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Vikings Stadium Update: Team Can't Move So State Doesn't Care About New Venue

The Minnesota Vikings will likely go another year without any kind of plan on the table whatsoever. While it's unlikely that the team actually moves forward with potential plans to relocate for 2012, they have until Wednesday to notify the league. It's not likely that they're able to get something done in that regard though, as there doesn't seem to be anywhere for them to go.

This realization that there isn't much of a threat of the Vikings actually leaving has basically made the legislators completely ignore the situation for the time being. Despite the fact that important stadium issues can still be worked on, it looks like everybody is happy to put it on the back-burner, as they have for the last decade. The Star Tribune has a quote from Representative Ryan Winkler that is illuminating in that regard:

"The Vikings have tried to create the impression, through somewhat subtle threats, that they could move," said Rep. Ryan Winkler, DFL-Golden Valley. "But ... I think there's a growing realization that the Vikings have nowhere to go."

In other words, the Vikings are bluffing so the state can do whatever they want to them. The article also includes a quote from Governor Mark Dayton, in which he is already talking about next year, which is just about the closest thing you can get to him saying "the stadium plans are done this year. It's not going to happen."

While it's true that there are still some things that can be decided, it would likely mean the Vikings moving ahead with a proposal that they're not fond of so they can finally get a new place to play sooner rather than very much later. Really, the Vikings deserve better than that, but that's how it is. If nothing is done over the next week to two weeks, expect nothing to get done this year.

For more on the Minnesota Vikings, go to Daily Norseman. You can also get all of your professional football news over at SB Nation's NFL hub.

Photographs by Micah Taylor, clairity, and Fibonacci Blue used in background montage under Creative Commons. Thank you.