With head coach Brad Childress finally out of the picture in Minnesota, there was some sentiment around the league for quarterback Brett Favre to step down from his starting role in favor of backup Tavaris Jackson, in an effort to see what the Vikings will have next season when Favre finally retires.
But according to Judd Zulgad and Chip Scoggins of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, newly appointed interim head coach Leslie Frazier isn’t likely to move Favre to the bench anytime soon. The pair seem to have forged an alliance of sorts and now that his nemesis (Childress) is gone, seeing a rejuvenated Favre take the field next week against the Redskins isn’t out of the question.
Whether that will translate into wins for the Vikings is anyone’s best guess at this point and given the way they’ve played over the past two weeks, I’d advise against betting the farm on Minnesota doing much of anything in their final six games. That said, the departure of Childress leaves the Vikings without a built in excuse to use for their poor play going forward, and if they continue to struggle, the axe will fall in the off-season on the players themselves, giving them motivation to play much harde in the coming weeks.
It’s unfortunate for Jackson that he isn’t likely to see the field in meaningful action anytime soon, but Childress’ firing took away his biggest supporter, and there seems to be little doubt that he’ll be looking for employment elsewhere in the off-season.
That leaves the Vikings with unproven rookie Joe Webb or a possible high round draft choice in the form of Jake Locker (Washington), Andrew Luck (Stanford), Ryan Mallet (Arkansas), or even Cam Newton (Auburn) to step in when Favre hangs it up for good at the end of the year. Signing a free agent or trading for a quarterback are options as well, but with Donovan McNabb off the board, there really aren’t that many decent players available.
In any case, the remainder of the season will play out with Favre at the helm, and fans of the team can only hope Childress’ dismissal will jump start their club into playing the role of spoiler down the stretch.
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Written by Chris Kolb
Topics: Minnesota Vikings, NFC North