The Vikings have acquired 26-year old, Pro Bowl DE Jared Allen from the Chiefs.  The Vikings will part with at least the #17 (1st round) pick in the NFL Draft and the #72 selection (3rd round) for Allen.  Allen fits a huge need for the Vikings as they haven’t had much of a pass rush the last few seasons.  Allen played in 14 games for the Chiefs last season and he made 64 tackles, had 15.5 sacks (#1 in NFL) and he defensed 10 passes.  Allen has now played in 61 games (55 starts) in his NFL career and he has made 227 tackles, has 43 sacks, defensed 25 passes and intercepted a pass.  Adding Allen will make the Vikings’ defense even more dominating than usual.  Now all they need is a NFL QB.

The Vikings can only hope that they draft as good two weeks from now as they did last season.  The Vikings were lucky to have RB Adrian Peterson fall into their laps last season.  Peterson played in 14 games (9 starts) for the Vikings last season and he carried the ball 238 times for 1,341 yards (5.6 ypc) with 12 TD runs.  He also caught 19 passes for 268 yards (14.1 avg) with 1 TD grab.  Peterson returned 16 kickoffs for 412 yards (25.8 avg) but don’t look for him to do much more of that in his career as he is much too important for the offense.  WR Sidney Rice was selected in the 2nd round by the Vikings last season and he would have played even better than he did last season if the Vikings had a NFL QB.  Rice played in 13 games (4 starts) last season for the Vikings and he caught 31 passes for 396 yards (12.8 avg) with 4 TD grabs.  Rice also threw 2 passes last year and he completed them both for 79 yards!  CB Marcus McCauley was a solid pick in the 3rd round for the Vikings last April.  McCauley played in 16 games (9 starts) for the Vikings last season and he made 63 tackles and defensed 8 passes.  He will be a starter in the future for the Vikings.  DE Brian Robison was a solid pick in the 4th round for the Vikings.  Robison played in 16 games (5 starts) for the Vikings last season and he made 24 tackles, had 4.5 sacks and he forced a fumble.  Robison could also work his way into a starting job for the Vikings down the line.  In the 5th round the Vikings selected WR/RS Aundrae Allison who could wind up being a steal.  Allison played in 11 games (0 starts) for the Vikings last season and he caught 8 passes for 122 yards (15.3 avg) and he also carried the ball 2 times for 3 yards (1.5 ypc).  Allison also returned 20 kickoffs for 574 yards (28.7 avg) with 1 TD return.  Outside linebacker Rufus Alexander missed all of last season due to a knee injury but the Vikings like him.  QB Tyler Thigpen was the Vikings first 7th round pick and they cut him during the season.  Thigpen then hooked on with the Chiefs where he is currently their #3 QB.  WR/RS Chandler Williams was the final pick in last year’s NFL draft and he was cut in Miami without appearing in any games.

GRADE FOR THE 2007 SEASON:  A

GRADE FOR THE FUTURE:  A+

The Minnesota Vikings have signed Gus Frerotte to back up Tarvaris Jackson this season.  Frerotte played in 8 games for the Rams last season and he completed 94 of 167 passes (56.3%) for 1,014 yards with 7 TD passes and 12 interceptions (58.3 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 6 times for 3 yards (0.5 ypc).  Frerotte has now played in 137 games in his NFL career and he has completed 1,521 of 2,805 passes (54.2%) for 19,134 yards with 102 TD passes and 91 interceptions (74.3 QB Rating).  Frerotte has also carried the ball 177 times for 308 yards (1.7 ypc) with 5 TD runs in his career.  At least Frerotte is a capable NFL QB which the Vikings didn’t really have on their roster last season so look at his signing as a big upgrade.

The Minnesota Vikings have signed CB Benny Sapp.   Sapp is a little on the small side at 5′9″, 190 pounds so he projects more as a nickel or dime back but he should also help out on special teams.  Sapp played in 14 games for the Chiefs last season and he made 30 tackles, defensed 4 passes and intercepted 1.  Sapp has now played in 56 games in his NFL career and he has made 104 tackles, defensed 14 passes, has 2.5 sacks, forced 2 fumbles and he has intercepted 2 passes.  This was a nice signing for the Vikings.

The Minnesota Vikings have signed safety Michael Boulware.  Boulware played in 16 games for the Texans last season and he made 11 tackles and defensed 2 passes.  Boulware has now played in 64 games in his NFL career and he has made 189 tackles, defensed 23 passes, has 3 sacks, forced 4 fumbles and he has picked off 11 passes which he has returned 177 yards including one for a TD.  Look for Boulware to bounce back for the Vikings this season.