Pepp Fires Agent As Rumors Swirl

There's a legal axiom that says anyone who represents himself has a fool for a client. While that may not be the same as contract negotiations, Vikings QB Daunte Culpepper took the first step to doing just that Tuesday.

The rumors that have been circling Daunte Culpepper continue to get bigger and pick up more steam -- eerily similar to those that surrounded Randy Moss a year ago at this time.

Culpepper fired his agent Mason Ashe Tuesday, the culmination of a couple of weeks of malaise in which Ashe announced he was trying to re-open negotiations for a new contract for Culpepper -- a theory Culpepper quickly quashed as he tried to line up a face-to-face meeting with Vikings executives on his own.

That plan backfired as the meeting was attended only by Vikings capmeister Rob Brzezinski, who made it clear that Culpepper wouldn't be getting a new deal at this time.

With rumors swirling that Culpepper might be traded, this comes as an interesting twist to a story that already has enough drama and cliffhanger aspects to it.

WEDNESDAY NOTES
* Teams that are said to be expressing an interest in Culpepper include the Raiders, Rams, Cardinals and Ravens. All four have some sort of coach or player connection with Culpepper.
* The Vikings filled out their coaching staff by signing Fred Pagac as LB coach and Joe Woods as secondary coach. Pagac coached linebackers for the Chiefs in 2004 and the Raiders from 2001-03. Prior to that, he spent 19 years with Ohio State - where he coached Antoine Winfield - the last four as defensive coordinator. Woods was the defensive quality control coach for the Buccaneers the last two seasons, where he worked with new Vikings defensive coordinator Mike Tomlin.