If the Vikings plan to get the most out of quarterback Brett Favre, they’ll need one of his favorite targets from 2009 to be on the field, healthy, and prepared.
Sidney Rice, who remains on the PUP list with a hip injury, is making progress in at least two of those areas.
According to Chip Scoggins of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Rice said Monday that he has suffered “a couple of setbacks” during camp, but that he began cutting during individual work on a side field.
“Today was the first day we did some of the cutting stuff,” Rice said. “The straight line is not bad at all. It’s cutting, bending, coming in and out of breaks. It felt pretty good. I’ve just got to see how my body reacts to it.”
But at a time when some are wondering whether Rice’s recovery is being delayed by his contractual status, he doesn’t sound like a guy who wants to be missing preseason games.
“It would be great to play in a preseason game,” Rice said. “Preseason is not all bad like everybody thinks it is. You need that rhythm, you need to get the timing right with your quarterback, pick up protections and things like that and you want to be on the same page with your teammates.”
Then again, maybe Rice has simply learned from his quarterback the art of planting the seed for future excuse-making.