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	Bruce Kluckhohn/US PRESSWIRE
	Vikings coach Brad Childress said he doesn't have to rebuild his relationship with quarterback Tarvaris Jackson.

Posted by ESPN.com's Kevin Seifert

MANKATO, Minn. -- Tarvaris Jackson was the very first player to report to Minnesota's training camp Wednesday, arriving about 21 hours before the first team meeting of the summer. Vikings coach Brad Childress offered up that nugget to illustrate Jackson's reaction to Brett Favre's decision to spurn the Vikings' overtures and remain retired.

"I think he's excited," Childress said, "and from what I could glean from Sage [Rosenfels], he's excited as well to compete for our starting quarterback job."

Shortly after arriving on the campus of Minnesota State, Mankato, Childress disputed the premise that he must mend fences or otherwise rebuild his relationship with the two quarterbacks he spent the past three months trying to replace. He said he is "more than content" to pit Jackson and Rosenfels in a training camp battle for the starting job and said there is "not a chance from my standpoint" that he would sign Favre if the legendary waffler changes his mind.

"He's gone his way," Childress said, "and we're going our way."

I've suggested that leaving Jackson and Rosenfels to twist in the wind this summer wasn't a healthy situation for two players who suddenly have key roles in the team's future. Future Hall of Fame receiver Jerry Rice took the argument a few steps further Wednesday, saying on the Dan Patrick radio show that the Vikings did a "terrible" job of handling their pursuit of Favre.

Rice: "What did the organization say to those guys by wanting to bring Brett Favre in and let him take them to the next level? ... Now all of a sudden, the air is out of the balloon. Now you've got to do some mending and say, 'OK, Tarvaris Jackson, yeah, you're still the guy, we have complete confidence in you that you can get the job done.' So they have a lot of work they have to do."

I asked Childress if he considered his pursuit of Favre a risk in any way. Was he concerned about damaging his infrastructure as he tried to build a top-floor penthouse? Childress said that pursuing Favre was no different than his decision to sign free agent receiver Bernard Berrian or trade for defensive end Jared Allen. He claimed it wasn't a reflection of his opinion on the incumbent players at those positions but rather "an opportunity to get a good football player."

He added: "I don't know anybody in my business that doesn't embrace that."

At this point, I don't know if Childress can say much else. He met with both quarterbacks Wednesday morning, presumably telling them the parameters of the summer competition. But can they trust what Childress tells them after he worked so hard to pursue another option?

"Is trust an issue?" Childress said. "They trust the fact that we're going to get the best players we can to surround the rest of the football team."

That's a fair statement, but Childress also went out of his way to say that "it's never about one person." Well, in this case it was. The Vikings had to believe Favre would be a critical enough addition that they were willing to string out the process until Tuesday. Childress himself used the words "rare" and "unique" to describe the opportunity.

But if any player is confused by the team's direction or disappointed with Favre's decision, they haven't spoken up yet. Wednesday, I thought offensive lineman Artis Hicks produced a particularly intelligent take on why the drama seemed to pass over most players.

"You can't really hang your hat on something that hasn't materialized yet," Hicks said. "I don't think we really got caught up in it because it was never tangible. You can't miss what you never had."

Childress said he will address the Favre issue during a full team meeting Thursday morning. He wouldn't provide details of his message, but I think it's pretty safe it will revolve around this quote: "I'm going forward with the guys that we have. We'll have a great competition and have a great camp. We'll be a good football team one way or the other."

Unless news breaks, I'll be back with you Thursday morning.