Thus far, Spielman and the Vikings brain trust have made a number of interesting free agent signings this spring. A LB from the CFL, a CB from the arena league, an average CB from Chicago, a few role players from within, and a couple players who were injured last year and hope to regain their form this year. All of these signings are calculated and share a few commonalities. They are all young, they all came cheap, the Vikings are not committed to long contracts, and most importantly, they all fill needs.

I, for one (maybe the only one...), believe that Spielman is setting the Vikings up perfectly to compete for the long haul. The Vikings will build their team mostly through the draft and supplement their weaknesses through free agency. Unfortunately, that means that the Vikes will probably not be competing in the Superbowl this coming year or even the next. However, when they finally get a solid foundation built they will be able to compete at a high level for several years.

That being said......I wonder what the Vikings plans for Jared Allen might be......possible trade?? I'm not saying that I would advocate trading Allen, I love the guy. However, Allen (who is pushing 30) is set to become a free agent next year, and I don't believe the Vikings are in a position to shell out a bunch of money to sign an aging pass rusher. After his big numbers last year, coming into this years draft might be the highest trade value we could hope for. I would imagine that we could get a first round pick plus an additional lower round pick or two. This would help us build for the future, let's face it, this might be the best option for the team at this point. Jared Allen had a hell of a year last season, however, we still finished 3-13.......