Dec 18, 2011; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Vikings tight end Visanthe Shiancoe (81) against the New Orleans Saints at the Metrodome. The Saints defeated the Vikings 42-20. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-US PRESSWIRE

The Rick Spielman youth movement has cleared out a lot of fan favorites from the last couple years, including Visanthe Shiancoe who is now officially an ex-Viking after signing a one-year $1.2 million contract with the New England Patriots. Was 2009 only 3 years ago or 10? Of Brett Favre’s favorite receiving weapons from that team, only Percy Harvin remains. Shank is now gone along with Chester Taylor and Sidney Rice. I was going to add Bernard Berrian but of course we know Favre didn’t like Berrian and froze him out.

As for Shank, good for him joining a franchise that has a chance to go deep into the playoffs this year. Though one has to wonder how much Shank will even see the field with Rob Gronkowski, Aaron Hernandez and Daniel Fells already in the mix. Clearly touches aren’t as important to Shank as just the chance to be on a winning team. He also reportedly visited the Eagles, a team that might’ve let him see more action. I don’t know if the Eagles ever offered him a contract, but at any rate he’s now on the Patriots. So we could very well see Shank catching balls in the Super Bowl.

Like The Viking Age on Facebook.
Follow Dan Zinski on Twitter.

Nov 21, 2010; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Vikings tight end Visanthe Shiancoe (81) runs a route against the Green Bay Packers in the first quarter at the Metrodome. The Packers win 31-3. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Kluckhohn-US PRESSWIRE

A few quick hitters related to some Vikings free agents:

Don’t expect Fred Evans back. The Vikings gave Letroy Guion a 3-year deal for $3 million per with an eye toward making him the starting nose tackle. Remi Ayodele will be the primary back-up. Evans’ departure is expected to reduce by half the Vikings’ number of offsides penalties.

The Vikings have no offer on the table for Erin Henderson. He is out there testing the market right now with no notion of what the Vikings think he’s worth. There is evidently some disagreement within the Vikings organization over Henderson’s value. Fred Pagac apparently loves him but Mike Singletary isn’t sold. This begs the question: Who gives a crap what Mike Singletary thinks about anything?

Visanthe Shiancoe has a visit lined up with Seattle. Darrell Bevell, Tarvaris Jackson and Sidney Rice are already there. Steve Hutchinson could also be returning to the Pacific Northwest. The 2008 Vikings are slowly being reassembled in Seattle. Maybe Bernard Berrian should give those guys a call. Just kidding, no one wants him.

Like The Viking Age on Facebook.
Follow Dan Zinski on Twitter.

Jan 8, 2010; Seattle, WA, USA; Seattle Seahawks tight end John Carlson (89) scores on an 11-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter of the NFC Wild Card playoff game against the New Orleans Saints at Qwest Field. The Seahawks defeated the Saints 41-36. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee/Image of Sport-US PRESSWIRE

Who says the Vikings are totally sitting out of free agency? They’re having John Carlson in for a visit today. John Carlson is a former tight end for the Seahawks who missed the entire 2011 season with a shoulder injury. He’s not to be confused with John Carter the hero of Disney’s new flop science fiction film.

The Vikings’ interest in Carlson – who incidentally went to Notre Dame like Kyle Rudolph – would seem to signal the end of Visanthe Shiancoe’s time in Minnesota. Shank himself is certainly taking it that way as indicated by this wistful tweet. “Good memories in minn…especially ’09!” We’ll always have our memories Shank. And that dong shot. That dong shot will live forever.

Those of you holding out hope that the Vikes will pass on Carlson and maybe invite Shank back? Doesn’t look good. Reports are that the Vikings won’t let Carlson out of the building. They will kidnap him and make him sign a contract. Carlson is considered a solid pass catcher but a below average blocker. So he’s basically Kyle Rudolph but a few years older, somewhat less talented and with a fairly significant shoulder injury in his past. He seems like he’ll make a good #2 TE and obviously the shoulder isn’t a problem or there wouldn’t have been so much interest in him so early in free agency.

So there you go. The Vikings are about to sign someone. Somebody should ring a bell somewhere or… something.

Like The Viking Age on Facebook.
Follow Dan Zinski on Twitter.