EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. (AP) -Defensive end Darrion Scott and free safety Darren Sharper were excused from the Minnesota Vikings' optional ``organized team activities'' on Thursday.

Sharper left to do some television work as a color analyst for NFL Europa games and Scott was excused for ``personal reasons,'' a team spokesman said.

Both players attended the first two days of the four-day OTA, unlike cornerback Antoine Winfield, who hasn't participated in any of the team's offseason programs. All of it has been

ALAMEDA, Calif. (AP) -Travis Taylor has some experience following Randy Moss, having joined the Minnesota Vikings two years ago after they dealt the receiver to the Oakland Raiders.

Now that Moss has been dealt again to New England following a disappointing two-year stay in Oakland, Taylor has joined the Raiders to help replace Moss.

``Don't give me that responsibility,'' Taylor said Wednesday. ``It takes a lot to replace that guy. Like I said, it's a great opportunity to be here. It's a great organizatio

EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. (AP) -Chester Taylor got all he wanted - and more - in his first season as a starting running back last year.

He rushed for 1,216 yards after being signed by the Minnesota Vikings, serving as the lone bright spot in an otherwise dismal year for the offense.

But he also racked up some bruised ribs that kept him out of a game in Detroit in December and what the injury report called ``overall body soreness,'' a condition brought on by the pounding that comes with setting a franchise recor

EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. (AP) -Minnesota Vikings cornerback Antoine Winfield skipped the team's optional ``organized team activity'' on Tuesday, and isn't expected to show up until a mandatory minicamp in June.

Winfield, one of the best cornerbacks in the league and a veteran leader on the Vikings defense, has not participated in any of the team's offseason program.

Asked about Winfield's absence, Vikings coach Brad Childress said, ``I really don't know. You'd have to ask him that. He hasn't been here in the o

EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. (AP) -The Minnesota Vikings signed rookie quarterback Tyler Thigpen on Friday.

Thigpen, a seventh-round pick out of Coastal Carolina, impressed coaches with his arm strength and mobility during a rookie minicamp earlier this month and is the first of Minnesota's eight 2007 draft picks to sign a contract.

``It's a great relief to have the contract done and a weight off my shoulders,'' Thigpen said in a statement issued by the team. ``Playing in the NFL some day is something every kid th

EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. (AP) -Adrian Peterson has been cleared for takeoff.

The Minnesota Vikings first-round draft pick will not need surgery to repair a collarbone that was broken twice last season, an injury that may have caused him to slip to the seventh pick in April's NFL draft.

The Vikings said Wednesday that the injury was healing fine on its own and they will not have to insert a protective plate to prevent further injury, a procedure that would have kept the former Oklahoma running back out of actio

Rashad was known as Bobby Moore during his college career at Oregon, where he played running back and wide receiver and was a three-time all-Pac-8 selection (1969-71). He went on to play 11 seasons in the NFL, his best years with the Minnesota Vikings

``This is sort of the culmination of all the people that you work with in college,'' said Rashad, who's had a long and successful broadcasting career, mostly covering the NBA. ``We all came together at the University of Oregon as 17-, 18-year-old

EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. (AP) -The Minnesota Vikings signed free agent defensive tackle Howard Green, who hasn't played since 2004, on Tuesday.

Green started 12 games for the New Orleans Saints in 2004, registering a career-high 53 tackles. The former sixth-round draft choice by Houston in 2002 was coached by Vikings defensive line coach Karl Dunbar in college at LSU.

The Vikings also announced the hiring of Derek Mason as assistant defensive backs coach.

Mason is in the NFL for the first time after spending