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soonerloyal
1/22/2011, 09:45 AM
http://www.startribune.com/sports/vikings/114399909.html?elr=KArksUUUezH_MDC7DaaDy_vDEh7P:Di U

New Vikings QB coach puts in plug for Vince Young

By JUDD ZULGAD and CHIP SCOGGINS, Star Tribune staff writers
Last update: January 22, 2011 - 1:08 AM

Leslie Frazier has made it clear the Vikings are in search of a franchise quarterback. His new quarterbacks coach already made a public sales pitch for Vince Young.

Craig Johnson, Young's former position coach with the Tennessee Titans, added fuel to the speculative fire in an interview with the Tennessean newspaper on Friday.

Johnson said he realizes his connection with Young would create questions and speculation because the Vikings need a quarterback. The Titans are expected to release Young if they can't trade him.

"My answer is going to be this: I do have a relationship with Vince, a long relationship with him," Johnson said. "But the head coach and ownership and the offensive coordinator of the Minnesota Vikings -- they're the ones that are going to make the decision. The assistant coaches coach.

"I am sure they'll do due diligence on Vince, and every quarterback who is going to be available on the market is going to be discussed ... I'll put my two cents worth on him because obviously I have more of a relationship with him that most. And then whatever decision is going to be made will be made. Obviously, I have a good working relationship with Vince, and he produced pretty well under me."

Young, the No. 3 overall pick in 2006, went 30-18 as a starter in Tennessee, but the team decided to part ways with him because of character, leadership and injury concerns and his broken relationship with coach Jeff Fisher.

"I think [Vince's] future is still to be written," Johnson said. "What I would officially say about him, and what needs to happen about him, is in the big picture he needs to be known and thought of more for what's happened on the field than what's happened off the field. I think that is true of him and any quarterback.

"I am going to go back to the late, great Steve McNair. When I'd talk about ratings and rankings and percentages of quarterbacks, Steve would hold his hand up and say, 'Craig, there is only one thing that matters for a quarterback. Do you win the game? If you are a quarterback and you win the game, that's good. If not, then it's on me.' That's how you are measured.

''Quoting what Steve said, has Vince been a winning quarterback in this league? Yes.''
Coaching chatter

New special teams coordinator Mike Priefer has faced Chicago Bears returner Devin Hester in the past so he knows all about his game-breaking talent.

Will he kick to Hester?

"I started having nightmares, to be honest with you," he joked. "I think I really want to present that to the players. I hope we're kicking the ball well enough and punting the ball well enough and covering well enough that we can go down and cover a great player like him. He's the best in our business."

Priefer graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy and flew helicopters as a Naval officer for six years before getting into coaching.

"Being an ex-helicopter pilot, people thought I was crazy flying helicopters, and I think people think I'm crazy coaching special teams," he said. "It's all in a good way. I was fortunate enough to be a young division officer, I had 40 to 50 guys under my command, and I really learned how to deal with different personality types from different parts of the country and different type kids with different problems people had."

Eielson
1/22/2011, 05:08 PM
He would certainly be better than Tarvaris.

tulsaoilerfan
1/22/2011, 11:36 PM
Please let this be a joke

agoo758
2/2/2011, 03:31 PM
What about webb? Looked pretty damn impressive to me at the end of this year.