He showed up at training camp fat and out of shape and looked like Jabba the Hutt in a No. 74 jersey.
Apparently, playing on the Vikings' offensive line was less important to McKinnie than grazing at a buffet line.
So the Vikings cut him just one day after signing another left tackle, Charlie Johnson, who protected Peyton Manning's blind side the past couple of seasons.
If McKinnie had turned more of a blind eye to food and did some conditioning during the offseason, he likely would be a Viking. But based on his frequent Twitter posts chronicling his whereabouts, McKinnie was more inclined to go clubbing along Miami's South Beach and working on a music career.
McKinnie isn't a bad guy. Truth is, he comes off like a fun-loving kid. Trouble is, he liked fun and food more than playing football with the Vikings.
Of course, the Vikings didn't have to release him. They could have made him try working off the tonnage, and maybe that's what Brad Childress would have done. But it was a smart move by Leslie Frazier to unload the load. It sends a message to everyone on the team that Frazier expects players to be accountable for their actions and their weight, and he won't tolerate conditioning scofflaws. "
8-3-11 St. Paul Pioneer Press columnist Bob Sansevere
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