Vikings Free Agency: 5 Players Left on the Market That Could Help

When it comes to NFL free agents, we're in the 11th hour of a 10-hour sale. The racks have been picked over, and all the fun, shiny things are gone. It's the garage sale where everything remotely good has been gobbled up and you're left looking at a few paperbacks you've never heard of, some short-sleeved men's dress shirts and a golf bag full of irons from the 1980's.

For the Minnesota Vikings, it became clear pretty early that the organizational rebuild was going to have far more to do with the draft than dropping a lot of dollars in free agency. Many in the fanbase became agitated as they watched teams with far fewer holes than the Vikings land prized free agents while Minnesota seemed to be stocking talent for a low-level practice squad.

How are the Buccaneers able to sign both Carl Nicks and Vincent Jackson? How can the Saints ink Ben Grubbs, Curtis Lofton and David Hawthorne? And who in god's green earth are Lex Hilliard, Jerome Felton and Bryan Walters? 

If you guessed that those three are middle relievers for the Twins' AAA team in Rochester, I can't blame you, but no, those are among the group of new Vikings signed by GM Rick Spielman.

Take a deep breath, Vikings fans, for the one thing needed more than anything else when facing a rebuild as large as this one is patience. One thing proved over and over again in the NFL is that you don't become a solid team by spending foolishly. There is no quick fix for a football team (see: Philadelphia Eagles, 2011).

The thing about free agency in the NFL is that everyone tends to get overpaid. Teams that are a player or two away from contending and teams that are desperate to sell more tickets, or just to make news to stay relevant in their market, often overpay for players that aren't cure-alls. 

Sometimes, the best moves are the one you don't make, and it's not a stretch to say that the Vikings have a better roster now than they did the day last season ended. They purged four expensive contracts to players that were being paid far more than their value. They signed a veteran offensive lineman who will vie to be a starter and at least add needed depth. They signed a young tight end who could have a very high ceiling.

As for those relievers from Rochester? You got me. I guess somebody has to hold the dummies next August. (I'm kidding, kind of. The two backs both have reputations as good blockers, an area that a team with a green quarterback was in woeful need of improvement.)

By not overspending on Vincent Jackson or Carl Nicks, they'll be able to afford Percy Harvin, Brian Robison and Erin Henderson when their paydays arrive.

Now, back to those irons from the 80's. The Vikings may be done adding anything before the draft, but if they're not, here are five players that could certainly help improve the roster.

Jerome Simpson, WR

Jerome Simpson had a breakout year with the Bengals in 2011, catching 50 passes for 725 yards and four touchdowns. Entering his fifth season out of Coastal Carolina, Simpson showed signs in 2011 of becoming a very good No. 2 receiver, certainly trending forward in his career progression.

So why is a kid who seems like free-agent gold still available? Simpson is facing sentencing April 5 in Kentucky on marijuana possession charges. Probably not a huge deal, but probably enough to warrant some type of suspension from the league.

At 6'2", 190 pounds and very strong with great quickness, Simpson is a tough matchup for any defense as a No. 2 receiver. Perhaps lacking confidence coming out of Coastal Carolina, Simpson has now blossomed into a legitimate NFL starter. Another attractive trait is his above-average ability as a blocker on the outside.

Simpson would come cheaper than what Mario Manningham received, but he might be the better player. With his arrest, there is now a character concern, but if the Vikings vet him out and are OK with what they find, Simpson could be another receiver to add to their stable.

It's probably a long shot, especially considering Minnesota is likely to add a touted receiver in the draft, but if it doesn't, Simpson should be on its radar. 

2. Marcus Trufant, CB

Cornerback might be the single trickiest position to evaluate in the NFL. 

With offensive schemes now so intricately complicated, how we all used to rate defensive backs (with tackles and interception numbers) has become archaic. If you are a great cornerback now, offenses will simply stay away from you.

Here's an example for you: Marcus Trufant was the 11th pick in the 2003 draft. Nnamdi Asomugha was the 31st pick in the same draft. In their nine-year careers, Trufant has 612 tackles and 21 interceptions to Asomugha's 350 tackles and 14 picks. If this were any other era, Trufant would more than likely be the more highly thought of player. Obviously not so in today's NFL world.

The careers of NFL corners are always very precarious things. Age can catch up with you seemingly at any time, and at 31 years old, Asomugha is still an elite player, while his contemporaries from the class of 2003, Trufant and Terence Newman, are clearly in decline.

Trufant has dealt with back issues and has lost a step to be sure, but he's still got enough left in the tank to be a gigantic improvement over the corners the Vikings played with last season. Trufant missed most of last season, and his health is a concern, but he's been a consistent Pro Bowl type player over the years for the Seahawks and might be worth a look for the Vikings. He's not worth spending too much money on, but could provide a veteran presence along with Antoine Winfield in what will be an otherwise young Vikings secondary.

3. Terence Newman, CB

Released by the Dallas Cowboys after having a sub-par 2011, you can attach almost everything I said about Trufant on the previous slide to Terence Newman. Think of Newman as sort of like a Steve Hutchinson-type of player, a superstar whose best days are clearly in the past, but who can still plug a hole for a year or two. 

For the Vikings, the hope would be that with either Trufant or Newman, a change of scenery after many years in the same place would be a kick-start that could rejuvenate an elite player to returning to form.

Picked fifth overall, also the same year as Asomugha, Newman's numbers dwarf Nnamdi's even more than Trufant's do, with over 200 more tackles and 32 interceptions to Asomugha's 14. 

Newman has always been a tough player with great cover skills and a nose for the ball. As with Trufant, the Vikings would have to decide if it would be worth it to bring in a player who could give them one or two years of production and at what cost. 

The Vikings will probably head into 2012 with Chris Cook penciled in at one starting corner spot and a prospective draft pick at the other. If they are able to land that guy in the draft, there's probably no reason to kick the tires on either Trufant or Newman, but if Minnesota takes a wideout in the second round and isn't confident it can get a starting corner in round three, either one of these veterans might make sense at the right price.

Oshiomogho Atogwe, S

Anyone who watched even one Vikings game last season knows that they need to get way better in the defensive secondary.

Husain Abdullah showed some promise, but is battling concussions, which makes him much less than a sure thing. Jamarca Sanford and Mistral Raymond looked simply overmatched in a year where they both were forced into playing time that they just weren't ready for.

Oshiomogho Atogwe is a player who could instantly upgrade the Vikings at safety. Atogwe seemingly came out of nowhere in 2007 for the Rams, when he led the NFC with eight interceptions. He followed that up with a solid 2008, when he was named the Rams defensive MVP.

Unwilling to pay him, the Rams let him go and he signed on with the Washington Redskins, where, let's face it, good players have gone to die over the last few seasons.

Atogwe has battled injuries over the last couple of seasons, and at 30 years old, his best days might be behind him, but a fresh start with a new team might again be a way to rejuvenate him. The Vikings have been in discussions with Atogwe, and a guy with 25 career picks has to be somewhat attractive to them.

If the Vikings feel Atogwe is just too old to be a part of their rebuild, they could look at another Redskins castoff at safety in Kareem Moore, who, at 27 years old, doesn't have Atogwe's resume, but has shown enough potential to be worth a look.

Rocky McIntosh, ILB

Rocky McIntosh is another player who fell out of favor in Washington last year. (And let's face it, with Mike Shanahan around, that happens a lot.)

I want to be clear before I go on with this description of McIntosh: He's not as good a player as E.J. Henderson is. He's better against the pass, but nowhere near the run defender that Henderson is. And while it's unclear what the Vikings' plans are at linebacker, it seems like they are willing to part ways with Henderson in an effort to get a little bit younger.

The plan may be to hand the starting job to Jasper Brinkley while drafting a player they feel can step in to the role in a year or two.

McIntosh may be worth a look as a veteran presence who's put in some solid years in the league. He certainly isn't an upgrade over E.J. Henderson, but he's a solid tackler and a good coverage linebacker who's younger and wouldn't cost as much as E.J.