Not long after the clock struck midnight and the free agent period began, the Minnesota Vikings, true to their word, went out and wrapped up a player well worth the 6 year, $33 million contract they gave him. 26 year-old safety Madieu Williams agreed in principle this morning to sign with the Vikings after jetting from the Cincinnati Bengals following a year where he had 2 interceptions and 2 sacks. Williams, known more for his exceptional coverage skills, immediately upgrades the Vikings secondary, a major concern for the last couple of seasons.
It was refreshing to see the Vikings spend some of their money on a position that needed help desperately. After releasing Dwight Smith earlier in the offseason and thinning out the secondary even more, it became critical for them to find a guy that can compliment Antoine Winfield. Williams has 4 years service in the National Football League all with the Cincinnati Bengals. Drafted in the second round (24th pick) in 2004, Williams started all 16 games for the Bengals in his rookie season. Williams played only 4 games his sophomore year in the league after being put on Injured Reserve due to a bum shoulder. He recovered for the 2006 campaign and again played all 16 games, compiling 90 tackles and 3 interceptions. Last season Williams started the first 13 games of the season before being put back onto IR with a bad quad. I assume that Williams is all set to go and has fully recovered from his quad injury.
The Vikings, who are $35 million under the salary cap, have vowed to be aggressive in this years free agent pool in order to better a team who has many good parts, but fell just short of the postseason last year. With a scheduled visit from Bernard Berrian this afternoon, it seems as though the Vikings are really committed to making this team a playoff team.
It was refreshing to see the Vikings spend some of their money on a position that needed help desperately. After releasing Dwight Smith earlier in the offseason and thinning out the secondary even more, it became critical for them to find a guy that can compliment Antoine Winfield. Williams has 4 years service in the National Football League all with the Cincinnati Bengals. Drafted in the second round (24th pick) in 2004, Williams started all 16 games for the Bengals in his rookie season. Williams played only 4 games his sophomore year in the league after being put on Injured Reserve due to a bum shoulder. He recovered for the 2006 campaign and again played all 16 games, compiling 90 tackles and 3 interceptions. Last season Williams started the first 13 games of the season before being put back onto IR with a bad quad. I assume that Williams is all set to go and has fully recovered from his quad injury.
The Vikings, who are $35 million under the salary cap, have vowed to be aggressive in this years free agent pool in order to better a team who has many good parts, but fell just short of the postseason last year. With a scheduled visit from Bernard Berrian this afternoon, it seems as though the Vikings are really committed to making this team a playoff team.
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