INSIDE THE NFL
The Vikings' wise investment
Vikings Got Their Money's Worth By Signing Johnson to Extension
by Peter King
Posted: Wed September 17, 1997
The Vikings were privately ridiculed in some front offices when
they signed quarterback Brad Johnson to a four-year, $15 million
extension last December. Look who's laughing now. Johnson leads
the league in completion percentage (66.9), and he is the
league's fifth-highest-rated passer (94.5). Not bad for a guy
who couldn't beat out Casey Weldon for the starting job as a
senior at Florida State in 1991.
Johnson's signing was questioned, but how tough a decision was
it to reward a rising quarterback with a contract that didn't
even make him one of the league's 10-highest-paid
signal-callers? "It was never a question to us," Vikings
president Roger Headrick said last week. Nevertheless, Johnson
heard the naysayers, particularly after the Vikings' 40-15 NFC
wild-card loss to the Cowboys only nine days after he signed his
deal. He set out this year to prove he is worth every cent.
"I worked as hard as I've ever worked in the off-season,"
Johnson said last Saturday. "I have a personal trainer and
sports psychologist from Chile whom I met at Florida State, and
he comes to Tallahassee for three months every off-season to
work with me. I know Jerry Rice has an incredible workout, but
no quarterback works out like I do. We have two-a-day workouts
where I drop back in the sand, work with medicine balls and do a
bunch of gymnastics exercises. We work a lot on confidence and
visualizing success. Since I got back up to Minnesota full time
[in May], through minicamp and training camp and the start of
this season, I've been on fire. This offense is just made for me."
With the NFC's best line north of Dallas and tremendous skill
players in running back Robert Smith and wideout Cris Carter,
the Vikings aren't shy about saying this is their best team in
coach Dennis Green's six seasons. It probably wouldn't be if
they hadn't re-signed Johnson.
Issue date: September 22, 1997
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