FanHouse Antoine Winfield

Antoine Winfield played it safe last week sitting out a fourth straight game with his foot injury. He wasn't needed as a nearly perfect Brett Favre led the Vikings to an easy win over the Seahawks.'

Well it's more accurate to say that the Vikings decided for Winfield that he was going to sit that one out, something that Winfield told the Star-Tribune that in hindsight was a wise choice. But with the division rival Bears on the schedule this week, Winfield is ready to promise he'll be back in action this Sunday.

When you're 8-1, you can afford to be picky.

Antoine Winfield is starting to return to practice after missing three games with a foot injury. But since the Vikings right now have a three-game lead in the NFC North, Winfield can head into the weekend knowing that he doesn't have to rush back before he's ready.

Not much has gone wrong for the Minnesota Vikings in their 6-0 start. Brett Favre has been playing superbly, Adrian Peterson is still a stud, Sidney Rice has become one, and the defense continues to impress.

However, if there's a hole on this Vikings team right about now, it's been their pass defense. They were largely shredded by Aaron Rodgers earlier in October, then were absolutely torched by Joe Flacco and the Ravens last weekend. As the Vikings set off on a two-game road swing starting Sunday, there is bad news on the injury front.

Did the injury bug hit your fantasy football team like it was a car windshield moving at 100 MPH? If so, it may be time to do some Damage Control.

Quarterback

• Daunte Culpepper, Lions - Culpepper calls the injury a tweak, others call it a slight hamstring pull. Drew Stanton played the majority of the second half on Sunday and nobody knows who will be the Lions quarterback in Week 7.

• Joe Flacco, Ravens - Flacco was noticeably limping on Sunday after his foot was trampled. He has a bye week this week -- rest will do him good.

• Trent Edwards, Bills - Edwards took a blow to the head on Sunday. The Bills aren't using the word concussion until further tests have been completed.

There had been signs of frustration from Minnesota Vikings cornerback Antoine Winfield in recent weeks. As the Pro Bowler became frustrated over unsuccessful efforts to extend his contract, there were veiled threats of a departure in free agency.

That would have left Winfield in the same boat as now-former Vikings like Matt Birk and Darren Sharper, very good veteran players who allowed their contracts to expire, only to find little to no interest from management in a return. Birk is now with Baltimore, while Sharper signed in New Orleans. Winfield, however, was able to avoid walking down that path, as he agreed to a new deal Thursday.

Whether or not the Minnesota Vikings sign Brett Favre, the core of the football team is not going to change much.

Right now, they're built around running back Adrian Peterson and their strong, energetic defense. A huge piece of that defense is stalwart cornerback Antoine Winfield. About to enter the final year of his contract, Winfield has been working out on his own this offseason as he waits for the Vikings to work out a new deal for him. Still without a contract beyond this coming season, Winfield is speaking out on his frustration.

The Minnesota Vikings have upset cornerback Antoine Winfield by declining to renegotiate his contract, with the team saying he should play under the final year of the deal he signed and the player saying he wants a long-term extension. In most cases like this, it's easy to see both sides of it, but in this situation it's clear: The Vikings are making the right decision by holding the line, and Winfield is just going to have to live with it.

The AFC and NFC Pro Bowlers were announced a short while ago, and why make some pointless comment you are sure not to laugh at when we can just give you the rosters instead? Here goes.

Hear that? It's the pitter-patter of fantasy football season approaching. Fantasy FanHouse is here to get you ready by previewing every team from a fantasy perspective.

Meet The ...

Best running team in football. If anything they'll be better at running the ball this season. The Vikes have committed to a better balance between passing and running, which will (hopefully) prevent teams from stacking the box against the run -- opening more running lanes. Tarvaris Jackson has experience under his belt and is unchallenged as the starter, not to mention they signed Bernard Berrian in the off-season to give him a legitimate NFL wideout. Adrian Peterson has a year of NFL experience, and Chester Taylor is an able-bodied complement to Peterson. Expect the same, if not better, numbers as last season from the ground game.

The Breakout

He's not going to be a pro-bowler or even a fantasy starter, but "breakout" is defined as someone whose eventual value exceeds the value he held on draft day. Tarvaris Jackson is going to be avoided in nearly all drafts, or possibly taken as a third string fantasy QB with the hopes of upside. By the end of the year, he'll pick his spots well enough to be worthy of a backup fantasy QB for bye-week replacement or injury replacement purposes. He'll get rushing yards -- which is such a huge bonus for QBs -- avoid the interception quite well, and throw for 150-200 yards a week with a passing TD per game.

The Vikings are 1-3 and facing an upcoming schedule that will likely find them underdogs in each of their next five games. It's a bad combination, but say this for the Vikings, they may not be that great on the field, but this year's team is solid in the locker room.

"Usually this time, someone," cornerback Antoine Winfield said before playfully clearing his throat, "me would say something. But I'm not going to go that route. I mean, nothing good's going to come out of that. We are a close group."

There's plenty to gripe about, but thankfully the Vikings players are sticking together. That is a good sign that the team still has a chance to turn things around. If the offense can just get Adrian Peterson a little help, that might be enough to turn some of these close losses (three losses by a total of 13 points) into wins.