Categories: 3.1 Free Agency 3.2 Rumors
| On 12 years ago

John Carlson To Visit Vikings Wednesday

By Brett Anderson

Alright folks, here it is! The Vikings first real move in free agency.

Adam Caplan, of the NFL Network, has reported that tight end John Carlson will be visiting the Vikings tomorrow (Wednesday).

John Carlson has been with the Seattle Seahawks since 2008, and while has never managed to break through and become an elite tight end, he did have a couple productive years. Unfortunately, Carlson was sidelined all of 2011 with a shoulder injury.

While many may wonder why we are bringing in a tight end of all things, it does make sense. As we’ve said before here on Vikings Territory, with the retirement of Jimmy Kleinsasser and the almost certain (especially after seeing this news) departure of Visanthe Shiancoe, tight end becomes a need for the Vikings. It’s well known that Musgrave wants to implement two tight end sets on offense – something that would be difficult considering the lack of depth at the position.

One thing that leaves me a little confused, though: Spielman has made it clear that his desire is to find young talent as he rebuilds the franchise. Carlson is 28 years old… Only 3 years younger than Shiancoe. Makes me think that maybe they’re simply trying to find a replacement for Visanthe.

When healthy, Carlson’s numbers are comparable to Shiancoe’s and, depending on the price, Carlson could be a great option to immediately fill his hole.

(Side note: Just wanted to let everyone know that my posts may be a little more sparse the next couple of weeks. I broke my finger and recently had surgery to allow it to heal properly. Typing is difficult and takes much longer than regularly. Luckily, we have Adam who did an absolutely awesome job today covering the massive amount of activity due to the launch of free agency. Thanks for understanding. I’ll be back soon!)

Brett Anderson

Brett Anderson (Founder) is a passionate Viking fan hailing from Sin City, Las Vegas. He can remember, as a child, scraping his knee on the playground and his friends being completely shocked by the purple blood trickling from the wound. When Brett isn't scouring the Internet for some semblance of Vikings news, he enjoys blindly putting money on them to beat whoever their opponent may be, and daydreams about being their next Tight End. Brett graduated from UNLV with a degree in Architecture and specializes in web/graphic design; he hopes to provide this site’s visitors with the best Vikings experience on the net.

Tags: john carlson visanthe shiancoe

View Comments

  • Brett, be sure to report on what type of shoes Carlson is wearing, Fran is into that kinky stuff

  • I don't really understand too much why they're getting rid of shanicoe, Hes usually really solid on 3rd down if he has a good ball thrown to him, tries harder than anyone out there, and has shown his heart on and off the field....sad day.

  • If this considered a "real move", the Vikes will have the 1st pick of the draft for quite a while.

  • I personally like the move. Not only is Carlson the best TE on the market, he's also a Minnesota native who is probably going to take less than he truly deserves. He's definitely an upgrade on Shank and is still relatively young.

    We needed another TE and this would save us from having to use a pick on one.

    • How he can be an upgrade? Look at the last 3 year combined totals for both:

      Carlson: 71 rec 831 yds 10 tds
      Shank: 97 rec 1505 yds 16 tds

      The stats don't support that.

    • I said the past 3 years. Carlson did not play in 2011 due to injury. Gotta read the fine print.

  • Shiancoe didn't really play the last 2 either cause of the Favre breakdown and being Ponders 1st year jitters. (hopefully it was the first year jitters)

    • You mean he didn't play well?

      In all fairness, Carlson WAS on the Seahawks.

      I think it's a good pickup... younger and comparable numbers. I AM unsure about the amount of the contract. Would like to know how it's being distributed.

  • Carlson is an upgrade because
    A) he's younger
    B) he's far more talented
    C) Shanks stats are inflated because of one good season
    and most importantly..
    D) because he damn well better be for that price

      • Other than '09, Shanks has had trouble with drops and has never had great separation skills. He's the type of TE that gets better with a good QB, not the type that makes the QB better. Carlson was always under/improperly utilized in Seattle (partly due to their O-Line problems). He has way softer hands and there is a reason he had such a hot FA market.

  • ya that's what i meant, but either way I'm not too upset about it, I didn't think the TE spot was much of a need to improve. Hopefully Rudolph has been hitting the weight room hard because he has at least 20+lbs of muscle to reach Gronk status.