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EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. -- Minnesota Vikings general manager Rick Spielman held his midseason news conference with Vikings beat writers on Tuesday morning; he quickly made it clear there would be no updates on Adrian Peterson's status, but Spielman did spend some time defending the player whom he selected with the Vikings' highest draft pick since 1985: Matt Kalil. The left tackle has been a frequent target of fans and reporters for his struggles in pass protection this season, and Pro Football Focus currently has Kalil ranked as the third-worst pass-blocking tackle in the league. But Spielman, as coach Mike Zimmer and offensive coordinator Norv Turner did before him, defended Kalil while chiding those who use the site's rankings to assess Kalil. "I know you guys beat the heck out of him in the press, and a lot of times, and I know you guys love Pro Football Focus and read that, but a couple of the sacks you guys are dinging him on are not always his fault because you guys don't know what the pass protection was, or where the slide was," Spielman said. "I know Matt was inconsistent early, but over the last two or three weeks, he really has gotten a lot better, and got back to being focused. I really think Matt's going to be a heck of a left tackle in this league." The comments shouldn't be taken to suggest the Vikings think Kalil has played satisfactorily during the first half of the year -- Spielman admitted the left tackle has been inconsistent, and it doesn't take an expert to notice when the third-year tackle gets beat one-on-one -- but as we've discussed, the Vikings are a long, long way from giving up on Kalil. There are plenty of dollars and reputations invested in him, and Kalil showed during a Pro Bowl rookie season he has the talent to play the position. The Vikings have to make a decision after the season on Kalil's fifth-year option, which will be more telling than anything they say now, but Spielman's comments at least suggest the Vikings aren't contemplating a large-scale change at the moment. "I think just in general, all these young guys, I think if you look at a lot of our higher draft picks, most of them were all juniors coming out [as Kalil was]," Spielman said. "There is a huge difference in my opinion [in] a four- or five-year senior coming out, and a three-year junior coming out. There is a lot of difference in maturity. Guys mature and guys click at different times. I think you have to be patient through that process."
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