MANKATO, Minn. -- It wasn't until 3:05 p.m. CDT that Keith Millard knew he'd be a member of the Minnesota Vikings -- and he wishes the decision would have been made about two hours later.
This way, Millard, the Vikings' No. 1 draft pick in 1984, would have missed a grueling practice. Instead, the defensive end cleared USFL waivers in time Tuesday to work out in 90 degree heat.
Nevertheless, he said he was happy to be in the NFL.
'The whole time I was in the USFL, I felt I should've been in the NFL. I have so many friends in the NFL,' the 6-foot-5, 260-pound defensive end said. 'But it was only for one season, I made good money, the Jacksonville fans were good and I didn't have any paychecks bounce.'
The Jacksonville Bulls released Millard on the condition he bypass a $150,000 deferred signing bonus, which he did. Nick Kish, vice president and player personnel director for the Bulls, had talked to Millard about switching According to agent Mike Blatt, Millard signed a 5-year, $1.82 million deal last week. leagues one week before the USFL regular season ended.
Millard rented a cheap apartment in Pullman, Wash., a town of 5,000, and headed for the weight room at Washington State once the USFL season ended to wait out the negotiations, which ended Sunday.
Although he was six days late in reporting to the Vikings, Millard arrived in time to help fill some gaps on the defensive line. Minnesota All Pro defensive end Doug Martin has been sidelined the last three days with back spasms while end Mark Mullaney has some aches and nose tackle Charlie Johnson is bothered by a sore neck.
Vikings coach Bud Grant would not speculate on how much Millard would play in Saturday's pre-season opener against Miami, weighing his decision on when the ex-Bull would recover from 'league' lag.
'He's had a month off. I think it's like going from New York to Hawaii -- it'll take a while for him to adjust,' Grant said.
Millard appeared fatigued at Tuesday's workout, falling down while trying to jump over tackling dummies and often resting on one knee. Once, Grant came over to tease Millard about looking for four-leaf clovers.
'I asked Mark Mullaney and he said (Grant) was only kidding,' he said.
Millard says he has no regrets about playing for the USFL and missing the Vikings' disastrous 3-13 season under rookie coach Les Steckel last year.
'I heard what happened under coach Les Steckel last year and after what I went through today, I wouldn't want to go through that with him,' he said.
Steckel, who ran a 'Marine camp' rather than a football camp, and Vikings' general manager Mike Lynn's reputation for being tight-fisted were both factors in Millard's decision to head south in 1984.
'I just felt that Mike Lynn wasn't offering me 13th pick overall money,' Millard said. 'I would've been a fool to sign. Les Steckel wasn't my kind of coach.'
But Steckel and Lynn aren't the only ones with bad reputations. The Bulls' Kish said Millard 'will be a great one if they can control him.'
'He's a free spirit. He needs to be disciplined. He's got a ton of raw talent. He'll be the best defensive end they've got. He'll be one of the best five or 10 in the NFL,' Kish said.
Millard, who had 12 sacks last season -- two less than league leader Dave Tipton of Arizona -- claims he's not a disciplinary problem on the field. He sprained his ankle the first week of Bulls' camp and instead of attending meetings, was in the training room trying to rehabilitate himself.
'I didn't understand (Bulls coach Lindy Infante's) rules that even if you were hurt, he still wanted you in meetings,' said Millard, who was suspended for one game because of misbehavior. 'I disagreed and it created a conflict.'
Grant did not appear worried about Millard's past -- only his future.
'We'll feed him, give him a good night's sleep and go at it in the morning,' Grant said.
