The Minnesota Vikings are coming into the season with some major questions and with Teddy Bridgewater now in the fold, there is a chance the team could trade Christian Ponder to a franchise like the Houston Texans and allow Bridgewater to be the backup for Matt Cassel in 2014 and if the Vikings end up rebuilding, they could part ways with running back Adrian Peterson in a trade or release in the future.
The Vikings are prepared to have their three quarterbacks battle for the starting job this season, as Matt Cassel, Teddy Bridgewater and Christian Ponder all will have the chance in training camp to prove themselves. According to ESPN.com, the Vikings want to see all three players work with the top offense during the summer and head coach Mike Zimmer will let things play out before picking a starting quarterback. If Bridgewater starts, it could begin the rebuilding process sooner than many thought, but it also would mean that he distinguished himself over the other two players in camp and that could be promising for this team.
The trade rumors involving Peterson popped up a little last year when the team was struggling and while nothing came of it, it could be a sign of things to come in the future. According to Mike Freeman, the Vikings may look at trading or releasing Peterson next year or during this season if the team is losing again, as the running back position is slowly decreasing in value in the NFL and with the amount of money Peterson makes, it may not make sense to keep him much longer. Obviously Peterson is a fantastic player, but he is getting to 30 and that is the age that running backs usually start to decline hard.
The Vikings are building for the long term and that is another reason why he could go and the quarterback situation may be a factor in all of it as well. The idea of the Cowboys is more of a pipe dream than anything since they don't have the money or cap space, but that rumor came up last year and could come up again in the future, especially if DeMarco Murray goes down with an injury. The Vikings have a major decision to make anyway, as Peterson is getting older and is making a ton of money and with Norv Turner coming in with his system that likes to use two backs, the value of AP could go down even more.
Last season the Vikings were one of the worst passing teams in the league, averaging just 214 yards per game and they are hoping to get those numbers up this season. The team was eighth in rushing with Peterson, but the defense was a mess, ranking second to last in passing yards allowed per game and the team was 16th in rushing yards allowed. The team went 5-10-1 last year and missed the playoffs after making it the previous season and now they get the chance to try and get back to the postseason. The team has high hopes for Bridgewater and they have praised his work ethic this summer.