Pennington to Vikes?

Mike Florio aka ProFootballTalk guy also writes a column for The Sporting News, and in the latest edition of said column, he suggests the Vikings should swing a pre-deadline trade for Jets quarterback Chad Pennington.  Mr. Florio writes:

"Minnesota has a great defense and a great running game, but the quarterbacks stink. The Vikings had their chance to get Jeff Garcia but stubbornly insisted on standing pat with unproven Tarvaris Jackson.Pennington is struggling in New York as he peers back over his shoulder at Kellen Clemens, who could have the job by the end of Sunday’s game vs. Philadelphia. Pennington would benefit from a change of scenery.OK, so the offense is different and Pennington would be learning on the fly. But he is smart and learns fast. And the bottom line is that both teams would be better if the deal went down."

I have no doubt the Jets would be better off dumping Pennington whose best years are clearly behind him, especially when they have a promising young guy like Kellen Clemens to step in, but would the Vikings be?  All right, I know what you’re gonna say:  Tarvaris Jackson?  Brooks Bollinger?  Kelly Holcomb?  Isn’t almost anything an upgrade over those three?  Probably.  However, the last time I saw Pennington – in the Vikings v. Jets game last year – he looked immobile and basically had a wet noodle for an arm.  In other words he was Brad Johnson minus a few miles.  Yes, he’s accurate, and yes he’s smart – but he would not be the future.  The Vikes would be better off committing to T-Jack for the rest of the year, and if he proves he can’t hack it – which he probably can’t – then they can take a QB with their very high (probably top 5) draft pick.  Another stop-gap-type QB could be found in free agency in the off-season – there’s no reason to trade good draft picks for a guy like Pennington at this point in the season, when you’re sitting in last.

And yeah, I agree with Florio – it was dumb for the Vikes to not bring in Garcia when they had a chance.  But, dumb is what Brad Childress does best.