The Vikings have re-signed 25-year old LB Erin Henderson.  Henderson played in 15 games for the Vikings last year and he had 70 tackles, 1.5 sacks, 6 tackles for a loss, 2 forced fumbles and 2 passes defensed.  Henderson has now played in 36 games in his first four years with the Vikings and he has 96 tackles, 1.5 sacks, 6 tackles for a loss, 4 forced fumbles, 1 fumble recovery and 2 passes defensed.  This was a good move for the Vikings as Henderson stepped up for them last year.

The Vikings have signed 25-year old G/T Geoff Schwartz.  He missed all of last year due to hip surgery.  He last played in a game back in 2010 for the Carolina Panthers.  Schwartz has now played in 32 games (19 starts) in his first three years in the NFL.  Look for Schwartz to push for a starting job at guard in 2012, as long as he is healthy.

The Vikings have released 28-year old DE Remi Ayodele.  Ayodele played in 16 games for the Vikings last year and he had 15 tackles and 1.5 sacks.  He has now played in 60 games in his first five years in the NFL and he has 90 tackles, 4 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, 1 fumble recovery, 1 pass defensed and 5 tackles for a loss.  This is not much of a loss for the Vikings.

The Vikings have signed 25-year old fullback Jerome Felton.  Felton played in 14 games for the Colts & Panthers last year and he carried the ball 3 times for 10 yards (3.3 ypc).  He also caught 4 passes for 40 yards (10.0 avg) last year.  Felton has now played in 56 games in his first four years in the NFL and he has carried the ball 42 times for 136 yards (3.2 ypc).  He has also caught 34 passes for 280 yards (8.2 avg) so far in his career.  Felton is a good blocker and a solid runner and receiver for a fullback.  This was a good signing for the Vikings.

The Vikings have signed 27-year old RB Lex Hilliard to a 1-year deal.  Hilliard played in all 16 games for the Dolphins last year in which he carried the ball 16 times for 41 yards (2.6 ypc) with 1 TD run.  He also caught 5 passes for 49 yards (9.8 avg) last year.  Hilliard has now played in 48 games in his first three years in the NFL and he has carried the ball 39 times for 130 yards (3.3 ypc) with 2 TD runs.  He has also caught 26 passes for 210 yards (8.1 avg) with 2 TD grabs in his NFL career so far.  With Adrian Peterson and Toby Gerhart banged up, it was smart to add a RB like Hilliard to the mix.

The Vikings have re-signed 28-year old DT Fred Evans.  Evans played in all 16 games for the Vikings last year and he had 22 tackles and 3 tackles for a loss.  Evans has now played in 64 games in his first five years with the Vikings and he has 54 tackles, 1 sack and 5 tackles for a loss.  Evans will rotate on the interior of the D-Line for the Vikings once again in 2012.

The Vikings have signed 27-year old TE John Carlson to a 5-year, $25 million dollar deal.  Carlson played in 15 games for the Seahawks last year and he caught 31 passes for 318 yards (10.3 avg) with 1 TD grab.  He has now played in 47 games in his first three years in the NFL and he has caught 137 passes for 1,519 (11.1 avg) with 13 TD grabs.  Carlson is a solid pass catching TE who should help the Vikings’ offense in 2012.

The Vikings have re-signed 24-year old DT Letroy Guion to a 3-year deal.  Guion played in 16 games for the Vikings last year and he had 21 tackles, 3 tackles for a loss and 1 fumble recovery.  He has played in 38 games in his first three years in the NFL and he has 38 tackles, 2 sacks, 5 tackles for a loss, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery and 1 pass defensed.  The Vikings were smart to bring Guion back for 2012 as he will provide depth on the interior of the D-Line.

The Vikings have re-signed 34-year old QB Sage Rosenfels to a 1-year deal.  Rosenfels last played in a game with the New York Giants in 201o.  Rosenfels has played in 44 games (12 starts) so far 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).  He also has carried the ball 48 times for 95 yards (2.0 ypc) with 1 TD grab.  Rosenfels is 6-6 (50%) in his career as a starting QB in the NFL.  Rosenfels will likely be the Vikings’ #3 QB in 2012, behind Christian Ponder and Joe Webb.

The Vikings have released 29-year old CB Cedric Griffin.  Griffin played in all 16 games for the Vikings last year and he had 67 tackles, 1 interception, 9 passes defensed, 3 forced fumbles and 1 tackle for a loss.  Griffin played in 80 games in his six years with the Vikings and he had 379 tackles, 50 passes defensed, 8 interceptions, 15 forced fumbles, 2 fumble recoveries and 10 tackles for a loss.  This was a money move for the Vikings as Griffin is still a decent football player.