Wilf wants stadium to get attention

Responding to news of a likely delay in his stadium push, Vikings owner Zygi Wilf said Tuesday the NFL is taking an increasing interest in the issue and urged legislators to give his plan at least some consideration in 2008.

In meetings with NFL executives Monday, state leaders said they are unlikely to approve Wilf's plan for a $954 million Minneapolis stadium until 2009 at the earliest. That timetable leaves open the possibility that the Vikings' lease at the Metrodome will expire before a new stadium can be built, making the Vikings a candidate for relocation when the lease ends in 2011.

In a statement, Wilf said: "The seriousness of the stadium issue has risen to a priority at the league level. The Vikings and the NFL understand and respect the priorities and pressing issues facing the state, but at the same time, the stadium issue needs to be resolved in the near future."

Wilf said he is "confident" that a solution will be reached but made clear he wants to begin laying groundwork before 2009. "We look forward to advancing the stadium issue during the 2008 legislative session," he said.

The Vikings' estimated price tag for the facility is based on a 2008 approval. A year's delay likely will push costs beyond the $1 billion mark.

Vikings coach Brad Childress and Detroit Lions coach Rod Marinelli both downplayed an unusual scene that took place in the third quarter Sunday at the Metrodome. With the game delayed by a replay challenge, upward of 50 Vikings and Lions players carried on what appeared to be friendly conversations on the field.

Traditionally, professional sports have frowned upon in-game fraternization -- in part to avoid a perception that the players are not earnestly competing with each other. But neither Childress nor Marinelli saw anything objectionable Sunday.

"They know each other more than just between the lines," Childress said. "A lot of these guys compete against each other. They [also] see each other in the offseason. It didn't bother me."

Said Marinelli: "I have been in this league a long time and I have seen it for years. ... That's the league. They know each other and whatever. To me, it is when the ball is snapped, from start to finish, which I am really concerned about."

Childress recalled one game where, as an assistant coach in Philadelphia, he found himself standing next to Washington cornerback Shawn Springs.

"I have had Shawn Springs stand next to me and ask me how my kids were," Childress said, "or try to listen to a conversation with the quarterback, and [ask], 'How's your dad doing?'"

Laughing, Childress added: "[I would say], 'Why don't you get the hell out of here and go stand back out in your huddle?"

The Vikings have gained 10 or more yards on a play 167 times this season, which ranks No. 4 among NFL teams. The other leaders are Dallas (186), Cleveland (173) and New England (170).