Vikings to trade Percy Harvin?

Will the Vikings try and trade Harvin? Indications are they will listen to offers for him. What scouts are reporting is the Vikings will not receive a 1st round pick for him though. Harvin is a interesting player, there is no doubting his on field effort, but his off field baggage is what scares people.

Harvin is an explosive player on and off the field. During the first half of this season Harvin's name was attached to early MVP. Off the field he is known to argue with teammates and coaches. Local reporters were able to turn away when Harvin had it out with Childress who was not liked among players. That said it raised eyebrows when reports surfaced of him arguing with Les Frazier who is as even keeled as they come. When things don't go right he gets upset and that is partly due to his competitive nature but also his moodiness.

So what can the Vikings expect in return? I'd expect a package of picks such as a 2nd and 4th rounder. It's really hard to envision a marquee player coming back in the deal, just because of the money involved and the market value of that player. I did hear two scenario's neither of which I could see playing out.

The first was the Niners sending Alex Smith to the Vikings for Harvin along with a pick. This won't work for two reasons. Alex Smith wants to start and while he is a good solider I can't seem him sitting behind Ponder. Next why would the Vikings trade for a player who could be released and sign him for nothing? Doesn't make much sense to me.

The next was a more interesting one, the Vikings sending Harvin and another player to Arizona for Larry Fitzgerald. One paper it seems like a good deal for both teams.The Cardinals could start getting younger and Fitz could get a fresh start while providing the Vikings the wr they desperately need. For this to happen Fitz would have to force the Cardinals to trade him which I just don't see him doing.

Again I don't see either one of these happening, I do believe the Vikings will move Harvin for a couple picks cause that is the current format for the Vikings, they build through the draft. If the Vikings are going to do it, they need to do it now. Harvin is in the last year of his deal and will hold out without a new contract. Either way his days in a Vikings jersey appear to be over.

Time to Ponder, Ponder

I'm a huge Viking's fan as I am sure you have noticed from some of my post. This year I had very low expectations. The team was going with a 2nd year quarterback and rebuilding a their defense, so when the team started out 4 and 1 I was like ok, maybe they can make the playoffs.

The key to the run was the mistake free play of Christian Ponder. He was not taking any real chances down field and not afraid to throw it away if needed. He was not lighting up the stat sheet but he was forcing teams to go the length of the field when they punted away. That was alway's been head coach Fraizer's plan. Strong running game, strong defense and protect the ball. Well around week 5 teams figured out Ponder, they took the simple slants away forcing him to make bad decisions.

Now young qb's are going to struggle, it happens and is part of the game. Drew Brees was the reason the Chargers drafted Rivers, then it started clicking for Brees, but not till his 3rd year in the league. My concern with Ponder is the repeat mistakes he continues to make. The most alarming is turning it over in the redzone. Ponder has at least 3 interceptions in the endzone or inside the 5 yardline. That can't happen, not with a team like the Vikings who can not play from behind.

We have heard all season these mistakes are easily correctable and all mental, well in my opinion those are some of the toughest to correct. Ponder still tries to throw across his body, has issues in the pocket and very rarely sets his feet to throw. We know he has the talent cause we have seen him make the the throws, but something is not clicking and the team is wasting what could be Adrian Peterson's best season.

The back-up qb is a position of mystery for me, because I am not sure of the Vikings angle here. They let Sage Rosenfels walk away to keep Bethel Thompson and Joe Webb. Neither who is starter material, Thompson is raw as they come, but with a big arm. Webb while exciting because he can make plays with his leg's struggles with reads and is even quicker than Ponder to his check downs. Having not kept a veteran qb on the roster leads me to think the Vikes planned to ride out the Ponder roller coaster no matter what. Which is why Webb never got a chance yesterday, the Vikes either don't have any faith in him or are afraid to hurt Ponder's confidence.

Depending how the final couple weeks playoff assuming the Vikes don't make the playoffs, Rick Spielman will have some interesting choices to make. Does he keep Frazier, does he still believe in Ponder? I like Frazier and I think he has done a good job this year, I think the last couple years he was in offer his head. This season with an actual g.m running the team Frazier has been able to focus on the football. He says the right things and players respect him which is what you want. Ponder is not so simple, he was the 12th overall pick and at times has played well, but even when he plays well is it enough to out weigh the mistakes or even get this team to the Super Bowl?  Probably not, he was not grown and again simple repeat mistakes are very alarming. That said he was Spielman's draft and I am sure will get the full 3 years that Spielman believes are needed to develop a qb... Tighten your belts Vikings fans time to get back on the roller coaster...