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We're Black and Blue All Over:

Good Monday morning to everyone. It doesn't get a whole lot bigger than the first week of organized team activities, or OTAs as we call them in the business, and that's exactly the point we've reached in the NFL offseason.

The Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers have scheduled their first OTAs of the spring for Monday, and the Chicago Bears will have one Tuesday. The Minnesota Vikings will open OTAs a week from Tuesday. Over on our NFL Nation blog, we have a comprehensive schedule of all 32 team's OTA schedules.

For newcomers, OTAs are on-field practices without pads or (presumably) contact. Some are open to the media, so expect to see some coverage in the coming days of how your favorite players are performing in jerseys and shorts.

Before we move on to our morning roundup, I want to thank everyone for their feedback to Friday's post on our blog operations. If you missed the post and/or want to share further thoughts about what you like and don't like, by all means hit up the mailbag.

OK, now, continuing around the NFC North:

• Here's a smart analysis of the Bears' negotiations with tailback Matt Forte from Dan Pompei of the Chicago Tribune. Pompei suggests a fair deal could include about $20 million in guaranteed money.
• In this ESPNChicago.com video, ESPN's Cris Carter says that the ability to "catch the ball and separate" is what makes Bears receiver Brandon Marshall so good.
• Bears linebacker Lance Briggs isn't concerned about Marshall's off-field behavior, writes Vaughn McClure of the Tribune.
• The running back position is one of the storylines for the Lions' first OTA, writes Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press.
• Running back Kevin Smith thinks the Lions will have a better running game in 2012, notes Anwar S. Richardson of Mlive.com.
• Carlos Monarrez of the Free Press takes a look at some of the young cornerbacks the Lions added this offseason.
• Tyler Dunne of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel looks at the three young Packers receivers who will vie for roster spots this summer: Diondre Borel, Shaky Smithson and Tori Gurley.
• Keeping receiver Donald Driver on the roster goes "against everything the Packers regime believes in," writes Tom Oates of the Wisconsin State Journal.
• Mike Vandermause of the Green Bay Press-Gazette: "[I] t can be argued [Packers coach Mike] McCarthy is underpaid compared to some of his coaching brethren residing in the exclusive $7 million club."
• The Vikings signed former Bears offensive lineman Levi Horn, notes Judd Zulgad of 1500ESPN.com.
• Tom Powers of the St. Paul Pioneer Press: "The Vikings were 3-13 last season. Zygi and Mark Wilf and the entire Wilf family had a lot to do with that because for more than a year no one was in charge at Winter Park. In fact, the coach and personnel director often were at odds. It wasn't until after the season that [Rick] Spielman was given control after a leaguewide search netted, well, Spielman."

EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. -- Because none of you have gotten your fill yet on the Minnesota Vikings' stadium story, I made a rare daytime appearance outside of NFC North blog headquarters for a visit with team owners Zygi and Mark Wilf.

I reported to the ESPN.com news desk that Mark Wilf hopes to begin the Super Bowl bidding for Super Bowl LI, which will be played about six months after the new facility opens for the 2016 season. The Wilfs made clear the team will play at least two more seasons, 2012 and 2013, in the Metrodome but that their 2014 plans could take a year to develop. (They will play the 2015 season at TCF Bank Stadium.)

But to me the most intriguing takeaway was what seems like a preference to outfit the stadium with a retractable roof.

The final stadium bill allows for that possibility if the Vikings pay for the upgrade, which could cost an additional $25 million to $100 million. It would enhance the Wilfs' hopes to draw a Major League Soccer team to the facility, but it would also mesh with Zygi Wilf's long-stated desire to capitalize on what he thinks would be the competitive advantage of outdoor games during the Minnesota fall and winter.

(I have no opinion on it as long as the press box is enclosed.)

Neither Wilf would commit to a retractable roof but here's what Mark Wilf said about it: "We're going to try to get the maximum number of features within the budgets that we can make this a facility that is going to be exciting to the fans. We know it's a competitive landscape to attract our fans to the facility and we're going to want to make it something special. To the extent that retractability can get there, we're going to try to do it."

It's worth noting that the Vikings' original plan for the suburban Arden Hills site included a retractable roof, one that would allow for the outdoor experience the Vikings once had at Metropolitan Stadium but also provide the flexibility to host games and events that require a roof, whether it is the Super Bowl or a Final Four or Grave Digger's next performance.

After I noted the possibility on Twitter earlier Friday, many of you asked about the rule at Indianapolis' Lucas Oil Field that requires the roof to be closed when outside temperatures are lower than 40 degrees. All I can tell you is that the NFL's official rules on operating retractable roofs have no such requirements, at least not the set the league office forwarded to me Friday. The rules do, however, give the game-day referee the option to close the roof pregame because of precipitation or weather that is otherwise deemed hazardous.

You could have an interesting debate about the better home-field advantage: really cold weather with the roof open or presumably louder crowd noise with it shut. I don't know where the Vikings will land on that, and I'm not entirely convinced the Wilfs are prepared to kick in additional money for retractability after increasing their initial contribution to $477 million in the final negotiations this week. Just know it's very much on the table moving forward.

More than a decade of memories came flooding back after seeing the Minnesota Vikings' stadium bill pass through the state Senate and head toward the inevitable signature of Gov. Mark Dayton on Thursday, ensuring at least 30 more years of franchise continuity.

I picked up the beat in 2001, when state leaders began years of inattention by insisting the Sept. 11 attacks made for an inappropriate time to discuss stadium subsidies. I remember calling a young state legislator named Tim Pawlenty, who cheerfully suggested the team's top stadium lobbyist secure a straight salary rather than working on commission. "There's just no appetite here for more stadiums," Pawlenty said a few years before he was elected governor.

I took a trip to San Antonio, home of former owner Red McCombs, to scout it out as a potential relocation site. I wrote about an NFL meeting in 2003 in which league officials made a preliminary plan to place the Vikings in the NFC West if they eventually relocated to Los Angeles. I watched plans to share a stadium with the University of Minnesota collapse, as did suburban collaborations in Anoka and Arden Hills.

But most of all, I remember sitting in a converted racquetball court in the Vikings' cramped practice facility on June 16, 2005. On that day, new owner Zygi Wilf made a pledge that astonished all of us and figured to haunt him for the rest of his tenure atop the franchise.

Wilf said he would never move the team, regardless of a revenue deficit that forced McCombs to sell. He acknowledged he would like a new stadium but said: "If we're stuck in the Metrodome, then we'll be stuck in the Metrodome."

Given the years of inaction we had already witnessed, most of us figured the only way the Vikings would secure a new stadium would be by waving a ready-made offer to relocate elsewhere. But here, on one of his first days as an owner, Wilf had cut his leverage out from beneath himself and guaranteed a struggle to upgrade the franchise's home.

So on this day, it's worth noting that Wilf and his staff have agreed to relatively equitable terms on a bill for a new stadium without so much as an indirect or implied threat of relocation -- much less engaging in any substantive discussions with another locale.

Really, the only tense moment came last month when a state committee derailed the bill in a spate of political infighting. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell swooped into St. Paul to add some weight to the Vikings' campaign, and from then on final approval has seemed nearly inevitable. In the context of stadium debates, Wilf and the Vikings kept the tone cordial, amicable and most importantly aboveboard, securing a state legacy for the franchise and the owner himself.

It's been months since Wilf has spoken publicly on the stadium issue, a strategic decision the Vikings made to minimize attention on the "billionaire subsidy" argument and focus it on Dayton and the resulting job creation a stadium would bring. I'm sure there will be plenty of people who can't get past the additional revenues Wilf and his investors will receive in this deal, and I understand that. But in the context of professional sports, I truly think Wilf and his investors deserve some credit for saving the franchise for Minnesota.

Think about it. For years, state leaders fully exercised the leverage they held by virtue of the Metrodome lease and Wilf's publicly stated willingness to continue playing there. When the tables turned, Wilf declined to reciprocate and instead pursued a deal with the same people who wouldn't take the Vikings' phone calls in previous years.

Really, from a cold business standpoint, Wilf would have been better off minimizing his expenses, awaiting the expiration of the lease then shopping the franchise to the highest bidder from around the country. He paid $600 million in 2005 and, six years later, the Jacksonville Jaguars were sold for $760 million with a stadium situation much worse than the Vikings'. Outsiders bidding for the franchise almost certainly would have left the Minnesota legislature to match a much less equitable deal to keep the team, if it had the opportunity at all.

Instead, over the past seven years, Wilf and his partners have funneled the team more than $100 million in personal funds to account for a competitive player payroll, a larger front-office staff and modernization of the practice facility. Wilf aggressively pursued the stadium issue but passed on every opportunity to up the ante or enhance his leverage by turning his attention elsewhere. You might disagree with some of his decisions as a franchise operator, but Wilf and his investors have proved exemplary franchise stewards.

I can't control how you view Wilf and his group of out-of-town investors. But, Vikings fans, you guys lucked out. This could have been ugly and easily might have ended differently. Zygi Wilf made sure it didn't.

Earlier: The first post-approval questions the Vikings must consider.

We're Black and Blue All Over:

Long before he led a team of investors in purchasing the Minnesota Vikings in 2005, Zygi Wilf's family owned a real estate company that had significant investments in Southern California. His frequent visits have often provided convenient fodder for the rumor mill, mostly because his private plane has an unmistakable Vikings logo painted on its tail and the team has always been rumored to be a candidate to relocate there.

So when the Los Angeles Daily News reported Thursday that Wilf's plane was spotted at a Southern California airport, in the same week when his stadium bill in Minnesota was quashed, the news spread quickly.

As we've discussed, we are now in a phase of increased pressure and dramatic rhetoric as the franchise's future is sorted out. Whether the plane's arrival in Southern California was coincidental, an expensive message or an indication that Wilf is in negotiations to sell the team to a Los Angeles investor, the overlying point hasn't changed: The Vikings will eventually leave Minnesota if they don't secure a stadium deal.

Are they already angling to leave with 10 days remaining in the state's legislative session? I can't answer that. Just consider it another reminder of a potential future reality.

Continuing around the NFC North:

• Regardless of the plane's purpose in California, the NFL is sending commissioner Roger Goodell and other executives to Minnesota for meetings Friday on the stadium, notes the St. Paul Pioneer Press.
• The Vikings have met two league requirements for a relocation, notes Mark Craig of the Star Tribune.
• The Vikings' contingency plan at running back is incomplete, writes Tom Pelissero of 1500ESPN.com.
• It's safe to assume the Green Bay Packers will select an outside linebacker relatively high in the draft, writes Pete Dougherty of the Green Bay Press-Gazette.
• Offensive lineman Chad Clifton has been working out in the Packers' offseason program, a good sign that he will get a chance to return in 2012. More from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
• Packers general manager Ted Thompson said he is "fine with" having Graham Harrell and Nick Hill as the backups to starting quarterback Aaron Rodgers, notes Jason Wilde of ESPNMilwaukee.com.
• Detroit Lions running back Jahvid Best (concussion) has been working out in the team's offseason program, according to Anwar S. Richardson of Mlive.com.
• Lions general manager Martin Mayhew's draft philosophy can be boiled down to "the best player for us." More from the Detroit News.
• The Lions haven't changed how they evaluate prospects after having three of their 2011 draft class members have legal entanglements related to marijuana, according to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press.
• Michael C. Wright of ESPNChicago.com takes a look at the Chicago Bears' prospects for drafting a receiver.
• Chicago Bears general manager Phil Emery's approach is rooted largely in the "Patriot Way," writes Sean Jensen of the Chicago Sun-Times.

In the four days since the apparent collapse of the Minnesota Vikings stadium bill, the NFL and team officials have done a fine job of ratcheting up the pressure, much as we suggested they should do.

League executive vice president Eric Grubman confirmed there are "plenty of willing buyers" who want to purchase and presumably relocate the team. Vikings vice president Lester Bagley made the media rounds Thursday, saying the team has done all it can and urging state legislators to reconsider before the team considers other options. And NFL commissioner Roger Goodell will be joined in Minnesota on Friday by Pittsburgh Steelers president/co-owner Art Rooney, the chairman of the league's stadium committee, to explain the league's increasingly impatient stance.

None of this should be surprising to you. Nor should it change your thoughts on the issue, as long as you realized from the start that the league would not sit idly if the stadium bill faltered this year. My suggestion is to take a deep breath and understand we have entered an important and more pressurized phase of the process, but certainly not (yet) the endgame of this franchise in Minnesota.

The best way to understand what's happening at the moment is that the state has 12 days remaining of exclusivity with the franchise. That's how long the Minnesota state legislature is scheduled to remain in session. For now, the team and the league are squarely focused on reviving the issue in Minnesota. Importantly, however, the state is not 12 days away from losing the franchise -- not when NFL teams are ineligible to apply for relocation until Feb. 15, 2013.

Already, it appears that some state legislators are responding to the increased pressure. According to WCCO political reporter Pat Kessler, a state Senate committee will hold hearings on the stadium bill Friday. There have also been new pledges to push the bill through other committees.

If there is no resolution when the legislature adjourns, the realistic consequence will be a loss of that exclusivity. It's reasonable to think that owner Zygi Wilf will at least explore a firesale that would eventually lead to relocation, putting the state in competition for the franchise, but not necessarily on a path to losing it. The league's relocation deadline in essence would create a nine-month bidding window.

As we know from NFL free agency, there are no guarantees once a player hits the open market. A team can only ensure a player's return by re-signing him before he's eligible to move on. But there are many cases when a player re-signs after testing his value on the open market. There would be nothing to stop the state of Minnesota from continuing to work on the stadium issue even while Wilf explores other options, and the guess here is that Wilf and the NFL would even then prefer a Minnesota stadium agreement over a sale and/or relocation.

You should be aware that NFL teams have acted swifly in the past, relocating without giving a deadline or even an explicit warning. There would be nothing stopping Wilf from throwing his hands up, selling the team to a Los Angeles investor next month and being done with it. So I'm not questioning the gravity of the situation.

All I'm saying is you should understand where this issue is -- and more importantly where it hasn't gone yet -- and know that this is now a higher-stakes game, but one that remains eminently winnable for Minnesota.

In the immediate aftermath of the apparent defeat of the Minnesota Vikings' stadium bill, I suggested it was time for owner Zygi Wilf to dial up the rhetoric and at least begin discussing an endgame for the franchise in Minnesota. Wilf has remained silent, but on Wednesday night a top NFL executive filled that role.

Eric Grubman, the NFL's executive vice president, told the Star Tribune's Mark Craig the situation has gotten "very serious" and raised the possibility that Wilf will sell the team to someone who presumably would relocate after the 2012 season.

"This is getting ripe," Grubman said. "You have a very dejected ownership. They've run out of options. They feel like they've done everything they've been asked to do and they can't get a vote. No one will answer the question, 'What is it going to take?' The Vikings have said, 'Give us A, B and C, what would you like us to do?' They've been told A, B and C, and they've done that. And they still can't get through."

Grubman said he didn't think that Wilf is ready to sell yet but added: "There are plenty of willing buyers."

It is important to note that a lot of emotional and inflammatory statements are going to start getting thrown around this issue. We've reached that point. But the basics of what Grubman said are totally realistic.

As we've discussed many times, it's highly doubtful that either the Wilfs or the NFL will want to remain in Minnesota indefinitely without a new stadium. And as Grubman said, there is nothing in the Minnesota political muck to suggest that the stadium would have a better chance in a special legislative session this fall or even in 2013.

State leaders are probably going to need a full-blown crisis to feel the urgency of this issue, and we can see the parameters of that crisis forming already: The specter of Wilf putting the team up for sale. I don't think Wilf wants to do that, but I also don't think he wants to continue operating the franchise in the Metrodome.

Regardless, this moment was inevitable. It's interesting that the NFL, and not Wilf himself, is sending the message. But in the end, we knew it had to come to this before anyone got any real answers.

It's late.

We're all tired.

Most of us are cranky.

So let's get to the bottom line.

It's time.

It's time for the Minnesota Vikings to recognize that their admirable but toothless stadium strategy has failed.

It's time to end the exclusivity they have given the state of Minnesota on this issue.

There's no more reasons to tiptoe around skittish state leaders who root for the Vikings but won't commit public money to maintain their long-term presence.

It's time for the Vikings to play their last remaining card, the one I'm surprised they haven't used already.

What's the secret to securing public financing for a new stadium?

Relocation.

Relocation.

Relocation.

(Or at least the threat thereof.)

Even after their Metrodome lease expired, the Vikings couldn't advance their stadium bill through a single committee in the Minnesota Senate. It was rejected outright late Monday night by a committee in the Minnesota House of Representatives, and prominent state Rep. John Kriesel said of the bill via Twitter: "it is almost certainly dead this year."

Vikings spokesman Lester Bagley reacted angrily to the committee vote, telling reporters "it would be a mistake" to believe the team won't react accordingly to the news.

To me, there is only one reaction remaining.

Bagley and the Vikings' owning Wilf family have tried to work within the system. One of the first things Zygi Wilf said when he bought the team in 2005 was that he would never move it. He's changed stadium strategies repeatedly upon direction from state leaders, including an abandonment of his 2006 effort to make political room for new parks for the Minnesota Twins and the University of Minnesota. The Vikings also buried a year's worth of work at their chosen site in suburban Arden Hills because political and business leaders wanted the stadium to remain in downtown Minneapolis.

It's time for Wilf to acknowledge in a public way that Minnesota state leaders might not be willing to support any part of the financing of a $975 million stadium. If that's the case, it would only make prudent business sense for the Vikings to begin investigating stadium sites outside of Minnesota.

I truly don't think the Vikings, the Wilf family or the NFL want to move the franchise. But state leaders felt little urgency after the Vikings allowed the NFL's Feb. 15 deadline for relocation applications to pass. As disappointing as it sounds, there aren't many legislative bodies left in this country that will take on controversial long-term issues when they don't absolutely, positively, have to. The Vikings don't have a lease, but they also haven't given themselves an option and have essentially asked state leaders to give them a break for playing by the rules.

I've always followed the theory that the Vikings' stadium issue wouldn't be addressed in a meaningful way until a crisis was at hand. And a crisis is not the expiration of a lease, at least if it's not accompanied by at least a realistic possibility that the franchise can act on its status as a free agent and seek other options.

The Vikings have avoided the threat of relocation for obvious reasons. It's distasteful. It can hurt feelings, bruise egos and create long-lasting ill will in the community. I can't say I would enjoy covering it.

But I'll be fascinated to see if the Vikings find a way to avoid it now.

It's time.

If not now, when?

Even a quiet week by NFC North standards leaves us with some loose ends to tie up over the weekend. I see many of your blog comments and Facebook responses, all of your mailbag submissions and every one of your @replies on Twitter. Proceed accordingly.

Several readers think Minnesota Vikings coach Leslie Frazier had more to do with this "unfortunate timing" than I debited him for in Tuesday's post about his future. Randal of Cambridge wrote: He is mostly to blame for the 2011 lost year. They could have been one or two steps further into rebuilding. He pushed for the Donovan McNabb trade but even more damaging was when the season was lost in late October; Frazier did not see what he had in his young players. It was inexcusable to play Jared Allen and Brian Robison as much as they did. He should have given the following players more playing time: DE D'Aundre Reed, DE Everson Griffen, G Brandon Fusco and T DeMarcus Love. And signing Benny Sapp was a mistake. There must have been some practice squad CB from another team who could have been given a chance.

Kevin Seifert: I'm torn on how much blame Frazier should get in that regard. If given the choice, few if any coaches are going to take the long-term road. The Vikings made it to the NFC Championship Game in 2009 and were torn apart by internal strife in 2010. Frazier thought they could be competitive in 2011 with a decrease in tension, especially if he could find a veteran quarterback to replace Brett Favre.

In truth, the Vikings would have had a much better record in 2011 if McNabb fit the bill, but his shortcomings have been well-discussed. What Frazier really needed last season was a general manager to tell him that a quick fix lasts only as long as the next one. Frazier needed a general manager to reassure him that he would be evaluated based on what he did with the tools he was given, rather than allowing him to influence the choice of tools themselves.

Rick Spielman's promotion has created that type of structure, and we now see the Vikings taking the longer-term approach that Frazier understandably eschewed when given a choice in 2011.

As far as playing untested youngsters to evaluate them for future years, I've always considered that idea on a case-by-case basis. Only players that have demonstrated in practice that they're ready for such a chance should play. It's reasonable to wish Griffen would have gotten a few more snaps from Robison, but I'm not going to hold it against Frazier for limiting his rookie offensive linemen last season. The Vikings' top priority at the time was to develop quarterback Christian Ponder, and Frazier was obligated to use the best offensive linemen he had -- regardless of their futures -- to facilitate that.

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Wil of Minneapolis wonders if Spielman and owner Zygi Wilf will evaluate Frazier on a curve as a result of the roster overhaul: Do you think that Rick, Zygi, and Frazier had a goal and expectations meeting about the 2012 season? Although no one wants to tell the public we expect a 6-10 or 4-12 record, this youth movement and historical records from other teams would probably indicate that. I think it's only fair to have reasonable expectations of Frazier and the football product. After all, the Vikings can easily go 0-6 in the NFC North alone!!!

Kevin Seifert: That's the unfortunate part of the timing, in my view. It's reasonable to have non-tangible expectations and goals in the first year of a coach's tenure, but generally teams want to see progress in the second year.

The Vikings finished 3-13 last season and are competing in a division that features two 2011 playoff teams along with a much-improved Chicago Bears team. Say the Vikings finish 4-12 or 5-11. That would give Frazier a 10-28 or 11-27 record in two-plus seasons. Most coaches deserve three years to make an impact, but at the very least, it wouldn't be an easy decision to bring back a coach with that kind of record.

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Rick of Moorhead, Minn., notes the list of players invited to the NFL draft and writes: Shea McClellin invited to NYC for the draft? Doesn't that indicate he will go the first night? I thought he was more like mid second round. Green Bay might be the team to take a shot, but it seems like a reach at 28.

Kevin Seifert: McClellin is a Boise State defensive end who would probably project as a linebacker in the Packers' 3-4 scheme. He has been a so-called quick riser in the draft, but whether he is a first-round pick remains to be seen.

Regardless, the NFL invites a cross-section of players so they can have at least some live interviews on site during the first two nights of the draft, which includes the first three rounds. Don't forget that receiver Randall Cobb was in New York when the Packers made him the final pick of the second round last season.

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Facebook friend Steve asked if the new deal Lance Briggs received from the Chicago Bears has a "no more whining about contracts" clause.

Kevin Seifert: Ouch. At the very least, it bought the Bears two more years of relative peace. At that point, Briggs will be approaching his 34th birthday and, like most players at that age and his position, will probably be thrilled to have a job.

As several reports have noted, Briggs will earn $6.25 million this season and $5.75 million in 2013. He'll also be in position to earn $5.275 million in 2014.

In the end, Briggs got less than $2 million in "new money" with this renegotiation. But it just shows that teams don't always have to break the bank to make a player happy. They just need to show a gesture of love, and in this case that's all it took for Briggs.

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It's time for our semiannual reminder about "balance." Mitch of Green Bay writes: At the rate you are discussing the Packers, it'll take you all of next season to "even things out" after how much Bears talk is going on the past few days. Anonymously, another reader added: Five of the last six blog posts have Bear headlines. There are three other teams in the NFC North. You should be a little more balanced in your reporting.

Kevin Seifert: I realize that readers filter in and out of the blog network, so it bears repeating: News doesn't occur in neat and equal 25 percent increments between our four teams. I have no interest in manufacturing posts to maintain daily balance when experience shows that everyone will get their turn over time. If you're taking a three-day, three-week or even a three-month snapshot, you'll almost certainly find an unequal proportion of posts relative to our four teams.

There were interesting things to write about the Bears this week, including the Briggs extension, and that's where I focused my time. Where will we look next week? Only The Shadow knows what evil lurks in the heart of all men.

We've been following with interest the increasing chatter on the apparently rising draft status of Texas A&M quarterback Ryan Tannehill. In the most dramatic scenario imaginable, an interested team would trade up to the Minnesota Vikings' No. 3 overall pick to ensure it could draft him.

Longtime NFL executive and current ESPN analyst Bill Polian strongly advocated that path Tuesday for the Miami Dolphins, predicting the Vikings could net the Dolphins' No. 8 pick along with their second- and third-round picks in return. Wednesday, Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay veered from the usual bizarre nature of his Twitter feed to suggest a similar tack:

Tannehill is a hidden gem in this draft, a quiet secret who was always sneaking up to #3..you want him, you better talk to Zigi The Biggie!

"Zigi The Biggie" presumably is Vikings owner Zygi Wilf, whom I'm guessing would be thrilled to pick up the phone and find a team desperately hoping to move up to No. 3.

So what do we make of this chatter? For the most part, quarterbacks and top-of-the-draft trades are the hottest topics in the final weeks before the actual event. So it's no surprise that so many people are discussing Tannehill's final destination. But what started out as a theory has at least advanced into public discussion among a wide swath of people who know more about it than you or I. Take that for what it's worth.

PALM BEACH, Fla. -- Apparently, our next stop in sniffing out the Minnesota Vikings' true intentions this offseason is to make the dangerous connection between a stadium drive and football expenditures.

John of Belleview, Ill., is worried that the Vikings could become the "Kansas City Royals of football" for one of two reasons: Either owner Zygi Wilf will bring down his player payroll to limit further losses, or state legislators will require the team to pay so much toward construction that debt service will render moot the increased revenue of a new stadium.

Here's what I can tell you: Wilf has done nothing if not spend liberally on players during his first seven years as the team's majority owner. If my count is right, he has made five capital calls to his investment partners to cover the difference between revenues and his player payroll. In total, Wilf and his partners have pumped about nearly $100 million into the franchise on top of the $600-million purchase price.

And I feel confident in suggesting Wilf wouldn't have agreed to the current terms of his stadium proposal if it would have shortchanged his projected revenues.

There is no denying the Vikings have made but one significant free-agent expenditure, signing tight end John Carlson to a five-year contract worth $25 million. And I understand why Vikings fans would be suspicious given the blatant financial scaleback they endured in the final years of previous owner Red McCombs' tenure.

But if the Vikings have made a shift, it's one of philosophy rather than finances, general manager Rick Spielman said here at the NFL owners meetings.

Spielman: "Our ownership has always been very supportive of what we need to do, getting players and things like that. I think that doesn't have any effect on whether we're going to sign or not sign a player."

Owner/president Mark Wilf echoed that sentiment: "It's a long-term process in terms of building through the draft, filling in through free agency, and that combination is something we wanted to structure the organization to have our best chance at long-term success. … We want to win right away, too, but the main thing is we want to be first-rate and first-class on a consistent basis."

I realize that no team official would admit to a financial scaleback, but in Wilf's case, we have seven years of free spending and one offseason of a longer-term view. It doesn't add up to anything sinister for me.

We're Black and Blue All Over:

Mark you calendars now. Wisconsin leaders, having nothing more important to take care of, have answered a grassroots effort and will make Dec. 12 "Aaron Rodgers Day" throughout the Badger State. Rodgers won the NFL's Most Valuable Player Award earlier this month.

Yes, that's 12-12-12 for those counting at home.

Fortunately, Rodgers hasn't contracted the number-changing bug that infected Minnesota Vikings tailback Adrian Peterson earlier this winter. Rodgers, in fact, said via Twitter: "Very flattered and honored that 12/12/12 is in the works. Thank u to the efforts of Jennifer Brilowski and our many incredible fans."

Brilowski is a Stevens Point, Wis., resident who started a Facebook campaign to have the holiday declared. It passed the Wisconsin state assembly Tuesday.

Continuing around the NFC North:

• The Packers have a number of personnel issues on their plate as they approach the NFL scouting combine, notes Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
• Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune has a detailed look at the Chicago Bears' salary-cap situation.
• The Detroit Lions have no interest in giving up a home game to play internationally, according to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press.
• Chris McCosky of the Detroit News looks at five prospects the Lions might have their eyes on at the combine.
• Lions defensive end Cliff Avril is making clear that he wants to stay in Detroit, writes Anwar S. Richardson of Mlive.com.
• Peterson wanted to change his jersey to No. 23 to pay homage to Michael Jordan, Peterson told the Dan Patrick radio show, via Brian Hall of Fox Sports North.
• Vikings owner Zygi Wilf met with Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton to discuss a proposed Minneapolis stadium, but there was no announcement of a bill-ready agreement, according to the Star Tribune.
• The issues remaining in the way of an announcement are minor, according to Doug Belden of the St. Paul Pioneer Press.
• The Vikings gave offensive lineman Joe Berger a contract last season that could pay him like a starter in 2012, notes Tom Pelissero of 1500ESPN.com.

The Green Bay Press-Gazette focused this weekend on a nuance that probably wouldn't have occurred to fans in other NFL markets: Reconciling the growing commercialization of the league's individual franchises with the Packers' history as a small-town operation.

Through interviews over several months, reporters Pete Dougherty and Rob Demovsky documented the Packers' dramatic rise in size and local revenues in recent years. They noted that the franchise has moved away from front-office executives with local ties and noted at least one instance -- a failed attempt to take over the Packers Hall of Fame -- when its business appetite overstepped its bounds in the eyes of many locals. A few thoughts from my end:

1. Like it or not, the Packers have followed a clear path set around the NFL. Its teams are the most valuable sports franchises in the world, and their values have risen even in an extended economic downturn. They are part of a $9 billion industry, and it's probably unrealistic to think they would resist growth in a free market.
2. The Packers' biggest source of revenues will always be their share of the NFL's television revenues, a stream that keeps the franchise afloat and has largely replaced the stockholder bailouts that defined its earlier history. The team now uses stock sales for capital improvements, including an in-progress $143 million project at Lambeau Field. I know some of you might think the Packers are taking advantage of fans who want to own stock. But from a national perspective, that beats the hard feelings associated with taxing an entire municipality made up of football and non-football fans alike. Consider it the lesser of evils.
3. As a midwest transplant, I'm not sure how important it is for the Packers' top executives to have been born or raised in Green Bay or attended school in Wisconsin. Relating with local citizenry requires an open mind, good listening skills and a sense of place -- not necessarily a birth certificate or in-state diploma.
4. It's true that president/CEO Mark Murphy was identified by a search firm and had no ties to Wisconsin when he was hired. But his arrival reflected a trend that brought the Packers inline with several other franchises. Local ownership/leadership is less prevalent these days. New Jersey native Zygi Wilf owns the Minnesota Vikings, Houston resident Bud Adams owns the Tennessee Titans, St. Louis-based Shahid Khan recently purchased the Jacksonville Jaguars, and New Orleans Saints owner Tom Benson is from San Antonio, Texas.
5. With that said, Packers executives have a complicated set of responsibilities that can't be replicated elsewhere. As revenue officers, they have an obligation to maximize local income. But they must also be careful about how they capitalize on local willingness to contribute, be it through stock sales or tax breaks or other local levies. Further, the Packers' outsized aura relative to the size of the city means every decision the Packers make has a larger local impact than any other NFL franchise.
6. I was interested to see the rise of Tim Connolly, the former Vikings general manager whom the Press-Gazette paints as the team's second-most powerful business-side executive after Murphy. Connolly is the vice president of sales and marketing, but appears to have wide latitude within the organization. Connolly is a hard-driving businessman who left his mark on the Vikings during a 15-month tenure. Many of the people he hired in 1999 remain with the organization, including vice president of football operations Rob Brzezinski and chief financial officer Steve Poppen. Connolly is the type of hard-charging revenue driver the Packers have probably never employed, but is not uncommon in today's NFL.
7. Long story short, I think the Press-Gazette project illustrates that the Packers are a uniquely big business in an uncommonly small market. There are no real parallels for them to follow in terms of operation or responsibilities toward two separate entities: Their 31 NFL business partners and their hundreds of thousands of citizen/stockholders.

We're Black and Blue All Over:

The Oakland Raiders' apparent decision to hire Denver Broncos defensive coordinator Dennis Allen as their head coach will result in some stability among the Green Bay Packers' coaching staff.

Packers assistant head coach/inside linebackers Winston Moss and defensive coordinator Dom Capers were both candidates in the Raiders' job search, which was run by former Packers executive Reggie McKenzie, now the Raiders' general manager. Moss had been considered by many media members to be a favorite for the job, but McKenzie conducted a wide search.

To this point, offensive coordinator Joe Philbin is the only assistant to depart the staff. Philbin is the Miami Dolphins' new head coach. Coach Mike McCarthy hasn't announced a replacement yet. Quarterbacks coach Tom Clements remains a candidate for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' head-coaching job.

Continuing around the NFC North:

• Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: "It might be a little premature to declare Green Bay Packers coach Mike McCarthy out of the woods completely, but any predictions about his staff being ravaged by outsiders seem to be overblown."
• Former Packers coach Mike Holmgren doesn't wonder what might have happened if he had stayed with the team rather than bolt for the Seattle Seahawks. Mike Vandermause of the Green Bay Press-Gazette has more.
• Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton will meet Wednesday with Vikings owners Zygi and Mark Wilf to discuss the Metrodome stadium site. Mike Kaszuba of the Star Tribune details the political infighting currently in play on that site.
• Vikings general manager Rick Spielman allowed four reporters to sit in on an interview with Auburn long-snapper Josh Harris at the Senior Bowl. Jeremy Fowler of the St. Paul Pioneer Press has more.
• The Vikings plan to find more work for running back Toby Gerhart, regardless of Adrian Peterson's health, writes Tom Pelissero of 1500ESPN.com.
• Detroit Lions vice chairman Bill Ford Jr. spoke positively in rare public comments about the team. Tom Walsh of the Detroit Free Press has more.
• Lions receiver Calvin Johnson is sitting out the Pro Bowl because of an Achilles injury, but he is still heading to Hawaii this week and is bringing the Lions' entire receiving corps, notes Dave Birkett of the Free Press.
• Two Lions assistant coaches, Tim Walton (secondary) and Shawn Jefferson (receivers) are close to signing new contracts to stay with the team, according to Anwar S. Richardson of Mlive.com.
• ESPNChicago.com has a rundown of Chicago Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher's comments on using the pain-killer Toradol.
• Urlacher expanded on those comments with Dan Pompei of the Chicago Tribune.
• Kansas City Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli endorsed his director of college scouting, Phil Emery, for the Bears' general manager job. Sean Jensen of the Chicago Sun-Times explains.
• The Bears' new general manager will have the flexibility to change as much of the scouting staff as he wants. According to Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune, the team's six college scouts and three pro scouts all have expiring contracts.

We're Black and Blue All Over:

It's understandable if, in yesterday's flurry of news, you missed Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers' always-interesting weekly radio show on 540 ESPN in Milwaukee. As always, you can listen to the podcast, where among other things you can hear a discussion about the very issue we hit on Monday.

Namely: Would the events of Week 17 in any way impact MVP voting? As you know, Rodgers sat out the Packers' 45-41 victory over the Detroit Lions, during which backup Matt Flynn threw for 480 yards and six touchdowns. Meanwhile, New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees played almost all of a 45-17 blowout of the Carolina Panthers, adding another 389 yards and five touchdowns to his totals.

Asked about the MVP impact, Rodgers said: "I don't really see how that comes into play when you're talking about a most valuable player vote. I think the way that we've gone about it and the games that we've won, I don't think you can say in any way that we've tried to get late points or late yards or late touchdowns. Look at the film. I'm not sure if that's the case for every team in the league."

In addition to playing most of Week 17, Brees also remained in the Saints' Week 16 blowout of the Atlanta Falcons as he pursued the NFL's single-season record for passing yards. All told, Brees threw 155 more passes than Rodgers this season.

Continuing around the NFC North:

• Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel offers a thoughtful and reasoned argument for why he chose Rodgers over Brees on his MVP ballot.
• Pete Dougherty of the Green Bay Press-Gazette delves into the 2012 possibilities for Packers backup quarterback Matt Flynn.
• Rodgers on the possibility of Flynn returning to the Packers next season, via Jason Wilde of ESPNMilwaukee.com: "Not going to happen, I don't think."
• The Chicago Bears are inviting trouble by forcing coach Lovie Smith on the new general manager they hire, writes Dan Pompei of the Chicago Tribune.
• Smith emerged as the "most powerful man in the building" after the Bears fired general manager Jerry Angelo, writes David Haugh of the Chicago Tribune.
• Melissa Isaacson of ESPNChicago.com wonders if longtime NFL executive Bill Polian, fired this week by the Indianapolis Colts, could be a fit with the Bears.
• Tom Pelissero of 1500ESPN.com on the Minnesota Vikings' decision to promote Rick Spielman to general manager: "The authority the Vikings handed Spielman on Monday -- control over all football matters and final say on the 53-man roster -- doesn't ensure success. The overhaul ahead is too arduous and Spielman's track record too limited to draw strong conclusions. What's certain is Spielman will get to execute his vision now, for better or worse, without interruption or exception, and assume all the pressure that goes with being the most powerful football man in the building."
• Mark Craig of the Star Tribune: "Other than the fact we now know exactly who to blame or praise for all personnel decisions, essentially nothing has changed because, right or wrong, the decision-makers are the same and no changes are planned for the scouting departments."
• Brutal take on the proceedings from Tom Powers of the St. Paul Pioneer Press: "Coming off a disastrous season and facing an increasingly disillusioned fan base, Vikings owners Zygi and Mark Wilf needed to make a bold statement. And on Tuesday, they did: 'We are idiots.'"
• The Wilfs met with a select group of reporters to discuss this move. Here's a transcript from 1500ESPN.com.
• The Detroit Lions aren't bothering to play the "disrespect card" this week, notes Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press.
• Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh on the possibility of a high-scoring game Saturday night at the Superdome, via John Niyo of the Detroit News. "Yeah, I don't plan on anybody shooting our defense out."
• Suh is clearly excited about playing in this game, writes Anwar S. Richardson of Mlive.com.

EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. — A few comments after sitting in on the Minnesota Vikings' news conference to announce Rick Spielman's promotion to general manager:

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Jim Mone/AP PhotoRick Spielman addresses the media after he was named general manager of the Vikings on Tuesday.
• By all accounts, Spielman has acquired extensive authority — and not just a fancy title — with this move. Owner/president Mark Wilf said Spielman "will oversee all football-related activities and operations" and "all roster and personnel decisions" will be "in Rick's hands." That means Spielman will have final say over the draft, all player transactions and the composition of the 80- and 53-man rosters.
• The one check on Spielman's power is supervision of the coaching staff. He will make roster and player decisions once reserved for the head coach in the old structure, but coach Leslie Frazier will continue to report directly to owners Zygi and Mark Wilf. "Ownership will make that determination on the head coach," Spielman said. From everything I can tell, however, that's an issue of semantics. The Wilfs would be circumventing their apparent intent if they didn't listen to the advice of the man they've placed in charge of "all football-related activities." If Spielman wants to fire the head coach and/or hire a new one, I imagine the Wilfs will consent.
• Most of you aren't going to care about the new process the Vikings have for making football decisions. But here's what will interest you: Spielman emotionally and unequivocally accepted complete accountability for the successes and failures of the team going forward. "I will be held accountable for those decisions," he said. At one point, Spielman paused to collect himself before saying: "3-13 is not acceptable for our fans of the Minnesota Vikings. It's not acceptable for our ownership. It's not acceptable for this organization." For better or worse, there is no doubt about who is in charge at the team's Winter Park facility.

Podcast: Rick Spielman

Vikings GM Rick Spielman discusses the first order of business in his new position, Christian Ponder's future, Adrian Peterson's injury and more. Listen

• Spielman acknowledged his mixed record as a personnel executive with the Miami Dolphins, a tenure that ended after his promotion to general manager in 2004. He departed after the Dolphins finished 4-12 that season. "You look back through all of your experiences," Spielman said. "I'm a very big historian on seeing what happened, and the only way to me that you get better is by experiencing some of the setbacks. When you experience some of the setbacks, you really analyze why it was like that, or what did you do, or what would you do differently? So when similar situations occur going forward, you'll know how to handle them better."
• Perhaps the most tangible bi-product of the traditional structure is that it empowers the general manager to make long-term decisions. The Vikings entered the 2011 draft in desperation mode at quarterback because no one had the authority to plan for the end of Brett Favre's tenure. It would be inexcusable for a traditional general manager to act with so little regard for the future. Spielman: "It's also my responsibility as we move forward in making decisions not only to look for the short-term success on the football field, but also looking out for our long-term goals so that we can be successful year in and year out."
• I know many of you were hoping for more dramatic changes after 23 losses in the past 32 games. You see Spielman as part of the problem, not someone who deserves to be empowered with finding the solution. I understand where you're coming from. But the official approach of this blog will be to give Spielman a clean slate from this moment. It's impossible to know what he is or isn't responsible for during this tailspin. For the first time in decades, however, we have no gray area for accountability and evaluation moving forward. The clock on the Rick Spielman Era starts today.