Roster

In limited offensive reps as a rookie, Aundrae Allison caught eight passes for 122 yards (15.3 avg.) in 2007.

The Minneapolis Star Tribune reports that Vikings coach Brad Childress has no plans to cut or trade RB Chester Taylor this offseason. Childress said he has plans to use both Taylor and Rookie of the Year rusher Adrian Peterson at times, but ultimately wants to keep Minnesota's 1-2 running punch. "I don't know what the downside of it is," he said. "You've got two different styles of runners with their own inimitable styles. (It's a) high-impact position; the guy is going to take a lot of shots. So when a guy needs a breath, you don't want to lose anything on the next play. ... I think it's a win-win situation."

The Vikings drafted QB John David Booty in the fifth round of the 2008 NFL Draft. Booty, from USC, will likely be the No. 3 quarterback this year behind Tarvaris Jackson and Gus Frerotte. The Vikings also drafted DB Tyrell Johnson from Arkansas State in the second round, DL Letroy Guion from Florida State in the fifth round and WR Jaymar Johnson from Jackson State in the sixth round.

The Vikings announced that CB Benny Sapp has signed. He has one interception in four seasons with the Chiefs.

The Vikings and WR Robert Ferguson have agreed to a one-year deal, reports the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. The Steelers and Bears also showed interest in Ferguson.

The Vikings added depth on the defensive line Thursday, signing DL Kenderick Allen. Allen will provide depth behind Pat Williams. Allen played two games last season for the Green Bay Packers but was placed on injured reserve because of a foot injury. He has started three of the 31 games in his career, with three sacks.

Free-agent running back and kickoff returner Maurice Hicks signed a three-year contract with the Vikings on Tuesday. The Vikings had an opening for a No. 3 back, behind Adrian Peterson and Chester Taylor, after Mewelde Moore joined the Steelers. More importantly, Hicks comes with extensive special teams experience -- both covering kicks and returning kickoffs. With San Francisco last season, he averaged 23.8 yards per kickoff return. Over the past three years, the 49ers credited him with 50 special teams tackles. "Coming into this league, to stay in this league, one of the things they tell you when you're not a big-time draft pick is you've got to be good on special teams," Hicks said.

Playing only in Week 17 after being inactive for the first 15 games, Vikings TE Garrett Mills caught two passes for 26 yards. Mills was claimed off waivers from New England late in the preseason.

Vikings DL Fred Evans returned from his two-game suspension Week 15 against the Bears. He didn't record a statistic.

Vikings FB/TE Jim Kleinsasser caught four passes for 43 yards and a touchdown in 2007.

The Minnesota Vikings signed LB Derrick Pope, a 5-year NFL veteran who entered the league as a 7th-round draft pick by the Miami Dolphins in 2004, Friday. Pope started a career-high nine games and posted 57 tackles in 2007, ranking fourth on the Dolphins. A consistent special teams performer throughout his career, Pope has started 14 games at LB. He snared a pair of interceptions in back-to-back games in 2007, picking off Carson Palmer vs. Cincinnati and Tom Brady at New England. Pope scored a TD on a fumble recovery at San Francisco as a rookie and notched a pair of sacks during his rookie year.

The Vikings have signed members of their practice squad to reserve/futures contracts. Those players include: WRs Joel Filani, Martin Nance and Justin Surrency, CB Dee McCann and RB Arkee Whitlock.

Minnesota Vikings DL Darrion Scott has been cited for misdemeanor marijuana possession. Scott also was cited for failure to signal after he was pulled over Wednesday afternoon by officers with Charleston's Metro Drug Unit, said Lt. Chuck Carpenter, the drug unit's head. Carpenter said the officers began following Scott's car after seeing him stop and talk to another man at a public housing complex, where they were staking out suspected drug activity. Scott left the complex and the officers followed his vehicle. He was pulled over after he allegedly failed to signal while changing lanes, Carpenter said. He said the officers noticed the odor of marijuana and asked for permission to search Scott's vehicle. Scott refused and a drug dog was brought in. The dog indicated an illegal substance allegedly was in the vehicle and the officers then searched it.

Erasmus James' comeback from major knee surgery lasted all of three or four plays. The Vikings defensive end was placed on injured reserve Friday and will need surgery again to repair the ACL in his left knee. James, injured early in Sunday's game against Detroit, first tore his left ACL in Week 2 last season. He missed the rest of the year and a good portion of 2007 working his way back into shape. After several setbacks, it appeared he was back on track when he reclaimed his starting spot at left defensive end against the Lions. Minnesota coach Brad Childress said James "had an episode" on the third or fourth play of the game but was able to finish. An MRI revealed the injury. Childress said it was tough to see James injured so quickly after a long and arduous rehab. "He just kept pushing and pushing and pushing through there," Childress said. "He was to the point where he could put it on the field and bring it pretty good, and it just tells you how fragile those things are."

Knee - Questionable for the start of 2008 training camp

Tarvaris Jackson entered 2007 as Minnesota's starting quarterback, and was just that for 12 games, missing four games with groin, finger and concussion problems. He completed 171-of-294 passes (58.2 pct.) for 1,911 yards (6.5 yards per attempt) with nine touchdowns and 12 interceptions and three fumbles. Jackson did contribute in the run game, however, getting 260 yards on 54 rushes (4.8 yards per carry) with three touchdowns. It was that rushing skill that helped him place above Marc Bulger and Matt Schaub in standard-scoring leagues in 2007.

The Vikings have signed members of their practice squad to reserve/futures contracts. Those players include: WRs Joel Filani, Martin Nance and Justin Surrency, CB Dee McCann and RB Arkee Whitlock.

Vikings.com reports that the club has signed FB Thomas Tapeh. He recorded 18 rush yards on five carries (3.6 avg.) and had eight catches for 50 yards (6.3 avg.). He also played his college ball at the University of Minnesota.

The Vikings' list of inactives for Week 15 against the Bears includes RB Mewelde Moore, QB Kelly Holcomb, DB Tank Williams, DB Ronyell Whitaker, RB Garrett Mills and LB David Herron.

The Vikings want Kenechi Udeze to focus on his fight against leukemia and not worry about his financial situation. The defensive end was placed on the reserve-non-football-illness list Friday, coach Brad Childress announced. That makes him ineligible to participate in the 2008 season, but guarantees him his $807,500 salary for the year. Udeze revealed two weeks ago that the cancer was in remission, and that his older brother has matching bone marrow for a pending transplant. "He can focus on getting well. He's done a great job with that so far. He's been positive. He's been upbeat," said Childress, who praised owner Zygi Wilf for the decision.

Leukemia - NFI. Out for the 2008 season