Tag Archives: brad childress

Childress never had fans’ backing from the beginning

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For a coach who improved his win total in his second, third and fourth seasons, it always seemed to be an uphill battle for Brad Childress in getting fan support.

Childress was fired Monday, one day after the Minnesota Vikings were throughly embarrassed and outplayed in a 31-3 loss to the Green Bay Packers.

Defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier will replace Childress on an interim basis.

I think the time was right for Childress to be let go. I had blogged a couple months ago about how clear it was that Chilly had lost his locker room to a degree that made it seem difficult for him to ever get it back.

He may have lost the locker room, but he never had the fan base.

I am left wondering why it seemed like from the beginning that Vikings fans were never pleased with Childress.

I think a lot of fans didn’t like the hire from the start, questioning whether or not Childress’ credentials made him suitable to be a head coach in the NFL. Being an offensive coordinator for Andy Reid doesn’t mean as much as it does under other systems since Reid is calling the plays.

I’m sure part of it too is that Chilly isn’t the most electric personality. Say what you want about Mike Tice, but Tice was as fan friendly as they come. I don’t know too many other head coaches that took questions directly from fans like Tice did on his weekly show. So in some ways, from a fan perspective, Tice left some big shoes to fill.

If you think I’m off-base in saying fans never liked Chilly, or if you have another reason as to why you didn’t, feel free to leave a comment. I’m interested in what Vikings fans have to say about it.

And if you’d rather look ahead, ESPN’s John Clayton has a list of potential replacements for Childress. Brian Billick is an intriguing name.

Gophers are good. Vikings are not.

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Yesterday, I encouraged Minnesota Vikings fans on Facebook to turn their attention to the University of Minnesota men’s basketball team. Now, I ask GSB (Goethe Sports Blog) Nation to do the same.

What do you want first? Good news or bad news? Let’s go with the bad.

The Vikings are not a good football team. I would say up until two weeks ago, fans were holding out hope they would get things turned around. But after back-to-back clunkers against division rivals Chicago and Green Bay, it’s pretty safe to say at 3-7 that the season is over.

To make matters worse, those Vikings fans ready to run head coach Brad Childress out of the snow-filled Upper Midwest will have to tolerate his presiding over the team for at least one more week, according to this story from the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

NOTE: Scratch that above statement. The Vikings fired Childress and promoted Leslie Frazier to interim coach a couple hours after I wrote this. I’ll leave the rest of the post as is for now.

After watching the Vikings the last couple of weeks, I’ve noted how surprisingly deep the Vikings problems run:

  • Any discussion about the Vikings starts and ends with Childress. I’ll never understand how their best player – Adrian Peterson – is limited to just 15 touches in a game like he was Sunday. And in his last three games, he hasn’t reached 20 carries in any of them. Their second-best player on offense – Percy Harvin – had just two catches for 12 yards. Chilly has to find a way to get Peterson and Harvin more involved.
  • Brett Favre is brutal right now. And unlike any other team that has a struggling QB, I don’t think Vikings brass is capable of sitting Favre. I know it’s hard to believe for some people, but I think we’re at the point where Tarvaris Jackson gives you the best possible chance to win. In an NFL that’s built to encourage offense, Favre has 10 TD passes and 17 interceptions. Wanna take a guess how many QBs with enough pass attempts to qualify for QB rating have thrown more picks than TDs this season? Just five. And three of the other four have the difference between the two categories at two or less. Favre, by the way, has the worst QB rating of any player who has played in more than six games this season.
  • The Vikings corners and safeties are having a really difficult time right now. Chris Cook, of course, got plenty of attention Sunday, and not just for his struggles on the field. He got into an argument with defensive end Ray Edwards on the sidelines that that TV cameras caught, too.

I could go on and on, but let’s get to those beloved Gophers.

The Minnesota men’s basketball team won the Puerto Rico Tip-Off championship Sunday. In back-to-back games, they beat the No. 8-ranked team in the country – North Carolina – and a Final Four participant from a season ago.

Sunday’s game was pretty well-played, much moreso than Friday’s win over the Tar Heels. West Virginia had a guard that in the first half couldn’t miss in Casey Mitchell, who finished with 27 points. Yet the Gophers built a one-point lead at halftime, then kept a slim lead throughout much of the second half.

I’ve heard the naysayers point out that the Mountaineers aren’t even ranked and that the Tar Heels hardly looked like the eighth-best team in the country. I have two points for you:

  • Aren’t teams looking bad against the Gophers a byproduct of Tubby Smith’s defensive system?
  • The Gophers are doing all of this without their best player in guard Devoe Joseph, who is serving an indefinite suspension for violating team rules.

The Gophers look really deep right now. They have had depth the last few years. But that depth is now starting to really develop.

Al Nolen was superb on Sunday. Still like to see him cut down on taking long-range shots, but he’s pretty adept at doing anything else.

Trevor Mbakwe is a man among boys down in the post. And Blake Hoffarber was doing his thing as well, knocking down open 3s, including a big 3-pointer in the final minute to give the Gophers a lead on Sunday. And South Dakota’s own Colten Iverson had a great game Sunday too.

Although I don’t really need to tell North Dakota State fans any of this. Bison fans can see for themselves what the Gophers look like on Wednesday when NDSU travels to Williams Arena. Should be fun.

Vikings show things could be worse. They could be the Cowboys.

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Forget about the quality of the opponent. Forget about the early turnovers. Forget about the special teams breakdowns.

Forget about the drama and Brett Favre‘s ankle and the Randy Moss mess.

I doubt Minnesota Vikings fans care about any of those things this morning. Sunday’s victory against the Arizona Cardinals gave them something to celebrate in a season where there has been little of that going on.

The 41-year-old QB – yeah, I think his age must be mentioned in the same breath as his name – Favre led the team on a comeback in the final minutes of regulation to get the Vikings into overtime, where Ryan Longwell‘s field goal put another one in the win column.

That kick also might have saved the job of head coach Brad Childress. ESPN.com was reporting Sunday morning that he could be fired after the game, even if the Vikings won. That hasn’t happened yet, though team owner Zygi Wilf hasn’t said much about the future of his head coach.

There are definitely some coach-owner issues at Winter Park. Wilf wasn’t pleased about Childress opting to waive Moss last week without consulting him. Wilf is supposed to be consulted on such moves. That stems from Childress’ decision a few years ago to cut receiver Marcus Robinson on Christmas, something that irked many of his players and drew criticism from fans and the media for the timing of the move.

Yes, there are problems still in Minnesota, problems that a win alone can’t solve.

But they pale in comparison to what’s going on with the Dallas Cowboys.

I have watched the bulk of the Cowboys’ last three games, and I’m not exaggerating when I say I don’t think I’ve seen an NFL team quit the way they have the last few weeks.

I’m not a big proponent of firing head coaches in midseason. Doing so is the equivalent of raising the white flag. But at this point if you’re the Cowboys and your season is pretty much over anyway, I think owner Jerry Jones needs to make the tough call.

It’s time to fire Wade Phillips, who hasn’t been seen yet at the team’s facilities today. The season can’t be salvaged, but to some extent, things need to be turned around for the sake of the fans, who throw down big bucks to watch that team in Jones’ behemoth new stadium.

It’s a difficult call, too, because I’m sure Jones wouldn’t mind firing all of the players. After all, they’re the ones doing the quitting. But we all know it’s easier to fire the coach, which could light a fire within some of those players.

It hasn’t been just the injury to QB Tony Romo that’s hurt the team the last few weeks. The defense is absolutely atrocious. That unit has given up the second-most points in the NFL – just one fewer point than Buffalo – and has been steamrolled the last three weeks by the Giants, Jaguars and Packers.

During the team’s five-game losing streak dating back to its bye week, the Cowboys have given up an average of more than 35 points per game.

It’s time for a change in Big D. It’s time to raise that white flag.

Moss fiasco will probably spell end to Childress era eventually

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There’s no way to sugarcoat it. The Randy Moss trade and eventual release was an embarrassing four weeks for the Minnesota Vikings franchise.

Vikings head coach Brad Childress took the blame for what happened with Moss, and rightfully so. But an admission of guilt probably won’t be enough to help Chilly save his job unless the Vikings can turn things around this season.

From Brett Favre being coaxed up here by three teammates to the early season flop and now with Moss, it’s been a humiliating year for the Vikings organizaton and its ownership.

Pretty wild poll on the Minneapolis Star Tribune site in the last couple of days about the future of Childress. More than 90 percent of fans feel Childress should be fired either right now or after the season. Although from what I’ve seen from Vikings fans on Facebook, I guess I’m not surprised by a number like that.

Weekly NFL picks update

Scored another 3-2 week again this past week picking the spread with NFL games. Got the Packers, Rams and Lions right. That puts me at 17-13 this season.

Vikings’ leadership void leads to team in disarray

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NOTE: Randy Moss was waived a couple hours after I wrote this. I’ll leave the post up, but readers should be made aware of the move.

After being fined $25,000 from the NFL for not talking to the media, Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Randy Moss had plenty to say after Sunday’s loss to the team he was traded from a few weeks ago, the New England Patriots.

He told the media that he won’t be doing any more interviews for the rest of the season. And if he does do one, Moss will ask questions to himself, then answer them himself.

This is just the latest chapter in a somewhat bizarre story that is Moss’ career. There’s the mooning, the “Straight cash, homey,” the traffic cop, and next is the self-interview.

But this is what the Vikings signed up for with Moss when they traded for the receiver a few weeks ago with hopes of bolstering their passing game.

It’s the same as saying Brett Favre playing with fractures in his ankle and a busted-up chin – and I have no doubt he will play in their next game – is what the Vikings signed up for when they flew three players to Mississippi to drag him back here.

This isn’t going to end well for the Vikings. It’s so blatantly obviously that head coach Brad Childress has ceded control of this team, and now the inmates are running the asylum.

Moss is spouting off to reporters about the coach’s decision-making. Favre breaks his ankle but refuses medical attention the week before. And how many times has Childress been quoted as saying he would pull or sit Favre? Everyone knows he isn’t going to do that. They didn’t bring Favre back to have him sit and watch.

It’s safe to say – barring a turnaround that seems unlikely but still possible in the beleaguered NFC North – that this will be Favre’s last year in purple. And it will be Moss’ last year, too.

But I’m not sure if getting rid of those two alone would be enough to change a locker-room culture that has seen the head coach be disrespected by two of the team’s key veteran players. I think Childress’ seat is getting red-hot, and it could be white-hot after a few more losses.

I’m just left wondering if the Vikings get through 13 games with a record of 4-9 or 5-8, what will happen? Will Favre keep playing if they’re out of the playoff chase? And what about Moss? We saw in Oakland how things can go if a team is struggling around him.

Childress hitched his wagon to Favre. For better or worse.

Favre, Childress could put end to consecutive games streak

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Brett Favre‘s consecutive games played streak of 291 is one of the craziest records in pro sports. In the hard-hitting world of the NFL, it seems hard to believe that a quarterback could survive that many seasons without missing a game. Few QBs last a whole season, let alone 18 of them.

But Favre and his ability to play through pain will be really put to the test this week, with the Minnesota Vikings preparing to face the New England Patriots on Sunday.

Favre has two different fractures in his left ankle, which were sustained during Sunday’s loss to Green Bay. When medical staff wanted to take a look at Favre after the play that is believed to be the cause of the fractures, he refused to be examined.

There’s not too many QBs in the NFL that would get away with that either. But Favre is a special case.

The question now becomes whether or not he or head coach Brad Childress will be able to end that consecutive games streak this week. Seems hard to believe that Favre should play Sunday, but crazier things have happened.

Childress said during his Monday news conference that sometimes you have to protect a player from himself. That is very true. The concussion issue in pro sports is a prime example of how coaches and medical personnel should be doing just that.

But I didn’t see anyone protecting Favre from himself after he suffered those fractures on Sunday, yet continued to play. I have a hard time believing anyone but Favre will step in now and stop him from playing again.

Childress can say what he’s supposed to say. But we all know that Favre isn’t your average quarterback, and this isn’t your average quarterback-coach relationship.

Vikings jumped the gun on Childress extension

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Happy time in the Land of Purple just keeps on rolling. This time, the beneficiary was head coach Brad Childress.

Thanks to an 8-1 start to the season, the Minnesota Vikings coach got a contract extension which will reportedly pay him between $4 and $5 million per year through 2013.

Without question, the Vikings are off to a great start. The Favre addition has been phenomenal. The selection of Percy Harvin in the draft has worked out great. Past acquisitions of Jared Allen and Visanthe Shiancoe have been as good as could be hoped for.

But I just don’t understand the rush. Why did Childress need an extension now? And Heaven forbid, what happens if he leads the Vikings to a 13-3 start and they lose their first playoff game? Vikings fans will be calling for his head.

Childress’ previous contract ran through the 2010 season. Those around me who support giving him an extension say that they need to do it now because, "What if the Vikings win the Super Bowl? He’ll price himself out of Minnesota." That sounds like a good problem to have. Even if he did, I think Vikings fans would gladly take a Super Bowl title, even if it meant losing their head coach after the following season.

One colleague of mine today said, "Well, (Chicago Bears coach) Lovie Smith makes $5 million a year, and he’s terrible."

The difference between Childress and Smith is that Smith got his extension after the Bears made a Super Bowl appearance. At the time, Smith in three seasons had led the Bears to a 29-19 record and won an NFC championship. He was coming off back-to-back double-digit win seasons. In the 12 seasons prior to his arrival, the Bears had just one season with 10+ wins.

Yes, contracts like that can blow up in your face, even if the coach has had success, which further illustrates why you don’t give a coach a big extension just because his team is off to an 8-1 start.

The Vikings would have been much better off waiting until Childress wins his first playoff game – something he has not done yet – before giving him a massive extension.

Childress extension seems premature

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The Minnesota Vikings are on a roll this season. They haven’t scored fewer than 27 points in a game, and many fans of the team think this is THE year for their Purple.

So it comes as no surprise that head coach Brad Childress is reportedly nearing a contract extension with the team, which is now 6-0 heading into Sunday’s game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Childress had his share of detractors coming into the season, and many of those voices can now be heard questioning why the Vikings would make such a move – assuming it’s true – right now.

I’m with those who think now is not the time. Childress had a 24-24 record coming into this season, and while the Vikings like great now, there’s still plenty of time for things to go sour. And really, what’s the hurry? His contract isn’t up until after next season.

There’s too many reasons not to give him an extension now. This team’s goal isn’t just to make the playoffs, and when you’re talking about a coach who has never won a postseason game, I’d hold off on any extension talk.

BACK ON THE AIRWAVES ON THURSDAY

I’ll be on "Sports Talk" again from 1-2 p.m. Thursday (techinically, today) on 970-AM WDAY. The plan right now was to talk to UND men’s hockey beat reporter Brad Schlossman of the Grand Forks Herald, who does a great job covering the Sioux. Other than that, things are up in the air. But, as always, tune in or call into the show at (701) 293-9000.

I will be joined by Heath Hotzler, Jeff Kolpack and Kevin Schnepf. We had a meeting to discuss the show and go over our Halloween costumes this year. We decided to record a video for Halloween. We needed a fifth, so I asked my buddy Minnesota Twins outfielder Denard Span to join us. I’ve always been a big supporter of the SpanMan. Check it out:

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