Josh Robinson News

The Minnesota Vikings are preparing for the 2013 NFL season similar to past years, with rookie minicamp taking place earlier this month and training camp in Mankato soon approaching this summer.

The Vikings got to work signing their draft class on Tuesday, finalizing a four-year deal with Penn State linebacker Gerald Hodges, according to a person with direct knowledge of the situation.

The expectations for the Minnesota Vikings ' three draft picks is extremely high, perhaps to the point of being unrealistic.

Apr 26, 2012; Eden Prairie, MN, USA; Minnesota Vikings 1st round draft pick Xavier Rhodes answers questions from the media at the 2013 1st round draft picks press conference at Winter Park.

The Minnesota Vikings created a hole in their secondary by releasing cornerback Antoine Winfield in March, but they did help bolster their depth at the position by using one of their first-round picks on Florida State's Xavier Rhodes .

In a world where most of the individual press is given to athletes that are getting into trouble for whatever reason, a lot of people don't realize that most of the guys in league are good guys with a lot to offer as role models, and in the community.

Jerome Simpson underachieved during his first season in Minnesota. He'll have a shot at redemption in 2013.

The 2013 NFL draft is in the books and the Minnesota Vikings have to be thrilled with how things played out for them, making three first-round selections for the first time since 1967.

The 2013 Vikings will have been molded through three offseasons focused on young players, two of them with Rick Spielman as GM, and they will have the potential for both dynamic football and drastic lapses.

If Minnesota fans were hoping this weekend's draft would help the Vikings fill all their needs and settle the depth chart at every position, here's the obligatory reminder that there's still a long road between now and the Sept.

Linebackers Gerald Hodges and Michael Mauti played together at Penn State. Punter Jeff Locke and guard Jeff Baca were teammates at UCLA.

For years now, the cornerback position has been an area of concern for the Vikings.

By all accounts, the Vikings' draft class last year was an immediate success. GM Rick Spielman and his staff show how their plan developed and thrived.

The Minnesota Vikings have two picks in the first round of the NFL draft and one big hole in the middle of their defense.

The Vikings told us a little bit about some of the ways they use analytics, but what do analytics say about the Vikings? To find out, we talked to writers from two of the game's most well-respected statistics sites -- Pro Football Focus' Sam Monson and Football Outsiders' Aaron Schatz -- about how they viewed the Vikings' 2012 season.

Aug 30, 2012; Houston, TX, USA; General view of Minnesota Vikings helmet on the field before a game against the Houston Texans at Reliant Stadium.

The 2013 NFL draft is just a week away, and that means it's time to start looking forward to the 2013 season.

With former Minnesota Vikings CB Antoine Winfield signing with the Seattle Seahawks, the team is dangerously thin at cornerback with its locker room leader being released in a salary cap move in March.