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.

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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