Tarvaris Jackson

Jackson is competing with Terrell Pryor to back up Russell Wilson. Jackson is more steady, but Pryor's potential dual-threat ability has the Seahawks' attention. Jackson needs a strong training camp to hold off Pryor, but he has the edge because he is more reliable. The team likely won't keep three quarterbacks.

Jackson is a long shot to see the field in 2013, as both Kevin Kolb and EJ Manuel are expected to be ahead of him on the depth chart.

After his 2010 season ended early due to a turf toe issue, Jackson, who was once considered Minnesota's QB of the future, signed with the Seahawks to compete for a starting job. Jackson still has a strong arm and great athleticism, and thanks to his knowledge of new offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell's system, he should wind up as the starter in Seattle over the likes of Charlie Whitehurst and Zach Lee.

If Favre does retire or has trouble returning from his late-May arthroscopic ankle surgery, Jackson is an interesting speculation, given the supporting cast, his ability to score with his feet and the growth he had demonstrated when we last saw him in 2008 — eight TDs in his last four games against just one pick with a YPA of 8.2. Plus in one of those games, he rushed for 76 yards on eight carries.

Between the acquisition of Sage Rosenfels and the flirting with Brett Favre, it’s clear the Vikings brass doesn’t believe in Jackson. Last year’s stats offer hope. Jackson tossed eight TDs in his last four games against just one pick and had a YPA in those games of 8.2. And in one he rushed for 76 yards on eight carries. Plus, Jackson has shown progress each year and still only has played in 26 games. We need about 40 starts before we can say with any certainty that the QB we see is what we’ll get. However, it doesn’t matter what we think. It matters what the Vikings think, and obviously they don’t think that Jackson is developing, or they wouldn’t have an open QB competition with a guy like Rosenfels, who is really a journeyman/backup type.

Head coach Brian Childress refused to commit to Jackson as the 2008 starter early in the offseason, but only Gus Frerotte was on the roster at press time, and Jackson was better than Frerotte last year (damning with faint praise, for sure). Jackson, definitely a slash player with his running ability, did improve his YPA from 5.9 in 2006 to 6.5 last year. That's not insignificant. And the number will be even better if he can settle down on first down, where he had a pitiful 6.2 YPA (the average is 7.3). But the bigger problem for Jackson is going to be Adrian Peterson, who will get the bulk of action as the team gets closer to the goal line and really saps any value that Jackson could have as a goal-line runner. The Vikings made Bernard Berrian the fourth highest paid receiver in the NFL this offseason, and second-year man Sidney Rice is an intriguing talent. But given the lack of a firm commitment from the coaching staff and the Vikings desire to win in an old-school, black-and-blue way, Jackson’s a risky choice as anything but a lottery ticket reserve QB for your team.

He was predictably a disaster last year, averaging 5.9 yards per attempt and converting a league-low 23 percent of attempts into first downs. But you have to put that sample size under the electron microscope to see anything. We’ll be able to draw a definitive conclusion this year because he’s the unchallenged No. 1 heading into camp. Jackson projects as a great runner, if you’re feeling lucky. But the lack of quality at receiver and the two-headed backfield screams caution in banking on anything from Jackson in 2007. You can take a flyer in keeper leagues, if the price is right.

The Vikings took a lot of flack trading away two third-round picks to move up and take Jackson, who many projected to be available draft’s second day. Still, the Vikings like his arm and athleticsm and the coaches say he made a strong impression in spring minicamp. He’s raw after playing at a small school, but could win the No. 2 QB job with a strong preseason.