As of the end of the 2008 season, the Vikings starting safety Darren Sharper has become an unrestricted free agent.

Sharper had somewhat of a down year last season as his stats dipped a little from previous years. While Sharper was still up there in tackles, his pass defending skills appeared to drop a little.

Since Sharper joined the Vikings in 2005, he has been averaging more than five interceptions, and nearly seven passes defended each year.

In 2008, the aging Sharper only had one interception, and five passes defended. Sharper appeared to have lost his play-making ability in the secondary, in fact teammate Madieu Williams even had more interceptions in only nine games last season.

Sharper’s contract expired after the Vikings lost to Philadelphia in the playoffs, and the 33 year old safety appears to be looking for a new job in 2009. It seems that the Vikings will not resign the four time All-Pro safety, and instead will let his vacancy be filled by promising young safety Tyrell Johnson, last year’s second round draft choice.

With Sharper in the free agency market, more than a few teams will likely offer the four time Pro Bowl safety a chance to start for them. A rumor that recently surfaced was that the New Orleans Saints, may just be one of those teams.

The Saints appear to be looking for some help in the secondary as they ranked 23rd against the pass in 2008, and fourth year safety Josh Bullocks did not look like the answer for the Saints last season. Sharper, the current active career interceptions leader, would more than likely bring some life to the Saints’ safeties whose starters only notched one total interception in 2008.

While the Vikings could still look to sign a safety in the offseason, it will likely be someone who would take a smaller salary than Darren Sharper would want.