T.J.

T.J. Houshmandzadeh is visiting the Vikings.

He's not young and he won't come cheap. But he fills a big need on the Vikes. And he's saying he will make his decision by Sunday. Seattle, the Giants and the Bengals are other teams in the mix to acquire him.

The Vikings need to what whatever it takes to ensure he doesn't leave Minnesota without signing a contract.

Not exactly free agency central

With a weekend that's going to be filled with work, family duties and reffing basketball, it will be tough for me to stay on top of the opening days of free agency.

But the Vikings are doing their part to help me out, as the team isn't doing much anyway – other than completing the trade with Houston to acquire quarterback Sage Rosenfels.

Two interesting tidbits from the linked Vikings Update story. Contract talks with Matt Birk broke off Thursday night and Heath Farwell has not been re-signed. The news about Birk isn't unexpected. The Farwell news is. The Vikings coverage units struggled terribly in 2008 and Farwell has always been the team's top coverage guy. If he signs elsewhere, that's a big blow to any plans new special teams coach Brian Murphy has to improve this area.

Update
Access Vikings is reporting the Vikings could be interested in wide receiver Michael Clayton and defensive back/kick returner Chris Carr.

I'd suggest checking in regularly with Judd Zulgad on the Access Vikings blog and Sean Jensen at the Vikings Now blog to track any potential free agency moves by the Vikings. Both reporters were on top of things during last year's free agency period.

Based on what the Vikings haven't done so far, we could be looking at a 2007-like free agency period where the Vikings made only mid-level signings (Shiancoe, Ciurcui) and didn't grab any big name players. That might not be a bad thing, just the way things are falling this year where there aren't a lot of good players available and the ones that are, like Albert Haynesworth and Ray Lewis, are going to get big contracts and don't play positions of need for the Vikes.

McNabb, Rosenfels, other stuff

Errr, perhaps the Vikings should hold off on this Sage Rosenfels trade idea.

I've fantasized for two offseasons now what Donovan McNabb could accomplish in a Minnesota uniform. And it might have happened, too, had the Eagles and McNabb not reached the NFC championship game.

McNabb seems a little kooky and maybe not the best teammate. There always seems to be some controversy swirling around him. However, the same could be said for Randy Moss (and why exactly did we trade him again?)

McNabb is one of the best quarterbacks around. The Eagles would be crazy to get rid of him and I don't think they will. But there appears to at least be a chance it could happen. So is there any reason to rush out and trade for Rosenfels without first kicking a few tires in Philly?

In other Vikings news, Charles Gordon has signed a one-year deal with the team and management is talking contract with Matt Birk and Jim Kleinsasser.

I like Gordon and think he could be starting material. Whether that happens with the Vikings or some other club will wait another year. But signing him gives the Vikings some options at cornerback after the 2009 season is over – when Gordon, Antoine Winfield and Cedric Griffin will all be free agents unless they sign contract extensions during the season.

All three won't get those extensions but at least one of them will have to be re-signed. The Vikings now have 16 more games (at least) to see which one is worth the investment.

I'm also not upset to see the Vikings exploring bringing back Birk and Kleinsasser. It's a weak free agent class at just about every position right now. Rather than waste big bucks on players to replace Birk and Kleinsasser who might not be very good, it looks like the Vikings are willing to explore re-signing two solid veterans they are familiar with. I am not reading about any contract talks with Darren Sharper though.

For good or ill, the court case involving Pat and Kevin Williams could finally be settled this summer.

And finally, if the Sage Rosenfels trade does go through, Mike Lombardi says the Vikings have made a good move, while Star-Tribune blogger Michael Rand thinks not so much.

After a day of reflection I'm maybe not as jazzed at the prospect of acquiring Rosenfels as I was 24 hours ago. Besides the potential difference in compensation, why do I think Rosenfels ( 2007-08 stats – 10 starts, 3,115 yards, 65.2 completion percentage, 21 TDs, 22 INTs) represents a better gamble than Matt Cassel (2008 stats – 15 starts, 3,693 yards, 63.4 completion percentage, 21 TDs, 11 INTs)?

The more I think about it, the more I'm having trouble talking myself into that one. But there is no talking me out of believing Rosenfels is better than Tarvaris Jackson and Gus Frerotte.

Sage move?

So, Sage Rosenfels, eh?

This is more palatable than a Tarvaris Jackson and Gus Frerotte sequel.

I've been suggesting for weeks now that the Vikings should sign Jeff Garcia. But if this deal with Houston happens I'll be reasonably pleased. Rosenfels is eight years younger than Garcia. In the two years he's played a significant amount of snaps, he's completed well over 60 per cent of his passes. And the Vikings don't have to give up a longboatload of draft picks to get him.

Acquiring Rosenfels doesn't scream Super Bowl. But neither would signing Garcia. I was simply looking for the Vikings to get a quarterback who would be better than the quarterbacks the team already has, while also being realistic about the whole thing.

It would be nice to sign Kurt Warner or trade for Donovan McNabb (or even Matt Hasselback), but if those players aren't available, you have to look for something else. Sage Rosenfels is our something else.

And Rosenfels looked pretty good against the Vikings in 2008. He did throw an interception that cost Houston dearly in that game. He also completed a lot of passes and produced first down after first down against a very good Vikings defence. I don't know if Rosenfels makes the Vikings a Super Bowl contender. But I'm fairly confident he's better than Jackson or Frerotte, which means the Vikings will have improved themselves at the most important position in football and they didn't gut their 2009 draft in doing so.

Thoughts, anyone?

Michael Vick and other depressing QB talk.

This headline at CBS Sportsline leads you to believe the Vikings could be interested in Michael Vick if he's ever reinstated by the league after doing time for dog fighting misdeeds.

Now the Vikings quarterback situation is such that just about any available quarterback could be a candidate to be brought in. But in this story are there any quotes from head coach Brad Childress or any other member of the Vikings coaching staff or management indicating they'd consider acquiring Vick?

No.

Childress doesn't say outright that the Vikes wouldn't take Vick if they could get him, but that's different from the Vikings actually being interested in him.

When I look back and remember how uptight Vikings fans and the Twin Cities media were over Randy Moss's transgressions ("My God, he wouldn't stop for a traffic cop!"), it's hard to imagine any scenario where Vikings owner Zygi Wilf would bring in the soon-to-be ex-con Vick. CBS Sportsline has created a story where there is none.

Say it isn't so
As for quarterbacks the Vikings do have on the roster, some surprising words from Childress today in the Star-Tribune.

Chilly cannot be serious about 1) allowing Tarvaris Jackson to compete for the starting job and 2) bringing back Gus Frerotte as Jackson's chief competition.

The crop of available quarterbacks is not very impressive, but really, Jeff Garcia – 39-years-old and all – is not an upgrade in Chilly's mind over those two?

This is madness. And maddening. Pray it's all smoke and mirrors.

Matty B
I thought there was no way that Matt Birk would be back in Minnesota in 2009 after he wasn't signed to a contract extension in '07 or '08. But now it's looking like there's a chance he might remain with the team.

I admit I thought Birk was weak last season. But I also admit my thoughts were based on scattered plays here and there where Birk made obvious mistakes. The good plays – no matter how many or how few of them there were – I didn't notice.

So while I don't know if Birk is an elite, or even just a good player anymore, what I do know is that the Vikings have no obvious replacement for him on the roster. Better the devil you know, I guess.

So much for Vernon Carey

The National Football Post is reporting that offensive tackle Vernon Carey has signed a fat new contract that will keep him in Miami.

If this is legit, it's another disappointing development for the Vikings. The Vikings are looking for someone to play right tackle besides Ryan Cook or Artis Hicks. The Vikes were reportedly very interested in Jordan Gross (who re-signed with Carolina) and Carey. With those two players off the market, that leaves Khalif Barnes and, well, I'm not sure who else at the right tackle position.

Where have all the good times gone?

Nnmadi Asomugha. Jordon Gross. Julius Peppers. Dunta Robinson. Matt Cassel.

These players were set to be the cream of free agency’s class of 2009. But they have all been re-signed or had the franchise tag slapped on them the past two weeks, weakening an already weak free agent field.

Since free agency started in 1993, this time of year has always been fun (unless your team was about to be gutted because it couldn't afford to keep its top free agents). The fun is in the rock star treatment the free agents get visiting potential suitors, the speculation over what free agents might be coming to town next, then the thrill fans get when their team signs a top-flight player and excitement and expectations soar.

But as the salary cap has grown and most team’s have gotten more capable managing the cap, clubs have the cash to sign their top young players to extensions before they ever hit free agency. As websites like the National Football Post have recently detailed the potential free agents at each position, what’s been striking is that just about everywhere, there’s only one, maybe two, very good players on the list at each position. Four of five years ago that number would have been much, much higher.

So 2009 is the year we lost that great diversion that is free agency. I’m sad about it. I'm going through football withdrawal right now and I need the Vikings to bring some excitement to my life. And I can’t wait until the college draft in April to get it.

But I’m not going to get it. Free agency 2009 looks like it’s going to be deadly dull and depending on how the dispute between the NFL owners and players over the collective bargaining agreement turns out, it could be very dull for the foreseeable future.

Why not Vernon Carey?
Access Vikings Judd Zulgad had some interesting stuff today on his blog while talking to the Vikings director of player personnel, Rick Spielman. Zulgad thinks the Vikings might be very interested in Miami offensive tackle Vernon Carey, who would slide into the starting right tackle spot.

With so few good free agents available, if the Vikings could sign Carey and Jeff Garcia and keep all their draft picks, I’d consider that a successful offseason thus far.

But the coaching staff doesn’t seem to be very interested in Garcia and Carey’s going to draw a lot of interest from other teams. And those teams might have a bit more cash to throw around than the Vikings, so you never know.

Update on Carey
Michael Lombardi of the National Football Post thinks Vernon Carey will not hit the market and that Bill Parcells and the Dolphins are working hard right now to sign him to a deal.

Lombardi's pretty connected, so there's probably a lot to this. It is hard to believe the Dolphins would let Carey test the market after their offensive line improved so much in 2008 and Carey played a big role in that improvement. Oh well.

Now here's a surprise

The Vikings have released kick returner/running back Maurice Hicks.

Let the Darius Reynaud era begin.

In all seriousness though, I hope the Vikings give Reynaud a legit shot at winning the kick-off return role in '09. He had two 40-yard kick-off returns in limited action last season. He looks like he has some ability in this area.

I also hope the catch-and-release aspect of the Hicks affair has the Vikings re-examining how they evaluate the return game. From Keenan Howry and Bobby Wade and their frequent fair-catch signals on punts to Hicks blindly running into a wall of defenders on kick-offs, the return game has been undynamic, unexciting and, mostly, a liability for some time at Winter Park. The organization does not seem to value this part of the game. Which is odd – teams with offences that struggle to sustain long drives benefit from the consistently good field position a good return game can bring.

Perhaps new special teams coordinator Brian Murphy recognizes this and will look for players with a special talent for these roles, rather than just sticking guys in there because the team has no other option.

More praise for Chilly
I enjoy Football Outsiders' "Four Downs" posts. But Tuesday's post on the NFC West includes a line that gives Vikings fans more reason to wonder (scroll down to the eighth paragraph) if head coach Brad Childress will ever amount to anything.

Jeff Garcia!
I've been stumping for the Vikings to sign Jeff Garcia for a couple of weeks now. The Ragnarok takes a closer look at the apple of my eye.

I get the feeling that Garcia will not be coming to Minnesota. If Vikings beat writer Judd Zulgad's opinions are to be believed (and I like Zulgad's work), the Vikes are going to make a run at Matt Cassel.

So be it. Let's trade seven or eight draft picks for Cassel. It'll be fun. But I still think Garcia makes a lot of sense for the Vikings based on what else is out there. The problem with Garcia (besides his age, injury history and arm strength) could be that he is quick to scurry around in the pass pocket. I've read that this habit drove Jon Gruden crazy. I suspect it would also drive Brad Childress crazy.

So Childress doesn't like Garcia's helter skelter style and that's why he has no interest in him. That's my latest theory.

The thing is, Garcia may run around like a maniac in the pass pocket, but he's never thrown more than 13 interceptions in a season. For a guy who preaches about taking care of the ball so much, you'd think Childress would recognize Garcia has always done an excellent job at that.

Percy Harvin!

I've seen plenty of mock drafts predicting the Vikings will pick a cornerback or an offensive tackle (if a good one falls to them) or even a quarterback. But I hadn't read one that had the Vikings taking Florida's Percy Harvin with the #22 pick until today.

Mock drafts – especially those penned in February – are notoriously unreliable. The first round never goes according to the script written by the likes of Mel Kiper Jr. Players predicted to be taken high fall and other players rise. Still, I really hope the Vikings aren't considering Harvin.

Harvin's numbers – like his 9.8-yard running average – are gaudy, but he played in an offence (Canadian spelling alert!) where opposing defences had to worry about Tim Tebow and the Gators unlimited supply of skill players.

I watched Harvin play once this year (against Oklahoma) and I can't see him being more than 15-20 play guy in the NFL. His speed is impressive and he could help the Vikings in the return game, however, with a first round pick you need to do better than selecting a role player.

I'd be thrilled if the Vikings managed to get Harvin in the third or fourth round though.

More thoughts on Matt Cassel

We have no idea what, if any, interest Brad Childress has in Matt Cassel.

There should be some, however, considering how bad the Vikings quarterback situation has been with Childress coaching the team. And as uncertain as many of us (including me) are about Cassel’s ability - he’s young, he’s in his athletic prime and the team he currently plays for is probably willing to trade him.

That’s a combination that is hard to find.

But let’s discuss the availability part: One thing that hasn’t been brought up in the Cassel-to-the-Vikings chatter is that New England may not want to trade Cassel until the summer because they want to see how healthy Tom Brady’s knee is.

And if the Patriots are willing to wait that long, that may not dovetail with the Vikings interests. This is a Vikings team that showed in a playoff loss that it needs better quarterbacking to challenge for a Super Bowl. It’s also a team that needs to sell tickets to keep the Metrodome filled and avoid a bunch of local TV blackouts. There’s going to be a lot of pressure internally (from owner Zygi Wilf) and externally (from fans like me, although Childress should ignore that) to do something more at quarterback than sign a Gus Frerotte.

So if the Patriots decide to wait until June or July to trade Cassel, the Vikings probably can’t afford to wait that long to do something. The team can’t be caught waiting for Cassel to become available, only to find out Brady’s knee is slow coming around and the Patriots have decided to keep Cassel. If that happens, it's another season of the Tarvaris Jackson Experience. You can imagine how that will go over with the Vikings fanbase.

The Vikings probably have to get their new starting quarterback in March or April. That could mean settling on someone else, like Jeff Garcia, even if Cassel is their top choice.

But that probably is a good thing.

What one game can tell us
You may have heard Brett Favre retired this week, so NFL Network has been showing Favre “firsts” ever since – first comeback, first Super Bowl, first retirement (that's a joke).

Saturday night the network aired the Jets/Patriots game where Favre and the Jets won in overtime.

I watched because I wanted to get a good look at Cassel. What I saw was a guy with a good arm, and he can can make the short throws and he can scramble. What I didn't see was Cassel completing passes beyond 15 yards. During the telecast it was mentioned he had missed something like 11 straight throws of 20 yards or more at that point.

I’m not sure if Cassel improved on that total in his final six games (later, after this was mentioned, Cassel badly overthrew a wide open Randy Moss for a potential touchdown), but that’s worrisome. Opposing defences already know the Vikings throw a lot of short passes. If Cassel’s strength is throwing short passes and he can’t hit Bernard Berrian on deep passes, how is the Vikings offence going to be markedly better with Cassel?

Then there is the matter of the guy making the ultimate decision on Cassel’s abilities – Brad Childress. It’s not reassuring to Vikings fans that this is the man who thought Brad Johnson could get the job done and then thought Tarvaris Jackson could get the job done and brought in Brooks Bollinger, Kelly Holcomb and Gus Frerotte (don’t forget Mike McMahon!) thinking they could get the job done if Johnson or Jackson couldn’t.

So with that track record, we’re depending on Childress to make the right call on Cassel.

State of the unit - defensive backs

This is the first instalment in a series that will look at where the Vikings offensive and defensive units stand heading into the 2009 season. As the headline of this post so obviously states, Grant’s Tomb assesses the Minnesota defensive backs.

Did you hear the joke about the Vikings porous pass defence? The Vikings have - for the last three seasons. But the truth is, the Vikings had a very good pass defence in 2008.

Football Outsiders stats show the Vikings had the NFL’s fifth best pass defence last season. And in more conventional stats, the Vikings were much improved defending the pass compared to 2007. Passing yardage, touchdown passes allowed, completion percentage and passing yards per game were all down – in most cases significantly – from 2007. This improvement is what allowed the Vikings to field an elite defence for the first time since the early 90s.

How to account for the improvement? Two words: Jared Allen.

But the Vikings still have some good players in the defensive backfield and they’ll probably only be replacing one starter. The defensive backs still might be the weak link, but that’s different from saying the Vikings defensive backs are weak.

The starters

Antoine Winfield: The best tackling cornerback in the NFL is coming off his first Pro Bowl and this isn't a case of a guy getting a trip to Hawaii based on reputation. Football Outsiders stats rate Winfield highly.

Winfield will be 32 when the 2009 season starts. That’s old for a corner. But he played at a high level in 2008 and there's no reason to think he won't do so in ‘09. The Vikings have no worries here if Winfield stays healthy.

Cedric Griffin: It might be time to take back every F-bomb you ever directed towards Griffin. Over the final five games of the season, he played as well as any Viking defender. The 70-yard touchdown pass given up to Calvin Johnson aside, Griffin doesn’t give up many big plays. The main criticism of Griffin is that he does give up lots of little plays – little plays that allow opponents to kick field goals and score touchdowns anyway. He also doesn’t seem to have starting-level ball skills.

But he's a bit miscast as a Cover Two corner. Griffin's tall for his position (listed at 6'0) and he has long arms. He may be better suited to being an Al Harris-type press coverage guy. The good news is defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier seemed to play more press coverage and man-to-man in ’08 than in the past. That plays to Griffin's strengths. He also tackles well.

The Vikings massively improved pass rush makes all their defensive backs look better and Griffin was a beneficiary of that pass rush last season. But his play during the Vikings playoff drive at least suggests he is a player on the rise.

Darren Sharper: There’s no need to assess Sharper. The Vikings have made no effort to resign him and their starting strong safety in ’08 will be playing elsewhere next season. Let's move on.

Madieu Williams: He missed seven games with a neck injury but when he finally played he proved to be a much better tackler and run defender than advertised. He also solidified the back end on passing situations. The Vikings made an expensive but wise choice signing him away from the Bengals.

The reserves

Tyrell Johnson: The best thing I can say about Johnson's rookie year is that I rarely noticed him. There were no real poor plays, but no real standout ones, either. He often looked like a player who wasn't sure what he was doing while starting for the injured Williams. Johnson was a rookie, so that’s understandable, but it still bothers me. Ready or not, he will take over for Sharper at free safety.

Johnson provides a different skill set than Sharper. He'll get fewer interceptions but he's also a player you can put close to the line of scrimmage to play the run and use on blitzes (see the New Orleans game). Some scouts felt he was the best safety in the 2008 draft. In 2009, he'll have a chance to prove those scouts were right.

As for the actual Vikings reserves at defensive back, the team has some problems. Backup safeties Eric Frampton and Husain Abdullah are special teams guys. The Vikings wouldn't want them playing safety in an actual regular season game, so management may want to find a backup safety that can play.

In other news, the top reserve defensive backs - Charles Gordon and Benny Sapp - are free agents. Gordon is a player who might have drawn some interest from other teams had a grotesque ankle injury not ended his 2008 season. That injury means other teams probably won't be interested in him now, and that makes it easy for Vikings management to bring him back. But they must see how he runs on his reconstructed ankle before offering him a new contract.

Sapp took some costly penalties in 2008 but played decently enough that he deserves to come back as long as the price is right.

The same can't be said for 2007 third round pick Marcus McCauley. Sapp beat him out for the dime back position and until Gordon got hurt, McCauley rarely dressed. Is he another guy ill-suited to be a Cover Two corner? Well, when I watch McCauley play, I often wonder if he's suited for any defensive system.

State of the unit

Note: The Ragnarok beat me to this today, so I encourage you to check out his take on this subject.

If the Vikings pass rush is as effective in '09 as it was in '08, the defensive backs should be fine. The concern is what happens in 2010.

Winfield and Griffin are both due to be free agents after next season. As good as Winfield is, he'll be 33 when the 2010 season starts, so don't expect the Vikings to bring him back unless he's willing to sign a one-year deal for reasonable money (he won't).

Depending on how Griffin plays, he might not be re-signed, either, leaving the Vikings with the prospect of having to find two new starting corners in 2010. They better hope they win the Super Bowl in 2009 if that happens.

Assuming the Raiders and Texans franchise Nnmadi Asomugha and Dunta Robinson, respectively, the free agent crop at cornerback is not impressive. The Vikings will have to address the cornerback position in the draft - perhaps in the first round.

In a draft top heavy in offensive tackles, if one falls to pick 22, the Vikes probably take a tackle. But several mock drafts have the Vikings taking a corner at 22 if they keep the pick (remember, trading for Matt Cassel is a real possibility). D.J. Moore of Vanderbilt and Vontae Davis of Illinois are some of the names being floated around. If the Vikings keep their first round pick, there’s a good chance they will take a corner who will succeed either Winfield or Griffin in 2010.

Vent if you wish

Vikings vice-president Lester Bagley – the team's key stadium schelpper – has some not-so-nice things to say about Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty regarding the Vikings stadium situation.

For a reasoned take on how Minnesotans should look at the Vikings stadium debate, here's a recent post by Joe Fischer (otherwise known as Pacifist Viking).

Again, examine the language Bagley uses while criticizing Pawlenty.

“With all due respect, he’s been the governor for six years and he hasn’t done anything,” Bagley told beat writers on Wednesday. “He hasn’t lifted a finger to engage in a problem-solving discussion to help us on our issue..."

But what problem really needs to be solved? If Zygi Wilf wants to build a new stadium and he already has the plan and architectural drawings in place, the real problem is to secure the financing to pay for it and then find the appropriate contractors to build it. Wilf doesn't need Pawlenty's problem-solving powers or help with that.

Of course, the real issue for Wilf isn't how hard it is to get a stadium built in the Twin Cities, the issue is how hard it is for the Vikings to get public funding to build a stadium in the Twin Cities.

I don't blame Wilf for trying to do this. It's been done in many other cities and it's been done for the University of Minnesota and the Twins (and Twins ownership has invested a lot less money than Wilf has over the years to keep that team competitive, which must be annoying for Wilf). Still, three wrongs don't make a right.

This is the first real harsh tone I'm aware of that the Vikings brass has used in the stadium debate. But as 2011 gets closer, I suspect it won't be the last.

Just remember to keep Joe Fischer's post in mind the next time Lester Bagley or Zygi Wilf plead for public funding to build a stadium.

There's a Saturday Night Live skit in here somewhere

The Access Vikings blog, by way of ESPN is reporting that Brett Favre is going to retire. Again.

Nobody who follows the NFL should be surprised by this. What will surprise everybody is if Favre sticks to his decision and doesn't waffle as training camp draws closer.

Jeff Garcia! Jeff Garcia! Jeff Garcia!

Jeff Garcia thinks he's done in Tampa Bay.

I think this is good news for the Vikings, if Garcia is correct.

The Vikings top priority is improving the quarterback position. So if you can't sign Kurt Warner away from the Cardinals (which probably/definitely isn't happening), can't convince the Eagles to trade Donovan McNabb (also not happening), Brett Favre's retiring, and you're not willing to pay a Somali pirate's ransom to acquire Matt Cassel, Garcia's the best option out there.

I have a soft spot for Garcia because of his year's spent toiling in the Canadian Football League. But that doesn't change several facts: he's an accurate passer, he doesn't make a lot of mistakes and he's mobile (a must with this offensive line). Yes, he's 39, he'll get hurt and his arm isn't the strongest, which may or may not impact Bernard Berrian's effectiveness, but if you're looking for a veteran with a proven track record of success in the NFL, Garcia more than qualifies.

The only thing I question is whether the Vikings are all that interested in Garcia. They weren't in 2007.

The blog
Regular readers will notice most of my post lately have been short. Work is one reason for that but the other reason is that my wife has taken the home laptop on the road, so I can't write at home. She's attending a workshop in Berkeley, California (That's my life right now. My wife takes trips to California. I take trips to Iqaluit, Nunavut).

However, I am still planning to start my "State of the Union" posts on the Vikings this week, starting with the defensive backs. Look for the first installment on Thursday.

In the meantime, Vikings fans await to see who the team will cut. Gus Frerotte is a shoe-in. But it may not happen until after free agency and the Vikings have found someone who can take Frerotte's roster spot.

More cowbell

The Star Tribune's Judd Zulgad (what a name) has a pretty good post on the Matt Cassel/Vikings quarterback situation.

Of course, nobody has a clue what the Vikings are going to do here. Trade the farm for Cassel – doubtful, but not out of the question.

Sign a veteran stopgap like Jeff Garcia or Chris Simms to challenge Tarvaris Jackson for the starting job – likely.

Keep Jackson as starter because the other options are as appealing as stepping in soft dog shit and draft a successor like Ball State's Nate Davis in the second or third round – possible.

Or, change their mind, promise Gus Frerotte the starting job and bring him back with T-Jack backing him up?

Okay, that's too far-fetched.

Whatever the answer might be, Brad Childress isn't saying. And that's okay because I enjoy all the talk and speculation.

And at the end of the post you will notice Zulgad thinks the Vikings might have had interest in Eagles right tackle Jon Runyan if he hadn't just undergone microfracture surgery on a knee.

Tell me, what ex-Eagle do you think Chilly will bring in this year?

Matt Cassel or no?

On the National Football Post site today, Mike Lombardi breaks down what teams might take part in the expected raffle for Matt Cassel. He thinks the Vikings are the most likely of the quarterback-needy teams to push hard to deal for Cassel.

Lots of discussion on this topic at the Post. Over 100 comments and counting.

Anyway, acquiring Cassel from New England will be costly. And one wonders if the Vikings can stomach trading a first rounder, plus the other draft pick it will likely take to pry Cassel from the Patriots, considering they traded three high draft picks for Jared Allen last year.

Football fans tend to get too infatuated with holding onto draft picks. The point of having them is to use them to pick up players that will improve your team. Whether a team does that by drafting college players or use the picks to trade for established NFL players on other teams – it makes no difference to me. I had no problem with the Vikings trading for Allen.

But would I feel the same if the Vikings decide to trade multiple picks for Cassel?

Nope.

My belief is if a team is going to trade away draft picks for a player – especially a first rounder – that team has to acquire someone with a track record of outstanding productivity. Any trade is a gamble. But all things considered, I’d feel comfortable with my team trading draft picks for a player who has shown for a number of seasons that he’s very good.

Keeping that in mind, here is Allen’s NFL track record at the time the Vikings traded for him: 2004 – 31 tackles, nine sacks; 2005 – 55 tackles, 11 sacks; 2006 – 65 tackles, 7.5 sacks; 2007 – 64 tackles, 15.5 sacks.

Now here’s Matt Cassel’s NFL track record: 2005 – 13-24, 183, 2 TDs, 1 INT; 2006 – 5-8, 32, 0 TDs, 0 INTs; 2007 – 4-7, 38, 0 TDS, 1 INT; 2008 – 327-516, 3,693, 21 TDs, 11 INTs.

There are plenty of people – like Mike Lombardi – who are very high on Cassel. And I’m not going to pretend he didn’t have a very good year in 2008. But Allen had proven he was a legitimate difference-maker with four previous seasons of highly productive play. He even got 15.5 sacks playing with Tamba Hali, Alphonso Boone and Ron Edwards.

Matt Cassel has proven he can play very well (for one season) when he’s throwing to Randy Moss and Wes Welker. Could he do it again throwing to Bernard Berrian and Bobby Wade?

The Vikings have to do something at quarterback, so they'll consider Cassel. They’ll look at game tape and make a determination from their studies whether to make the Patriots an offer. But trading high draft picks to acquire Cassel isn’t the slam dunk trading for Allen was. It’s very risky, and if the Viking do it, I have a feeing they’ll regret it for a long, long time.

Mr. Big
Adrian Peterson wants to bulk up and is talking about playing at 230 pounds next season.

Putting aside the fact Peterson already has a body made of granite and doesn’t need to bulk up, when I hear Peterson talk about putting on eight-to-12 pounds, I don’t think about him losing some speed, I think supplements. And I don’t want the franchise messing around with anymore supplements than he has to (I’m sure he takes some) in an effort to put on muscle he probably doesn’t need.

We've had enough problems with Vikings players and supplements the past two seasons.

Murphy takes over nothing special

A year ago my guess is a lot of Viking fans couldn't have told you the name of the team's special teams coordinator.

But as the 2008 season dragged on and as the Vikings gave up punt return touchdowns, and couldn't down punts inside the 20 without mucking it up by mistakenly stepping into the end zone, and couldn't establish decent kick-off or punt return games, Paul Ferraro no longer was a name they did not know.

But Ferraro's gone now and his replacement has been named.

According to Football Outsiders stats, the Vikings had the worst special teams in the NFL this season. But in 2007 they were actually ranked ninth in the league. In 2006 they were ranked 27th in the league.

FO has found that special teams performance varies widely from year-to-year in the NFL. So expect the Vikings to do much better in this area in 2009. However, the stats tell us in two of Ferraro's three seasons as special teams coordinator, the units he was responsible for were very, very bad. It was time for a change here.

And since change has occurred, it's up to Brian Murphy to make it change for the better. If Heath Farwell recovers fully from his knee injury and is resigned, that will help. But Murphy also has to find someone to return kicks (Darius Reynaud should be given a legitimate shot to unseat Maurice Hicks), someone to return punts and he must find a way to make Chris Kluwe a better directional punter. He'll also need to find a few more players who can get downfield and tackle in coverage.

The Vikings played a lot of close games in 2008. They played a lot of close games in 2007. And, for the most part, they played a lot of close games in 2006.

There's no reason to think that will change in '09 – especially if the Vikes can't improve the quarterback position. So if the team is going to keep playing close games, it can't afford to give up field position through poor punt and kick-off coverage or give up touchdowns on punt returns every other week. It's Brian Murphy's job to fix what Paul Ferraro couldn't.

Good luck with that, Brian.

Mike Tomlin – coaching savant

At 36 years of age and two years as head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers, former Vikings defensive coordinator Mike Tomlin has a record of 22-10, two AFC North divisions titles and now a Super Bowl trophy on his resume.

At 52 years of age and three years as head coach of the Vikings, Brad Childress has a record of 24-24, just won his first NFC North title and has one playoff appearance (a loss) on his resume.

I usually dislike these 20/20 hindsight judgements on whom has turned out to be the better head coach. Tomlin inherited a much better team than Childress did.

But one of my memories of this Super Bowl will be Tomlin clapping away and calmly urging his team to action after the Arizona Cardinals had gone up 23-20 with just over two minutes left in the biggest game in pro sports. So it was no surprise to see the Steelers march down the field with purpose and score the winning touchdown.

Meanwhile, one of memories of the Vikings playoff run this season is Childress – with less than a minute left in the regular season finale and the Vikes needing a field goal to beat the Giants and clinch a playoff berth – wasting valuable seconds, calling a timeout and sending Ryan Longwell out to kick a field goal, then changing his mind and calling for Tarvaris Jackson to drop back to throw a pass with nine seconds left in the game and no timeouts.

Sometimes small moments reveal a lot about how good a person is at their job. I think that happened with Mike Tomlin today and I think that happened with Brad Childress in the final minutes of the Giants game.