Philadelphia Eagles receiver DeSean Jackson (10) runs with the ball against Dallas Cowboys linebacker Demarcus Ware (94). Matthew Emmons-US PRESSWIRE

To all those dreaming of bringing DeSean Jackson in to join forces with Percy Harvin, keep dreaming. The Philadelphia Eagles officially placed their franchise tag on Jackson, guaranteeing that they will either keep him for another year or get a bundle of draft picks in exchange for his services.

“We want DeSean to be an Eagle for the long haul, and this is a step in the right direction to accomplish that,” said Eagles G.M. Howie Roseman via Profootballtalk.com. “DeSean is a talented player and a proven playmaker in this league, and we look forward to him continuing his career in Philadelphia. It’s our understanding that he has the same desire. We will continue our efforts on getting a long-term deal done with him.”

It comes as no surprise the Eagles franchised their diva wide receiver. He is extremely talented, and they need to insure that they will either keep him catching touchdowns in Philly or get a slew of talented young rookies in return.

This, of course, doesn’t mean the Eagles will keep Jackson, or even that they intend to, regardless of what Roseman says. Jackson’s “me first” attitude has been well documented in Philly, and it would be no surprise to see him traded to the highest bidder (if there is one).

But make no mistake, it won’t be the Vikings. Rick Spielman has never been a fan of giving up draft picks, and after the Randy Moss incident in 2010, there is no way the Vikings will be making any sort of run at a player who is known for his selfish, diva attitude. Moreover, if Jackson wasn’t happy in Andy Reid’s pass happy offense last year, how would he take being traded to a run-first team with a second-year quarterback? Not well.

So you can cross DeSean Jackson off your potential free agent list. But not to worry, there’s always Peyton Manning.

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Matthew Emmons-US PRESSWIRE

Sorry to disappoint those who dreamed of DeSean Jackson joining the Viking to form a dynamic receiving duo with Percy Harvin, but it now looks like  Jackson won’t be hitting the market. Philadelphia media people are reporting the Eagles will franchise tag the mercurial receiver. If that  happens the Vikings could only get Jackson via trade, and I really don’t see them coughing up precious draft picks for him. So pretty much cross Jackson off your wish list if he was ever on it to begin with.

But don’t despair too much, there will still be plenty of good receivers for the Vikings to target when free agency kicks off March 13th. Vincent Jackson has been the center of most of the speculation. Dwayne Bowe, Robert Meachem and Mario Manningham have also been thrown out there.

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As grim as things looked going into last week’s game against the Bears, the optimistic Viking fan could still probably muster a shred of hope that things would break right for the Purple and they would eek out a victory.  Then when Brett Favre made his miracle last-minute recovery that shred of hope grew.  And grew even more when Favre engineered a touchdown drive on the team’s first possession.

Of course we know what happened then:  Favre took a huge shot and suffered a concussion, taking all the air out of the Vikings’ balloon.  The final score of 40-14 was just about right for the effort the Vikings gave the rest of the game.  With the memory of that debacle still fresh in our minds, we prepare for the Vikings to take the field against the Eagles, a better team than the Bears, at their home stadium.  This time, there is nary a shred of hope for the Viking fan to cling to, nary a sliver of optimism.  Pretty much everyone expects this one to be a massacre.

After last week’s embarrassing effort, the Vikings deserve to be doubted.  Not only did they nearly get Brett Favre killed, they also played atrociously in the secondary and on special teams.  Needless to say, against the talent the Eagles can run out there, if the Vikings don’t block, tackle and cover better this week, the game will be over quickly.  Unfortunately, it’s hard to improve your performance when you keep losing players.  Madieu Williams, out with a concussion, will have no chance to redeem himself after playing another brutal game against the Bears.  Steve Hutchinson, now on IR with a broken thumb, will have no chance to prop up an ever-more-unreliable offensive line.  Brett Favre, not officially listed as out for the game but almost certainly out, will get no shot at injecting inspiration into the team one final time.

No, if the Vikings are going to turn themselves around for one week at least, Joe Webb, John Sullivan, Chris DeGeare, Phil Loadholt, Jamarca Sanford and Asher Allen will have to be the ones to do it.  These men represent much of the young talent for the Vikings, the talent that will have to carry the team into the new post-Childress era.  To say Viking Nation is less-than-optimistic about these guys’ ability to lead a quick Viking resurgence would be an understatement.  But, if they muster enough of an effort to at least make today’s game competitive, maybe we will have some small reason to be enthusiastic heading into next season.

Well, it’s better than nothing.

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