Childress’ popularity plummets

By John McMullen  |   Thursday, October 23, 2008  |  Comments( 6 )

Minnesota Vikings
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A lot of people are predicting a "Reaganesque" rout for Barack Obama in the upcoming presidential election.

Of course, a rout in the eyes of the mainstream media means roughly 45 percent of voters will cast a ballot for John McCain.

Meanwhile, the current president's approval ratings are at about 25 percent.

The only thing less popular than George W. Bush in our current political landscape? The Nancy Pelosi- and Harry Reid-led Congress, which is registering approval ratings in the 12 to 15 percent range.

In short, it's virtually impossible to be less popular than the United States Congress right now. Or is it?

Welcome to the world of Brad Childress.

After the embattled Minnesota Vikings coach eked out a win over the woeful Detroit Lions thanks to a laughable pass interference call, Childress was last among NFL coaches when he amassed an 8 percent approval rating in a national Web site's weekly poll.

A week later, after his underachieving Vikings did their best impression of the Three Stooges in a 48-41 loss to the Chicago Bears, Childress' approval rating actually went up to a paltry 10 percent.

"There's nobody in this building that's happy with the standard right now that we're playing at," Childress said at his weekly press conference. "I think the good thing is that it's recognized by the members of this football team. They want to be better. They want to improve. They're all pulling for each other. I will continue to look for that improvement."

A nice sentiment perhaps, but the mistakes keep piling up under Childress.

Against the Bears, punter Chris Kluwe dropped a perfect snap in the first quarter, picked up the ball and then had his punt blocked. Evidently intent on becoming a member of The Keystone Cops, Kluwe then kicked the loose ball again on the ground before the Bears' Garrett Wolfe recovered it and scored.

In the second quarter, punt returner Charles Gordon tried to block a gunner to allow a punt to bounce into the end zone for a touchback, but the ball hit Gordon and Chicago recovered it for another touchdown.

Add to that four Gus Frerotte interceptions and a plethora of pre-snap penalties, and it's astonishing the Vikings were within seven points of the Bears at the final gun.

"You know what? It all comes back to me," Childress said of his mentally challenged team. "I'm not going to pin it on a coach or a player. It all comes back to me. That's what it is. I'm the guy that's got the wins and losses by my records. It will always come back to me with wins and losses."

For a guy who came to the Twin Cities preaching accountability, it was actually nice to see Childress step up and take the bullet for his team.

At the end of the day, though, this ragtag bunch makes more mistakes than any other team in the NFL and Childress hasn't been able to stem the tide.

By no means am I claiming your average fan is a football expert. Your typical fanatic has no idea where the "A gap" is, never mind the responsibilities of the secondary in the Cover 2.

In fact, there is an old coaching adage that goes something like this: "If you listen to the fans, you will soon be sitting with them."

That said, when everyone thinks you are doing a bad job -- save for your family and friends -- it's a pretty good indication you probably are.
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About John McMullen

John is the managing editor of The Phanatic Magazine, the assistant managing editor of The Sports Network and the co-host of the highly rated 'Johns on Sports' radio show on WTBQ in New York. Every Saturday from 6:30-9 p.m. (et) you can hear John along with his co-host, John Gottlieb, talk to the...
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