Rumor Mill Grinds Out Corey Simon

The Vikings seem on the surface to be pretty settled at defensive tackle – they’ve got pro-bowl starters in Pat Williams and Kevin Williams, and a solid back-up in Spencer Johnson.  But, depth is an issue at the position – hence the recent signing of troubled ex-Dolphin Fred Evans (who, by the way, should finally report to the team tomorrow).  And there’s the looming fact of Pat Williams’s free-agency, which could leave the team without a big, bad run-stuffer come next season.

Given all this, it’s probably not a surprise that the team would at least have its feelers out for one more player at the position, to give them insurance against injury and maybe someone to fill Big Pat’s shoes should he opt to leave.  And the name that’s now popping up on radar screens is a familiar one – Corey Simon.

Simon was a pretty good player a few years back in Philly – he rang up 9.5 sacks his rookie year in 2000, and 7.5 both in 2001 and 2003.  However, after leaving Philly and signing with the Colts, Simon fell completely off the map, tallying not a single sack for the team in 2005, and playing not a single game in 2006 after knee surgery.  It’s no surprise then that Indy cut him.  On the plus side, Simon is still only 30 – a couple years younger than Big Pat.  And if he can prove that he’s healthy, he might be a more sound investment than Pat, who is going to command big money on the free agent market despite his age.

Reportedly, Tennessee has already had Simon in for a physical and a workout, and coach Jeff Fisher said he looked pretty good.  There’s really nothing yet on whether the Vikings are seriously considering bringing Simon in too – so far this is all at the rumor stage.  My biggest problem with Simon is that, for whatever reason, he seems like one of those guys who, when he leaves a place, the fans aren’t really that sorry to see him go.  He was inconsistent in Philly overall, and obviously gave the Colts next to nothing despite the large cash they paid him.  The main argument in favor of signing him is that, if Big Pat does leave, you might be left high-and-dry, and forced to spend a top draft pick on a defensive tackle.  The problem is that, if Simon is your back-up plan, you might be left high-and-dry anyway.