The Vikings have released 29-year old safety Madieu Williams.  Williams played in 14 games for the Vikings last year and he had 75 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 1/2 a sack, 1 forced fumble, 2 passes defensed and 1 interception.  He played in 39 games in his three years with the Vikings and he had 190 tackles, 4 tackles for a loss, 1/2 a sack, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery, 9 passes defensed and 3 interceptions.  The Vikings will be looking for more of a playmaker at safety for this year.

The Vikings have signed 28-year old DT Remi Ayodele.  Ayodele played in all 16 games for the Saints last year and he had 37 tackles, 3 tackles for a loss, 1 sack, 1 forced fumble and 1 pass defensed.  He has now played in 44 games in his first four years in the NFL and he has 75 tackles, 5 tackles for a loss, 2.5 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, 1 fumble recovery and 1 pass defensed.  Ayodele will likely be thrown right into the fire for the Vikings as they try to rebuild the interior of the D-Line.

The Vikings have re-signed 36-year old kicker Ryan Longwell to a multi-year deal.  Longwell has played in all 16 games for the Vikings last year and he connected on 17 of 18 field goals (94.4%) and 30 of 31 extra points good for 81 points.  Longwell has now played in 80 games in his first five years with the Vikings and he has made 113 of 129 field goals (87.6%) and he’s also 190 of 194 on extra points.  Longwell has scored 529 points so far in his career for the Vikings.  It was smart to bring him back.

The Minnesota Vikings have acquired 34-year old QB Donovan McNabb from the Redskins for a 6th round pick in 2012 and a conditional 6th round pick in 2013.  McNabb played in 13 games (all starts) for the Redskins last year and he completed 275 of 472 passes (58.3%) for 3,377 yards with 14 TD passes and 15 INTs (77.1 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 29  times for 152 yards (5.4 ypc) last year.  McNabb has now played in 161 games (155 starts) in his first 12 years in the NFL and he has completed 3,076 of 5,218 passes (58.9%) for 36,250 yards with 230 TD passes and 115 INTs (85.7 QB Rating).  McNabb has also carried the ball 602 times for 3,400 yards (5.6 ypc) with 28 TD runs in his NFL career.  McNabb has made it to 6 Pro Bowls in his first 12 years in the NFL.  The Redskins evidentally didn’t think much about McNabb’s ability in making this deal, but you have to consider his supporting cast in Washington which wasn’t very good.  I think McNabb has a good year or two in him and I think he will be a good mentor to rookie Christian Ponder until he’s ready to play.  This was a good deal for the Vikings as they didn’t give up much for McNabb.

The Vikings have signed 27-year old WR Devin Aromashodu to a 1-year deal.  Aromashodu played in 14 games (2 starts) for the Bears last year and he caught 10 passes for 149 yards (14.9 avg).  He has now played in 30 games (5 starts) in his first three years in the NFL and he has caught 41 passes for 543 yards (13.2 avg) with 4 TD grabs.  This was a solid signing for the Vikings as Aromashodu will be a nice fit as a #3 or #4 WR for them in 2011.

The Minnesota Vikings have released 31-year old DT Jimmy Kennedy.  Kennedy played in 9 games for the Vikings last year and he had 8 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss and 1/2 a sack.  Kennedy played in 24 games in his three years with the Vikings and he had 27 tackles, 4 tackles for a loss, 3.5 sacks and he defensed 1 pass.  Kennedy just wasn’t playing up to his paycheck and that’s the reason why he’s looking for a new job.  The Vikings have also released 25-year old WR Freddie Brown who spent his whole rookie season on the practice squad.  The Vikings won’t miss either of these guys.

Chuck Foreman was one of the best RBs in Minnesota Vikings’ history.  Foreman played in 93 games in his 7 years with the Vikings and he carried the ball 1,533 times for 5,887 yards (3.8 ypc) with 52 TD runs.  He also caught 336 passes for 3,057 yards (9.1 avg) with 23 TD grabs with the Vikings.  Foreman made the Pro Bowl in each of his first five years with the Vikings.  He also rushed for over 1,000 yards three times with the Vikings and he caught at least 50 passes in four years with them.  In 1975, Foreman led the NFL in receptions with 73.  Foreman is the Vikings’ #2 all-time rusher but he’s only 105 yards ahead of Adrian Peterson.  He is also tied with Adrian Peterson and Bill Brown for the all-time lead in Vikings’ TD runs with 52 of them.  Foreman also was adept at catching the ball out of the backfield as he is #9 in Vikings’ history in receptions (336) and #13 in receiving yards with 3,057.  He is also tied for 10th in TD receptions in Vikings’ history with 23 of them.