Vikings Miss on Routt, Could Be Targeting Carr

When former Oakland Raiders cornerback Stanford Routt was given the boot almost two weeks ago, the Minnesota Vikings inquired about the possibility of bringing in the veteran to shore up their defensive secondary.

Their interest, however, wasn't enough to entice Routt to come to Minnesota.

Today, Routt agreed to a three-year, $19.6 million deal with the Kansas City Chiefs. The deal includes a $4 million signing bonus, adding to the $5 million in guaranteed money that the Raiders still owe him.

The fact that the Vikings missed out on Routt might just be a blessing in disguise, though.

With the Chiefs now adding Routt to their secondary, the chance of them moving on without cornerback Brandon Carr just increased. Considered one of the better zone cornerbacks in the NFL, Carr is set to be a free agent. There was a possibility that the Chiefs could have used the franchise tag on Carr. However, with Routt now on the team, they'll be much more likely to franchise wide receiver Dwayne Bowe. If Bowe gets the tag, Carr will be left to test the free agency waters on Mar. 13.

The Vikings are in desperate need of some help in the defensive secondary, and Carr could be the perfect answer to their problems.

If the Vikings managed to land Carr, they could bump aging cornerback Antoine Winfield down to the nickel spot and hopefully find another talented cornerback via the 2012 NFL Draft. Third-year cornerback Chris Cook is still on the roster, but his future is uncertain while still awaiting his trial for counts of battery. Cedric Griffin is coming off of a down year and could soon be headed out of town. The rest of the Vikings corners are young, inexperienced and unprepared to handle a starting role.

The only thing that could make landing Carr tricky is the price tag that he will undoubtedly be wearing. Not only will his talent level demand a big salary, but interest from other teams such as the Tennessee Titans could result in a bidding war.

Carr would provide an immediate upgrade to the Vikings secondary. There are, however, other fish in the free agency pool that could have a similar impact.

We'll find out in mid-March whether the Vikings have the guts and green to get the job done.

Gil Alcaraz IV is a life-long follower of the Minnesota Vikings and the founder of TheVikingDen.com. For more Vikings/NFL coverage, follow him on Twitter or "like" The Viking Den on Facebook.

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.