Daunte Culpepper long ago convinced coach Dennis Green that he could quarterback the Vikings this season.

As for the Minnesota fans, Culpepper won them over during an exhibition season in which he got better with every game.

Still, the Vikings' second-year quarterback isn't totally in the clear. He hasn't satisfied all of his critics just yet.

This is Minnesota, after all, and the toughest critics for any Vikings quarterback are often standing right in his own huddle.

Remember, it was wide receivers Cris Carter and Randy Moss who lobbied Green to dip into Red McCombs' vault and keep Jeff George after George personally rescued the team after a 2-4 start in 1999. However, after a preseason performance that was better than Green or anyone else had a right to expect, Culpepper is even winning that battle.

"In my eyes, he's gaining our confidence," Moss said recently.

Actually, there is only one way for Culpepper to completely gain the confidence of his teammates and satisfy the critics massing at the gates ready to rip Green should he fail. That's to continue doing in the regular season what he did in the preseason, which is show poise in the pocket, use his running ability judiciously and get the ball to Moss and Carter as much as possible.

As the only starting quarterback in the NFL who has never taken a regular-season snap, however, Culpepper is the league's mystery man. No one knows what he'll do once teams start getting judged on wins and losses instead of style points.

At least Culpepper got high marks during the preseason, a quantum leap over last year, when he was so inept he could barely take a snap. In the equivalent of two full games this summer, the 6-foot-4, 265-pounder completed 43 of 74 passes for 751 yards and five touchdowns. He was intercepted three times, but all three came in the first two games and all three were on tipped balls. He had five passes of 50 or more yards and almost half of his completions went to Moss and Carter, which made them very happy.

Culpepper also brought a new dimension to the Vikings offense -- a physical runner at quarterback.

"I think any questions about Daunte Culpepper have been answered," halfback Robert Smith said.

It's probably a bit premature to say that. After all, gaudy preseason passing statistics are often the result of short-handed defenses that don't bother to disguise their coverages. More than one young quarterback has seen preseason poise turn into regular-season rigor mortis when the other guys start moving faster and trying harder.

But at least Culpepper has shown he's not the bumbling disaster who played six snaps and attempted no passes as the No. 3 quarterback last year. He's proved that he won't automatically kill the Vikings' chances this year and that down the road he has the talent to be as good as the other four quarterbacks taken near the top of the 1999 draft.

"Daunte is a very accurate passer," Green said. "You give him the time to throw and he can throw the ball very well."

Green has much invested in Culpepper, whom he drafted with the 11th overall pick while others in the organization wanted defensive end Jevon Kearse. Many thought Green committed another blunder during the winter when he allowed George and Randall Cunningham to join other NFC contenders and annointed Culpepper as the starter.

But Green, who doesn't lack for confidence in his decision-making ability, remains steadfast in his belief that the Vikings' quarterback-friendly system and surrounding offensive talent will turn Culpepper into a playoff-caliber quarterback this year. In fact, he's banking his reputation -- some say his job -- on it.

Others aren't so certain. That's why no one outside of the organization has any idea whether the Vikings, who still have more offensive weapons than any team this side of the Rams, will finish first or fifth in the NFC Central. And despite Culpepper's success during the preseason, they still don't.

"There are still going to be people doubting," Culpepper said. "But hopefully by the end of the year there won't be any."