John Sullivan, Irish Viking

John Sullivan was an offensive center for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish for nearly three years, so many Irish fans were happy to see that he was drafted in the recent NFL Draft. The Minnesota Vikings selected him in the 6th round, the 187th overall selection. Although this was a bit of a drop for him in terms of where he was expecting to get drafted, it could still turn out that he has a successful NFL career. The experts seem to like the basics about him, but he does lack some of the skill sets that NFL centers generally have.

One thing that could have hurt Sullivan in the draft was the miserable offensive performance of the Irish last season. They allowed sack after sack and the running game was among the worst in D-1 NCAA football. If there was a bright spot on the line, it was Sullivan, though. He’s 6-3 301, and looks even bigger. He’s got the drive and the heart, but if he wants to get playing time in Minnesota, he’s going to have to learn how to move laterally better, among a few other things. The Vikings have him listed as the No. 2 (out of 2) centers on the team. Above him is Matt Birk, who is 31 years-old, 6-4, 308. The training camp battle will be interesting at this position.

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Posted in General on May 12, 2008

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