Posted by Josh Katzowitz and Will Brinson



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• Well, I didn't talk to him. But some fans did. Like "Bob Loblaw in Wiconsinberg!" Just kidding, I'm sure all the fans that got their questions answered by Roger Goodell on NFL.com were totally real and in no way made up in order to provide specific questions.

• Speaking of chatting with Goodell, how about the boys at SB Nation pulling exclusive interviews with the Commish AND DeMaurice Smith in one day. Boom. Nice work.

• This actually has nothing to do with the NFL, but a local sports reporter almost got run over by an SUV (backing up, at slow speed) midway through a live report. It's pretty amazing.

• Andrew Brandt does, as always, a great job of breaking down legal/labor points over at the National Football Post.

• Doug Farrar of Yahoo! Sports interviews Eric Berry of the Kansas City Chiefs. Doug's interviews and work were required reading regardless, but after that Adrian Peterson thing, you best check them out real close-like. (Though I saw nothing of the sort in this one.)

• We absolutely love that former Bengals draft bust Akili Smith is defending former Auburn QB Cam Newton from comparisons that he's similar to, you know, Akili Smith. "I'm nowhere near the athlete that Cam is," Smith told Bengals.com.

• The South Florida Sun-Sentinel writes that Ryan Mallett’s draft status is dropping just like Jimmy Clausen did last year. Unlike Clausen, though, people apparently are concerned with Mallett’s character and personality.

• The Boston Globe reports TE Alge Crumpler underwent shoulder surgery in late January for a significant injury. No word on if he’ll return to next season at full strength.

• Not only does RB Peyton Hillis get Browns president Mike Holmgren pretty pumped about the upcoming season, but the fact Montario Hardesty will return to the squad also gets his juices flowing.

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Posted by Josh Katzowitz

You might have seen Vikings RB Adrian Peterson’s comments from Tuesday when he referred to the NFL as “modern day slavery,” which then caused a big sigh from just about everybody else in the world when they heard it.

You might feel that a dude who’s scheduled to make about $10 million next season is overstating his opinion (just a bit, anyway) with a comment like that.

While some, like Packers RB Ryan Grant, have taken exception to Peterson’s statement – Grant makes the point that there is, you know, still ACTUAL slavery in the world – Steelers RB Rashard Mendenhall sees Peterson’s point.

Writes Mendenhall on his Twitter page (this transcript, by the way, is presented unedited and strung together over about 10 different updates): “@AdrianPeterson Anyone with knowledege of the slave trade and the NFL could say that these two parallel eachother. If you look back and disect what I said, I ddnt say that the NFL was slavery, I said that they parallel eachother. Look up the word parallel. This means that they're not the same thing, but they run the same course. These paths will never cross, but they mirror eachother. I could break down how, but that would take an amount of ideology and big words that a lot of you wouldn't understand.

“Learn to LISTEN before you pass judgement. Because speaking without knowledge of subject is truly ignorant. Outside of the dollar amounts you see on tv, you don't know what's going on with the innerworkings of this buisness. I don't know what goes on at your job. But how dumb would I sound if I read about it in the newspaper and tried to tell you what's going on? Its bigger than what you people on the outside see on sundays, see on ESPN, read about in the paper. Just like any job, any business anywhere. Really think about that.”

Since Peterson is traveling to Africa, his agent, Ben Dogra, was left cleaning up some of the mess.

"I think anybody that knows Adrian knows that Adrian is a very strong-willed and passionate individual," Dogra told the Minneapolis Star Tribune. "The game means an awful lot to him. People should not just take his statements per se word by word. It's a difficult time. He would love to play. I'm sure that everybody would love to see football continue in the NFL and I'm sure at some point it will get resolved. But Adrian, that's what makes him great. He's soft-spoken but if he has something on his mind he'll speak it. But I think nobody should really look at those words and take them out of context."

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Posted by Andy Benoit

UPDATE 3:00 p.m. EST: We held off on passing along Peterson's most explosive comment from this interview because there was initially a bit of confusion regarding the validity of the quote. Farrar included it in his original interview, but removed it soon after. But he later acknowledged that Peterson said it.

And what was it he said, exactly?  Referring to the owners' business arrangement with players, Peterson said, "It's modern-day slavery, you know? People kind of laugh at that, but there are people working at regular jobs who get treated the same way, too."
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Doug Farrar of Yahoo! Sports Shutdown Corner scored a one-on-one interview with Adrian Peterson  just minutes after the NFLPA decertified, which means he caught the Vikings running back in a state of high emotion. Sure enough, Farrar’s interview with Peterson produced some gold.

Here is an excerpt; the whole interview was published Tuesday afternoon:

SC: We're talking about 15 minutes after the NFLPA sent in the paperwork to decertify, so the lockout's on everybody's minds. I've talked to a lot of players about this recently, and I always ask the same question — what is the message you want to get out to the people who love the game and are tired of hearing all the labor talk?

AP: We're business-minded, also. It's not just fun and games. A lot of football players, whether it's Sunday or Monday night — we're out there on the field, competing, hitting each other. But people don't see everything else behind it. It's a job for us, too — every day of the week. We're in different states, sometimes thousands of miles away from our families and kids, and a lot of people don't look at it like that. All some people see is, 'Oh, we're not going to be around football.' But how the players look at it … the players are getting robbed. They are. The owners are making so much money off of us to begin with. I don't know that I want to quote myself on that…

SC: It's nothing that I haven't heard from other players, believe me.

AP: People kind of laugh at that, but there are people working at regular jobs who get treated the same way, too. With all the money … the owners are trying to get a different percentage, and bring in more money. I understand that; these are business-minded people. Of course this is what they are going to want to do. I understand that; it's how they got to where they are now. But as players, we have to stand our ground and say, 'Hey — without us, there's no football.' There are so many different perspectives from different players, and obviously we're not all on the same page — I don't know. I don't really see this going to where we'll be without football for a long time; there's too much money lost for the owners. Eventually, I feel that we'll get something done.

But this crazy idea about an 18-game season … I'm sure they want more entertainment and more revenue, but we're not going to see a pinch of that (the increased revenue), and it's just the business we're in.

SC: It seems to most of the players that if the owners had nothing to hide financially, and if the current business model was as unsustainable as they claim, they'd have no trouble opening the books and showing audited profit and loss per team. Is that your impression?

AP: Exactly! It's like … 'Well, show us.' We want more information, and they want to bull****, going around, saying this and that, just open it up and give us the information we want. If they have nothing to hide, just give us the information. Why not? Obviously, there's a lot to hide -- these guys are professionals, and they're maximizing what they do. But they know that if all this information comes out, the information the players want, it'll be right out there for everyone to see. It's a rip off — not just for the players, but for the people who work at the concession stands and at the stadiums. The people working at the facilities, you know?

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Posted by Josh Katzowitz

When a McDonald’s assistant manager recently saw Vikings RB Adrian Peterson standing outside her drive-thru window at 3 a.m., asking to use the restaurant’s bathroom, she didn’t hesitate to let him in the doors. She also didn’t expect to get fired for the act.

Yet, according to the Consumerist (H/T to Pro Football Talk), that’s exactly what happened when her bosses discovered that she allowed a customer into the restaurant after hours (the drive-thru was still open).

"He's a public figure,” the woman said. “I know him better than some of the maintenance people that come in and out. I never thought in a million years that that decision was going to cost me my career."

Making matters worse for the fast-food chain was that the woman is a mother of three who (I imagine) is just trying to scratch out a living while working at McDonald’s for the past seven years. After the local media caught wind of the story, management gave her back her job.

So, a happy ending, I suppose.

But there is an important moral to the story: don’t ever let Adrian Peterson inside to use your bathroom. 

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Posted by Josh Katzowitz

The Eagles-Vikings game has been moved to Tuesday at 8 p.m., the NFL has announced.

We already told you how the weather could affect tonight’s game, with Philadelphia expecting about a foot of snow with winds gusting as much as 45 mph. But the NFL, most likely wanting to protect the tens of thousands of fans who have tickets for tonight’s game, has decided to move it back 48 hours.

Now, with the postponement, there are a few extra interesting storylines.

1) Will Brett Favre play now? He wouldn't have gone today; that would have been Joe Webb's job. But now, he has an extra two days to pass the league-mandated concussion tests. With Favre, that, of course, is well within the realm of possibilities.

2) How will this affect the Eagles-Cowboys Week 17 game? It certainly won't help the Eagles, who will be battling for the No. 2 playoff seed (which comes with that all-important first-round bye). The Cowboys, who played Saturday, now will have three more extra days of rest when they face Philadelphia.

3) For Fantasy Footballers, this will also give RB Adrian Peterson a couple extra days to rest the leg injury that caused him to miss last week's game vs. the Giants. Peterson practiced Thursday and Friday, so he probably would have played anyway. But two extra days does a body good.

4) The only good news for the Vikings beat writers who will now stay in Philadelphia a couple extra days: this postponement will give them plenty of time to compare Pat's, Geno's and Jim's.

5) What will the children do now on Tuesday night? Disney on Ice in Philadelphia has been cancelled for the night.

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Posted by Josh Katzowitz

The Vikings have released their inactive list for tonight’s game vs. the Bears, and it contains one huge shocker.

No, not that Brett Favre is active and starting, because we half-expected that (though Joe Webb can’t be happy about that, by the way). Instead, RB Adrian Peterson is INACTIVE and won’t play.

That means Toby Gerhart should get the bulk of the carries at RB. Peterson had been questionable with a thigh injury, but it was assumed by just about everybody in the world that he would play tonight.

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Posted by Josh Katzowitz

One day before Minnesota takes on the Bears in what should be a strange Monday Night football game, the Vikings held a gala to honor their 50th season. In doing so, they honored the top-50 players in club history.

Here’s the list:

1. Grady Alderman, T, 1961-74
2. Jared Allen, DE, 2008-present
3. Matt Birk, C, 1998-2008
4. Matt Blair, LB, 1974-1985
5. Bill Brown, RB, 1962-74
6. Joey Browner, S, 1983-91
7. Bobby Bryant, CB, 1967-80
8. Anthony Carter, WR, 1985-93
9. Cris Carter, WR, 1990-01
10. Fred Cox, K, 1963-77
11. Daunte Culpepper, QB, 1999-2005
12. Chris Doleman, DE, 1985-93, ’99
13. Carl Eller, DE, 1964-78
14. Chuck Foreman, RB, 1973-79
15. John Gilliam, WR, 1972-75
16. Bud Grant, coach, 1967-83, ’85
17. Wally Hilgenberg, LB, 1968-79
18. Steve Hutchinson, G, 2006-present
19. Tim Irwin, T, 1981-93
20. Steve Jordan, TE, 1982-94
21. Tommy Kramer, QB, 1977-89
22. Paul Krause, S, 1968-79
23. Gary Larsen, DT, 1965-74
24. Carl Lee, CB, 1983-93
25. Jim Marshall, DE, 1961-79
26. Randall McDaniel, G, 1988-99
27. Keith Millard, DT, 1985-91
28. Randy Moss, WR, 1998-2004, ’10
29. Dave Osborn, RB, 1965-75
30. Alan Page, DT, 1967-78
31. Adrian Peterson, RB, 2007-present
32. John Randle, DT, 1990-2000
33. Ahmad Rashad, WR, 1976-82
34. Ed Sharockman, CB, 1962-72
35. Jeff Siemon, LB, 1972-82
36. Robert Smith, RB, 1993-2000
37. Scott Studwell, LB, 1977-90
38. Doug Sutherland, DT, 1971-81
39. Fran Tarkenton, QB, 1961-66, ’72-78
40. Henry Thomas, DT, 1987-94
41. Mick Tingelhoff, C, 1962-78
42. Stu Voigt, TE, 1970-80
43. Gene Washington, WR, 1967-72
44. Ed White, G, 1969-77
45. Sammy White, WR, 1978-86
46. Kevin Williams, DT, 2003-present
47. Antoine Winfield, CB, 2004-present
48. Roy Winston, LB, 1962-76
49. Ron Yary, T, 1968-81
50. Gary Zimmerman, T, 1986-92

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Posted by Josh Katzowitz

The Tarvaris Jackson era got a reboot tonight when Brett Favre’s shoulder didn’t allow him to continue his streak of 297-straight starts.

Conventional wisdom says the Vikings – and interim and maybe future head coach Leslie Frazier – have the opportunity to see what Jackson can accomplish as the starter.

Well, to see if he can improve on his performances the last time he started for Minnesota – from 2006-08, he started 19 games and went 10-9, and for most of his career, he’s been an average quarterback. Maybe slightly better than average.

Obviously, with the way Favre played last season, the Vikings felt like they had to ride him as long as they could. But now that Favre is out – probably for the season and his career – Jackson gets another look-see.

If tonight is any indication, the Vikings – who took a 21-3 pounding from the Giants in Detroit – need to go in another direction.

The Vikings offense was absolutely brutal. RB Adrian Peterson had 14 carries for 26 measly yards. After a quality first quarter from WR Sidney Rice, he disappeared for the rest of the game. And then there was Jackson.

Before I show you the statistics, know this: the Detroit fan base, who spent minutes of its time doing the Wave and who were passionless for either squad, chanted for backup Joe Webb to replace Jackson. Face it, the rookie sixth-round pick couldn’t have done much worse.

Look at the numbers put up by Jackson: 15 for 30 for 118 yards and an interception. What does that tell you?

Late in the first quarter, Jackson took the snap and attempted to hand off to Peterson. The two instead banged knees, and a few minutes later, both hobbled off the field. In reality, there wasn’t much reason for Jackson to return. Even with a shoulder that didn’t allow Favre to throw, perhaps Favre would have been the better choice to start the game anyway.

Because at this point, if you compare the Jackson of tonight to the Jackson of two years ago, he hasn’t improved. In fact, he’s regressed.

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