Tapeh had procedure just before he signed

Vikings coach Brad Childress said Monday that he recently learned fullback Thomas Tapeh had a procedure done on one of his knees a few weeks before the team signed him as a free agent this offseason.

Childress described the procedure as a "cleanup." Tapeh, who was inactive for the fourth consecutive game Sunday against the Detroit Lions, declined an interview request Monday. Asked about his knee as he was leaving the locker room, Tapeh said he did not have "surgery" and reiterated what Childress said, that it was only a "cleaning up."

In any event, Childress made it clear he wishes he had that information sooner.

"I think his knee bothered him a little bit when he came in here," Childress said. "He did have some -- which I am just finding out about now -- he did have an offseason cleanup in February, which I wish he would have shared with us. But I think he's fully healthy right now."

Healthy but not playing. The Vikings signed Tapeh, the formers Gophers and St. Paul Johnson athlete, to a five-year, $6 million contract with $1.2 million guaranteed this offseason with the idea that he would replace Pro Bowl fullback Tony Richardson. Tapeh started the season opener against Green Bay, but he lost his job to Naufahu Tahi and has been inactive the past four games.

Childress reiterated Monday that Tahi is ahead of Tapeh because of his contributions on special teams. Tahi plays on three special-teams units and is more versatile in that phase than Tapeh.

"Thomas and I had a good talk about that last week," Childress said. "It's not a matter of his toughness or his want-to. He's a team guy all the way. ... Those guys [play a] high-contact position, so I would think that we will need him somewhere in the next 10 games."