Time For The Vikings To Go Big At WR?

Vincent Jackson

   As rumors continue to swirl that the Vikings are in the market to trade for San Diego wide receiver Vincent Jackson, team officials spent the weekend setting up visits for four free agent receivers at Winter Park.
The Vikings plan to look at Sam Aiken (Patriots), Reggie Brown (Eagles), Ruvell Martin (Seahawks) and Demetrius Williams (Ravens) as early as Monday. The visits were first reported on Fox and ESPN's pregame shows Sunday and the door also appears to have been left open for veteran Javon Walker to return. Walker was let go in the Vikings' final roster cuts on Sept. 4 after he joined the team late in the preseason.
The flurry of activity came only two days after Vikings coach Brad Childress told reporters he was not thinking about adding to a wide receiver group that is only four deep and combined for four receptions in the Vikings' 14-9 season-opening loss Thursday night at New Orleans.
Quarterback Brett Favre attempted to take the blame for the fact that none of his wide receivers had more than one catch saying he wasn't sharp enough on some passes. But there was little doubt Favre missed the presence of the 6-4 Sidney Rice, who turned into the quarterback's favorite target last season as he had 83 catches for 1,312 yards and eight touchdowns.
Rice is expected to miss at least half the season after having hip surgery. Bernard Berrian, who is 6-1, has big play ability but had only one catch for 3 yards against the Saints.
Jackson would be the most attractive of any available receiver because he would give Favre a Rice-like presence. The 6-5 Jackson had a career-high 68 receptions for 1,167 yards and nine touchdowns last season. However, there are questions regarding his availability that will need to be cleared up before any team pursues him.

    Jackson, a restricted free agent, remains unsigned and has not reported to the Chargers because he isn't happy with his contract situation. Things get murky because Jackson has been suspended for the first three games of the season for violating the NFL's substance abuse policy. San Diego also placed him on the roster exempt list, meaning he could end up missing six games to start the year.
The NFL contends that Jackson should have to sit out the entire six games even if he is traded; the NFL Players Association says the six-year veteran shouldn't have to miss those final three games if he is with a new team.
    There have been multiple reports that an arbitrator will hear the case Thursday morning and if the ruling goes in Jackson's favor he could be moved quickly. If he is forced to sit out six games, his attractiveness to the Vikings decreases in a big way because Rice might return shortly thereafter.
The San Diego Union-Tribune reported in August that the Vikings had made a call to check on Jackson's availability but "immediately balked" at his demands. That would be the same $50 million, five-year contract, with $30 million in guarantees, that caused Seattle to stop talking to Jackson's reps after they received permission to do so.
      The Jackson-to-Minnesota rumors picked up again when reports circulated that his agents had a deal completed Sept. 4 with a team they would not identify. The Union-Tribune said this time the agreement was believed to be for one year and $7 million plus incentives but that it fell through because the unknown team could not come to an agreement with the Chargers.
If Jackson had signed and reported by the 5 p.m. deadline Sept. 4, he could have served his suspension and his time on the roster exempt list concurrently but the league no longer sees it that way. The Vikings, who probably will have Favre for only the remainder of this season and are trying to make another deep playoff run, became the likely candidate as the unnamed team when the Rams and Seahawks were eliminated as the potential suitors by the Union-Tribune.
   One of Jackson's agents, Jonathan Feinsod, and Vikings officials have both declined to comment on whether the team is interested. Even if Jackson doesn't end up with the Vikings, it appears the team could have a fifth receiver on its roster when it plays its home opener on Sunday against Miami.

Get Your Brett Favre Jersey Or Minnesota Vikings Jerseys Below because the home game opener vs The Miami Dolphins is drawing near. Wear Vikings Purple and take pride in your team.

Minnesota Vikings Team Report

Favre Missed Some Crucial Passes In The Season Opener Vs Saints

NFC North Standings W L T PCT PF PA Chicago 0 0 0 .000 0 0 Detroit 0 0 0 .000 0 0 Green Bay 0 0 0 .000 0 0 Minnesota 0 1 0 .000 9 14 Team Stat Leaders Passing Att Cmp Yds TD Int Favre 27 15 171 1 1 Rushing Att Yds Avg TD Long Peterson 19 87 4.6 0 14 Harvin 1 2 2.0 0 2 Receiving Rec Yds Avg TD Long Shiancoe 4 76 19.0 1 33 Camarillo 1 29 29.0 0 29 Schedule/Results Date Opponent Score 9/9/2010 at New Orleans L 14 - 9 9/19/2010 Miami 1:00 PM 9/26/2010 Detroit 1:00 PM 10/11/2010 at N.Y. Jets 8:30 PM 10/17/2010 Dallas 4:15 PM 10/24/2010 at Green Bay 8:20 PM 10/31/2010 at New England 4:15 PM 11/7/2010 Arizona 1:00 PM 11/14/2010 at Chicago 1:00 PM 11/21/2010 Green Bay 1:00 PM

Brett Favre joined the Vikings in late August last year, didn't get into a groove until Week 3 of the season and still they cruised to a 6-0 start.

This season, however, Favre's decision to again not arrive in Minnesota until training camp was over appeared to backfire in quick fashion.

Favre, who took advantage of the fact the Vikings opened up against woeful teams in Cleveland and Detroit in 2009, completed 15 of 27 passes for 171 yards with a touchdown, an interception and a subpar 71.7 passer rating in a season-opening 14-9 loss to the defending Super Bowl champion New Orleans Saints at the Superdome.

It was obvious Favre was not on the same page as his wide receivers and he completed only four of the 12 passes that he threw to Greg Camarillo, Percy Harvin, Greg Lewis and Bernard Berrian. About the only receiver who was in sync with Favre was tight end Visanthe Shiancoe, who caught four passes for 76 yards and a touchdown.

"I think the timing was off a little bit," Favre said. "Without looking at film, off the top of my head, there were three or four throws that I just missed. I have no excuse other than just missing them. I threw one behind Greg Lewis. I had a couple of reads that I should have made differently. If I do that, I think it is a different ballgame. ... Overall, I just missed on some throws that I should have made."

In his first game with the Vikings last season, Favre completed 14 of 21 passes for 110 yards and a touchdown in a 34-20 victory over the Browns. A week later he threw for 155 yards and two touchdowns in a 27-13 victory at Detroit before following that with a 301-yard passing performance against San Francisco.

The question now becomes how long will it take Favre to get on track this season? The Vikings play their home opener on Sept. 19 against Miami and then play host to Detroit before having a bye.

Those are key games considering the Vikings will play the Jets, Cowboys, Packers and Patriots coming out of the bye.

NOTES, QUOTES

—Vikings coach Brad Childress acknowledged that his team's opening game was expected to be a shootout between two top offenses. But that isn't what happened. "Obviously, it turned into a defensive struggle," Childress said. "I don't think that anybody would've seen that this way. They had four explosive plays in the first quarter. We kind of held them down after that. We were right where we wanted to be at halftime. Unfortunately, we were three and out far too many times. Hats off to New Orleans. They did a nice job defensively ... and we didn't have a lot of answers for that."

—DE Jared Allen was pleased with how the Vikings defense performed. "I am really proud of the way our defense played," he said. "Other than their first drive (on which the Saints scored), I thought we stopped them a lot on third downs and made plays."

—QB Brett Favre didn't play his best Thursday but he did say his surgically repaired left ankle held up fine. "I don't move around like I used to," Favre said. "But I feel like it did OK."

__  Should Lito Sheppard Be The Number One CB and Greg Camarillo A Starting Receiver? From The looks of Thursday's game these were the players that played the best for the Vikings under pressure.

STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL

PLAYER NOTES

—S Husain Abdullah started at strong safety Thursday and has won that job, according to coach Brad Childress. Abdullah beat out Tyrell Johnson and Jamarca Sanford, who were believed to be the top two candidates throughout training camp.

—CB Asher Allen started ahead of Lito Sheppard at right cornerback and was used at the left corner in nickel situations as veteran Antoine Winfield moved inside and Lito Sheppard came off the sideline to play right corner.

—WR Bernard Berrian returned punts but didn't do much in that role. Berrian muffed one punt and finished with 2 yards on two returns. He also had two fair catches. There is a chance the Vikings could give WR Greg Camarillo a look in that role.

—CB Cedric Griffin, who tore his left anterior cruciate ligament in the NFC title game last season, was among the Vikings' eight inactives. It's not certain when Griffin will be able to begin playing but he is doing limited work in practice.

—LB E.J. Henderson played against the Saints, nine months after suffering a gruesome broken leg. Henderson started in his usual role in the middle and tied for second on the team with nine tackles.

—LT Bryant McKinnie left Thursday's game in the fourth quarter after he dislocated his finger. He is expected to return for the Vikings next game against Miami a week from Sunday.

REPORT CARD

PASSING OFFENSE: C-minus — A year ago Brett Favre started slowly after joining the Vikings late and it didn't matter as Minnesota cruised past a woeful Cleveland team in its opener. This time, however, Favre's decision to arrive late definitely hurt his team as the Vikings lost to the world champion Saints. Favre often looked as if he was not on the same page as his wide receivers and the stats supported that. He completed 15 of 27 passes for 171 yards with a touchdown, an interception and a 71.7 passer rating. The only player Favre seemed to be in sync with was tight end Visanthe Shiancoe, who caught four passes for 76 yards and a touchdown. No wide receiver caught more than one pass. Greg Camarillo, Percy Harvin, Greg Lewis and Bernard Berrian were targeted a combined 12 times but had only four receptions.

RUSHING OFFENSE: B-minus — The Vikings made a surprising decision to go away from the run game in the second half after having success with it in the first. Adrian Peterson finished with 87 yards on 19 carries, but 57 of those yards and 13 of the carries came in the opening two quarters. The Vikings' run-to-pass ratio in the first half was 17 to 15 but that changed to six to 12 in the second. Peterson did see some time on third down, something that didn't happen much when Chester Taylor was around, and backup Albert Young got only three carries for 2 yards. Percy Harvin also rushed once for 2 yards. Rookie Toby Gerhart, a second-round pick, did not play because of a knee injury.

PASS DEFENSE: B — Despite having only three healthy cornerbacks dressed, the Vikings were able to do a nice job against Drew Brees. The Pro Bowl quarterback threw for 237 yards and a touchdown but that score came on New Orleans' opening drive when Brees completed three of four passes, including a 29-yard touchdown that went to Devery Henderson and came at the expense of cornerback Asher Allen. Allen started at the right corner but the Vikings went nickel much of the game and moved Allen to the left corner in those situations with Lito Sheppard on the right and savvy veteran Antoine Winfield matching up against the slot receiver. Strong safety Husain Abdullah got his first career start and appeared to hold up just fine.

RUSH DEFENSE: B — The Saints accumulated 79 yards on 25 carries with almost all of it coming in the second half. New Orleans only attempted three rushes in the first half but then ran the ball 22 times for 70 yards in the second. The Vikings have one of the NFL's top rushing defenses and for the most part they were solid on Thursday. The Saints were able to gain 31 yards on their 11-play drive that ended with a Pierre Thomas 1-yard touchdown run in the third quarter.

SPECIAL TEAMS: C — Nothing special here. Bernard Berrian, who had some success on punt returns in 2008, only had 2 yards on two returns and muffed one that he recovered. Percy Harvin was able to return kicks and averaged 20.5 yards on two run backs. Ryan Longwell made a 41-yard field-goal attempt but his extra point try late in the second quarter after Shiancoe caught a touchdown pass was blocked. Longwell also is back handling kickoffs after Rhys Lloyd failed to make the roster coming out of the preseason. Longwell did not have a touchback on three kickoffs but his first kick to open the game did go 2 yards deep into the end zone.

COACHING: C — The decision to go away from the run game in the second half was surprising, especially as Saints coach Sean Payton made the adjustment to try to balance his offense by running more. Childress also was unsuccessful on a challenge of a pass that he thought tight end Jim Kleinsasser had caught early in the fourth quarter. That cost him a timeout he could have used later in the game as the Saints ran out the clock. The bottom line, however, was that if Favre had a better game the Vikings would have won.


Well, look forward to the Miami Dolphins Game Vikings Fans maybe we'll see our offense and secondary step it up and match the rest of the team. Below, is a store of Minnesota Vikings Player Jerseys, get your Brett Favre Minnesota Vikings Jersey, they're selling fast!!

Adrian Peterson Stiff Arms A Saints Defender

Saints Hold Off Vikings 14-9 To Open Season

Brett Could've been Doing This

          On a night that the city of New Orleans celebrated last season's accomplishments, the 2010 version of the Saints began their title defense with a 14-9 win over the Vikings on Thursday.

The Saints wasted no time in finding the end zone, scoring just 2:04 into the game. Brees hit Devery Henderson from 29 yards out, whipping the Superdome crowd into a frenzy and putting the defending champs up 7-0 before Favre and the Vikings' offense even touched the ball. Minnesota's first points of the game finally came in the second quarter on a Ryan Longwell field goal, cutting the deficit to four points. The Vikes took the lead later in the quarter when Visanthe Shiancoe hauled in a 20-yard Favre touchdown pass. A missed extra point by Longwell gave Minnesota a 9-7 lead at halftime.

New Orleans took control in the third quarter, finishing off an 11-play, 69-yard drive when Pierre Thomas plunged over the goal line to put the Saints back on top 14-9. Favre and the Vikings were unable to get back on the scoreboard and the Saints hung on for their first win of the new season.

Brees finished 27 of 36 for 237 yards and one touchdown while Favre went 15 of 27 for 171 with a scoring strike and one interception. Adrian Peterson was the game's leading rusher with 87 yards; Thomas led New Orleans with 71 yards on 19 carries. 

Why Is Brett Favre's Reason For Holding Out The Past Three Off-seasons?

Brett's Our Quarterback!!

Brett Favre, We all know him for five things
1. He Won The 1995 Superbowl vs The New England Patriots
2. He Has Relentlessness Pure Joy And Passion For The Game Of Football
3. He Has played 19 NFL Seasons and Has broken just about every passing and quarterback records there are[about 20 broken records]
4. He's From Mississippi and is One Of The most consistent Top quarterbacks in the game, and football wouldn't be the same without him playing.
5. He's a Flip-Flopper And Is Very Indecisive In Regard To His Retirement Status 


So, The Question still remains why Is Brett Been So Indecisive And Enigmatic About Returning The Past Three Years?


The Answer , Brett Favre Fans, is that he can't part with the game even despite his  increasingly stiff ankle and worn body.He's not holding out for the money, trust me he's loaded with all his Wrangler and Sears sponsors and 19 seasons in the NFL all of which were successful piratically so about 10 million multiplied by 19, were talking in the hundred of millions. Why he chooses to remain in Mississippi is another mystery in itself. Okay for his family, but move your family out to a condo in South Beach. So he has the money but how about holding out for his ankle. Sure, but I'm sure a guy like Brett Favre Who's played football his whole life knows his body like a genius knows his mind. Dr. Andrews has already given him three ankle surgeries and recently reviewed  Brett's Ankle and cleared him to play football ,or not. So, The Real Reason Is As Blatant As Favre's Passion for the game. Brett Doesn't return until after training camp because He's been through 18 training camps and wants to skip the hot, long days in Florida with the rest of the Vikings. Sure Brett can put in a few 100 yard sprints with the High school Boys In Harrisburg but he doesn't want to do drills with the coaches at Vikings Camp. The Clear Point of this is that Favre is done with the work and rigor of pre-season training and just wants to skip the preparation and dive straight into the fun, thrill, and excitement of Football come regular season. Is Brett Favre saying he's above the rough, tough, and compliance of Hard work and improvement, NO. Last Season Favre didn't put in any training camp time, except for two weeks. The Result: a trip to the NFC Championship game that was foolishly lost. Moving on, alright we've narrowed down the reason why Brett Favre flip-flops about coming back so that he'll be able to skip the rigor of football, practices. And in essence, it has created an awesome season for the Vikings and one of the best for Favre statistically. So, Vikings fans, is Brett warranted to skip training camp and flip-flop until the end of training camp. Absolutely. Because we know that at the expense of giving Vikings fans heart attacks, Brett will return melodramatically and have another great season, hopefully a trip to Dallas for the Superbowl. So Brett Favre can be Brett Favre and take off training camp but we need him to be ready come the 1st regular season vs The New Orleans Saints.