- Why does a real-estate billionaire from New Jersey who's a life-long New York Giants fan buy a team in Minnesota with a horrible stadium deal? So he can make a ton of money on a new stadium/complex. To me, that's the biggest reason Mike Tice was fired yesterday by owner Zyggy Wilf. Don't get me wrong, Wilf is committed to winning, and will pay for the best coaching staff money can buy, but this is a business, and Tice was fired to improve Wilf's chances of getting his new stadium complex in Blaine approved. Tice is a good guy who gave his all to the Vikings, and judging by the players' reaction to his firing, these guys were obviously loyal to him. But the biggest thing that worked against Tice was that all the off-field problems the last few seasons, from all the Randy Moss shenanigans, to his own ticket scalping to the Love Cruise, happened on his watch. All of these incidents have contributed to giving the Vikings a tainted image nation-wide, and more importantly have made many Vikings fans and legislators concerned about the state of their team. I think Wilf believes that by making a fresh start with the coaching staff, it's going to prove to the fans and decision-makers in this state that things really WILL be different next year, and that Wilf believes that you can win in the NFL with a respectable program. He's hoping that can win over legislators to give him the new stadium deal.
- Rumor 'round the campfire is that Tice will probably take a year off from coaching to spend more time with his family. I heard him say more than once on the coaches show this season how important his family is to him. Whenever he decides to coach again, he'll have no shortage of opportunities.
- Hanging onto Rob Brzezinski was a good move. He's a good GM who's been tied, gagged, and bound by Red McCombs in trying to run this team. Darren Sharper, in a very candid interview with Dan Barreiro last Friday, summed it up well. He said that under McCombs, the Vikes were "being asked to make a 5-star meal on a $10 budget." Zygy will take the shackles off of Brzezinski, and give him every opportunity to justify Wilf's trust in him.
- Speaking of Sharper, I think the guy should be a politican when he's finished with football. In that same interview, Barreiro was firing some pretty direct questions at him, and Sharper fielded all of them like a gold glove shortstop. He gave a thoughtful answer, yet managed to do so without saying anything controversial. He's a very smart dude, and I'm glad Green Bay gave up on him.
- A trade that makes WAY too much sense to actually happen: Cedric Benson for Troy Williamson.
- In his search for a new coach, the first call Brzezinski should make is to Iowa City to Kirk Ferentz. The second should be to Bob Stoops at Oklahoma. I doubt either one leave for any NFL team this year, but those are the two best candidates out there.
- If you believe that Brian Billick's job is safe in Baltimore (I don't but people much smarter than me do), and that Herm Edwards wants to stay in the media circus in New York (apparently the guy is so respected in football, he'd have his choice of any college or pro opening this offseason), that still leaves 8 NFL teams looking for a new coach; Houston, New Orleans, Oakland, Green Bay, Detroit, St Louis, Minnesota, and Kansas City. Welcome to parody. Other than KC (how good is Larry Johnson? Wow!), I think the Vikes are the most attractive job out there.
- Here's a REALLY early pick for the NFL 2006 offensive rookie of the year: tailback Lendale White. I just hope he does it in a Vikings uniform.
- Thought I was going out on a limb thinking that Pittsburgh will beat Cincinnati this weekend. But every web poll I've seen shows that plenty of other people are thinking the same thing. As the 6 or 7 of you who've been reading us for awhile know, I don't do well when it comes to predictions, so take this for what it's worth: New England will be the only home team to win on Wild Card weekend.
- Houston and New Orleans have to be giddy at their draft position. The Texans can take a once in a decade player, and the Saints get a franchise quarterback. Now all they have to do is not do something dumb like trade the picks, but considering it's Houston and New Orleans, well...
- I hope plenty of you are taking the time to lounge on the couch all day and watch football, since I'm stuck at work until 5. Happy New Year everybody.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Visitors since 8/04
1 comment:
You could make a solid argument either way for Tice keeping his job. But to me, what's important is that he seemed to be getting better. He was learning. He was beginning to find his coaching groove. His first few years in the league were basically a wash: He didn't really know what he was doing, coupled with the fact that Red gave him no support. Now, just when it seemed like he was starting to settle in to the position, he's let go.
Is Daunte next? What's happening to this team? Too many drastic changes too quickly. I'm depressed.
Post a Comment