From KFAN.com

Winter Park was greeted by a sea of reporters on Thursday, most of whom buzzed about the latest Brett Favre locker room division reports. A “schism,” as ESPN’s Adam Schefter describes it.

Even though nearly every local beat reporter has written and/or reported over the last two days that no locker room rift exists (see: Pioneer Press, Viking Update, Star Tribune), the national perception remained the same heading into Thursday.

The player perception, however, was different.

“Uh oh! There’s a schism in the camera crew!” joked punter Chris Kluwe during individual drills.

“Schism! Schism!” yelled linebacker Chad Greenway as he walked toward the locker room.

“A schism is blocking the door!” shouted long snapper Cullen Loeffler as he left practice.

Jared Allen, when greeted by a mob of reporters, also spoke up.

“I’m not taking any schism questions because it’s a bunch of [expletive].”

And then there’s mild-mannered safety Madieu Williams.

“Brett has fit in great. He’s one of the guys. Everybody has welcomed him with open arms. He’s fit right in. He’s been a great locker room guy.”

How many more players need to be stacked on non-schism side?

“I have no idea what [schism] means,” Favre said. “I’m assuming it’s controversial.

“You guys have to keep stirring the pot, I guess, so somebody’s got to make up a story like that. I can assure you, I don’t think anybody in that locker room, me included, would use that word. We’d probably come up with something a little different. You guys have to come up with something a little more locker room-related.”

Of course, as reporters left the practice field and headed back to the media room, Kluwe threw yet another zinger.

“There’s a pretty big schism in the parking lot. Don’t trip!”

If the quarterback competition still involved only Tarvaris Jackson and Sage Rosenfels, Schefter and Mike Florio’s reports of locker room division (and “schisms”) wouldn’t even scratch the surface of relevance.

Are the reports incorrect? Not necessarily. But they are hardly newsworthy. If the Vikings weren’t projected to make a deep run in the NFC, and if Brett Favre wasn’t the quarterback, none of this pseudo-controversy would exist.

What about the Jets? Is it possible a “faction” of that locker room would rather see Kellen Clemens start over Mark Sanchez? Almost certainly. But where’s the story? Same for Detroit. Members of the Lions’ locker room probably side with both Matt Stafford and Daunte Culpepper. But their “schism” won’t register on the radar.

The headline might as well read, “Breaking News: 80 Men May or May Not Agree 100% on Everything.”

The next question, then, would be, “So, what?”

And that’s where this non-story can be put to rest. The key veterans on this team have all spoke up over the last three days – to KFAN, to the Pioneer Press, to the Star Tribune, to Vikings Update, to the Associated Press – and said no division exists in the locker room. Is it possible some players have more faith in Tarvaris Jackson? Possibly, and probably. Does that mean the locker room is divided?

Absolutely not.

As far as fitting into the locker room, Favre characterized it as “a work in progress.”

“To be here eight, nine days, whatever it’s been, I’d be a fool to sit here and tell you I’ve won everyone over in the locker room, and that’s not what I’m trying to do,” Favre said. “I was brought in here to help this team win, not to make friends, even though I felt like that’s an easy thing for me to do. Once again, I will continue to work on that part of it. I think my experience can only go so far on the field, but it can pay huge dividends off the field and in the locker room, how to adjust. You know what? You’ve got to be yourself, and I’m pretty content with my personality. I think it’s able to fit in with just about everyone.”

Moving forward, the only way division will exist is if the Vikings start losing football games. End of story. There are too many hungry veterans to let drama creep in before games are decided between the white lines.

Notes

- As Favre alluded to, it’s highly unlikely – based on reaction Thursday – that any player would describe their own locker room by using the word “schism”. Therefore, any anonymous source that spoke on behalf of the Vikings locker room regarding “division” was probably an outsider of some sort. Second or third-hand information.

- On Thursday morning, the Vikings released WR Glenn Holt. Holt was supposed to compete for a kick/punt return job, but after the Vikings drafted Percy Harvin, Holt’s chances of earning a roster spot decreased significantly.

- After taking a few reps during practice on Wednesday, WR Bernard Berrian (hamstring) was back mixing in on Thursday. It looks more and more like Berrian may suit up on Monday night.

- Favre and offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell have spent the last two or three nights watching film until 10:00 p.m. at Winter Park.

“We’ve watched tape from last year, watched some tape from training camp, some plays that are going in, some plays that are already in, some plays maybe that I already know but where I’m trying to adjust to how Percy runs a corner route as opposed to the next guy,” Favre said. “How [TE Visanthe Shiancoe] runs a crossing route as opposed to Bubba Franks. To me, that’s the most important thing. It’s good that terminology and the plays are the same. The big difference is there’s a guy behind me that runs pretty good.”