MINNEAPOLIS -- There was always something speculative about the Minnesota Vikings' 2014 decision to spend the ninth pick in the draft -- their first during Mike Zimmer's time as head coach -- on Anthony Barr, a 3-4 pass-rushing linebacker at UCLA whom most figured would play a similar role in the NFL.
The Vikings were going to play a 4-3, and they wanted Barr for their defense, the same way Zimmer wanted to use James Harrison in Cincinnati. Barr would rush the quarterback from Zimmer's vaunted double-A gap blitz packages. He would drop into coverage, where his 6-foot-5 frame and 33 1/2-inch arms would change throwing windows for quarterbacks the way a post player alters shots in basketball, and the former running back would use his speed to annihilate ball-carriers who played his old position.