No Contract For Birk, Kleinsasser; Sharper Sad to Go

The Vikings failed to reach agreement with either Matt Birk or Jim Kleinsasser before 11 PM Thursday night, meaning both long-time Purple stalwarts will hit the market.  It would be sort of a shock to go into the season with both Matty and Jimmy in other uniforms, but that’s the way of the sporting world nowadays.  The only potential destination suggested for either man so far has been Jacksonville, for Kleinsasser.  Of course it’s still perfectly possible that neither guy will get much of a sniff and the Vikes will end up bringing them back.

The news is a lot more definitive on safety Darren Sharper:  As expected, the Vikings have no interest in retaining his services.  Nobody is surprised by this, except maybe Sharper himself, who expressed regret about leaving in an interview with NBCSports.com:

"My first wish was always to stay where I was. If it’s not in the plans, I’m looking forward to free agency and being able to be utilized in a way that suits what I can do.  I know I can help a team win."

Tiny dig at the scheme there, with that “being able to be utilized in a way that suits what I do” line.  That’s been Sharper’s bit for a couple of years now, that he’s not being used right.  Interesting that he would wish to return to a team that wasn’t making the most of his skills.  Guy seems confused.  Also delusional.  It’s about time he figured out that he’s simply not the player he was before.  The Saints look likely to sign him, so at least he knows he’ll have a team to suck for next year.