The Minnesota Vikings will continue with their plans to fill their void at middle linebacker with in-house candidates.
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The Vikings won't chase former Chicago Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher, at least for now, Vikings coach Leslie Frazier said Wednesday morning on "NFL AM."
"Brian has been a great player in our league for a long, long time," Frazier said. "He was a thorn in our side for many years. At this point, we want to look at the guys on our roster, give them a chance to compete for the middle linebacker position, then we'll see where it takes us."
The Vikings were a reported destination for Urlacher because of the perceived need at middle linebacker. However, as Frazier confirmed, they plan on giving Erin Henderson every opportunity to lock down that position after shifting him from the outside.
Fourth-round pick Gerald Hodges might be a candidate to replace Henderson at weak-side linebacker, as the Vikings coaching staff plans to give its rookies a shot to win a starting job, Frazier added.
Speaking specifically about his first-rounders -- defensive tackle Sharrif Floyd, cornerback Xavier Rhodes and wide receiver Cordarrelle Patterson -- Frazier said all will have a chance to start.
"There is enough competition on our team that they don't have to come in and start right away," Frazier said. "But if that were to happen, it would be a good thing for our team. I think each one of them will have a chance to compete to start."
Follow Kevin Patra on Twitter @kpatra.
