But it’s not yet certain that a retractable roof is even financially feasible for the Vikings, especially after the legislature made them kick in an extra $50 million to cover stadium costs. I can already hear a few people grumbling that if the Wilfs can kick in an extra $50 million they should surely be able to scrape together whatever it would cost to put a retractable roof on the stadium. Especially when you consider that they would be getting their own MLS team in the bargain.

I’m not going to speculate on how much money the Wilfs may or may not have in the bank. All I know is that they want a retractable roof and that the fans are behind the idea. Right now however, the Wilfs aren’t promising anything. They best they can say is that they’ll make an effort to get the retractable roof.

In describing the team’s plans for the new facility, Mark Wilf told Sid Hartman, “We’re going to have features that people are going to want to come to the game with their families and make it a full-day experience. We’ll work very hard at getting that done. Whether it has a retractable [roof] of some kind, that’s yet to be determined, but we’re going to try if we can.”

Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis continues to be thrown out as a model for what the Vikings are shooting at. Wilf said, “Certainly in terms of the types of amenities and the way it feels inside [it will be like Lucas Oil]. I think this past Super Bowl got rave reviews in terms of the people that attended from all over the world and all over the country. I think it’s the right sensibility.

“We want to have something exciting but also is going to fit the Minnesota market and be something that has a Minnesota flavor to it. That’s the sensibility that we’re going to shoot for, the type of features that Lucas Oil has — big screens, technology, comfortable seating, club areas, public plazas, the whole nine yards.”

And fireworks. Don’t forget the fireworks.

Whether the roof ends up being fixed or retractable, one thing is certain: the new stadium will not be a giant dump like the Metrodome. They should throw a parade the day that place gets imploded.

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At this point it might be a toss-up which is in worse shape: The stadium deal or Tracy Morgan’s career. Both appear to be on life-support. Thankfully Tracy’s problems don’t involve politicians, so they’ll probably be easier to fix in the end.

At the heart of the ever-so-vexing stadium issue is the question of road improvements for Arden Hills, and more specifically, who gets to pay for them. The Vikings and Ramsey County reportedly have a plan in place to pay for half the needed work, and would require the state to kick in the other half.

A special legislative session will be required to hash out all these issues, but so far we have no idea if such a session will even take place. I’m guessing the Wilfs will bring this question up today with the governor. I’m also guessing the words “Los Angeles” and “AEG” will be brought up at some point. Politely. And with assurances that, as of now, the Vikings have no intention of leaving Minnesota.

And if the Vikings do leave? Maybe they can bring in Tracy Morgan to cheer up the fans. He’s very funny when he’s not bashing minority groups.

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In other words, barring any unforeseen changes in the team’s fortunes, Chillyball will be in effect long after Brett Favre is gone, and even after the Metrodome lease has expired, forcing the team to move to Los Angeles.

The obvious question now is:  Does Chilly deserve this extension?

On the basis of this season, the answer would have to be yes.  The Vikings are 8-1 largely thanks to Chilly begging Brett Favre to come out of retirement and save him from the quarterback fiasco he created by reaching to draft the clueless Tarvaris Jackson.  Plus, Chilly was responsible for drafting Percy Harvin, after paying a personal visit to Percy’s family to see if he was as big a potential turd as many supposed draft experts claimed he was.

Chilly also rolled the dice on the Jared Allen trade, bringing in the All-Pro defensive end at a time when he was one strike away from being suspended a season under the substance abuse policy.  Allen has kept his nose clean since then, while developing into a major media presence and an all-around crazy mofo.

And of course there was Chilly’s move to draft Adrian Peterson even though many thought him injury-prone.  In three seasons, Peterson already has over 4,000 yards, and has developed a reputation as one of the most irresistible forces in the NFL.

Did I mention that Chilly also drafted Sidney Rice, signed Bernard Berrian and plucked Visanthe Shiancoe out of obscurity to give him a starting job?

The point I’m making here is, a lot of Chilly’s success has come about because of personnel decisions which were not entirely his (Rick Spielman and Rob Brzezinski deserve props too, as do the Wilfs for opening their pocket books and leaving them open).  Chilly does apparently deserve most of the credit  for the biggest personnel decision of his entire career and potentially the entire history of the Vikings:  adding #4 to the mix.

Whether Chilly is as much an offensive and game-managing mastermind as he is an apparent talent-recognition guru remains an open question.  Some would argue that the team has won, at times, in spite of Chilly.  Others would probably say “Hey, you’ve hammered the guy for years for running a boring offense, now we have an awesome offense so give him his props.”

Maybe Chilly deserves those props.  The question here is, does he deserve them to the tune of $4-5 million per year for the next 4 seasons?

Like I said before, 2013 will carry Chilly well beyond Brett Favre’s retirement (unless Brett plans on playing till he’s 44).  The offense was mediocre before Favre, it has become explosive with Favre, and after Favre leaves?  Who knows.

Only thing I’m sure of is, when Chilly starts collecting on the new contract, his first move should be to cut Brett a check.  Cause without Favre here doing what he’s been doing, this extension would not have happened.