Brian Robison Hopes That The Door Doesn't Hit Ray Edwards On His Way Out

One of the more contentious matters that Viking fans have had to chew on this off-season is the impending departure of defensive end Ray Edwards and/or whether or not Brian Robison can replace him in the starting lineup for the Minnesota Vikings.

Well, thanks to an interview with ESPN 1500, we know what Robison thinks of the situation.

"He means no harm about it -- he's doing what he has to do to get his payday, and he definitely deserves a payday. He's had two great seasons playing left defensive end for us. He's definitely made a name for himself.

"He deserves that payday, and at the same time, I feel like I deserve the right to start. I feel like I've fought every year for that right to start and haven't really got the shot that I deserve yet, and hopefully, now I'll get that shot and he'll go get his payday and we'll all be happy."

It remains to be seen if Robison can hold up physically at the left defensive end spot. . .we've seen his talents as a pass rusher over the past few years, and Robison has been bulking up this off-season in an effort to aid in his ability to set the edge against the run. While I'm not as optimistic about Edwards' odds of returning to Minnesota as some of my fellow DN writers are, I think that Robison should be fine as the starter at left defensive end and that the Vikings' in-house free agency efforts would be much better spent on attempting to keep Sidney Rice in the fold.

In a related story, Pro Football Weekly has named Robison one of the NFC North players with the best chance of having a breakout season in 2011. So he's got that going for him. . .which is nice.