As the Minnesota Vikings left the field in the first half of Sunday's lackluster contest against the Detroit Lions, Vikings fans reigned down boos on their Purple. Midway through the second half, chants of "Fire Childress!" could be heard booming through the Metrodome. With the type of anemic offense the Vikings have had over the last three years, there is good reason that Childress should be doing no more than updating his resume by now. On the other hand, the Vikes ARE 3-3 this season and tied with Green Bay and Chicago (next week's opponent) for first place in the hapless NFC North.
So, with this post, I would like to quickly give my opinion on what I would do with the whole Childress situation:
No matter the outcome of this Sunday's contest with the Bears, I would show Chilly the door for two reasons: First, a man once smarter than I (the all-knowing "anonymous") once said that the definition of insanity is doing the same action again and again and expecting different results. Essentially, that is what the Vikings have been doing with Childress since his hiring for the 2006 season. The Vikings have always been competitive enough to compete for a playoff spot, but time and time again the offense has underproduced. So yes, while we are 3-3 now, what are the chances to secure a playoff berth? So far this season, the Vikings have lost to the Packers, Colts, and Titans (all good teams). We have beaten the Panthers, Saints, and Lions (with only the Panthers victory being anything other than pure dumb luck). Looking ahead, I predict the Vikes to go 8-8 when the season comes to a close. Will that be enough to secure a playoff spot? Maybe. However, once in the playoffs, there is relatively no chance that the Vikings could muster enough offense to make a series Super Bowl run. So, even if the Vikings take over first place in the NFC North on Sunday, I would fire Childress, as the past two seasons and this one have shown us that no new offensive changes are in store for the team.
The second reason I am anxious to fire Childress is that Scott Linehan, recently canned by a sinking St. Louis Rams organization, is currently unemployed. You may remember Linehan as the only offensive coordinator that ever put together a system for the squirly Daunte Culpepper to succeed in (2003-2004). Once Linehan left, Pep was terrible in '05 before wrecking his knee. Linehan then went to Miami, where with QB Gus Frerotte (sound familiar?!) turned the Dolphins into a respectable offense working with primarily old farts and young whipersnappers. Sure, the brunt of the Rams' collapse this season was laid on him, but the Rams have been a competitive team for quite awhile and salary restrictions always come back to bit you eventually. I believe that Linehan could compose an offense that, at the very least, could score two touchdowns a game, with his eyes closed.
So, in my perfect world, I would fire Brad Childress regardless of our place in the standings Sunday. By making the early move, the Vikes could install Linehan at the helm over the bye week, in time for a game against the Houston Texans that the Childress-coached Vikings will be hard-pressed to win. Might the team squirm under having to adapt to a new head coach in mid-season? Perhaps. However, the chances of winning anything significant with Childress at the helm are quite slim. Remember, Childress was an impulse hire from the get-go. After Ziggy Wilf canned Mike Tice nearly before the goofy guy made it off the field in Week 17 of 2005, the Vikings top brass interviewed Childress (hilariously the former OFFENSIVE coordinator of the Philadelphia Eagles) right away. Despite wanting to interview other candidates, though, the Vikings knew that a few others teams were courting Childress, and thus signed him without seriously considering other offers. From that point, nothing has been done to improve the quality of the Vikings' offense in two seasons and six games, so in my opinion a change must be made.
NFL Notes:
-How about "Old Man" Brad Johnson starting for the Dallas Cowboys in the wake of Tony Romo's pinky finger injury?! It will be very interesting to see how Johnson performs in an offensive that has a smorgasbord (Marion Barber, Jason Whitten, Terrell Owens, etc.) of weapons for him. Under Mike Tice in 2005, Johnson was a pretty decent QB. Under Chilly in 2006, Johnson was a failure.
