Tag: Tarvaris Jackson (Page 7 of 13)

Jackson to demand trade if Vikings sign Favre?

The NFL Network’s Mike Lombardi is reporting that there’s talk of quarterback Tavaris Jackson possibly demanding a trade if the Vikings sign veteran free agent Brett Favre. The 26-year-old Jackson would probably be low man on the totem pole if Favre signs, considering the team also traded for Sage Rosenfels earlier this offseason.

Although Jackson is still young and has put up fairly decent numbers thus far in his career, it’s safe to assume that he won’t garner much attention on the trade market. He only has experience in the West Coast offense and he’ll become a free agent at the end of the year, so why would any team give up a draft pick (assuming that that’s what the Vikings would want in return) to acquire him?

It’s only a matter of time before the Vikings sign Favre and while Minnesota might want to try and deal Jackson to get something in return for the former second round pick, there doesn’t appear to be much of a market for him. The Seahawks could be interested because they run the WCO, but all indications are that Matt Hasselbeck’s back is healthy and backup Seneca Wallace already has starting experience in that offense.

Another team that could be interested is St. Louis, who currently employs a walking stick figure at quarterback in Marc Bulger. But considering what they’re paying Bulger these days, the Rams are going to try and get everything they can out of him before finally waiving the white flag on that situation.

The Vikings might inevitably want to hang onto Jackson this season as insurance in case Favre’s arm falls off at some point. I’m sure Brad Childress would sleep a little easier at night knowing he could at least fall back on Jackson and Rosenfels if the Favre experiment backfires.

If Favre signs with Minnesota, will Jackson get the boot?

Vikings owner Zygi Wilf told the Minneapolis Star-Tribune that it’s up to Brett Favre whether or not Minnesota signs Brett Favre, so essentially the team is waiting on Brett Favre. (Brett Favre.)

While Minnesota waits to hear whether or not Favre is healthy enough to come back (apparently he threw at a local high school recently and still had pain), Vikings beat writer Judd Zulgad wonders aloud if the team would release Tarvaris Jackson if good ol’ No. 4 comes aboard.

In a recent chat, Zulgad said that he wouldn’t be surprised if Jackson got the axe if Favere were signed. The fourth year player is in his final year of his contract and the Vikings apparently don’t want to cut former USC QB John David Booty because they like his potential. Plus, the Vikes traded for Sage Rosenfels in the offseason, so that would leave Jackson on the outside looking in.

Whether the Brett Favres sign the Vikings or not, it looks like Jackson’s time in Minnesota is running out. If the team still had confidence in him, they wouldn’t have traded for Rosenfels and wouldn’t be so hell bent on signing Favre if they thought Jackson could still have a bright future in Minnesota.

Maybe Jackson should be secretly hoping for a release. He would certainly catch on somewhere and sometimes a change of scenery is exactly what a struggling player needs. He has always been talented, but he remains unpolished despite entering his fourth season. Maybe a different setting and a good coaching staff could get Jackson to realize his potential.

Brett Favre.

Vikings DT Pat Williams calls out Tarvaris Jackson

If Tarvaris Jackson wants to win the starting quarterback job for the Vikings, he’s going to have to work harder – or so says teammate Pat Williams.

Jackson is locked in a fight for the starting quarterback job with Sage Rosenfels, and he has been put on notice by Williams, an outspoken team leader.

“I talk to Tarvaris all the time (and) tell him you have to put in the time,” Williams said recently on Sirius NFL Radio. “This ain’t college no more. This is the NFL. You have to put in more time than you are used to putting in. If you are putting in four hours, you have to put in eight. You have to put in more time than what he’s doing. I think if he puts the right time in, he will be a great quarterback in the league.”

Williams is one of the most respected veterans in the Vikings’ locker room, so the Pro Bowler’s comments carry significant weight. Jackson played poorly in Minnesota’s first-round playoff loss to Philadelphia last season, throwing a critical interception that was returned for a touchdown.

“I told him if he comes we will open our arms to you, and if you don’t we understand,” Williams said.

“He’s a hall of famer, and no one can take that from him. He’s still one of the greatest quarterbacks to ever play.”

Jackson should take Williams’ advice to heart, although I don’t know how much clout Williams has these days since he’s about to be suspended four games for violating the league’s substance absue policy.

It seems as though there’s a lot of quarterbacks who make it to the NFL and try to rely on their natural ability to carry them instead of putting in the work. Michael Vick is just one example. He didn’t start putting the extra work in until the summer he got hauled away to jail on federal dog fighting charges. Had Vick put in the extra time at the start, maybe he would have spent his offseasons in the film room instead of in dog fighting rings. (Or maybe not considering he seemed to really, really like dog fighting.)

The classic example of a quarterback who has always put in the preparation time is Peyton Manning, and the Colts have not missed the playoffs since his rookie year in ’98. Jackson might not have Manning’s ability, but there’s no excuse for him not to put in just as much work – especially considering he’s toeing the line of being a starting NFL quarterback and a developmental No. 2.

Vikings’ decision on Favre coming this week?

According to SI.com’s Peter King, the “mating dance” that Brett Favre is currently doing with the Vikings (or is it the other way around?) will be over sometime this week.

He’s going to have a make a decision whether to join the Vikings very soon, probably by this weekend, because the Vikings want to know what their 2009 future is at quarterback. I’m told the organization won’t wait for a decision much longer, and if he has to get a minor operation to snip the damaged right biceps tendon that has been giving him pain, he has to do it soon. Like, within a week.

I get the strong sense that if the Vikings are going to do any deal with Favre that coach Brad Childress wants to be assured that Favre will report to training camp in game shape, with no restrictions on throwing or his condition. They’d also like Favre to be involved in the mental part of team activities before camp. He has missed the first week of Organized Team Activities (last week), and he’s all but out of this weekend’s final mandatory full-squad mini-camp before training camp. Ten OTA practices remain for the Vikings — June 2-5, June 8-11 and June 15-16.

Although he’s a very reliable source, the notion that this Favre-Vikings charade will be over by this weekend seems to be more of King’s opinion than a factual statement. Since he knows the Vikings won’t wait much longer, King seems to be estimating that Minnesota will have a decision by Favre by this weekend. But everyone knows that Favre has a tendency to drag things out, so who knows.

I agree that the Vikings probably won’t be willing to wait much longer on Favre. They traded for Sage Rosenfels this offseason and aren’t completely ready to give up on former second round draft pick Tarvaris Jackson either. So if Favre can’t make up his mind soon, I would have to image that Brad Childress and company will go forward with what they have.

Vick and Anderson are possible options for Vikings…I guess.

It looks like the St. Paul Pioneer Press is slinging crap against the wall this week just to see if it will stick:

If the Minnesota Vikings are unable to land free agent Brett Favre, and if they’re still intent on a quarterback upgrade, the only options at this juncture would seem Michael Vick, who could be available after his prison release in time for training camp in July, or perhaps Derek Anderson in a trade with Cleveland.

Yeah, or the Vikings could just go with what they already have in Tarvaris Jackson and Sage Rosenfels, the latter of which they gave up a draft pick for to acquire this offseason.

I fully expected the writer to continue with his speculation of the Vikings being interested in Vick or Anderson but the above paragraph is all he wrote. So essentially there is no basis for him even mentioning Vick and Anderson as possibilities for the Vikings, outside of the fact that they might not land Favre.

Must be a slow sports day with no new Favre updates.

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