Spielman hints that Brian Robison will be back in 2016, praises Chad Greenway again

INDIANAPOLIS — General manager Rick Spielman just left the podium here at the NFL scouting combine a little bit ago. It was the second time today and the third time in the past six days that Spielman has spoken with us, so needless to say, we are running out of things to talk about.

Spielman did say something that caught my attention in his afternoon podium session. Asked about veteran defensive end Brian Robison, who has a significant salary cap figure for 2016, Spielman hinted that Robison will be back with the team this upcoming season.

"Brian played, we thought, very well for us," Spielman said. "I think he still has a lot of play in him. How his role increases or decreases, that will be determined as we go through training camp and this offseason. But he still is not only a valuable football player for us, but extremely valuable from a leadership standpoint."

After the 2015 season ended, Robison acknowledged that his future with the Vikings was uncertain and said he hoped to stick around. It sounds like he will get his wish, but it is unclear if the Vikings will approach him about a pay cut. He has two years left on his contract.

Spielman was also asked about Chad Greenway, who is set to become a free agent, and praised the veteran outside linebacker for his leadership.

"We talked about guys on our football team that still can play the game and contribute to us winning, and Chad showed that last year even though his role was reduced," Spielman said. "But that leadership, you can't put enough emphasis on that, especially when you have a young ball club."

He also made a point to bring up wide receiver Mike Wallace, who could be a salary cap casualty, when talking about veteran leaders. Both Spielman and coach Mike Zimmer have had plenty of praise for Wallace, but we'll see if they actually keep him around with his $11.5 million salary for 2016.