You can hear it in his voice, and in his words. Ryan Longwell isn't exactly thrilled the Vikings signed fellow kicker Rhys Lloyd to do a job share with him.

The plan goes like this: Lloyd will handle kickoffs, while Longwell will continue to take care of field goals and extra points. It's nothing personal between Longwell and Lloyd, a former University of Minnesota kicker whose NFL career has been spent as a kickoff specialist. He was with Carolina the past two seasons and led the league in touchbacks in 2008. Longwell discussed Wednesday how he would prefer to do all the kicking for the Vikings.

BS: Do you think you'll be even stronger because you don't have to kick off?

RL: I really don't know if I could be stronger. My leg always has been very strong when I've had to make big kicks late in the season. I've always done it, so I've always been able to gauge the wind in outdoor games by watching kickoffs fly. I just don't know what it's going to be like.

BS: So, could not kicking off put you at a competitive disadvantage because you're not gauging the wind?

RL: You can't get behind the ball and watch it fly unless you're out there. We'll see how it plays out.

BS: Do you take it as a little bit of a compliment that the Vikings are willing to carry an extra kicker because they want you to be the guy who kicks field goals and extra points?

RL: I don't know if that's the kind of compliment I want.


BS: Well, they could say, "We have competition for you, and if you don't win it ..."

RL: Well, I think you always have competition. I don't know if it's plus, minus or indifferent. I've never been down this road before. I feel like I'm at the peak of what I've done. Last year, kicking off, I thought I did exactly what our plan was and what they asked me to do.

BS: How was it presented to you when the team told you (Lloyd had been signed)?

RL: I was told, "We're going to make a run at Rhys and we'll see how that plays out."

BS: Did they put a positive spin on it and say, "You're the kicker but we want somebody to kick off."

RL: It was the day I got my roster bonus. It was kind of a yin-and-yang thing. We know at my position they don't carry a depth chart, so when there are two of you, a few more question marks arise.

BS: I asked you if it was a compliment to bring in someone to kick off. Now I'll ask you this: Was it an insult?

RL: I answered your question. I don't know if it's either or.

BS: Did you tell (Coach Brad) Childress or anyone on the team that this isn't something that thrills you?

RL: I've told them how I've approached kicking field goals in weather. They're well aware of how I approach it.

BS: There's no assurance the Vikings will even break camp with Lloyd.

RL: There's such a huge difference in the NFL nowadays between 80 guys (who go to training camp) and, not so much the 53 (on a roster), but the 45 active guys. You've got to make critical decisions on who's up and who's down (for a game).

BS: Did you feel you kicked off last season as well as you've ever kicked off?

RL: We went to a directional kickoff plan. Except for the Chicago game, where I just struggled with the footing out there, I felt I kicked off well. The ball was going where we were aiming. Teams couldn't get a read on us directional wise. I felt I did the job well. We were a top-10 kickoff coverage team for a big chunk of the year.

BS: Not that you needed it, but was this just another reminder that the NFL is a business?

RL: I've never gotten too comfortable in this business. I've always had perspective on it, which is a blessing. When they called and said they were going to make a run at Rhys, that's kind of what got me spurred on to do the U.S. Open thing (an avid golfer, Longwell made an unsuccessful attempt to qualify for the U.S. Open) and kind of look a little more toward the future, and when this game is long gone.