To submit a question or comment, send an email to me at wobschallm@vikings.nfl.net. Remember to include your name and town.

We can’t post every comment and question, but we’ll respond to all of them.

We’ll post a link to the audio file when it’s available on KFAN’s website.

For now, though, here are a few other non-Tomlinson notes from the interview this morning…

Adrian Peterson’s fumbles: Peterson had a handful of fumbles this season that cost the Vikings in critical situations and it’s an issue that has brought on some criticism for #28. When asked about it today, Childress said that the issue has been brought to the RB’s attention frequently and that he’s confident Peterson will “take care” of it. “I don’t want to eliminate his running style,” Peterson said. “He has an aggressive, attacking running style. So I don’t want to take anything away from that. However it’s critical obviously that the ball travels with you.”

On finding a replacement for Chester Taylor: Should Tomlinson sign with the Vikings, he’ll fulfill the same role (although perhaps a bit differently) that Taylor filled while with the team. Other RBs have also been linked to the Vikings as possible replacements for Taylor, including Brian Westbrook and even incoming rookies who will be drafted in April.

But Childress suggested another possible solution to filling the role vacated by Taylor.

“Probably not enough has been said about Albert Young,” the head coach said. “Albert Young has been a guy that’s developed here tremendously the last two years. As a matter of fact, Brett Favre and I had a long conversation about him. He believes he’s got the chance to be a good back in this league.”

Childress on the greatest thing to come out of the 2009 season: “I guess first of all, the greatest thing to come out of it was the enthusiasm of this state and community about the Vikings. Everybody started with the toe in the water. ‘Are they gonna be this? How are they going to play in September?’ But I just think as the season went, it really became a snowball (effect).”

Childress then added, “In the locker room, I have one of the [most fun] bunch of guys that I’ve probably lined up and coached in thirty years. And certainly not without fifty-three different challenges when you’re talking about the Jared Allens, Pat Williamses, Steve Hutchinsons, Brett Favres, Chester Taylors.

“There are personalities galore in there. But one thing those guys never were afraid to do was to take a challenge. They competed tooth and nail with each other, and it didn’t make any difference whether they were on the football field or playing cards or shooting hoops. They’re avid competitors in all areas. They weren’t afraid to work, they weren’t afraid to take criticism constructively and improve. That’s always satisfying and I had a great time doing it.”

Even with all of that going on, though, the Vikings head coach took some time out of his Friday morning to speak with KFAN’s Power Trip Morning Show, which is hosted by former Vikings long snapper Mike Morris.

The topic receiving the most attention during Friday morning’s visit was Tomlinson’s visit over the past couple of days. With Chester Taylor having bolted town for the Chicago Bears, the Vikings have an open spot on the depth chart and Tomlinson is widely considered to be a great fit in that role.

LT came into town on Wednesday evening and left late yesterday afternoon for his next visit, which is with the NY Jets. While typically it’s bad news for a prospective free agent to visit and then leave town without a deal, Childress indicated that conventional thinking in that regard might not apply in this specific scenario.

“A lot of times when you only have one [team] involved, the agents don’t like that game,” Childress said. “A lot of times they take them and create the atmosphere that there’s want somewhere else. And there may be in fact want somewhere else. Something to drive the deal.”

Childress said Tomlinson gave others his word that he’d visit them before signing somewhere and the head coach also said that Tomlinson is “a man of his word,” so perhaps it’s not surprising that the 5-time Pro Bowler and future Hall of Famer will make at least one other stop during his time on the market.

While Tomlinson was here, though, all indications are that the RB was impressed with what he saw and heard. One would think the presence of QB Brett Favre on the roster – or not on the roster – would be a factor in Tomlinson’s decision, but Childress mentioned another member of the Vikings team actually spoke with LT while he was visiting.

“I actually put him on the phone yesterday with Adrian,” Childress said. “They were able to talk for a little bit down in (RBs) coach (Eric) Bieniemy’s meeting room. I think there’s a tremendous admiration of one toward another.”

Ultimately, given Tomlinson’s specific circumstances at this point in his career and given how the Vikings feel about LT, a union between the two seems like a solid fit and one that would advance both parties agendas – reaching and winning the Super Bowl.

“We had a great visit with him,” Childress said. “Obviously he’s been in one place for a good, long period of time and had a great run. But he’s got some things left and one of the things that absent is an opportunity to win that ring and get it on his finger. He’s been close and I’m sure he’s looking for teams that he feels like have a chance to get him close again.

“I really look at it as a guy that if we were fortunate enough to get him, we would have a 1 and 1A. He understands that dynamic. But he can do all the things that he needs to do in this offense. “

The Cold Spring, MN native had an impressive 4-year career at the University of Minnesota, finishing with 220 receptions for 3,000 yards and 24 TDs in 41 games played. But his time playing college football didn’t come without adversity. Injuries slowed him in 2008 and ended his season in 2009 after just 5 games.

Click here to read what Decker and both Vikings Head Coach Brad Childress and VP of Player Personnel Rick Spielman had to say at Wednesday’s University of Minnesota pro day…

By Thursday evening, Childress and Spielman had moved on from the Gophers’ pro day and centered their attention of Tomlinson, as the 5-time Pro Bowler arrived in Minnesota to begin his visit with Vikings officials.

According to Judd Zulgad of the Star Tribune, Thursday evening’s activities included a dinner at a Minneapolis steakhouse where Tomlinson met with a bevy of Vikings representatives, including Childress, Spielman and even DT Pat Williams. Zulgad also caught up with LT to pick his brain about the idea of joining the Vikings.

Here is Zulgad’s Q&A with Tomlinson.

A few highlights of the Q&A include…

– Tomlinson said the Vikings are “right there” in terms of being on the verge of a Super Bowl, something that has eluded the future Hall of Famer, and that he thinks the Vikings have a good mix of veterans and young players in the locker room along with a great coaching staff and supportive environment.

– Although he was happy with what he’d heard to that point of his visit, Tomlinson indicated that today was also important because his decision on whether or not to sign with the Vikings was based on a feeling as much as what he heard.

– There have been questions as to whether Tomlinson would embrace his role on the Vikings as a complement to Adrian Peterson, but LT assuaged any concerns about that issue by saying he’s looking forward to that role.

– Tomlinson said that he can identify with what Peterson is going through as a young star in the NFL and that he could help him get through some of those issues “without any headaches.” He described the chance to play with QB Brett Favre as “unbelievable” and “incredible,” saying “Imagining him just throwing the ball to me out of the backfield or something like that, it would be something I can always remember and also tell my kids about.”

Considering that a lot of speculation has been circulating throughout different media outlets on the LT issue, I wanted to use this space to offer an objective opinion on the positives and negatives of the 9-year veteran joining the Vikings roster, if he does indeed agree to a deal in Minnesota…

– A good receiver out of the backfield: Tomlinson has posted over 50 receptions every season of his career except for last year, including a mind-blowing 100 receptions in 2003 with 725 yards receiving and 4 TDs.

– Sustainability issues: Tomlinson has carried the ball 2,880 times during his career.  Will the wear and tear on his body after nearly 3,000 carries limit his productivity in Year 10 of his career? In 2009, LT had a career-low in rushing attempts (223) and yards (730).

– Tough workload may be alleviated by secondary role: With the Vikings making it clear that Adrian Peterson will be their #1 back, Tomlinson would be able to keep his legs fresh by coming in for certain situations, such as obvious passing downs and 3rd down scenarios.

– Ego: Just last year Tomlinson proclaimed that he was a better back than Peterson because of his all-around capabilities. In a matter of just a couple of seasons, Tomlinson could go from the best RB in the NFL to not even being the best RB on his team.

– Mentor for Peterson: With 9 years of experience running the ball, Tomlinson could provide veteran leadership for Peterson and also for youngsters Ian Johnson, James Johnson and Albert Young.

Certainly, there are many more factors that will come into play during the Vikings talk with Tomlinson, but it will be interesting to see how team officials weigh-out the positives and negatives.

But both Vikings Head Coach Brad Childress and VP of Player Personnel Rick Spielman, while speaking with reporters at Wednesday’s University of Minnesota pro day, didn’t sound as if they were operating under such an assumption. While they are no doubt interested in the idea of adding Tomlinson to their roster (which is why they’re visiting with him), they’re just as insistent that they do their homework before making a decision.

“We’re just going through our process,” Spielman explained. “He was a guy out there that we felt was a viable option and we’ll go ahead and have him come in; we’ll visit with him and just see where things are. It’s just a normal process that we go through.”

Among the topics that will likely be addressed during Tomlinson’s visit, aside from money and length of contract, are surely Tomlinson’s specific role in the Vikings offense and as a veteran on a team that went 12-4 last year along the way to the NFC Championship Game.

“I think probably he’s coming in and touching and tasting us, and we’re doing the same thing to see where his mind’s at,” Childress, who talked to Tomlinson on Wednesday, said. “It’s a little bit of both. Does the situation fit him? I’m sure he wants to know what our vision is for him. And then our sense for him. Will he fit? From a mindset standpoint, from a physical standpoint, from a system standpoint.”

Childress indicated that part of the Vikings decision-making process as it relates to Tomlinson is to turn to resources who might be familiar with the 5-time Pro Bowler, such as LB Ben Leber (a teammate of LT’s in San Diego), G Steve Hutchinson (who shares an agent with LT) and also Chargers Head Coach Norv Turner.

Both Childress and Spielman commented on Wednesday that LT has gas remaining in the tank, even after a 9-year career in San Diego that saw him carry the ball 2,880 times. If both sides like what they here this week while meeting with one another, LT may be driving the rock with Peterson for the Vikings in 2010.

As we stated earlier today, the NFL Scouting Combine is now fully in the rear view mirror and that means that colleges and universities across the country will be holding their pro days. At these pro days workouts, much of the on-field work is the same as the on-field work the players do at the Combine. A big difference between the pro days and the Combine, though, is that the pro days give players who weren’t invited to the Combine – or who didn’t workout at the Combine – a chance to work out in front of NFL coaches and scouts.

In addition, NFL coaches and scouts are also cross-checking some of the information they’ve already gathered on the players they’ve already seen.

“It verifies the numbers that we’re looking at,” Vikings VP of Player Personnel Rick Spielman told reporters today. “Some of these kids were at the Combine…trying to see if they improve their numbers from the Combine. The guys that didn’t go to the Combine, you get an opportunity to see them and we brought a lot of our coaches down as well to put those guys through drills.”

But like the Combine, these pro days aren’t just about how the players perform on the field.

“When you get to these schools – because I’ll be out the next couple weeks at a lot of these pro days -this is when you get an opportunity to grab the coaches when they’re not as stressed or time constrained as during the season,” Spielman explained. “So you get an opportunity to visit with them. You get an opportunity to visit with the kids again one more time.”

Once the pro days are complete, NFL coaches and personnel departments will sift through the information and numbers to continue their evaluation of this year’s draft class. While the importance of the Combine and pro days should not be overlooked, Spielman also referenced another important aspect to evaluating a draft class.

“Again, they’re coming out here to perform and try to improve their numbers,” Spielman said, “but it’s always going to come down to what you’ve seen on tape in the fall.”

We have more information to share with your from today’s pro day at the University of Minnesota, including comments from Spielman and Vikings Head Coach Brad Childress about Gophers WR Eric Decker, LaDainian Tomlinson’s scheduled visit to Winter Park tomorrow and more Vikings issues. So stay tuned…

Pro days are basically another chance for the incoming draft class to show NFL coaches and scouts that they have what it takes to play at the next level. Many of the workouts and drills the athletes participate in are similar to those that are held at the Combine, the difference is that the athletes are working out in a familiar environment with familiar coaches and teammates.

Generally, athletes are expected to perform better at their pro days than they did at the Combine, although some players will parlay a strong Combine performance with another impressive outing at their pro day.

Anyway, the University of Minnesota will hold its pro day today and I’ll be heading to campus in a few minutes to check it out. I’ll have a report later today when I return to Winter Park.

In the meantime, don’t forget to follow us on Twitter – @VikingsFootball. If I have any special notes or observations during today’s event I’ll be tweeting.

Jim Trotter of SI.com reported midway through Tuesday afternoon that Tomlinson, a 5-time Pro Bowler and 1-time NFL MVP, will visit the Vikings at Winter Park on Thursday. A versatile and experienced RB, Tomlinson has the skill set that would make him a fitting complement to starter Adrian Peterson.

We have not confirmed this report but wanted to mention it in this space, especially because we addressed the topic of replacing Taylor earlier today. We’ll provide updates on this issue when they become available to us.