At 45 years old, Jeff George finally talked someone into letting him back into a camp.
Of course, this time, it’s as a guest-coach.
According to Tom Pelissero of 1500ESPN.com, George is hanging around this week because he’s trying to decide if he wants to get into the business.
“Just come and observe and take a look at coaching and see if that’s something he’s interested in doing,” Vikings coach Leslie Frazier said of George’s role.
The former No. 1 overall pick hasn’t thrown a pass in the NFL since 2001, but kept lobbying for jobs for nearly a decade afterward. He was with the Raiders briefly in 2006.
He played one of his 14 NFL seasons with the Vikings in 1999, taking them to the playoffs after starter Randall Cunningham was injured.
“We told our players just to be able to pick his brain, our quarterbacks, and talk with him about some of the things he saw as a young quarterback and what he saw as a veteran and just his maturation over the course of his career,” Frazier said. “He was a very good player for a long time, high draft pick, and I think he can really help our players with some of his background and his knowledge as well.”
Vikings quarterback Christian Ponder said “we haven’t talked a whole lot,” which is probably a good idea.
After a few days, George will probably convince himself he should be taking Ponder’s job.