Not so lazy afterall. I decided to just check-in ever so briefly. Christmas in Minnesota, indeed! Unlike their predecessor Red McCombs, the Wilf Bros Inc. are not shy about spending money. The only lingering question is are they spending their money foolishly? Time will tell.

The Chicago area went so far as to say Berrian is not worth Top 10 WR money. The Vikes just made him the fourth-highest-paid WR in the NFL. Check out this YouTube video for a non-purple tinted glasses look:

My counter to this? The video speaks of Berrian not being a receiver that goes after the ball...not fighting off his defender...not making the difficult catch. I beg to differ.

As of 8 AM CST, Bernard Berrian has yet to select a jersey number. This may be something to track. Berrian wore number 80 in Chicago. Slight issue there as the number was retired September 14, 2003. You may recall why.

So, Berrian can choose amongst 82, 86, and 89. Number 88 was retired September 20, 1998 for the Vikings greatest defensive player of all time.

Berrian wore #2 at Fresno State. So we know he won't reach back and wear his old collegiate number. My guess? He combines #80 and #2 and wears #82 for the Vikes.

Some "I bet you didn't know that" about Berrian:
- Place of birth: Spain. That makes Berrian the second international FA pick-up in two days. The other was Madieu Williams who was born in Freetown, Sierra Leone. Berrian grew up in California while both of his parents served at Castle Air Force Base.
- Selected: Round 3, Pick 15, Overall Pick 78 by Bears in the 2004 draft. He had been rated number 12 out of 156 WR's.
- ChicagoBears.com's columnists and announcers referred to Berrian as the "Silent Assassin".
- Berrian is a big fan of snakes. He owns a boa constrictor named Roscoe.

Pre-draft measureables
Wt	40 yd	20 ss	3-cone	Vert	BP	Wonderlic
183 lb*	4.47s	4.21s*	7.34s*	39 in	X	20*[2]
* represents NFL Combine

One thing is for sure, The Freak is looking very smart for not immediately signing with the Patriots. Consider: Berrian just received a six-year, $42 million contract, with $16 million guaranteed. Last season he had 71 receptions for 951 yards and five touchdowns.

Moss? 98 catches for 1,453 yards and 23 touchdowns. Moss should be assured of a $25+ guaranteed contract with numbers approaching $100 million in a long-term deal. Unless he just wants The Ring and opts to take a lower pay-day in order to catch on with a team that can get him there. Moss could certainly still land back in New England, but teams such as the Indy Colts and, gulp, Green Bay Packers could enter the fray. And don't count out Jerry Jones and the 'Boys just yet.

Back to the Silent Assassin. Time for you to sound off. Vote in the following poll. Leave a comment about the recent FA aquistions. And have a good Sunday. I'll leave you with this thought: Could Berrian be the only player in NFL history to receive two TD receptions thrown by two different Adrian Peterson's?

Go Vikes!

Posted by briankeithmaas@msn.com at March 2, 2008 08:24 AM