Are you guys ready for some largely inconsequential Vikings roster move news? Because here comes some largely inconsequential Vikings roster move news.

Yesterday, the Washington Redskins signed Vikings practice squad defensive back Domonique Johnson to their 53-man roster, meaning the Vikes had room to add someone new to their practice squad. They did so today by adding another defensive back, Reggie Jones. Jones is in his second year out of Portland State and has yet to take the field in an NFL game in his career.

See, I told you the news was largely inconsequential! The fact that Jones hasn't played in an NFL game probably won't change in 2011 with the Vikings, but he has an interesting back story of overcoming an awful event from his childhood to make it to the NFL. Read the Washington Post story from August about Jones here.

Well, now you know. Resume your Wednesdays accordingly, and stay tuned for more about the upcoming Monday Night Football showdown with that team from the East.

(Thanks to Mike Wobschall of the Vikings Blog for breaking the news. Follow him on Twitter here.)

Before I start, please keep commenting on Ted's stadium story and sharing your opinions on the matter. The legislators are really hosing this one up, and the possibility of our favorite team leaving its home state just took a big ugly leap forward. But since all the stadium talk simply gets too depressing for me after a while, I thought I'd provide a temporary distraction with actual football news.

Peter King just released his Midseason All-Pro Team and I'm happy to report that the Minnesota Vikings are represented among the players that King considers the very best in the league at their position. Jared Allen was pretty much a no-brainer selection since he leads the league with a whopping 12.5 sacks through only half a season. He has wreaked havoc on quarterbacks all year and was a big part of the Vikings' victory over the Panthers on Sunday.

While it's nice to see Allen get the credit he deserves, another Viking is curiously missing from King's squad. Adrian Peterson was passed over in favor of Matt Forte as King's All-Pro running back.

To be clear, AP's snub is not as egregious as it seems to be at first glance. The All-Pro team is much more exclusive than something like the Pro Bowl rosters. King chooses the best from the entire NFL, not just the best from each conference. He also picks three wide receivers and only one running back because he feels (correctly in my opinion) that those numbers more accurately depict how an actual NFL team lines up these days.

The fact that he chose Forte is certainly defensible to a degree--just take a look at his stats so far this year compared to AP:

While Peterson has found the end zone seven more times, Forte's receiving numbers are much better and he's getting more yards per touch. As King's article points out, Forte is on pace for more yards from scrimmage than Marshall Faulk and LaDainian Tomlinson had during any single season in their primes.

But that doesn't mean I have to agree with King's pick. For my money, AP is still a cut above every other running back in the NFL and it's not really that close. Forte definitely is a bigger threat catching the ball right now, but the Carolina game (5 receptions for 76 yards) showed that Peterson will get more involved as a receiver as he and Christian Ponder become more comfortable with each other.

What do you think? Did Peter King get it right or should AP stand for (Midseason) All-Pro? Let us know in the poll and in the comments.

There aren't a lot of fans of Bryant McKinnie on this site, and I would be one of those non-fans.  But when a guy does something to help out his fellow man, it deserves credit and recognition.

McKinnie has donated all of the household goods from his Minneapolis home to a local charity, which is very kind gesture for a guy that left Minnesota in somewhat embarrassing circumstances.  Said McKinnie through his publicist:

All of my furniture in my old home is practically new and in decent condition, I look at this as a positive way to move to my new location, while still providing families in need of appliances and household goods.

It would have been easy for McKinnie to just have his stuff packed up and moved to Baltimore, but it was very thoughtful of him to donate what I can only assume is some pretty nice stuff to those that are less fortunate than he is.

Good luck to you in Baltimore, Bryant.  What you did was very generous, and there are families throughout Minneapolis benefiting from your generosity, whether they get a new couch, stove, or refrigerator.

He will always be the Superfreak to me

When I heard that Randy Moss retired earlier today, I have to be honest--I was so busy at work, I didn't have time to think about it.  But now that I'm home, and really reflecting on the matter, I can't help but think that, off the field problems aside, how lucky were we?  How lucky were we to watch two hall of fame wide receivers on the field at the same time?  Two guys that were so different, yet so effective in their own way? 

Cris Carter should already be in the Hall of Fame, and Randy Moss most assuredly will.  Let's take a walk down memory lane and reflect on what a Super Freak the Superfreak was.

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While there has been some positive news regarding "secret" labor talks between the players and owners this week, the fact of the matter remains that the lockout has just started Month Four with no clear end in sight. It's crazy to think that we're supposed to be playing preseason games in less than two months, yet players and coaches aren't even supposed to be talking to each other.

But what about the annual event that comes before those preseason games? You know, that whole "Training Camp" thing? If this awful lockout drags on well into next month, when does Training Camp get called off?

Thankfully, the Vikings have just released a statement clarifying that question. Here's exactly what the Vikings had to say regarding their annual trek to Mankato:

In respect to the University and the Mankato community, we have informed school officials that July 18 is the latest date to officially determine whether having training camp at Minnesota State University this year is feasible. The Vikings will maintain contact with University officials moving forward, and we remain hopeful we will practice in front of thousands of Vikings fans in Mankato later this summer.

So there you have it. If the owners and players can't get their heads out of their collective butts by July 18, the Vikings won't be enjoying the time-honored tradition of preparing for the season in Mankato. Obviously, getting a deal done by that July 18 cutoff date wouldn't kill the season; the only way the lockout would truly do some long-term damage would be missing actual regular season games. But let's not forget that just about every NFL team has a smaller community that they report to every year in midsummer. Those few weeks each year may not mean a ton in the larger scope of things, but I know it's a pretty big deal for the Mankatos of the world. (And on a selfish note, some of us DN writers might get to go cover training camp in Mankato if there is one. C'mon guys, let's get this deal done!)

The latest news regarding labor talks has me cautiously optimistic, but I'm still not sure we'll see the Vikings in Mankato this year. What do you think? Vote in the poll below.

Whew. That was close.

Adrian Peterson had made it all the way to the semifinals in the voting for the cover athlete of EA Sports' insanely popular video game, Madden 12. Fortunately for the believers of the Madden Curse (I count myself in this camp), the nightmare of having AP grace the unlucky cover has come to an end.

Michael Vick received 59% of the vote, beating the Vikings' running back rather handily. The other semifinal was even more of a blowout: Browns running back Peyton Hillis steamrolled his opponent, a no-name quarterback from some irrelevant team, by a margin of 61% to 39%.

Personally, I'm a little torn on who to vote for in the finals. On one hand, you have Peyton "The Avalanche" Hillis (he's white, runs downhill, and you better get the hell out of the way when he gets started). His cult following as a fantasy football sleeper has helped him get this far, and it would be a shame to see him lose that momentum in the finals. On the other hand, voting for Vick would be a great story of redemption as well as a nice little way to make the NFL front office a little uncomfortable. Either way, while it was nice to see our Vikings star get some of the recognition he deserves, it's better to see Hillis and Vick in the finals.

Voting for the finals between Hillis and Vick is available here.

As the sun begins to set on an unseasonably gorgeous Minnesota April evening, former Viking Willie Howard barks out instructions to his new team. He moves his linebackers to the proper gaps. He instructs his offensive tackles how to start high and finish low when blocking for a wide receiver screen. His cadence effortlessly shifts between stern and humorous, keeping his knowledge-hungry pupils riveted. No fewer than forty players are attending the Tuesday night practice. With only five days until their home opener, they're soaking in every last bit of information from their Head Coach. After all, he did play at the highest possible level in football.

The practice session lasts exactly as long as the sun does. As the players walk off the field with virtually no natural light left in the evening, it's safe to say that these ladies will be prepared for their game on Saturday.

Yes, ladies. The Minnesota Machine, the local women's professional tackle football team, has made a significant upgrade to their coaching staff for the 2011 season.

Most Viking fans know Willie Howard as a promising defensive lineman that was drafted in the second round of the 2001 NFL draft, only to have his career cut tragically short by a devastating leg injury just eight games in. Although his time in the pros was unfairly brief, Howard uses the lessons he learned both on and off the field to this day.

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Tarvarius Jackson faces two counts of armed robbery, one count of aggravated assault, one count of murder and two counts of felony murder. Jackson is one of four young men indicted in the killing of a security guard in Georgia back on September 5th. Don't believe me? Here's the link.

No, Tarvarius Jackson does not play quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings. Tarvaris Jackson (no 'u' in the first name) does. While the merits of his play have been thoroughly debated in this space numerous times, our T-Jax is still by all accounts an outstanding citizen.

Had you worried there for a bit, didn't I? My uncle, a bitter "former" Vikings fan that gave up all hope after the infamous Drew Pearson shove in the 1975 playoffs, sent me the link with the first sentence of this post as the subject line. For about ten seconds, I was fooled. Don't let anyone fool you today.

Note: Before you go nuts in the comments, I am in no way making light of the awful crime that was committed. I'm simply sharing how my smart-ass relative temporarily scared the crap out of me during an otherwise painfully slow news cycle in the Vikings offseason. Enjoy your rest of your Thursday and rest easy knowing that the Vikings players have kept their names off the police blotter. (**cough cough** JOHNNY JOLLY **cough cough**)