Oh, the puns capable here... is it thyme for Sage? Or- can there be ONLY ONE?
Also, I'm well aware that this question may be answered by the time I even hit post. Rick Spielman has a history of personally messing with me. And yes, I do entirely believe he does it on purpose. HE'S WATCHING ME RIGHT NOW ISN'T HE???
Anyhoo, I've mentioned before that I haven't seen any of the preseason games. Last night has completed this cycle... didn't see it. Saw the comment threads and basically have an idea what happened, but haven't even seen a single video highlight. SO- that said- I will refrain from promoting any opinion or even going into particularly specific plays. What I can do is break down the basic theories being promoted towards keeping one over the other.
Over at the Star Tribune, they have run their 53 man roster prediction and are calling for MBT over Rosencopter. Their reason why is one many have promoted here- MBT has potential for growth, and we're a young team. No matter what you feel about this debate, I think we can all agree Sage isn't exactly going to become our QBOTF, and he probably won't even be here next year. So why keep someone who's never going to start or develop over a younger guy who might have more potential? They also mention (and again, it's something that's been said here before) that the ‘experience' Sage can bring to the table is overrated: this isn't a career starter now at the end of said career, he's a guy who's mostly been a backup with a few starts mostly out of necessity. They also mention that with Bill Musgrave and Craig Johnson around, Christian Ponder and Joe Webb shouldn't really need a ‘quarterback mentor' on the roster.
Conversely, MBT's ceiling may be potentially pretty low, and there's also the chance we've essentially seen it. As much as he's been hailed for his helluvaarm, and for his drive to do well in games, it's worth mentioning the fact that he's not a rookie any more than Rosenfals is a former career starter. This isn't a guy we picked up out of UDFAs this year who managed to slip under the radar a la Tony Romo; he's a practice squad pickup from the Miami Dolphins, who previously was cut before the 2011 season by the San Francisco 49ers before playing backup for the Sacramento Lions. That's right... he was a backup in the UFL, with 2 career starts there at the end of their season. So, there's the potential that, as strong as his arm and his will may be, there's just nothing there. And if there's nothing there, then young or not, there's no point keeping him around, no matter what Rosenfal's future with us is. (We're ignoring the possibility he could end up on the practice squad, which, quite frankly, I'd believe the Vikings might try to do.)
So where are you on the debate? Hurry up and vote because the second I post this Spielman and Leslie Frazier will begin putting together their press releases to announce the decision and make this post completely invalid. Are you feeling the quickening, believing that MBT could be the next Kurt Warner, the overlooked kid that has what it takes? Or are you looking for a little more spice in your life, feeling that what Sage brings to the table will make our QBs a more complete... dish? Sorry, the pun kinda fell apart there at the end.