Last night’s trade of quarterback Sage Rosenfels and kick returner Darius Reynaud from Minnesota to New York left many around the league scratching their heads in amazement, including yours truly, as the loss of both players leaves the Vikings thin at best on the depth chart.

It was only a matter of time before someone got wise and made the Vikings an offer they couldn’t refuse for Rosenfels, given his stellar play this pre-season, but the inclusion of Reynaud in the deal makes the deal much more inexplicable.

Reynaud had a clearly defined role in Minnesota as a special teams ace, returning kicks and providing a versatile weapon off the bench to use in key situations on offense. And with wide receiver Percy Harvin still experiencing difficulty with his migraine headaches, having a solid option to in the return game aside from him would seem to be vital for the Vikings this year.

Not having Reynaud on the field makes the Vikings weaker on multiple fronts, and his presence in the locker room will undoubtedly be missed, but there are players capable of filling his shoes this season.

As for Rosenfels, there was little doubt that Minnesota would seek to trade him away soon in an effort to gain a reasonable return on their investment and to eliminate any semblance of a quarterback controversy, as Rosenfels clearly outplayed second team quarterback Tavaris Jackson this pre-season.

That said, there are definitely question marks surrounding that portion of the deal right now as well, given his rocky relationship with head coach Brad Childress. ESPN’s Kevin Seifert spoke on that very subject at some length in his latest NFC North blog post, chastising Childress for his preferential treatment of Jackson to the detriment of the club as a whole.

The removal of Rosenfels from the picture leaves the Vikings exposed at the most position on the field, and while the quarterback spot is much less troublesome on paper given Brett Favre’s legendary ability to avoid injury and stay on the field, placing all of their eggs in his basket is a risky move at best.

Favre’s age only increases the likelihood of him suffering a serious injury, and if he goes down, Minnesota has to rely on the inconsistent play of Jackson, who has yet to live up to the billing given to him by Childress. Behind Jackson is rookie Joe Webb, who is nowhere close to being ready to step into a starting role, despite his outstanding talent and athleticism, making it imperative that Jackson stays healthy all year long.

It’s likely that Minnesota will claim they were simply trying to improve the club long term with this deal, and many fans will agree that a move had to be made, but it’s hard to understand the motivating factor in doing right now, given the risks outlined above.

All will be forgotten though if Favre keeps himself upright and free from serious injury, guiding the Vikings through their challenging schedule and deep into the post-season, so for now, the outcome of this trade is still up in the air.

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