Vikings fans pleased with picks

Most fans were happy to add some excitement to the offense with the selection of Percy Harvin, despite his past and the risks it could pose in the future. They were also giving the team credit for picking Phil Loadholt in the second.

Vikings fans were quick to embrace the selection of Percy Harvin and were surprised and pleased to get tackle Phil Loadholt in the second round.

Here is the reaction from some of them from the Winter Park Whispers message board over the weekend:

From robertdavis84: Well, I would have to say that overall I like the pick of Harvin. I know a lot of people want to compare him to Reggie Bush, but he reminds me more of Devin Hester than Bush. Except that Harvin is more polished and developed at WR than Hester. I have some concerns with the character issues, but (Rick) Spielman and (Brad) Childress are very picky on that, so if they approved him I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt.

I would love to see a three-back formation now this year with (Bernard) Berrian and (Sidney) Rice the wideouts, and Peterson, Taylor, and Harvin the backs. Who would you defend?

From Resultsplease: Huge kudos to the front office and Chilly. This is going to make Vikings football fun again. … (Sage) Rosenfels’ short game will explode Harvin. AP is grinning ear to ear. Rice will be healthy. This is gonna be fun.

From VikingK: I was very vocal in the weeks leading up to the draft that I didn't want Harvin. I felt the risk was too high and I still feel that way. However, you can't help but get excited looking at the film and thinking of all the ways you can play him off of Peterson and Berrian. A dimension has been added to our offense that, if used creatively, can be a nightmare to defend.

A power running game needs a human bulldozer at right tackle and (Phil) Loadholt is certainly that. One of my fellow posters had been joking that a bottle of Guinness would be going through the flat screen if we passed on Harvin. My wife's coffee table knick-knacks were in danger had we not picked Loadholt.

Rounds 3 & 4 provided needed depth and special teams contributors.

As critical as this board is of Chilly, for the 4th straight offseason our overall talent level has gotten better and BC and Spielman deserve a thumbs up.

From savike: All Guinness is safely in hand (Harvin just needs to be a professional and he will be super) and I was really excited when we got Loadholt! On paper this looks like a super draft. … Another great move was getting rid of our extra #7 to get the backup to Henderson (Jasper Brinkley) that we need.

From denvermike: You got to give Childress a lot of credit for the Harvin pick. Some were so sure he was red dotted, but Childress listened to everyone, went down and met with the young man and his family and then pulled the trigger. A little gutsy maybe, but Childress showed he understands the team's needs and didn't settle for the safe pick. Kudos to Mr. C.

From 94east: I have been critical of Chilly, but not this week and this draft. I believe the Vikings got tremendous value while addressing their needs. Excellent job Chilly and staff! I know that the games have to be played, but the organization impressed a lot of people around the NFL with what they did this weekend.

From metheus: This is a risk pick, but a great pick. Top 10 talent (with the 22nd pick). Tremendous implications for offense and return game. Finally, we went BPA (best player available).