30-year old linebacker E.J. Henderson was supposed to miss the start of this season as he was rehabbing from surgery.  But he hasn’t missed a game while playing at a high level so far this year for the Vikings.  Henderson has played in 8 games for the Vikings so far this year and he has 54 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss, 3 passes defensed, 2 interceptions, 1 forced fumble and 1 fumble recovery.  Henderson has now played in 101 games in his first 8 years with the Vikings and he has 592 tackles, 16 passes defensed, 12.5 sacks, 9 forced fumbles and 4 interceptions (he has returned one for a TD).  Henderson is one of the big reasons why the Vikings are holding opponents to 96.3 yards rushing per game and only 3.8 yards per carry.

With Brett Favre playing so/so this season the Vikings have decided to start riding the best offensive player they have, Adrian Peterson.  The 25-year old RB has played in all 8 games for the Vikings so far this year and he has carried the ball 180 times for 857 yards (4.8 ypc) with 7 TD carries.  Peterson has also caught 26 passes for 257 yards (9.9 avg) with 1 TD grab so far this year.  The Vikings would be smart to let rookie RB Toby Gerhart start giving Peterson more breathers going forward.  Gerhart has played in 7 games for the Vikings so far this year and he has carried the ball 19 times for 63 yards (3.3 ypc) and he has also caught 8 passes for 81 yards (10.1 avg).

22-year old WR/KR Percy Harvin is starting to step up for the Vikings.  With the pressure of him being the go-to man off of him due to the trade for Randy Moss, Harvin is stepping up.  Harvin has played in 5 games this year for the Vikings and he has carried the ball 5 times for 33 yards (6.6 ypc) and he has also caught 20 passes for 224 yards (12.2 avg) with 3 TD grabs.  Harvin has also returned 16 kickoffs for 435 yards (27.2 avg) with 1 TD return (a 95-yarder) so far this year.  Harvin has now touched the ball 41 times for 692 total yards (138.4 yards per game) for 16.9 yards per touch.  The Vikings need him to keep up the good work.

30-year old TE Visanthe Shiancoe has really stepped up for the Vikings so far this year.  Shiancoe has caught 11 passes for 169 yards (15.4 avg) with 1 TD grab in the first three games of the year for the Vikings.  Shiancoe is leading the Vikings in receiving yards so far this year and he’s #3 in receptions.  The best thing that Shiancoe ever did was leave the Giants as a free agent to come to Minnesota where he became a starter.  Prior to this year, Shiancoe played in 48 games (three years) with the Vikings in which he caught 125 passes for 1,485 yards (11.9 avg) with 19 TD grabs.  The Vikings really need a WR to step up because opponents are starting to double cover Shiancoe.

24-year old RB Adrian Peterson had another outstanding year for the Vikings in 2009.  He played in all 16 games for the Vikings last season and he carried the ball 314 times for 1,383 yards (4.4 ypc) with 18 TD runs.  Peterson also caught 43 passes for 436 yards (10.1 avg) last season for the Vikings.  Peterson really benefitted from having Brett Favre at QB as opposing teams couldn’t load the box to stop him.  Peterson has now played in 46 games in his career with the Vikings and he has carried the ball 915 times for 4,484 yards (4.9 ypc) with 40 TD carries.  He has also caught 83 passes for 829 yards (10.0 avg) with 1 TD grab in his career.  The knock on Peterson coming into the NFL was that he was a tad injury prone but he hasn’t really shown that in the NFL.

Heading into the playoffs the Vikings have outstanding depth with only maybe the Eagles being able to rival it in the playoffs.  But, 40-year old Brett Favre had the best year of his NFL career and he deserves to be the MVP.  Favre played in all 16 games for the Vikings this season and he completed 363 of 531 passes (68.4%) for 4,202 yards with 33 TD passes and 7 INTs (107.2 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 9 times for 7 yards (0.8 ypc) this season.  Favre has now played in 289 games in his NFL career and he has completed 6,083 of 9,811 passes (62%) for 69,329 yards with 497 TD passes and 317 INTs (86.6 QB Rating).  Favre has also carried the ball 585 times for 1,836 yards (3.1 ypc) with 14 TD runs.  The Vikings hope the Favre keeps rolling in the playoffs as the Vikings will have their best chance of ever winning a Super Bowl this season.

26-year old Tarvaris Jackson is a solid back-up for the Vikings.  He played in 8 games for the Vikings this season and he completed 14 of 21 passes (66.7%) for 201 yards with 1 TD pass and 0 INTs (113.4 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 17 times for -10 yards (-0.6 ypc) this year.  Jackson has now played in 33 games in his career with the Vikings and he has completed 320 of 545 passes (58.7%) for 3,643 yards with 21 TD passes and 18 INTs (77.9 QB Rating.  He has also carried the ball 112 times for 472 yards (4.2 ypc) with 4 TD runs.  If Favre decides to play again next season I see the Vikings trying to trade Jackson during the NFL Draft this April.

31-year old Sage Rosenfels is #3 in line.  He did not play in any games this season for the Vikings.  He has played in 32 games in his NFL career and he has completed 351 of 562 passes (62.5%) for 4,156 yards with 30 TD passes and 29 INTs (81.2 QB Rating).  Rosenfels also carried the ball 45 times for 98 yards (2.2 ypc) with a TD run in his career.  One way or another I see Rosenfels being the #2 QB for the Vikings next season.

24-year old DE Ray Edwards is having a solid season playing opposite of Jared Allen.  Edwards has played in 14 games for the Vikings this season and he has made 48 tackles, 6 tackles for a loss, 6.5 sacks, 1 forced fumble and 2 passes defensed.  The Vikings need Edwards to keep up the good work because the Vikings’ pass rush is giving opposing teams a lot of fits this season.

23-year old Sidney Rice looked like he was sleepwalking during his first two years with the Vikings.  He played in 26 games in those two years catching 46 passes for 537 yards (11.7 avg) with 8 TD grabs.  But now, Rice is Brett Favre’s favorite target in the passing game and he could get him a invite to the Pro Bowl.  Rice has played in 14 games this season for the Vikings and he has caught 71 passes for 1,144 yards (16.1 avg) with 5 TD grabs.  Rice should be a good receiver for a long time in this league and Brett Favre deserves the credit for bringing out the best in him.

It’s amazing to me that Coach Childress considered benching Brett Favre at halftime vs. the Panthers last week with the team winning 7-6.  Does he really think that Tarvaris Jackson would have given them a better chance of beating the Panthers last week?  If that is so, do the Vikings really want to keep a coach that thinks that way?  After all, Brett Favre has completed 312 of 460 passes (67.8%) for 3,565 yards with 27 TD passes and 7 INTs (104.1 QB Rating) so far this season.  Tarvaris Jackson has completed 10 of 15 passes (66.7%) for 159 yards with 1 TD pass and 0 INTs (124.0 QB Rating) in his limited playing time this season.  Brad Childress better get his head out of his butt.

30-year old Chester Taylor could start for some teams in the NFL right now but he is stuck behind Adrian Peterson in Minnesota.  But, he’s making the most of his time on the field mostly on third downs.  Taylor has played 11 games for the Vikings this season and he has carried the ball 67 times for 245 yards (3.7 ypc) with 1 TD run.  He has also caught 33 passes for 279 yards (8.5 avg) with 1 TD grab this season.  Taylor is more than capable of being the main man if something were to happen to Peterson so the Vikings are in great shape at RB.