When Daunte Culpepper’s agent asked the Minnesota Vikings for a new and improved contract for his client late last week, it must have been hard for the folks in the front office to muffle their laughter. Never mind that Culpepper’s contract still has seven years on it and he received an $8 million raise six months ago. What really must have turned the execs’ faces purple was the nerve. Culpepper had an abysmal season in 2005, throwing six touchdowns and 12 interceptions before being lost for the season in the seventh game with a serious knee injury that might not even be healed in time for the start of the 2006 season. On top of that, his backup, veteran Brad Johnson, made him seem utterly expendable during the season’s final 10 weeks by winning seven of his starts. Meanwhile, Culpepper was busy pleading not guilty to indecent conduct charges after a wild boat party embarrassed the franchise.

If Culpepper, who has since fired his agent, seriously believes he deserves a new deal, the smart move for the Vikings would be to trade him. As Terrell Owens showed the Philadelphia Eagles, no matter how much talent a player has, if he has a negative attitude toward his contract and the franchise, his team is better off without him.

No one learned that lesson better than new Vikings head coach Brad Childress, whose confrontations with Owens as Philadelphia’s offensive coordinator precipitated the receiver’s departure from the Eagles. Childress is known as a disciplinarian, and reports out of Minnesota suggest that he and Culpepper have gotten off on the wrong foot. Culpepper rejected the Vikings’ request that he rehabilitate his torn anterior cruciate ligament in Minnesota, where the team’s medical staff could keep a close eye on him. And after talking to Culpepper for the first time, Childress was less than enthusiastic about their conversation, telling the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, “I probably wouldn’t characterize it as good or bad.”

It would be tempting for Minnesota to remember Culpepper’s MVP caliber 2004 season, dismiss his 2005 debacle as an aberration, and bring him back in 2006.But nothing Culpepper has done in his seven-year NFL career indicates he can achieve his 2004 greatness again. His 379 completions, 69.2 completion percentage, 4,717 yards, 8.61 yards per attempt average, and 39 touchdowns were all career highs, while his 11 interceptions were a career low. Players who have one season that significantly surpasses their past achievements rarely repeat the accomplishment.

Even if Culpepper’s knee has healed sufficiently by the time training camp begins, he’s unlikely to run as effectively in 2006 as he has previously. Culpepper has averaged more than 30 rushing yards a game during his career, and will struggle if he can’t rely on his legs to buy time for his arm.

Culpepper, who turns 29 on Saturday, takes more hits than just about any other NFL quarterback. Only Houston’s David Carr (49) was sacked more times in 2004 than Culpepper (46), and Culpepper’s propensity to hold the ball too long deserves at least as much blame as Minnesota’s offensive line does. The injured knee might have been just a taste of the injuries to come.

Moreover, Johnson’s success gives Minnesota leverage with Culpepper. After beginning the season with hopes of a conference title, the Vikings stumbled out to a 2-5 start with Culpepper under center. But after he went down, Johnson stepped in and tossed 12 touchdown passes and only four interceptions, and did it throwing mostly the kind of short, safe passes Childress prefers. The Vikings went 7-2 in Johnson’s starts, making the veteran the team’s unexpected savior. Johnson, of course, is 37, so he won’t be around for long, but he seems perfectly capable of holding down the quarterback position for a year while Childress grooms a successor.

That successor could be a draft pick acquired by trading Culpepper. The three first-round quarterback prospects – Texas’s Vince Young, USC’s Matt Leinart, and Vanderbilt’s Jay Cutler – will all likely be gone by the time Minnesota makes the 17th pick in the draft, but the Vikes could use Culpepper to trade up and draft one of them. That’s exactly what the Vikings did last year, obtaining the seventh pick in the draft from the Raiders by trading wideout Randy Moss and using the pick on Moss’s replacement, Troy Williamson.

If the Vikings go down that road again, they might have the same trading partner. Culpepper’s history with Moss makes him a good fit in Oakland, and the Raiders’ carefree attitude toward off field behavior (not to mention Kerry Collins’s 53.5 completion percentage this season) makes them a good fit for Culpepper. Another possibility is the Arizona Cardinals, whose coach, Dennis Green, drafted Culpepper in Minnesota. Both Oakland and Arizona have top 10 draft picks.

Teams considering a trade for Culpepper will face an interesting dilemma in deciding how much they’d give up for him. It’s almost unheard of for a three time Pro Bowl quarterback to be available when he’s still in his 20s. But few quarterbacks carry the baggage Culpepper does. Some team will probably allow the Pro Bowls to overshadow the baggage and make the Vikings an offer.

Minnesota has to pay Culpepper a $6 million bonus on March 14, so if he’s still on the team on March 15, he’s still in the Vikings’ long-term plans. But the plans for Culpepper have never looked this murky. When the Vikings drafted him in 1999, they got an athlete unique in NFL history. Never before had a man so big, strong, and fast played quarterback. A year ago, Culpepper looked like he had fulfilled his promise and was destined to lead the Vikings to the Super Bowl and himself to the Hall of Fame. What a difference a year (and 12 interceptions, a knee injury, gratuitous contract demands, and criminal charges) can make.

Mr. Smith is a regular writer for FootballOutsiders.com.