Contract no concern: Peterson ready to roll, Vikes' Frazier says

Contract concerns won't keep All-Pro running back Adrian Peterson away from Vikings training camp, Minnesota coach Leslie Frazier said Monday, via The Star Tribune.

"Oh yeah, we had a good conversation. And that's not an issue, and he's looking forward to camp like all of our guys are," Frazier said.

Peterson is in the final season of his rookie contract and has a salary cap hit of $12.775 million. The Vikings and Peterson both would like to re-sign him to a long-term extension that includes a lower cap figure.

Frazier said he spoke with Peterson and cornerback Antoine Winfield almost as soon as the lockout was lifted.

"Both of those guys, there was tremendous excitement in their voice," Frazier said. "Both feel like they're in the best shape of their lives."

Frazier also said he would not rule out rookie quarterback Christian Ponder starting in the season opener, though he added Joe Webb and Rhett Bomar also will compete for the starting job.

"Our coaches feel very comfortable in doing whatever's necessary to put us in the best position to be successful when we open the season against San Diego, and that may mean a young quarterback being in that role," Frazier said.

The Vikings also have been linked to several veteran quarterbacks, including Donovan McNabb and Kyle Orton.

Ponder planned to report as soon as the doors to the Vikings facility open Tuesday.

"It's the first place I'm heading in the morning," Ponder said, "so I'll be up there to meet with [offensive coordinator Bill] Musgrave and talk some ball and finally to get to catch up to what we've been missing all summer."

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Frazier: Vikings will be prepared once the lockout ends

MAPLE GROVE, Minn. -- As one of a handful of clubs with new coaches and a new offense to install, the Minnesota Vikings stand to lose plenty from the lingering lockout.

The labor impasse has taken away valuable offseason development time.

Oh, and they have a quarterback to break in, too, whether it's first-round draft pick Christian Ponder or a veteran they could sign once the owners and players forge an agreement to allow free agency to begin.

Coach Leslie Frazier won't buy this behind-the-eight-ball theory for his Vikings. Extra pressure to catch up whenever the work stoppage ends is merely perceived, Frazier insisted.

"You look forward to bringing everybody together and kind of shaping and molding your team and creating the culture that you want on your team, and when that time comes we'll be able to get that done," Frazier said, adding: "Not a real mystery as to how our team would look. The fortunate thing for me is I'm familiar with a lot of our roster, and that helps me a lot."

Frazier spoke Wednesday at Rush Creek Golf Club before the team's annual charity golf event to benefit the Vikings Children's Fund.

"Our organization has done a lot of right things in my mind, as far as handling this lockout in the right way and preparing us for some of the things that are going to come," Frazier said. "We talked through some things yesterday with our ownership and just went through some of the different scenarios. So I feel confident that when the time comes -- because of the leadership that we have on our offense, our defense, our special teams, our staff -- that we'll be ready to go."

Put in charge when Brad Childress was fired last November, and coaching the Vikings for the final six games of that disappointing and tumultuous 2010 season, Frazier had a leg up on the job when he was hired as the coach in January.

Ponder has much to learn about his receivers, and offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave needs time to teach the plays.

"We're at a serious disadvantage having a new quarterback and a new offense without practice and coaching," wide receiver Greg Camarillo said last week from Bradenton, Fla., where he worked out with Ponder and a small group of Vikings teammates.

All they can do is be as ready as possible.

"That's our job. If you're not ready for it, I don't feel bad for you," defensive end Brian Robison said recently.

Robison has been doing mixed martial arts workouts near his home in Texas.

"Hopefully everybody is busting their butt to get there, and we're able to hit the ground running when the time comes," he said.

Frazier said the organization is "still discussing" a drop-dead date for committing to or canceling training camp at Minnesota State University in Mankato if the lockout remains in place. School starts there Aug. 22, so a delayed out-of-town camp is unlikely.

The other contingency plans pertain to free agency, where the Vikings will turn for help at several positions, possibly including quarterback.

One of the biggest unknowns is exactly which players will be on the market, given the uncertainty about eligibility requirements -- could be four years, could be six of experience -- in the collective bargaining agreement.

"Whether or not it's a six-year plan or a five-year plan and even guys that are at the end of four, we have a list and we've identified the guys that we think fit what we're looking for if we choose to go that route," Frazier said. "We haven't made a decision that we're going to go with a veteran quarterback, but we have an idea, based on the list we've put together, if we went that route who we'd target."

Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press

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Pat Williams says Frazier told him Vikings want him to return

The Minnesota Vikings might have their vaunted Williams Wall for one more season after all.

Pat Williams, who'll be a free agent once the NFL lockout ends, now pegs his chances of returning to the Vikings as 50-50, he told The Star Tribune on Friday night, just before teammate Ray Edwards' boxing debut in Hinckley, Minn.

Williams, 38, said he talked to Vikings coach Leslie Frazier last month during the short time that the lockout was lifted by a Minnesota court, and the defensive tackle received assurances that the team wants him to return. Williams previously said he didn't trust the Vikings, with whom he has spent six seasons after eight years with the Buffalo Bills.

"It's just guys up in the office, man," Williams said when The Star Tribune asked him whom he didn't trust. "You know how the front office is. It's just certain guys up in the office. I don't have a problem with Coach Frazier. Me and Coach Frazier talked. We talked a lot of times. It's just people up in the office, man. With a lockout going on now, it's all the same. Business."

Williams also said he was cleared to lift weights last week, after he recovered from offseason surgery to fix a torn left triceps. And when he does return, there's the whole matter of a four-game NFL-imposed suspension. In March, the Minnesota Court of Appeals upheld the league's right to ban Williams and his linemate, Kevin Williams, after they tested positive for a banned direutic in 2008.

Kevin Williams, 30, decided not to appeal that decision, but Pat Williams isn't giving up.

"We're hoping everything gets solved ... so we don't get suspended, but if we do, we do," Pat Williams told The Star Tribune on Friday.

Kevin Williams jokingly added: "With all this (lockout stuff) going on, maybe they'll forget about it and we can go on with our regular work. If it happens, it happens. I found a great place to work out in Little Rock. I'll be there getting ready and see you in Week 5 if that's the case."

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Report: Vikings coach Frazier will have interim tag removed

Leslie Frazier has agreed to become the Minnesota Vikings' full-time coach, the Star Tribune reported Sunday.

Frazier will have his interim tag removed this week, according to the newspaper.

Speaking after the Vikings' 20-13 loss to the Detroit Lions, Frazier said nothing has been solidified and that he will meet with Vikings ownership Sunday night or Monday.

The Star Tribune reported Friday that Frazier was seeking a three-year contract.

Frazier, the Vikings' former defensive coordinator, took over after Brad Childress was fired following a 3-7 start.

Frazier led the Vikings to a 3-3 record while navigating myriad of unpredictable schedule changes. The collapse of the Metrodome roof forced the team to host the New York Giants at Detroit's Ford Field in Week 14 and the Chicago Bears at the University of Minnesota's TCF Bank Stadium a week later.

Last week's 24-14 upset of the Philadelphia Eagles came after the game had been postponed from Sunday to Tuesday because of a major snowstorm that hit the East Coast.

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