Forget About Vick, Favre, and Anderson: Let Sage Play

If you’re like me, you’re sick of hearing headlines about Vick, Favre, or some other random quarterback that the Vikings should get.

It all started with Favre and the possibility of him coming out of retirement for the second time.

We all know how that story ended.

Then, it was Michael Vick’s turn. Why would you want this guy?

Vick has a career completion percentage that is barely touching 50 percent. The only thing Vick has going for him is that he is fast.

In case you haven’t noticed yet, the Vikings already have a similar quarterback to Vick. His name is Tarvaris Jackson.

Jackson is a very mobile quarterback. While he’s not as fast as Vick, he’s more accurate and knows the system better.

The Vikings don’t run with their quarterback. That’s for Peterson and Taylor to handle.

Now there’s articles saying that we should get Anderson or Quinn from the Browns.

What has Quinn done to even acknowledge any sort of trade value? Honestly, his completion percentage is below 50 percent. That’s all I need to know about a quarterback to say he’s not worth anything.

Quinn is a baby who even though was drafted 22nd a couple of years ago, still held out for more money. You are the 22nd pick in the draft for a reason. You have no right for a hold out. You were a rookie who hadn’t proven anything and were drafted in the bottom half of the first round.

Anderson had a Pro Bowl year in 2007, but struggled along with the rest of his team in 2008. His benching was ridiculous if you ask me. Neither of his backups did any better.

My question is, why are all you fans writing Sage off before he’s even taken a snap in a Vikings uniform?

The guy has a very high completion percentage and his football IQ isn’t too bad either.

He has plenty of weapons around him to succeed and has a great arm to match.

For those of you who say he throws a lot of interceptions, what did Frerotte do last season for us other than lead the league in interceptions during his time?

Sage’s four interception performance really dropped his rating down last season. Let’s face it, Sage went up against a very good defense at a very bad time.

He’s mostly known for his helicopter play against the Colts, but he has had more brilliant moments than not. We can’t say that about our other quarterbacks in recent years.

We don’t need a guy who can throw 30 touchdowns. We just need someone who can complete a pass on third down to keep the defenses honest.

The Vikings haven’t had a quarterback complete more than 60 percent of their passes since the Culpepper era.

Sage turned only 31 last March and we only gave up a fourth round pick to get him. Fourth round picks typically end up on special teams only for their entire career. Whether you think so or not, this was a good move.

Let’s see Sage play before we can him. The Vikings have had a great history of turning old “washed up” quarterbacks into Pro Bowlers. Guys that immediately come to mind include Warren Moon, Randall Cunningham, and Brad Johnson.

The Vikings can do the same with Sage. Give it time Vikings’ fans.

We’ve seen Jackson play enough to know that he cannot carry this team deep into the playoffs. While I don’t want to get rid of Jackson, I still think he needs to learn how to play the game.

He needs to stop throwing those awkward sidearm balls and learn to throw overhand when being pressured. Until he learns how to keep his composure under pressure, he shouldn’t be starting for a Super Bowl caliber team.

Jump on Sage’s bandwagon and give him your support. LET SAGE PLAY!

Brett Favre To The Football World: GOTCHA!

(With apologies to the Grateful Dead)

Arrows of neon and flashing marquees out on main street.
Green Bay, New York, Minnesota and its all on the same street.
Your typical city involved in a typical daydream
Hang it up and see what tomorrow brings.

Brett Favre has done it again. In a unexpected turn of events, after a summer of surgery, workouts and much anticipation, Brett Favre has turned the NFL upside down once more. Like a Formula One race car driver, Brett has navigated us through the many twists and turns of the course, and we’ve all just been hanging on for the ride.

Brett Favre has notified the Vikings that he is going to stay retired.

In an interview with the Minnesota Star Tribune, Vikings coach Brad Childress said that Favre informed the team he has decided to remain retired. Childress cited the daily grind both mentally and physically as part of the reason why Favre remained retired.

“It was the hardest decision I’ve ever made,” Favre told ESPN’s Ed Werder. “I didn’t feel like physically I could play at a level that was acceptable. I had to be careful not to commit for the wrong reasons. They were telling me, ‘You went through all this, you had the surgery and you’ve got to finish it off.’ But I have legitimate reasons for my decision. I’m 39 with a lot of sacks to my name.”

Favre, who had shoulder surgery in May, experienced soreness in both ankles and his left knee during his private workouts in Mississippi. The pain would not subside and worsened as he continued to prepare for another season in the NFL.

He was concerned that the pain might never subside and could continue to worsen, and he understood that signing and reporting to camp and then leaving prematurely would result in criticism over his decision to play again.

So once again, just as we thought we had Brett Favre figured out, he throws us another curveball. Minnesota is left to put on their best “it doesn’t matter” face and act happy about having Tarvaris Jackson and Sage Rosenfels to lead their offense.

And for Green Bay fans, a huge sigh of relief. Not because they feared Favre playing for the Vikings, but because they feared having to continue to deal with their beloved hero turning his back on them.

So Brett Favre is staying retired. As of today. As the song says, “Hang it up and see what tomorrow brings”.

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You can find more of Jersey Al Bracco’s articles on several sports websites: Jersey Al’s Blog, Packer Chatters , Packers Lounge, NFL Touchdown and of course,  Bleacher Report.

The Favre Saga Is Over, Decision Is Revealed!

Brett Favre has made a decision on his NFL Future.

The 39-year-old has decided to remain retired.

This offseason has been filled with rumors of his return and possibility of joining Minnesota.  Over the last few weeks Favre continue to struggle to come to a decision.

But as ESPN reports, Favre will not make another return.

Coach Brad Childress confirmed the reports to the Star Tribune.  He told the paper Favre did not want to play through the grind of another NFL season.

“I just think it was a rare opportunity to explore a Hall of Fame quarterback who had background in the NFC and in this division,” Childress said to the newspaper. “He knows our system inside out…This doesn’t change anything about how I feel about our football team.”

“As we have consistently communicated, we feel good about our team and they have put forth a tremendous effort this offseason preparing for the season ahead,” Childress said in a statement on the team’s Web site. “With this behind us, we look forward to getting to Mankato and getting training camp under way.”

Tavaris Jackson and Sage Rosenfels will compete for the Vikings’ starting quarterback job.

It was an interesting offseason, but Brett, enjoy retirement!

Could a Tavaris Jackson Trade Be a Wrong Move?

Okay, I know what you must be thinking. “This guy’s out of his mind!” I’m not, at least I like to think I’m not. So before you make any other quick judgements, let me defend myself.

The Minnesota Vikings have been trying for three years now to work on the Tavaris Jackson experiment, however it hasn’t gone well.

Jackson has made slow but progressive  improvement in his three years in the NFL, but not enough to prove he is ready to take over and lead the Vikings for years to come.

Even the head coach, Brad Childress, the man who was behind the 2006 draft pick on Jackson, has been forced to take new steps in the other direction.

Enter Sage Rosenfels, former backup quarterback to Matt Shaub of the Houston Texans, who was acquired through a trade that sent several Vikings’ draft picks to the Texans.

He was guaranteed a shot at the starting job, after many years of playing backup on many NFL teams. Of course he wouldn’t be given the starting job on a platter. He would have to earn it in Training Camp.

Here he would compete for the starting position against none other then young Tavaris Jackson. Although Rosenfels was ordained the number one on the roster as predicted by KFAN radio station and many other hundreds of Vikings fans around the state, the QB palooza didn’t stop their.

Soon after his release from the New York Jets, Brett Favre instantly became the poster child for ESPN’s daily NFL reports and the Minnesota Vikings possible new candiate for their already messed up QB problem.

The three time NFL MVP and future Hall of Fame quarterback has not officially signed with the Minnesota Vikings yet. But there is no doubt, an immediate press conference introducing him as the newest Viking is surely on it’s way.

What does this do to the Vikings roster?

It gives them four quarterbacks on their roster entering training camp, yet this is expected to change before their first regular season game against the Cleveland Browns.

So with four quarterbacks on the roster, the Vikings will find themselves in a sticky situation. Who becomes the odd man out in Minnesota?

The Minnesota Vikings will instantly crown Favre the starter, and rightfully so with his credentials as a football player. Rosenfels will be pushed out of the way, at least for a year.

Well the obvious choice has got to be Tavaris Jackson, right?

Maybe. However the cards may be stacked against Jackson. As the Vikings are highly un-likely to cut John David Booty, their 2008-fifth round draft pick anytime soon as he has not been given the chance to prove what he’s made of as of yet.

The only thing Booty will have to worry about this season will be finding a new number to wear, as Favre will want to continue to wear his signature No. 4, even in purple and gold.

So now the Minnesota Vikings must decide what their going to do with Jackson. He is a very young QB, who has room to grow but makes crucial mistakes when it matters.

There is no doubt that his productivity has increased in his three year career, finishing off 08′ with above average numbers.

 

2008 Stats for Tavaris Jackson: 

*1,056 passing yards

*9 TDs-2 INTs

*88 of 149 on passes with a completion rating of 59.1 percent  (up 0.9 percent from 2007)

*A 95.4 percent passer rating

*Five Fumbles- three lost

Although these stats are decent and indicate improvement, the Vikings are on limited time with many of their players getting near the end of their careers.

The Vikings also need a QB who can give them the best shot at a Super Bowl. It would be their first ever Super Bowl in franchise history, that has been plagued with four loosing Super Bowl appearances.

As of right now, Brett Favre would be the best man for the job, whether he can get them there this year will be for later discussion.

The Vikings will have to either cut Tavaris Jackson, trade him to another NFL team in need of a quarterback or backup for that matter, or send him down to the Minnesota Vikings’ practice squad.

The two options that make sense though, would be either trading him to another NFL team in exchange for Draft picks or send him down to the team practice squad.

As much as I would like to see Jackson run out of town, a trade could be a costly move, seeing as after 2009, the likely hood of Favre playing a 20th season in the NFL is slim.

Thus, the Vikings would have to go back to drawing board at quarterback.

Keeping Jackson though, would give the team a decent option to throw out into a competition once again with Sage Rosenfels for the Vikings’ starting QB position.

This will create a good competition at Training Camp in 2010, and also help both quarterbacks become more developed as NFL quarterbacks.

The biggest gain from keeping Jackson on the practice squad, and calling him up in 2010 will be the competition itself making Jackson a better player overall.

So as the future of young Tavaris Jackson is still up in the air and training camp approaching, the fact that Jackson is on his last year of his contract means the Vikings must take a moment and look at all the best options available.

One move could be too costly for a team in desperate need of a franchise quarterback.

In Tavris Jackson’s case, demanding a trade from the Vikings if Brett Favre signs, could prove to be the biggest mistake of his short NFL career.

A career that began with the Minnesota Vikings, and the place he called home.

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