does begin, everything is set and ready to go. Q: There was a report that Christian Ballard failed a drug test at the combine, are you comfortable with that? A: That s all confidential information so I m not going to address that. I can tell you that he is an outstanding football player. We spent time with him down at the combine. We spent time with him on the phone. We thought in the fourth round it was a great value pick for us. Just what he brings to the table as far as his versatility up front, where he s played some end, he s played some tackle. They slid him up and down the line this year at Iowa and we felt he was a second round value we got in the fourth round. Q: What does Christian Ballard project as in your opinion? A: My job is to get the best players in here and then let the coaches figure out where they want to line them up. We looked at him though seriously as, he can play some end if we needed to, we can play him at an under tackle and he s even slid inside and did some pass rushes at nose this year. So the one thing we tried to do is, especially on our defensive line and with Ballard, it gives us a lot of options and a lot of different things because very rarely do you get a guy that can line up and play multiple positions up front.

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