http://www.yardbarker.com/content/player/2353 Recent articles about Tarvaris Jackson en-us The Vikings go into camp with 80 men on their roster, and will have to trim that to 53 by the time the season starts.  The current position-by-position breakdown follows the jump (depth chart positions subject to debate in some cases; starters in italics): Offense Quarterback Tarvaris Jackson Gus Frerotte John David Booty Brooks Bollinger Running Back Adrian Peterson Chester Taylor Maurice Hicks Albert Young Fullback Thomas Tapeh Jeff Dugan Naufahu Tahi Tackle Ryan Cook Bryant McKinnie Marcus Johnson Chase Johnson Drew Radovich Guard Steve Hutchinson Anthony Herrera Artis Hicks Brian Daniels Mike Jones Center Matt Birk John Sullivan Dan Mozes Tim Mattran Tight End Visanthe Shiancoe Jim Kleinsasser Garrett Mills Braden Jones Wide Receiver Bernard Berrian Bobby Wade Sidney Rice Robert Ferguson Aundrae Allison Jaymar Johnson Martin Nance Nate Jones Darius Reynaud Daniel Davis Defense/Special Teams Defensive End Jared Allen Ray Edwards Brian Robison Jayme Mitchell Ellis Wyms Otis Grigsby Martail Burnett Defensive Tackle Kevin Williams Pat Williams Fred Evans Letroy Guiron Kenderick Allen Leger Douzable Linebacker E.J. Henderson Ben Leber Chad Greenway Heath Farwell Vinny Ciurciu Derrick Pope Rufus Alexander David Herron Erin Henderson Jeremy Leman Cornerback Antoine Winfield Cedric Griffin Marcus McCauley Charles Gordon Benny Sapp Dee McCann Marcus Walker Brandon Sumrall Safety Darren Sharper Madieu Williams Michael Boulware Tyrell Johnson Eric Frampton Jusain Abdullah Kicker Ryan Longwell Steven Hauschka Punter Chris Kluwe Long Snapper Cullen Loeffler Hard to find any real positional battles there.  The best one is probably at tight end, where I'm hoping Garrett Mills, who showed flashes in the final game of last season, will push Visanthe Shiancoe.  Maybe Marcus McCauley or Charles Gordon can make things uncomfortable for Cedric Griffin?  Everything else looks set, barring injury or guys suddenly forgetting how to play.  I'll continue to update this as camp progresses, reflecting cuts, and any changes in depth chart position. Thu, 24 Jul 2008 12:24:10 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294950 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294950 Most Viking veterans are saying the right things about the Brett Favre speculation…and then there's Antoine Winfield, who has officially endorsed the idea of the Purple adding old number 4, and essentially thrown Tarvaris Jackson under the bus at the same time.  Said Antoine: I think [getting Favre] would be a great move for us, but I don't know if Green Bay would trade him to a division rival. Favre is still a great player.  That's what you want to do in this league is add as many great players as you can. I think Tarvaris will do a great job for us if it doesn't happen. He tried softening the blow with that last sentence but I'm not falling for it.  Antoine held himself out of voluntary activities before last season precisely because he didn't think Tarvaris Jackson could get the job done…because he thought the team wasn't taking enough of a win-now approach, which would've meant signing a more experienced QB (like Jeff Garcia).  Winfield has been quiet this off-season, but you had to believe he still wasn't 100% sold on Tarvaris.  And now we know he isn't.  Otherwise he wouldn't have been so up-front about his hard-on for Favre. Let me clarify…I'm not ripping Winfield for wanting Favre.  I'm sure all the veterans on the team, in their heart of hearts, would prefer to have #4 taking the snaps when the season opens in Lambeau.  But most of the veterans understand that this is unrealistic…that Tarvaris Jackson is going to be the QB, and it thus behooves them to endorse Tarvaris publicly and help his confidence.  Only Antoine doesn't seem to get this, and that's why I'm ripping him.  He thinks he's being refreshingly honest…but he's actually being selfish and counter-productive.  I really wish someone would take him aside and explain what it means to be a team player. Thu, 24 Jul 2008 10:11:40 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294874 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294874 Second-round pick Tyrell Johnson could sign with the Vikings as early as this morning says Chip Scoggins of the Star-Tribune.  5th round QB John David Booty and 6th round offensive lineman John Sullivan could also ink today.  Sorry, but it's hard to get that interested in these draftee signings when they're not really name guys, and when the whole off-season has been full of exciting stories like the Jared Allen trade and the Brett Favre speculation.  It's all just formality now.  Hopefully training camp will bring some big news, not of the injury or behind-the-scenes tension variety.  Mainly, I want to hear that Tarvaris Jackson is developing chemistry with his receivers, that the defensive line is gelling and that Adrian Peterson is sitting on the sideline in a lawn chair sipping a cool beverage and listening to his iPod. Wed, 23 Jul 2008 11:05:07 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294335 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294335 …Mr. Freeze. Or at least according to Adam Best in this week's The Best View. Mr. Freeze/Brett Favre - I'm starting to wonder if this guy would cryogenically freeze himself in order to keep playing forever. We know you love the Frozen Tundra, Brett, but you've gotta give it up eventually. He's on serious thin ice with NFL fans, and even quite a few Packers fans. It's not that we have hearts of ice, it's just that this hot-cold game is getting old. To everyone but ESPN and Peter King, that is. Really effing old. …and there we have it…he's putting the freeze on everyone. On Ted Thompson. On Mike McCarthy. On legions of Packers everywhere. On Aaron Rodgers. Hell, he's even freezing the Minnesota Vikings and Tarvaris Jackson now. Where's Batman? Tue, 22 Jul 2008 10:42:36 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/293783 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/293783 The Football Consigliere's takes and in depth look of the 2008 NFL Quarterback Class! Click on this link to go directly to The All American Touchdown Derby for a chance to win over $5,000 in Cash & Material Prizes all season long! www.passitdeep.com Sun, 20 Jul 2008 11:36:30 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292815 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292815 So I'm sitting here exhausted, with my ears ringing after forgetting my earplugs while going to a concert today (The Oranges Band, check em out), and I'm thinking about Brett Favre. I'm really tired of him. I hate him right now, but that won't diminish the impact he's had on everyone in association with the Packers. It seems like Favre's done everything right in his career. But he's screwed up. Big time. With his waffling between retirement the last few years stringing all Packers fans out for a ride none of them really wanted to go on, we all felt that when he retired, he would actually, well, retire. But no. He's bored. His body keeps telling him to play. Well the whole reason he retired in the first place was because his mind was tired, not his body. So his mind is fine now? I doubt it. As soon as he walks into that meeting room when he's not the starter, he's going to want to get the hell out of there as fast as he can. If he goes to another team, he'll walk into the meeting room, realize he has to learn a new offense, and he'll get the hell out. There is basically no place for him in the NFL right now. All the playoff capable teams (and even teams not capable of making the playoffs) have quarterbacks in place. Some of the bad teams have young quarterbacks in place they need to develop. The NFL (minus ESPN) has essentially moved on from Favre. Favre's screwed up his legacy. He will eternally be known as a fickle flip-flopper (even moreso than John Kerry). When he's unretired, he can't decide whether or not to retire. When he's retired, he wants to unretire. Bullshit, Brett. You're finished. Your legacy is tarnished. Maybe I'll forget about all this in three years, but if this does go on for three years, Aaron Rodgers and Tarvaris Jackson are going to be in a mental institution after mental breakdowns. Maybe they should get together for some group therapy. But anyway, Favre looks like an idiot for putting pressure on the organization to take him back after a tearful retirement. He looks like an even bigger idiot for trying to catch on with the Vikings. He's making the Packers look like idiots by saying he forced them to retire. The Packers are making the Vikings look like idiots for saying they tampered with him. ESPN are looking like idiots—oh wait, they're always idiots. No one is coming out of this looking good. Sat, 19 Jul 2008 00:25:08 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292464 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292464 The Vikings are, naturally, offering no comment over the Packers' tampering accusations. It's a league matter now. If it turned out Darrell Bevell and Brett Favre were just shooting the shiz like old pals, the league should let it slide. But if Brad Childress called Favre as has been alleged? That's a definitive violation. We'll probably lose a draft-pick or something, plus the Packers will be able to nah-nah us over it. My main concern is the psychological effect all this will have on Tarvaris Jackson, who has been told he's the starting quarterback all along. This could cause T-Jack to develop a chip on his shoulder, which could be good for his performance. Bu it could also cause him to fold up like a cheap tent. If the latter happens, then Bevell and Childress will have to be ripped and ripped hard. They schemed behind the scenes to get Brett Favre and didn't get him, and in the process, ruined the confidence of their quarterback. That followed by some kind of cruddy 7-9 season would be the end of the current regime, I have to think. Fri, 18 Jul 2008 11:35:03 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292203 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292203 The Vikings are, naturally, offering no comment over the Packers' tampering accusations. It's a league matter now. If it turned out Darrell Bevell and Brett Favre were just shooting the shiz like old pals, the league should let it slide. But if Brad Childress called Favre as has been alleged? That's a definitive violation. We'll probably lose a draft-pick or something, plus the Packers will be able to nah-nah us over it. My main concern is the psychological effect all this will have on Tarvaris Jackson, who has been told he's the starting quarterback all along. This could cause T-Jack to develop a chip on his shoulder, which could be good for his performance. Bu it could also cause him to fold up like a cheap tent. If the latter happens, then Bevell and Childress will have to be ripped and ripped hard. They schemed behind the scenes to get Brett Favre and didn't get him, and in the process, ruined the confidence of their quarterback. That followed by some kind of cruddy 7-9 season would be the end of the current regime, I have to think. Fri, 18 Jul 2008 11:35:03 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292203 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292203   It remains to be seen how serious the tampering charge that is being brought against the Vikings by the Packers really ends up being, but today the Vikings officially declined comment on the matter. Team spokesman Bob Hagan issued a simple two-sentence statement stating that the Vikings "are not commenting on the issue. These types of matters are handled by the league." The charge is being brought against the Vikings due to the fact that the Packers are claiming that Vikings offensive coordinator and former Packers QB coach Darrell Bevell had talks with Brett Favre that would go against league rules. Favre and Bevell are friends, but now that Brett has expressed his desire to return, the whole situation has become quite the mess. The Vikings have been the supposed front-runner from the word "go" if Favre gets what he wants, and that is his release. The Pack have stated that is not going to happen, and that Favre can come back and compete for the starting job, despite the fact they want to give that slot to Aaron Rodgers. Vikings coach Brad Childress called the whole situation "a soap opera" (no kidding) and that Tarvaris Jackson is still the teams QB. Stay tuned.   Thu, 17 Jul 2008 16:37:33 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/291841 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/291841 AccuScore's NFL simulator was used to analyze how much Brett Favre would help a variety of teams rumored to be possible destinations. The simulations do not expect Favre to have as much impact on other teams as one might expect simply because he would be joining a team just months before the start of the season. It obviously takes far more than eight weeks to master a new offense. Thu, 17 Jul 2008 13:43:04 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/291747 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/291747 A plot-thickening report courtesy of Associated Press reporter Chris Jenkins (via Judd Zulgad of the Star-Tribune): The Green Bay Packers have filed tampering charges against the Minnesota Vikings alleging the team made inappropriate contact with Brett Favre, a person familiar with the Packers' complaint told the Associated Press Wednesday night. The person, who requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the subject, said Packers officials have expressed their belief that interest from the Vikings was driving Favre's sudden change of heart about playing football in 2008. They feel like Favre had something [in place], and that's why he was so anxious to get his release all of a sudden, the person said… The person said the league already has reviewed evidence provided by the Packers, and team officials believe a league examination of telephone records would indicate more than normal contact between Favre and Vikings offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell, a former Green Bay assistant. According to the person, Packers officials also believe the contact began before Favre and his agent, Bus Cook, formally asked the Packers to release him. How does that make you feel, Packer fans?  Knowing your guy - the legendary Brett Favre - not only wanted out of Green Bay, but was specifically angling to get signed by your hated rivals? And how does Tarvaris Jackson feel knowing that his offensive coordinator was scheming to get him replaced, presumably with Brad Childress's knowledge? This story has now cast two young quarterbacks, Jackson and Aaron Rodgers, into an abyss of ugliness.  The only just thing now would be for Favre to stay retired and both Tarvaris and Aaron to have huge years.  Favre, the Vikings organization and the Packers organization are all diminished, in my opinion, by this affair. At least we know with certainty now that the Vikings are not as sure about Tarvaris as they claim.  And we know the rumors about Favre wanting to go there were legit.  Let's hope this mess doesn't end up shaking T-Jack's confidence to the point of hurting his performance.  We're not getting Favre or anyone else, so we need T-Jack to be on his game. Thu, 17 Jul 2008 10:51:55 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/291645 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/291645 Nothing really earth-shattering from this interview with Tarvaris Jackson. He's got his cliches down…"Some days you win, some days you lose. Some days, it rains." Wed, 16 Jul 2008 17:51:31 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/291338 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/291338 Tarvaris Jackson finally had to say something about all the rumors that Brett Favre was coming to take away his job. He's apparently become a fatalist about that sort of thing: Every time a quarterback comes up, they throw Minnesota in there. You know me. If it happens, it happens. I can't control it, but I don't worry about it. All I can do is handle my business. It's my team until coach tells me otherwise. That's how I look at it. Don't sweat the small stuff, right T-Jack? Well, he doesn't have to worry at all anymore…he's the quarterback. That will make some fans mad. Me, I've decided to take on T-Jack's stoicism. Nothing I can do about it so why fret? Either T-Jack will become a legitimate leader or he won't. Either the team will win or it won't. Wow…this is a fantastic philosophy. I'm not worried about anything anymore. This must be how rich people feel. Except for the slivers in my ass. Tue, 15 Jul 2008 12:12:03 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/290713 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/290713 Tarvaris Jackson finally had to say something about all the rumors that Brett Favre was coming to take away his job. He's apparently become a fatalist about that sort of thing: Every time a quarterback comes up, they throw Minnesota in there. You know me. If it happens, it happens. I can't control it, but I don't worry about it. All I can do is handle my business. It's my team until coach tells me otherwise. That's how I look at it. Don't sweat the small stuff, right T-Jack? Well, he doesn't have to worry at all anymore…he's the quarterback. That will make some fans mad. Me, I've decided to take on T-Jack's stoicism. Nothing I can do about it so why fret? Either T-Jack will become a legitimate leader or he won't. Either the team will win or it won't. Wow…this is a fantastic philosophy. I'm not worried about anything anymore. This must be how rich people feel. Except for the slivers in my ass. Tue, 15 Jul 2008 12:12:03 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/290713 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/290713 With training camp approaching, I figured what better time to take a look at the QBs around the league. We profiled the Big Dogs, Second Tier QBs, and the Serviceable QBs, now it's time to look at the rest of the signal callers. I know scrap pile may seem a little harsh, but when you consider we already profiled 20 QBs, you catch my drift. These guys will be used on bye weeks and when injuries strike. I'm sure a few of them will turn out to be decent plays. Some will likely lose their starting job. That's the nature of the beast when you deal with the shallow end of the QB pool. Scrap Pile Jason Campbell - I actually don't mind Jason Campbell. If he weren't coming off a knee injury I would probably put him in the Serviceable QB group. He made decent strides in his second year. I would just like to see him throw more TDs. Jeff Garcia - Garcia is a decent play in leagues that penalize for INTs since he seldom throws to the wrong color jersey. He's not going to give you a huge week, but he's a decent fill-in when your starter is on bye. He's in the scrap pile because Tampa has a few decent QBs on hand in case they want to go a different direction. Tarvaris Jackson - With the acquisition of Benard Berrian, the development of Sidney Rice, the double-headed monster in the backfield, and a little experience gained, and T-Jack has some potential to break out of the scrap pile. He needs to gain confidence and consistency. Alex Smith - Smith was a pick of mine to breakout last year. He made me look foolish. My expectations are justifiably lower this year. However, he does have Mike Martz to help him along, as well as newly acquired Bryant Johnson and Isaac Bruce. Perhaps this is the year Vernon Davis lives up to his hype as well. JaMarcus Russell - They will probably be passing a lot since they will be behind in most games. He's got that going for him. As long as Javon Walker can get home for some beauty rest instead of curbside butt whoopings, he's got a legitimate weapon. He's still very inexperienced though, and there will be plenty of bumps along the way. I can see him leading the league in INTs. Chad Pennington/Kellen Clemens - Let's face it. Neither of these QBs excite you. For good reason. They do have a pair of quality WRs, but I can see split duty out of these two. That's a situation I'll steer clear of. Trent Edwards/J.P. Losman - Trent is penciled in as the starter, but I'm not sure Buffalo has witnessed the last of Mr. Losman. Neither is going to wow you with statistics, but they may be useful for a game or two this year. Brodie Croyle/Damon Huard - I 'd like to see Brodie Croyle take the job and run with it. He's got some weapons in Tony Gonzalez and Dwayne Bowe. Still, I know I wouldn't trust him. Rex Grossman - Yuck. Marty Booker is back. Oh boy. They lost their best deep threat. They are going to need Devin Hester to step up his game if Rexy is going to even be relevant in fantasy circles. Avoid this like the plague. Kyle Boller/Troy Smith/Joe Flacco - I actually could see all three getting starts this year. Boller get the starting nod and loses it by Week 4. Troy Smith takes over and mans the post until Week 10. The rookie Joe Flacco finishes the season off to get him experience for next season. That's how it plays out in my head. Josh McCown/John Beck/Chad Henne - I can see the same scenario go down in Miami. McCown early. Beck gets another shot and misses, Henne finishes with eyes towards the future. Chris Redman/Joey Harrington/Matt Ryan - The question is when, not if, the Matt Ryan era will begin. I don't know why, but I'd like to see Joey have a decent little go of things. I've had a soft spot for him for whatever reason. I think he got a bad shake in Detroit, and was ruined. That said, the sooner they get to Ryan the better. Tue, 15 Jul 2008 11:02:55 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/290690 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/290690