Vikings wide receiver Bobby Wade became known more for his words than his production this offseason.
First, he said that former Bears teammate Brian Urlacher called Jay Cutler a word that was also a portion of the name of a famous James Bond villianess. Then, Wade claimed that Tarvaris Jackson knew he would be the Vikings starting quarterback.
In both cases, Wade backed off his original statements, in the interests of harmony.
On Thursday, he backed down from his original 2009 salary in the interest of keeping his job.
(Some might call that a “pussy” move, but it’s a lot smarter than getting cut.)
Wade was scheduled to make $3 million, but that total will be cut in half, according to multiple published reports. There was speculation that Wade could be released after the team drafted Percy Harvin and Sidney Rice re-emerged in Minnesota.
Instead, the man who has led the Vikings in receptions the last two years will stick around as a veteran insurance policy behind his young teammates. Wade admits Harvin will take a lot of his work in the slot.
“It does cut into it, a little bit,” Wade said in August. “But we were carrying on a big load.”
This should free up Wade to take more snaps on the outside and on special teams, not to mention serve his unofficial role as team spokesman.