Vikings likely will play it safe with QB Jackson

Vikings quarterback Tarvaris Jackson has made progress in his recovery from a sprained right medial collateral knee ligament, but there appears a good chance he will be held out of Saturday's preseason game against Pittsburgh.

Coach Brad Childress, who put his team through a half-hour walk-through Thursday afternoon, admitted he must be careful in deciding on whether to play Jackson.

"There are a couple of things he can do and a couple of things he can't do," said Childress, who has not closed the door on Jackson playing. "I do not want to insinuate with him that he's not a tough guy or has to play injured. He has to have some of his faculties. He's got to be able to protect himself.

"That's usually the biggest factor that we look at. Are we putting a guy in peril? Does he have to play the game a different way? Can he protect himself? We just need to make sure that he can."

Jackson, who declined an interview request after practice, was injured in the first quarter of the Vikings' 23-15 victory on Saturday in Baltimore. He took part in individual drills during practices on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday but did no 11-on-11 work.

If Jackson can't play, veteran Gus Frerotte will get the start. Frerotte has completed eight of 16 passes for 129 yards and a touchdown with a 98.2 quarterback rating in parts of two exhibition games. Frerotte was wearing a wrap on his left knee Thursday during the portion of the walk-through the media was allowed to attend.

The benefit to having Jackson on the field Saturday is that the third game of the preseason serves as the final dress rehearsal before the regular season for many teams. Starters often play into the third quarter.

The Vikings' preseason finale -- which will be Thursday in Dallas -- will feature only a brief appearance by the regulars.

Jackson, who missed time last season because of a groin strain, a fractured finger and a concussion, has looked very solid in his two preseason starts, completing 15 of 22 passes for 200 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions and a 127.1 rating.

"He's made progress; there's no question," Childress said of Jackson's recovery. "You would like to see that next step in progress, but you have to balance that with is it the prudent thing to do and can he protect himself? I'm not going to sacrifice one for the other."