15 Reasons Brad Childress Is Not A Football Personnel Genius

Yesterday, I discussed Brad Childress,
so I need not address those players here. Let’s look at the personnel that Childress is responsible for bringing to the purple and
gold through free agency or the waiver wire.

Chili’s Guys

  • Guard . Fantastic acquisition, even though he wasn’t all that last year.
  • Running Back . Not very fast but a tough runner who was worth the investment. Great acquisition.
  • Kicker . Last year he had a hell of a time getting kickoffs to the one yard line or beyond but he’s fixed that this year with a vengeance. Great pickup, even though we have to listen to him talk about golf ad nauseum.
  • Safety . He was more of an import from Mike Tomlin‘s Tampa Bay days, but Childress gets credit for him. He’s been a hard hitter and has generally played well. Good acquisition.
  • Fullback .
    He only started seven games last year due to injury, so that was a bit
    of a waste, but he’s a damn good run blocker and has laid some people
    out. Good pickup.
  • Wide Receiver . I was absolutely skeptical but I’m happy to say he’s proved me wrong. Wade is a good possession receiver who can make yards after the catch but he’s not the number one he was acquired to be. Still, good acquisition.
  • Wide Receiver .
    He’s been good when he’s gotten the ball in his hands, but he doesn’t
    get a lot of touches. By our standards for Wide Receiver, good pickup.
  • Tight End . Was brought in to be a receiving tight end who could stretch the field on seam routes. When he’s gotten down field for apparent big gains, his quarterbacks have failed to get him the ball (). Remains to be seen.
  • Fullback .
    This guy’s got some quickness for a fullback. I’ve liked what I’ve seen
    but I’ve seen too little to really judge. Decent pickup.
  • Defensive End . Not bad. He hasn’t really been able to show what he can do, but hasn’t been disastrous, either.
  • Safety . Eh. He was more defensive coordinator Leslie Fraizer‘s pick, than Childress’. Hasn’t played much so it’s tough to tell.
  • Defensive Tackle . Eh. Hasn’t played enough to truly judge.
  • Linebacker . Was brought in to be a special teams ace. His most memorable play was getting juked out by a punter. I see in on more plays than Ciurciu.
  • Wide receiver : Eh.
  • Wide receiver : Sure handed possession receiver who was just that but nothing special. We traded the speedy, six foot four to the Eagles to get him, though. McMullen is no longer on our roster but Baskett is still making plays for the Eagles.
  • Definite Chili guy Defensive tackle : Eh.
  • Kick Returner . Though he made the Pro Bowl for us last year, he had to be cut because of his off-field problems, so at the end of the day, he’s go to be counted as a bust, though he wasn’t a very expensive bust. It should be noted, too, though, that Childress was depending on him to be our number one receiver this year even though Robinson had proved in the past that you shouldn’t depend on him. Result: We had to scramble to find receivers.
  • Guard from Philadelphia; the Vikes could have gone after the Eagles’ , one of the better guards in the league. But, no, we got Hicks who was average at best and lost his starting job.
  • Cornerback . Whitaker was given a spot on the roster even though he was outplayed by the quick .Last
    year, Whitaker distinguished himself as an eminently exploitable
    nickleback. He’s still on the team but plays only as a special teamer.
    Keeping Edwards would have been a vast improvement.
  • Tackle . Who knows? Has he even played?
  • Tight End . Again, who knows?

So what’s the verdict? Childress has brought in three rock stars in Hutchinson, Taylor, and Longwell; three solid contributors in Smith, Wade, and Richardson. There are six guys–Ferguson, Shiancoe,  Tahi, Mitchell, Doss, and Evans–who, ehhhhhh, who may or may not prove to be contributors. Three guys–Ciurciu, Johnson, and McMullen–are nothing special. Four guys are busts: Robinson, Kolodziej, Hicks (who was brought in to start and is not), and Whitaker; and two guys–Chase Johnson and Mills–haven’t really had a chance to prove themselves.

Out of the 21 free agent/waiver wire players Childress picked up, six contribute consistently and meaningfully. Five of those–Hutchinson, Taylor, Longwell, Smith, and Richardson are integral parts of the team. That leaves 15 of Childress’ players who haven’t contributed significantly during the coach’s two-year rule.

We don’t know if our pathetic passing game is a result of a substandard receiving corps, substandard quarterbacking, or both.

Still, six of 21 ain’t that great.

NFL’s Old Guard

sure did the hair on the backs of some executives. The that the rhetorical temperature got hot enough for Vikings owner Zygi Wilf to defend the signing and his vice president of football operations Rob Brzezinski.

quotes NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue saying he thinks the Hutchinson and Burleson offer sheets’ "poison pill" provisions are a loophole that he’ll address with the player’s association.

But it was , that  carried quotes from some disgruntled NFL heavies. They quoted quoting head coach Mike Holmgren, saying

They quotes owner Jeff Lurie saying

All this huffing sounds sooooo Old Guard. It’s just not done!!

Please.

If Mike Holmgren had thought of it first, you think he wouldn’t of done it? He just wasn’t creative enough and, as Wilf points out, the Hutchinson offer was entire within the rules.

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NFL’s Old Guard

sure did the hair on the backs of some executives. The that the rhetorical temperature got hot enough for Vikings owner Zygi Wilf to defend the signing and his vice president of football operations Rob Brzezinski.

quotes NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue saying he thinks the Hutchinson and Burleson offer sheets’ "poison pill" provisions are a loophole that he’ll address with the player’s association.

But it was , that  carried quotes from some disgruntled NFL heavies. They quoted quoting head coach Mike Holmgren, saying

They quotes owner Jeff Lurie saying

All this huffing sounds sooooo Old Guard. It’s just not done!!

Please.

If Mike Holmgren had thought of it first, you think he wouldn’t of done it? He just wasn’t creative enough and, as Wilf points out, the Hutchinson offer was entire within the rules.

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Seattle Seahawks – Cry Babies

Here’s a roundup of the headlines from Seattle’s major newspapers regarding the :

Oh. My. God. They clearly like the revenge factor in Seattle. This Seahawks blogger probably sums up the attitude of Hawks fans: Eat it, Minnesota! Seahawks sign Burleson to ridiculous offer sheet.

Could an organization display more childish behavior?!? It’s breathtaking. I admit, mirroring the was cute…but also dumb. , I’ll take Seattle’s 3rd round pick and I very much suspect that they are overpaying for the privilege of signing Burleson.

Not that there’s necessarily something wrong with overpaying for a player you really feel you need. We did that by signing Hutchinson. But to overpay out of spite? Not so smart.

I hope Burleson thrives in Seattle. Given the right circumstances, he could thrive; he demonstrated that in 2004–but then he was lining up opposite , too. Few people have that luxury. , when he was given the chance to be the featured receiver, he didn’t step up and size the opportunity. I think he’s fine slot receiver, but is he worth what the Seahawks are giving him?

I don’t think so.

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Seattle Seahawks – Cry Babies

Here’s a roundup of the headlines from Seattle’s major newspapers regarding the :

Oh. My. God. They clearly like the revenge factor in Seattle. This Seahawks blogger probably sums up the attitude of Hawks fans: Eat it, Minnesota! Seahawks sign Burleson to ridiculous offer sheet.

Could an organization display more childish behavior?!? It’s breathtaking. I admit, mirroring the was cute…but also dumb. , I’ll take Seattle’s 3rd round pick and I very much suspect that they are overpaying for the privilege of signing Burleson.

Not that there’s necessarily something wrong with overpaying for a player you really feel you need. We did that by signing Hutchinson. But to overpay out of spite? Not so smart.

I hope Burleson thrives in Seattle. Given the right circumstances, he could thrive; he demonstrated that in 2004–but then he was lining up opposite , too. Few people have that luxury. , when he was given the chance to be the featured receiver, he didn’t step up and size the opportunity. I think he’s fine slot receiver, but is he worth what the Seahawks are giving him?

I don’t think so.

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Steve Hutchinson, Tony Richardson Are Vikings

It sure took a long time. But in the end, it was worth the wait. Seattle Seahawks Pro Bowl guard is now a Viking. At 6′ 5", 313 pounds, Hutchinson will be a massive presence lining up between center (6’4", 309 lbs) and the even more massive tackle 6’8", 335 lbs). This left side helps explain why the Vikings didn’t go after a marquee running back like : Anyone should be able to run behind these guys.

Anyone is and the Vikings new back got some help today, as well, when the team signed Kansas City Chiefs fullback . Richardson was a nice pick up. At 6’1", 238 lbs, Richardson is a true fullback who can do it all. Though he has been used primarliy as a lead blocker for the past several seasons, he’s got soft hands and he can carry the ball as well.

Frankly, if the Hutchinson deal had fallen though, the Vikings efforts in free agency would’ve been a disappointment. We needed at least one rock star signing and we got that with Hutchinson, turningg a weakness into a strength by shoring up at least half of a line that was disasterous last season.

But we did sign him and you gotta give the Vikings all the credit for putting their money where they mouth is.

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Steve Hutchinson Signed

Now we know for sure that Zygi Wilf is serious about spending what it takes to win a championship. The and offered Pro Bowl guard a deal that will hopefully be so prohibitively expensive that the Seahawks will decline to match it immediately, rather than taking the seven days that are allotted for them to respond.

that the Vikings offer would make Hutchinson the highest paid guard in NFL history: Seven years for $49 million with $16 million in guarantees.

The article states that it is believed the Seahawks were offering Hutchinson an average of $5.8 million before free agency started, while the Vikings’  offer averages $7 million.

Hutchinson is 6′ 5" and weighs 313 pounds. He was a first-round draft choice in 2001 and is a three-time Pro Bowler. He has started every game he’s played, but in 2002 was limited to four games because of a broken leg.

Hutchinson would give the Vikings an enormously powerful left side by adding him next to left tackle Bryant McKinney.

You can .

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Vikings First Day Of Free Agency

Not a bad first day of free agency for the .

They signed former kicker , former running back , and former linebacker .

As expected, they lost cornerback , who reunited with by signing with the for six years for $32 million, including a $10 million signing bonus. was reunited with former Vikings offensive coordinator and now head coach, . Chavous a five-year deal worth $16 million that includes a $4 million signing bonus.

Losing is tough but he deserves the big contract. The Jags made a good move.

I liked Corey Chavous but he wasn’t all that great last year; he was out of position so often. You gotta wonder what happened. He was amazing in 2003, making the Pro Bowl with 108 tackles, eight interceptions and 15 passes defensed. Maybe he’s lost a step since then or maybe he’ll return to form with the Rams where he will apparently play free safety, instead of the strong safety position he played last year.

Thirty minutes before free agency began the Vikings signed wide receiver to a three-year deal is worth $12.7 million with a $1 million signing bonus.

Chester Taylor’s four-year contract is worth $14.1 million and includes $5.6 million in guaranteed bonuses. From , it appears Taylor’s slated to carry the load for us in the backfield, getting 20 to 30 touches a game. That probably means we’re not going after a first round running back. Too bad; I would’ve like to see Maroney in Purple.

Ryan Longwell signed a five-year deal for $10 million that included $3 million in guaranteed bonuses. I liked but Longwell is definitely an improvement; he’ll improve in the Dome and he knows how to kick in inclement weather as well.

Ben Leber’s deal is for five years, $20 million and includes guaranteed bonuses of more than $4 million. The Vikings must see something about this guy beyond what’s on paper because, well, there’s not much there on paper. It is disappointing that it appears is not in the Vikings plans because, gawd, that would’ve been fan-tast-ic! But even though this is a great draft for linebackers, I don’t see how the Vikings can’t sign another veteran linebacker or two when you consider that is probably a goner and definitely is. The other top-ranked linebackers available are the Julian Peterson and the Redskins .

The Seattle Seahawks’ Pro Bowl guard is supposed to be in town today. He’s a transitional player, so if the Vikings want him (and I really hope they do, considering the Cleveland Browns landed the other superstar free agent lineman, ), they’ll need to make him an offer that the Seahawks will not even want to consider matching so we don’t have to continue to shop for a guard).

Also visiting today is safety and on Monday, ‘ safety will visit.

Dexter Jackson by intercepting two passes. With Tampa, the 6′ 10" 210 pound Jackson played free safety under Vikings defensive coordinator . The seven-year veteran had 32 tackles last year with 13 assists, one sack, one interception, and four passes defended. He’s played his entire career with Tampa Bay except for 2003, when he played for the . That was his best year, statistically: He made 75 tackles with 13 assists, six intereceptions and seven passes defended. 

Will Demps has his own web site (). He’s a four-year veteran stands 6′ 0" and weighs in at 205 pounds. Last year he had 48 tackles with four assists and two passes defended. The year before he had 66 tackles with 19 assists, 2.5 sacks, one interception, and six passes defended.

It is interesting that both safeties played free safety, which tells me they want a swifter, more roaming type defensive back to fill their strong safety position.

Check out the Vikings site for .

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Koren Robinson Signs, Chester Taylor To Visit

The signed to a three-year deal and will have running back in for a visit today. .

The Koren Robinson signing is big because in addition to being our best reciever, he’s a great return man, something we haven’t had in a long time. Robinson would certainly have garnered quite a bit of interest because he would’ve been among the best of a thin free agency field of receivers. I would’ve hated to lose him.

‘ backup his entire career, Taylor’s best season was 2004 when he played in all 16 games and started four. He finished second on the team in rushing and made a career high 160 carries for 714 yards, averaging 4.5 yards per carry. He scored two touchdowns and caught 30 receptions for 184 yards.

Though he gained on 487 yards on 117 carries last year, that was still good enough for a 4.2 yard per carry average. He upped his reception total to 41, gaining 292 yards.

Taylor was used primarily as a third-down and change of pace back by the Ravens.

that the Vikings are trying to arrange a visit with guard .

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