Vikings' Smith likely to play despite two citations

The Vikings appear unlikely to levy immediate disciplinary action against safety Dwight Smith, who was cited Thursday night for marijuana possession and obstructing traffic in downtown Minneapolis.

Smith practiced Saturday at Winter Park and is expected to be in uniform for Monday night's game against Chicago. Coach Brad Childress said he considers Smith's situation "under investigation" and added: "I am going to get all the facts before I pass any judgment on it."

The NFL can punish Smith under its personal conduct policy, but swift action is not expected. Pressed on Smith's availability for Monday night, Childress said: "Right now I'd anticipate him playing."

Smith did not make himself available for comment. Childress has spoken often about creating a culture of accountability since joining the Vikings in 2006. He has disciplined Smith with reduced playing time on three occasions during the past two years, and Thursday's infraction is potentially the most serious.

Childress, however, is taking a deliberate approach to an incident that was witnessed by at least one other prominent player, nose tackle Pat Williams. Saturday, Williams said "nothing happened" and suggested the citation was an attempt to distract the team from its current four-game winning streak.

"That's people on the outside trying to get in our locker room," Williams said. "We don't worry about that. We just worry about the Bears. That's where our focus is on right now."

According to a Minneapolis police report, Smith "admitted he just got done smoking some marijuana" when an officer approached his car outside Scheiks Palace Royale nightclub. Asked about that apparent admission, Childress said: "Until the legal process runs its course, I wouldn't know."

Childress briefly mentioned the incident during a team meeting Friday and said, "We've put it behind us."

"It's not a distraction," cornerback Antoine Winfield said. "Things happen. He'll handle that. Really, that doesn't have anything to do with us. The only thing is we'd miss him if he wasn't able to play, but that's still to be determined or whatever. So I don't think that will affect us."

Staff writer Judd Zulgad contributed to this report.