Vikings Need a Win Vs. Arizona. Duh.

There’s no way of finessing the situation – the Vikings need a win against Arizona or their season will be lost. At 2-5 they still have a decent shot at the playoffs, given the weakness of the NFC. But if they slide to 2-6? You can kiss any realistic hope of a 2010 playoff run goodbye. And, if last week’s reports are to be believed, you can probably kiss Brad Childress goodbye as well.






















Judging from the sentiments being expressed by most Viking fans, there will be few tears shed if Childress is indeed sent packing by Zygi Wilf. The fact is that, from almost the moment of his hiring, Childress has been an unpopular figure with Minnesota fans. His manner has often seemed patronizing, his offense has often been boring, and his handling of players has often been clumsy. And I haven’t even mentioned his game management skills. However, if the Vikings should lose to Arizona this weekend, and Childress should subsequently be fired: I ask the vociferous Chilly-haters, what then? Would getting rid of Childress and elevating Leslie Frasier to head coach actually result in a run of wins? Or, would the Vikings’ problems remain even without Childress at the helm?





















I have no doubt that Childress has done things to deserve being on shaky ground with his owner. However, if the owner fires Childress simply because Childress irritated him…well, how then would Wilf be any different than Childress himself, who got on the hot seat precisely because he allowed Randy Moss‘ comments about him to bother him personally? At some point, somebody in the Vikings organization has to put personal feelings aside and run this thing like a professional organization. In my mind, Childress getting fired now would demonstrate that Wilf is no more in command of things than Childress. The firing of the coach would not restore my faith in the organization; on the contrary, it would prove to me that the organization is in profound disarray, from the top down.





















The fact is, a lot of what’s gone wrong this year has not been Childress’ fault. Did Childress injure Sidney Rice’s hip? Did he cause Brett Favre to suffer a bad elbow and bad ankle? Did he hurt Cedric Griffin’s ACL? Did he cause the pass rush to mysteriously vanish? Blaming Childress for everything that’s gone wrong in 2010 is, I think, a little too easy. And thinking Childress’ firing would magically fix the Vikings is naive at best.





















No, the best thing for the Vikings now would not be a Childress firing but a win Sunday against the Cardinals. If the Vikings are going to get this much-needed victory, it appears they will have to do so without Percy Harvin, who injured an ankle early against the Patriots and has spent the whole week hobbling through practice. With Moss gone and Rice and Harvin hurt, the Vikings would be left with Bernard Berrian as their #1 receiver…but even Berrian was listed on the injury report this week with a bad groin. If you want to find a healthy Vikings receiver you have to go down the list to guys like Greg Camarillo, Greg Lewis and Hank Baskett. Needless to say, Brett Favre himself is not exactly 100%.





















With Favre still not fully himself and the receiver corps greatly diminished, it figures to be another rough week for the passing game. At this point we should’ve long-since resigned ourselves to the reality that, if the Vikings do manage to put together some wins this year, they will not be pretty wins. The 2009 offense ain’t walking through that door. The only thing that’s working this year is running the ball with Adrian Peterson…and if Childress elects to leave Peterson on the field, maybe he will even have a chance to carry the team. If Childress has any survival instinct at all, he will scrap his “mixing in Toby Gerhart” plan and just ride Peterson. I wouldn’t presume to tell Mr. Childress how to do his job, but it seems to me that when you do get some offensive momentum going, it would be a good idea not to yank your best player.





















The key word when addressing the defense this week is “bounce back.” As in, these guys need to bounce back from getting undressed in the second half by Tom Brady and the Patriots. Asher Allen got exposed as not a very good football player last week, and overall, the tackling was just not good enough – sort of shocking when you consider that, for the last few years, the Vikings have sported one of the best tackling units in the league. Obviously, with the secondary looking shakier by the week, the onus falls more-and-more on the front-four, which has not exactly been rising to the challenge. I could do the easy thing here and blame it all on Jared Allen, but the fact is, the line in general has just not been getting consistent penetration, and that’s showing up both in the pass rush and the run defense. If the guys in the middle – the alleged strength of our defense – get more penetration, quarterbacks will get flushed more and Allen will run into more sacks. Frankly, I’m beginning to believe our real problem is that Kevin Williams has hit the downslope of his career. Outside of the occasional batdown, what plays is he making? The Williams Wall this year has looked more like the Williams Chicken Wire Fence. I don’t want to sound too harsh, but frankly, Brett Favre isn’t the only old washed-up guy on our team. Pat Williams is about done; and if you want to extend this discussion out to the team as a whole, I think you can add Antoine Winfield and Steve Hutchinson to the list of guys who are fading quickly. We knew the window was going to close on this team this year, but what we didn’t realize was that, for a few of the key veterans, it was already down to a crack.





















Brad Childress can’t stop Father Time any more than he could stop Randy Moss from being a prick. But, when you’re a coach in the NFL, the reality is that you’re going to be blamed for everything, even the stuff that’s out of your hands. Childress’ problem this year is that everything came to a head at once: certain key guys got old, certain young guys got hurt, and a certain desperation set in that led to the single most disastrous personnel move of Childress’ tenure. Of course, Chilly still deserves plenty of blame, for the sometimes bizarre and boneheaded way he reacted to all these issues. However, I reiterate, firing Childress won’t make that stuff go away. Only a win, ugly or otherwise, will dispel the Cloud of Doom currently darkening the Vikings’ skies.

Moss Takes The Podium After Loss To Former Team



Brett Favre Has His Chin Lacerated



Randy Moss Sheds A Tear For His Former Team

FOXBOROUGH, MASS. — Randy Moss got fined $25,000 by the NFL this week for not cooperating with the media. The Vikings receiver had plenty to say Sunday after catching only one pass in a 28-18 loss to the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium.







In one of the strangest "news conferences" you'll ever see, Moss announced that he will not conduct any more interviews the rest of the season.







Moss then said that if he does grant an interview, he will ask the questions and provide the answers. Wearing a black Boston Red Sox hat, he spoke nearly five minutes about his affection for the Patriots organization, his former teammates and coach Bill Belichick and the relationships he made during his three-plus year tenure. He said he "shed a tear" over an ovation he received after the game.







Moss then criticized Vikings coach Brad Childress' decision not to kick a field goal at the end of the first half and said he was disappointed his coaches and teammates didn't listen to the insight he gave on the Patriots last week.







Moss concluded by literally saluting the Patriots and Belichick.







"I love you guys, I miss you, I'm out," Moss said.







Moss was basically a nonfactor in his return. He caught one pass for 8 yards and was targeted only three times, one of which drew a pass interference penalty. The Patriots used deep safety help to take away his vertical threat. He also had a classic Moss moment in the fourth quarter. Moss drew an interference penalty on safety Brandon Meriweather on a deep pass down the sideline near the end zone. Meriweather fell down on the play, leaving Moss wide open with the ball in the vicinity. But he let up and inexplicably did not try to catch the ball.







Reporters gathered around Moss' locker after the game and he informed everyone that he would be talking on the podium. Did he ever.

Brett Favre Hints That He Could Sit Out

Brett Favre has started 289 consecutive regular season games…but that streak appears to be in serious jeopardy thanks to the elbow tendinitis the quarterback is currently battling.



The elbow issue first came to the media’s attention during practice week leading up to Monday night’s Jets game, though Favre says the situation has actually been around for a lot longer. During the game, Favre seemed to have full velocity, but was at times wildly inaccurate. This inaccuracy prevented the Vikings from finishing the furious second half comeback Favre started by flinging a long touchdown to Randy Moss.



In his Wednesday presser, Favre acknowledged that the elbow affected his throws.



“There were some throws that, blind-folded, I felt like I could have made, and made some good throws but missed on some that I don’t miss on,” Favre said. “That’s what I don’t want to happen. You’re not going to make every throw, but I would have made some of those throws.”



Favre also addressed the possibility of sitting out a game to rest the elbow. Perhaps surprisingly, the quarterback noted for his supreme toughness didn’t rule out the idea.



“Sure, I think any player would have to consider that,” Favre said. “Going through that type of situation where, I can [play], but will rest help? Yeah, that’d be a consideration.”



The Vikings face the Cowboys this weekend, in a game that could very well degenerate into a shoot-out. That being the case, this would be a very inconvenient time for Favre to hand the keys over to Tarvaris Jackson.



After that the Vikings face the Packers – there’s no way Favre misses that game – and then the Patriots, another team the Vikings probably can’t handle with T-Jack at the helm. The home game against a weak Arizona squad Week 9 would probably afford the best chance for Favre to sit and have it not badly cripple the team’s chances of winning – but by then the Vikings might already be out of serious playoff contention, rendering the whole situation moot.



Of course, there are some who have argued that an injured, distracted Favre isn’t any good to the Vikings anyway, and they would be better off if he retired now and they went with T-Jack the rest of the season. To these people I can only say, what short memories you have.

Minnesota Vikings Coach Brad Childress Quotes

Minnesota Vikings Coach Brad Childress Is Optimistic About Slow Start

Good work today; you guys won’t be here, but we’ll get a little extra work tomorrow with these guys all working together. They’ll have their day off Wednesday. Tonight they have Taste of the NFL and they have their NFL life skills seminar at 2:30. We got a few things we like to get done during the bye week. Everybody came back none the worse for wear. I had a chance to watch a little college football and a little pro football. It’s a long season. The big thing is to continue to improve and I think these few days will help us do that.



Q: How wide open do you think the NFC North potentially is?



A: I would say that about probably every team in the NFL. Before it’s over, if they don’t have issues now; Kansas City is the only undefeated team and I’m sure there are issues no one is aware of. It becomes a war of attrition at times; who’s healthy, and who’s not. Certainly the NFC North is always competitive. It was a game last year; it’s always going to be in there being fraught with different things. We’re playing a couple pretty good divisions in our crossover, so I would expect it to be a pretty good battle.



Q: How pleased are you with the defensive line at this point?



A: I think they are doing okay. I think the edge pressure has been decent. Jared Allen has seen a variety of different looks. As important as anything I would tell you would be the pocket push, pushing up the middle. Quarterbacks can step up from edge rushes and not giving them something clean where they can step in to is as big as anything. I think we’re doing a decent job with that inside push as well.



Q: What’s it like having only three weeks of film to look at during your bye week?



A: It was different from the standpoint of body of work. You don’t have as many plays to look at and see situational, for instance snaps on the goal-line, which we had an unbelievable amount throughout the course of last year. There’s not that much evidence there yet, so people will go back to last year to look at us. We’re doing a decent job of running the football right now. We want to continue that. We want to throw in a couple of areas there. Like I said before, pass game needs work and we’ll continue to address that and look at that.



Q: Are you surprised you got a call from the league addressing Jared’s “roping”?



A: I was. It was Friday before the game. Somebody must have called it to somebody’s attention, but it has been going on for a long time and everybody was certainly aware of it when we started this season. It wasn’t on the DVD that we get for rules changes. Ed Hochuli was very good about it before the game just in my conversations with him. They weren’t going to try and make an issue out of it.



Q: The league said he [Allen] can’t go down to the knee?



A: I think you can’t go down to the ground to celebrate. It’s the same as you can’t go down to the ground in the endzone to celebrate after a touchdown.



Q: What do you look for when a team comes back from a bye week?



A: It’s important that they have a fresh attitude, fresh outlook and that they come out here and don’t forget everything they knew before the bye. I thought we had a pretty crisp practice today, just kind of getting back in the saddle. I just look for them to come back with the right mindset, come back ready to work, come back ready to improve, not to come back and just hang out. We’ve got work to do. We can only do work on one opponent right now. As I mentioned to you, offensively we face a number of 3-4 teams here, one after the other.



Q: The Jets are getting Santonio Holmes back for this game. What does he bring to the offense?



A: They already do a nice job of running the football; Jerrico Cotchery is a good player and Braylon Edwards is a very good player. The more weapons they have, the more variables. They have a very good tight end; I think he gives them more of those explosive components. He’s a good player in his own right.



Q: How impressive is it that they [Jets] only have one turnover through four games?



A: That’s huge. They don’t put themselves in trouble.



Q: What is the status on Visanthe Shiancoe and John Sullivan?



A: They are working through their different muscle issues. They are making progress and they stayed all last week and actually treated last night. They’re coming.



Q: Are you surprised at how successful Ladanian Tomlinson has been this season?



A: No, I thought he was still a pretty good talent. Live-legged. I know they are changing it up with Shonn Greene a little bit. He’s got football instincts and he’s still got the physical wherewithal to be able to make you miss and he’s quick enough to square around the corner and run between tackles.

Rex Ryan Says He Would Have Pursued Favre If Jets Hadn't Drafted Sanchez

In 2008, the Jets traded for quarterback Brett Favre. After an 8-3 start and a disappointing finish, which saw the Jets miss the playoffs, coach Eric Mangini took the fall -- and Rex Ryan got the job.

Favre retired for the second straight year after the season, and the Jets declined at the time to release his rights. Thus, while retired, Favre remained property of the Jets.

After the Jets moved up with Mangini's Browns to pick quarterback Mark Sanchez with the fifth pick in the 2009 draft, the Jets released Favre from the reserve-retired list, setting the stage for a pursuit by the Vikings.

On Monday, as the Jets prepare to host Favre and the Vikings in only seven days, Ryan told the media that, if the Jets hadn't drafted Sanchez, Ryan would have tried to recruit Favre to return.

Though it's unknown whether Favre would have responded to the sweet nothings whispered into his ear by Rex, the reality is that, if Favre wanted to keep playing football, he would have played for the Jets or no one. The Jets released Favre's rights only after drafting Sanchez. If they hadn't, Favre definitely wouldn't have played for the Vikings.

And he may have had a second tour with the Jets.

He may have even had a third one.

Minnesota Prepares For Detroit

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Brett Better Come Looking To Go Big Early

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Childress Better Call Some Passing Plays In The Redzone!

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Allen Could Use A Game Like Last Game

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Peterson Needs To Keep On Trucking

The Vikings will spend this week telling everyone within earshot that they aren’t taking the Detroit Lions lightly. They will talk about how their games against the Lions are always hard fought and that winning in the NFC North is never easy.











It will be in their best interest if they listen to the lip service they deliver to the media.







After losing to New Orleans and Miami, the Vikings can ill afford to give anything less than a full effort on Sunday when they play host to Detroit. The Vikings have dominated this series—they haven’t lost to the Lions at home since 1997 - but given the struggles of this offense to score points nothing is an automatic.









That could be especially true because the Lions seem to be gaining confidence.









Detroit is 0-2 but has played close games against Chicago (19-14) and Philadelphia (35-32). The additions of defensive end Kyle Vanden Bosch(notes), defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh(notes) and running back Jahvid Best(notes) among others has improved the roster of a team that hasn’t won on the road in 21 games.











The Vikings, meanwhile, are a team that started this season as one of the favorites in the NFC after losing in overtime to the Saints in the conference championship game last season.











The issue is that so far the Vikings have only 19 points and after a magical season in 2009, Brett Favre(notes) has thrown four interceptions and only one touchdown.











The feeling among many Vikings observers is the soon-to-be 41-year-old isn’t having as much fun as he did a year ago—Favre’s birthday is Oct. 10—and one big reason is the absence of wide receiver Sidney Rice(notes) for at least half the season.











Rice, who presented Favre with a 6-foot-4 target, had hip surgery in August. Bernard Berrian(notes) was expected to pick up much of the slack in Rice’s absence but that hasn’t been the case.











Berrian, who is 6-foot-1 and known more for his speed than his physical play, has only three receptions for 27 yards in two games. Two passes thrown his way Sunday ended up being intercepted.











The Vikings have explored trading for suspended San Diego wide receiver Vincent Jackson(notes) but that fell through. They did make a move to sign 6-foot-4 Hank Baskett(notes) on Wednesday after he was released by Philadelphia.











“I think Bernard’s heart is in the right place,” Favre said of Berrian. “I believe in my mind he did all he could do. If I felt otherwise, I wouldn’t throw it to him. We go to bat with who we’ve got, me included. That’s the way it is. I’m not going to look out to my left or look out to my right and say, ‘I’m not going to throw it over there.’ I’m not going to play that way.”











Coach Brad Childress and Berrian both swear the receiver is on the same page with Favre and that chemistry isn’t an issue. If that is the case, Favre, Berrian and several of their teammates are going to need to take a big step forward on Sunday and prove they have solved some of their issues.











The Vikings will have a bye week following that game, so a failure to right the ship could make for a miserable off week in Minnesota.











Series History: 98th meeting. Vikings lead regular-season series, 65-30-2, and are 18-2 in the past 20 games against Detroit. The Vikings have won the past 12 games against the Lions at the Metrodome. Minnesota is 14-3 in its last 17 regular-season home games. Vikings coach Brad Childress is 7-1 against the Lions.











NOTES, QUOTES







• DE Jared Allen(notes) has 30 sacks with Minnesota, a team record for the most in the first three seasons as a Viking.











• QB Brett Favre needs two touchdown passes to become the first player in NFL history to throw for 500 and 275 yards passing to become the first to throw for 70,000 yards.











• Favre broke the NFL record for most consecutive starts in his first game against Detroit as a member of the Vikings on Sept. 20, 2009. Favre threw two touchdown passes and had a 115.3 passer rating in a 27-13 victory.











• RB Adrian Peterson ran for 133 yards against the Lions on Nov. 15, 2009, making him the seventh Viking to reach 4,000 rushing yards in a career. That set a team record and tied for fourth in NFL history for fewest games needed to reach 4,000.











• DT Kevin Williams(notes) had a career-high four sacks against Detroit on Oct. 12, 2008, which tied for the most in a single game in 2008 and ranks tied for second in franchise history.











• LB Chad Greenway(notes) intercepted two passes off Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford(notes) and returned them for a combined 49 yards when the Vikings played the Lions on Sept. 20, 2009. That performance earned Greenway NFC Player of the Week honors.











• The Vikings have swept the Lions eight times since 2000 and Detroit hasn’t scored a rushing touchdown on the Vikings in the past six meetings, dating to Oct. 8, 2006.











• The Vikings have an all-time record of 165-123-5 against the NFC North and are 91-54-1 in home games against the division.











By The Numbers: 65—Victories by the Vikings over the Lions, their most against any opponent.











Quote To Note: “Have I seen improvement from Game 1 to Game 2? I did. Just want to keep being incremental. There’s always something we can get better on and those guys take it to heart in there, and I know they will.”—Coach Brad Childress talking about the Vikings’ offense and if he saw improvement from the first game to the second.











STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL







The Vikings attempted to add San Diego holdout wide receiver Vincent Jackson in a trade but were unable to work an agreement by the 4 p.m. deadline on Wednesday.











The 6-5 Jackson, who would have been eligible to play for the Vikings on Oct. 17, would have provided Brett Favre with the exact type of big target he is missing in Sidney Rice. Rice is expected to miss half the season after having hip surgery last month.











The Vikings did add a big receiver, signing 6-4 Hank Baskett. Baskett was released by the Philadelphia Eagles on Tuesday.











Baskett is far from Jackson’s equal in terms of ability but the fifth-year player will present another option and also provides some insurance. Percy Harvin(notes) has been slowed by a strained right hip and also is battling another round of migraine headaches. Bernard Berrian also landed on the injury report Wednesday because of a knee issue.











That means the Vikings’ healthy receivers are Baskett, Greg Camarillo(notes) and Greg Lewis(notes).











Player Notes











• WR Bernard Berrian was limited in practice Wednesday because of a knee injury.











• CB Chris Cook(notes), who is recovering from a torn meniscus in his right knee, was able to take part in all of practice Wednesday and might be able to make his NFL debut Sunday.











• CB Cedric Griffin(notes), who is recovering from surgery to repair a torn left anterior cruciate ligament suffered in last season’s NFC title game, is doing limited work in practice but probably will sit out again Sunday against Detroit. Griffin, like Cook, should return after the bye.











• WR Percy Harvin aggravated a hip strain last Sunday against the Dolphins and also has had another recurrence of migraine headaches. He did not practice Wednesday.











• DT Jimmy Kennedy(notes) (knee) is back practicing for the second consecutive week and took part in all drills Wednesday. Kennedy hasn’t played in the first two games.











• LB Ben Leber(notes) was limited Wednesday because of a back injury but said he will be good to go on Sunday.











• OT Bryant McKinnie(notes) (dislocated finger) did not miss any of practice Wednesday and played in last Sunday’s game despite the injury.











• QB Brett Favre continues to be listed on the injury report because of soreness in his surgically repaired ankle but he hasn’t missed any practice time.











• C John Sullivan(notes) (calf) did not miss any practice time Wednesday.











Game Plan: The Vikings will look to get their offense on track against a Lions defense that has given up 54 points in its first two games, including 35 in a loss last Sunday to Philadelphia.











The Vikings offensive line figures to have its hands full with rookie defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh and end Kyle Vanden Bosch putting pressure on Brett Favre. Minnesota’s greatest success so far has come on the ground, as Pro Bowl running back Adrian Peterson is off to a good start.











The Lions are giving up an average of 131.5 yards per game on the ground—27th in the NFL—and Peterson has rushed for 232 yards in two games, putting him third in the league.











Minnesota needs to get quarterback Brett Favre on track. He has thrown only one touchdown and four interceptions and hasn’t developed a rhythm with any of his wide receivers.











This includes Bernard Berrian, who was expected to be Minnesota’s go-to receiver with Sidney Rice sidelined. Berrian has only three receptions for 27 yards.











The Lions defense has given up 304.5 passing yards per game, putting them near the bottom of the league in that category as well.











Defensively, the Vikings surrendered 120 rushing yards to the Dolphins on Sunday. That’s a rarity for one of the better run defense in the NFL. Shaun Hill(notes) is expected to start at quarterback for the Lions in place of the injured Matthew Stafford.











The Vikings defense is going to have to be aware of rookie running back Jahvid Best at all times because of his play-making ability. If wide receiver Nate Burleson(notes) (ankle) is unavailable for the Lions that will take a weapon from a passing attack that also features Calvin Johnson(notes) and Brandon Pettigrew(notes).











Matchups To Watch: Vikings CB Lito Sheppard(notes), who is playing the left corner in the nickel package, vs. Lions WR Calvin Johnson, who has caught eight passes for 95 yards and a touchdown this season. The Miami Dolphins had immediate success against the Vikings nickel package last Sunday by going right at Sheppard on the Dolphins’ first play from scrimmage. The result was a 46-yard pass completion from Chad Henne(notes) to 6-foot-4 Brandon Marshall(notes) that set up a touchdown. You think the Lions aren’t going to notice that? Johnson is 6-5 and stands to create trouble for Sheppard or Asher Allen(notes), who is starting at left corner. Sheppard is only 5-10 and Allen is 5-9. Antoine Winfield(notes), the starter at right corner who moves inside in the nickel, also is 5-9 but he is the Vikings’ best cornerback. If Chris Cook (6-2) and Cedric Griffin (6-0) remain out, look for Johnson to be a primary target. Cook could provide some much-needed size against Johnson if he can play.











Vikings LT Bryant McKinnie, who played last week despite a dislocated finger, vs. Lions DE Kyle Vanden Bosch, who has 1.5 sacks this season after being signed to a four-year, $26 million free-agent deal this offseason. McKinnie has had issues at times with top-flight defensive ends and he now will be facing Vanden Bosch and Chicago’s Julius Peppers(notes) twice a season. This will be McKinnie’s first test. The key for McKinnie, who is in his ninth season, is simply showing consistency because he has the athletic ability to be a very good player. Vanden Bosch plays with a motor that never quits and will spend the afternoon using a variety of moves to try to get around the 6-8, 335-pound McKinnie.











Injury Impact: Cornerback Chris Cook could make his NFL regular-season debut, but it looks as if Cedric Griffin will remain out until after the bye week. Wide receiver Percy Harvin is dealing with a hip injury and migraines, meaning he could be a long shot to play. Wide receiver Bernard Berrian already is struggling and considering his game is based on speed the last thing he needs is a knee problem.

Vincent Jackson Possibility Accruing

Vincent Jackson Possibility Accruing

Vincent Jackson in purple makes sense. The Vikings only have 4 receivers on their active roster, their star receiver, Sidney Rice, is out for the foreseeable future with a hip injury, and Percy Harvin showed up on this week’s injury report. It appears that Minnesota’s ailing wide receiver corps could use an upgrade.Having said that, it sounds like Vincent Jackson’s future in Minnesota hinges on an arbitrator’s interpretation of the “roster-exempt” designation the San Diego Charger’s placed on the sixth-year wideout.
Vincent Jackson will miss the first three games of the season due to violating the league’s substance abuse policy. The Chargers also punished Jackson for missing the team’s entire offseason by placing him on the “roster-exempt” list. With that designation comes an additional 3 game suspension. However, in a 9:00 a.m. hearing today, the NFL’s player’s union is expected to argue that should Vincent Jackson be traded, that additional three game suspension should not be enforced because Jackson would no longer be a member of the team that handed it down.

  
   Should an arbitrator be swayed by the NFLPA’s case for Jackson, it’s looking more and more likely Jackson will be catching passes from someone other than Charger’s quarterback Phillip Rivers.
One possible trade partner would be the Minnesota Vikings. Judd Zulgad of the Minneapolis Star Tribune does a nice job of breaking down the likelihood of a trade between the two teams, but writes that it may be difficult to decide on the proper compensation for the 6-foot-5 receiver.
Lee Hamilton of XX Sports Radio in San Diego reported that if the suspension is reduced to three games, the Vikings are prepared to make a trade offer. Rumors have been swirling in Minnesota as well, but both teams as well as Jackson’s agent have been quiet on the matter.
The arbitrator has 5 days to rule on the case, but it’s possible Jackson’s fate will be decided by the weekend. Whether or not Vincent Jackson is catching Brett Favre’s passes remains to be seen.