The Vikings are at their off-site training camp in Mankato this week, and the various fan blogs are doing a great job of covering the event (especially The Daily Norseman which has bloggers accredited and attending all open sessions). 1500ESPN has filled the void left when the great Tom Pelissero moved on to USA Today‘s sports department with Andrew Krammer (to team up with Judd Zulgad), while the main ESPN coverage is by Kevin Seifert. I hit my “maximum number of articles viewed” limit at the Minneapolis Star Tribune earlier this week, so the coverage from the St. Paul Pioneer Press is filling that gap for me until rollover.

I know most of you don’t much care for sports chatter, so I’ll put the rest of this post behind the curtain…

Based on extensive reports from @ArifHasanDN of the Daily Norseman, the approximate depth chart looks something like this:

An asterisk indicates a special teams player already listed on the roster in another capacity.

There was much second-guessing of the decision when Percy Harvin was traded to Seattle, but general manager Rick Spielman is looking pretty clever after this announcement:

Percy Harvin will have hip surgery on Thursday, sidelining the dynamic wide receiver for the start of his first season with the Seattle Seahawks.

Harvin made the announcement on his Twitter account on Tuesday night, hours after getting a second opinion on the injury in New York. The Seahawks then said the operation was scheduled for Thursday.

Harvin was seeking more information for soreness in his hip, in the area of his labrum, that popped up just before the Seahawks opened training camp.

“When everything is goin good sometimes life throw u a curve ball… sorry to half to report that my injury will require surgery,” Harvin wrote on his Twitter page. “Nobody was more anxious and excited about season then….but I will be back strong as ever.”

Harvin had one year remaining on his contract with the Vikings, but every indication was that he was not planning to accept a longer-term deal with the team, so Spielman did very well to get as much for Harvin in the Seahawks deal as he did. Now that it’s clear that Harvin will miss most or all of the 2013 season, the deal looks even better from Minnesota’s point of view.

Ted Glover shows the alternative scenario if Harvin hadn’t been traded this off-season:

Let’s say the Vikings signed Harvin to an extension and not traded him to Seattle. That means they more than likely don’t sign Greg Jennings, and they don’t have the #25 pick in the NFL draft. Now, could they have signed a lower tier WR? Sure, but it’s doubtful that with Harvin in the fold with what would presumably be a hefty contract extension like he got when he was traded to the Seahawks, there would have been any serious pursuit of Jennings, simply for economics if nothing else.

Without the #25 pick they have to choose between either Sharrif Floyd or Xavier Rhodes. I still think they pick Floyd, just based on Spielman’s post draft comments.

And I’m almost positive they don’t trade back into the first round to grab Cordarrelle Patterson, either. Could they have done so to get Rhodes? It’s not out of the question, as they did just that very thing a year ago to draft Harrison Smith, but would that trade have been as well received, or the Vikings draft perceived as strong, if they only had two picks with no Patterson?

I’m saying no. For one, there wouldn’t have been a need for Patterson, and Rhodes probably would have been gone by pick 28. So the good guys only end up with one first round draft pick.

With tragically short arms.

[…]

Yes, Percy Harvin is no longer a Viking, and as a fan, that kind of bums me out. But the long term outlook for this team is better today than it was a year ago, the wide receiver depth is better, and what was a running problem, both in terms of injuries on the field and drama off of it is now someone else’s problem.

Someone else’s expensive problem.

Expanding much, much more on the dimensions of the problem, “Krauser” has a guest post at the Daily Norseman that goes into great detail indeed:

…5000 words on Percy Harvin’s injuries…

I have a theory about Percy Harvin’s injury history and his departure from the Vikings. My theory’s based on a close reading of previously published information and my own professional experience (I’m a neurologist).

Obviously the medical information in this post is purely speculative and for recreational purposes only — I’ve never met Mr Harvin and have no official medical opinion about his diagnoses or care. I’m not affiliated with the team or the NFL and otherwise have no direct or indirect contact with this situation.