Vikes Want C.C. To Sign, Retire

When Cris Carter left the Vikings following the 2001 season, it wasn't acrimonious, but it wasn't how the Vikings wanted to leave things with their most recent Hall of Famer. The team is now looking to rectify that.

Early in his stint as Vikings head coach, Denny Green threw away some of the 10 owners' money by signing Roger Craig as a Plan B free agent. Far removed from his prime, Craig was a load who never came close to living up to the hype Green assigned him.

After a year with the Vikings, Craig opted to call it quits. But, before he made it official, he re-signed a symbolic contract with the 49ers so he could announce his retirement as a member of the team he brought to glory.

VU is being told the Vikings are trying to work out a similar deal with Cris Carter. Carter, who was in town last weekend, had discussions with team officials about symbolically signing a contract with the Vikings so he can retire as a member of the team. With no hard feelings being expressed by either side, it could be a nice public relations move.

Then again, considering the team is serious about possibly re-signing Jeff George, maybe they should talk to Carter about "putting on the foil" for one more year.

MONDAY NOTES
* George met with team officials Sunday and has meetings planned for today as well. He has told the team he is willing to be a backup -- which he was when he was initially brought in in 1999 -- and is willing to be a mentor for Daunte Culpepper.
* The Vikes are slowing down the pace of their free agent plans, but still want to make a push to re-sign Lance Johnstone and Hunter Goodwin.
* VU has been told that, despite some quiet speculation, to date there has been no contact between the Vikings and free agent Junior Seau. The Chargers have allowed Seau to speak to other teams about working out a trade, but word we're getting is that neither the Vikings nor Seau have piqued a mutual interest.
* With the Bears signing Kordell Stewart, there have been several changes near the top of the VU mock draft. Check the "Draft Guide" link on the front page to see who we have going where.