Jeremy: Free Agency Action

Just in case you were confused, Vikings fans, yes, that was the Minnesota Vikings they were talking about last night when your favorite sports anchor said they had signed some free agents.
I know, I know... I was shocked too. The Vikings? Active on Day 1 of free agency? Really? Apparently Don Wilf really is bringing a new era to Vikings football, and along with it, he's bringing a spend-spend-spend attitude.
The day started with Koren Robinson singing with the Vikes for another 3 years. This was a nice re-signing for us. The jury is still out on if Robinson can be a solid game in, game out, wide receiver for us, but we certainly saw bits of explosion from him last year. We can probably expect to see KoRo get more reps at wide-receiver this year... you can bet that Childress is going to set Brad Johnson up with plenty of options to throw to.
Saturday continued with the news that long-time Packer kicker, and often Viking killer, Ryan Longwell, had followed Darren Sharper's lead from last year and gave up the green and gold for a nice purple. This was a big signing for the Vikings for two reasons. First, we haven't had a reliable kicker on the roster since Gary Anderson's season in '98. But the second reason is perhaps more important. The Packers were trying to get Longwell back and were offering him similar numbers in terms of compensation, but the Vikings came in with a larger signing bonus to land Longwell. This was a statement signing. By signing Longwell, and virtually outbidding the Packers (as well as the Bucs, who were also interested) the Vikings are letting everyone know that the cap money they have available they are willing to spend. In addition, this signing obviously tells the Packers something about the new Vikings regime. Hopefully that message is "you will NOT beat us in free agency, and you will NOT beat us on the field."
Of the four signings the Vikings had on Day 1 of free agency, I know the least about Ben Leber. Leber looks to be the kind of fast outside linebacker that the Vikings were looking for to plug into the Cover 2 defense they are planning to run. He's coming off of a season in which he lost his starting job to stud Shawne Merriman, and then suffered a season ending foot injury. From what I've read on him his foot is coming along very well, and he should be a good fit for our new defense.
Last, but certainly not least, is Chester Taylor, Baltimore's back-up to Jamal Lewis last year. Taylor hasn't had a ton of opportunity to prove himself in the NFL, but when he's gotten the ball, he's produced. He's averaged 4.3 yd/carry for his career, and is the kind of back who can catch the ball coming out of the backfield, which should fit nicely with Brad Johnson's weak arm.
The Vikings addressed the two most glaring areas that they needed to attend to when this off-season started: running back and linebacker. Of course quarterback is now a concern as well, but based on how aggressive the new group has been, you've got to be confident about where things are going. The other nice thing about these free agent signings is that it will give the Vikes some flexability in the draft next month. Having addressed a couple of major holes already, they will now be able to draft the best available player with the 17th pick in the draft.