--LB Heath Farwell had been a special-teams ace for the Vikings before missing last season because of a knee injury. Farwell is a free agent and wants an opportunity to see if he can go to a team where he can compete for a starting spot. His visits so far have included New England and Cleveland.
--QB Gus Frerotte was cut by the Vikings after the team obtained Sage Rosenfels from Houston. Frerotte, let go days before he was to receive a $250,000 roster bonus, was unhappy last season after he went 8-3 as a starter but lost his job to Tarvaris Jackson because of injury. Frerotte, though, had only kind words for the Vikings after his release. "I had a lot of fun and am proud of everything we accomplished as a team," he said.
--The Vikings' attempts to sign T.J. Houshmandzadeh, the top free-agent wide receiver on the market, included sending owner Zygi Wilf's plane to Seattle to get him. That is the same thing the Vikings did a year ago when they courted, and got, wide receiver Bernard Berrian. This time it did not work as Houshmandzadeh picked the Seattle Seahawks.
--The Vikings continue to look for an assistant to succeed Chad O'Shea, who left to become the wide receivers coach for the New England Patriots. O'Shea had been an offensive assistant and was set to add some special-teams duties before the Patriots called. The Vikings already have promoted Brian Murphy from special-teams assistant to special teams coordinator.
QUOTE TO NOTE: "I don't think it can hurt at all. There will be nuances, there already are. We were talking about some of the idiosyncrasies of the reads and formations. But there will be enough there that he will have a pretty good understanding as we start." --Vikings coach Brad Childress on how much it will help that quarterback Sage Rosenfels is familiar with the West Coast system. Rosenfels was acquired from Houston last week and will compete with Tarvaris Jackson for the starting job.
