[CBFF] AP - Vikings' Childress clams up with media after first loss

[Phil DeNomme]

Lol.  I saw that.  Even the talking heads on ESPNews were shocked that he
left so early.  They weren't even paying attention to the interview and were
talking about some other game.  It was pretty funny.

But pretty classless by Childress.

-----Original Message-----
From: cbff-bounces at chicagobearsfanforum.com
[mailto:cbff-bounces at chicagobearsfanforum.com] On Behalf Of Jerry Madsen
Sent: Sunday, September 24, 2006 7:18 PM
To: post at chicagobearsfanforum.com
Subject: [CBFF] AP - Vikings' Childress clams up with media after first loss

Sunday, September 24, 2006
Vikings' Childress clams up with media after first loss By Jon Krawczynski
Associated Press

MINNEAPOLIS -- For the first time in this young season, the Minnesota
Vikings are facing some adversity.

If the way the head coach handled it after Sunday's deflating loss to
division rival Chicago, it could be a long year.

After the first regular season loss of his head coaching career, Brad
Childress made a brief opening statement to the media, quickly answered just
three questions, then headed for the door.

It was a shocking display from a man who has done nothing but preach about
character and accountability since the moment he took over nine months ago,
and a stark contrast to the class and responsibility Carolina coach John Fox
showed in the Metrodome one week ago.

It's easy to answer questions when you're winning. When you've pulled out
two last-second victories in the first two weeks, one with the help of a
very gutsy fake field goal call, anybody can field inquiries from an adoring
media contingent about how things went just right.

What makes an NFL coach's job infinitely more difficult -- and less
desirable -- is standing before the firing squad after a loss like this one.
A game that you had in the palm of your hand with just minutes to play. A
game that slipped away in the blink of an eye. A game in which you made
several decisions that fans are going to want to know about.

The Vikings led Chicago 16-12 and had the ball late in the fourth quarter.
Game over, right?

But the normally reliable Chester Taylor fumbled a handoff, giving the Bears
the ball at the Minnesota 37. Five plays later, Rex Grossman hit Rashied
Davis for a 24-yard touchdown and a 19-16 lead.

Still, the Vikings had the ball with good field position and plenty of time
left to pull off another comeback.

On third-and-7 at their own 41, Childress called a draw to Mewelde Moore
that gained 5 yards, caused them to burn one of their two remaining
timeouts, and left them with a fourth-and-2.

Then Brad Johnson threw the ball deep to Troy Williamson, taking a chance on
the big play rather than going for a safer pass to keep the chains moving.
The ball fell harmlessly to the turf and Grossman kneeled to close out the
victory.

To his credit, at least Childress did address why they called for such a
risky pass with the game on the line.

"We just tried to throw it to a playmaker," Childress said. "Troy has been
good for us and he had man-to-man coverage out there."

He then talked briefly about the team's blitzing philosophy and dismissed a
question about injuries on the offensive line before exiting, leaving so
many questions unanswered.

Why was cornerback Fred Smoot benched for the first series of the game?

Why the draw on third-and-7?

What did you say to Taylor after such a tough play?

That's what leaders do. They stand up and take the heat when things don't go
their way, like Fox did so impressively a week before after the Vikings beat
the Panthers in overtime.

The veteran coach all but handed that one to the Purple when he called for a
throwback on a punt return with a seven-point lead in the fourth quarter.
Chris Gamble's wobbly throw eventually wound up in the hands of the Vikings,
and kicker Ryan Longwell's TD pass to Richard Owens sent the game into
overtime.

After one of the bigger mistakes of his coaching career, Fox stood in front
of reporters and accepted the blame for the call, and answered questions
about the Panthers' 0-2 start.

He did it like a pro.

Childress has done an excellent job of restoring order and instilling a
sense of professionalism to a team that very much needed both after Zygi
Wilf finally canceled the Mike Tice Amateur Hour. Practices are more
organized, game plans are tighter and players have been held accountable for
off-the-field transgressions.

But his conduct after the game on Sunday lacked all of that, and more.

It's acceptable to lose a game, especially one as close and tough as this
one.

It's acceptable to make an error in judgment or make a bad call when the
spotlight is shining brightest.

The only thing that is unacceptable is clamming up in the aftermath when one
or both of those things happen.

Let's hope this was just a rookie mistake. Childress is doing this for the
first time, after all, and some growing pains are inevitable.

Of course it's better to have those pains in the pressroom than on the
field. But it doesn't make it right.

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