The Viking Age » carson palmer

Carson Palmer Traded to Raiders; Donovan McNabb Still a Viking

Dan Zinski — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 16:21:58 +0000

That Donovan McNabb trade rumor that wasn’t even a trade rumor but just a figment of some desperate blogger’s imagination? Now it’s not even that. Carson Palmer has been traded to the Raiders for two first round picks, meaning Oakland is no longer in the market for a quarterback.

Not that the Vikings were ever seriously considering dealing McNabb. And not that the Raiders would’ve inquired about McNabb even if the Vikings were dangling him.

As for the Raiders’ decision to mortgage a big part of their future in hopes Carson Palmer can get into the flow quickly and keep their season chugging: it’s a big gamble, but the Raiders do have a nice running game and a decent defense, so maybe they can get by with a diminished Carson Palmer at QB. It is always a bit iffy when you put your faith in an older QB whose skills seem to have eroded…as Viking fans know all too well.

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Getting it Back, a Little

Dan Zinski — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 19:38:30 +0000

The Vikings defense was in a mood to make a statement today against the Bengals, and for much of the first half, they did.

Leading the charge was Antoine Winfield, who got back on the field for the first time in weeks, and had an immediate impact in the running game, blowing up plays just like he never left. Unfortunately, Winfield missed his one chance to make a big play in the passing game, dropping an easy interception. He would make up for it late in the half, though, forcing a fumble to give the Vikes a field goal attempt with 5 seconds remaining. Ryan Longwell converted, putting the purple up 16-7 going into the break.

The defensive line also looked frisky coming off a terrible effort in Arizona. They did a good job slowing down Cedric Benson for most of the half, and got some pressure on Carson Palmer, including a big sack by Brian Robison.

There was one glaring defensive breakdown: The Bengals ran Chad Ochocinco on a fake reverse that he quickly changed directions on, faking Antoine Winfield out of his shoes and leading to an easy touchdown. The score may never had happened had Kevin Williams not gone stupid and hit Carson Palmer out of bounds for a drive-sustaining 15-yard penalty.

Offensively, things were a bit more of a struggle for the Vikes, at least initially. Brett Favre threw another pick, after getting some backside pressure, and for the first couple series seemed almost as discombobulated as last week against Arizona.

Luckily, Adrian Peterson was there to take up the slack. There were no spectacular runs, but he was consistent, and notched one big play on a swing pass that he was able to take around the corner.

Overall, it was a good half of football for a Vikings team looking to rebound from a tough loss. Taking a 16-7 lead into the break, and getting the ball first in the second half, is about as good as we could’ve hoped for.

T.J. Update: Still in Minny?

Dan Zinski — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 15:15:18 +0000

T.J. Houshmandzadeh spent Sunday night in Minneapolis, and is expected to make a decision some time today on which team will have the privilege of paying him millions of dollars to play for them the next few years. Cincinnati remains at the top of the list – in fact, T.J.’s old quarterback Carson Palmer spent the last few days stalking calling him to make sure he knew he was still wanted on the Bengals. Cincinnati is reportedly prepared to give T.J. a handsome financial package, said to be worth more than Plaxico Burress‘s or Hines Ward‘s (speaking of feeling wanted). That would put T.J.’s new deal in a 5-year/$35 million range that could exceed what the Vikes are willing to offer. Most reports have Minnesota balking at giving T.J., who will be 32 this year, more than a 3-year deal. So, basically, if T.J. signs with the Vikings it won’t be for the money – it will be for the chance to, as he said himself, face all that one-on-one coverage created by teams loading up to stop Adrian Peterson. The other team in the mix, Seattle, is said to also be reluctant to go beyond a 3-year deal, but reportedly has offered more money than the Vikes.

Update: Uh-ohs.

T.J. Houshmandazeh may not have spent the night in Minneapolis after all. The real reporters down there are looking into a story that had T.J. boarding a plane to L.A. late last evening. Funny thing about this: Last night before I went to bed, I was on a message board and some dope was getting reamed for claiming he’d been on a plane from Minneapolis to L.A. and seen Housh. Maybe that guy wasn’t making it up.