September 23rd, 2008
EXCLUSIVE:
"Winning Season or Not, Fire Childress"
Former Vikings OC Brian Billick Advises Team to Release Coach
Brian Billick was on ESPN recently giving his thoughts on how each NFL team is currently doing. The Super Bowl winning Head Coach for the Ravens and former Minnesota Vikings Offensive Coordinator pulled no punches in regards to his thoughts on the Vikings current Head Coach, Brad Childress. "Look, the Vikings are last place in the NFC North. I know it's too early in the season to really say some of this stuff, but to me, Winning season or not, even if the Vikings win the Super Bowl, they should not bring back Brad Childress as head coach... Yes, you heard me right. Winning season or not, fire Childress. I'm not saying fire him midseason if things get desperate, say they end up 1-7 with no way of making playoffs. Don't do that. Finish the season, pay him his money, and find a better coach. Look at the run game through the last three weeks; if Adrian Peterson, one of the best young running backs I've ever seen and potentially a once in a lifetime talent, can't even break past 69 yards once in three weeks of play, then something's wrong. It all goes back to coaching.
Daunte Culpepper's playing hard and I respect that, but I wouldn't even keep him after this season, even if he gets MVP. He's 31, hasn't played a true starting position since 2005 and is not what he once was. I like Daunte, too. I became the Ravens' head coach before the Vikings drafted him, and honestly, I saw the talent in him. If I were still the offensive coordinator, I guarantee we would have won a Super Bowl with Culpepper at some point.
All that said and done, I think the Vikings have a damn good roster that needs good coaching, and honestly, I don't think Childress fits the bill. If they approached me in the offseason and offered me a head coaching position, well... I wouldn't say no, necessarily. Denny Green gave me a coaching job for them in 1992, and when I heard he had been fired in 2001, I was shocked. They give it to my replacement, a guy who wouldn't know anything about head coaching if he was taught personally by Vince Lombardi. That's not to throw shade or whatever it's called on Mike [Tice], I like him as a person, but he just wasn't a good coach and I think even he admits that."
Harsh words indeed from someone well known in the Vikings circle. |