Brighteyes
Super Bowl!
I've written up what I could, for those who didn't get a chance to hear it.
TEMPE, ARIZONA: The former Minnesota Vikings coach held a press conference at the Cardinals training facility, after meeting with Rod Graves and Michael Bidwill. He wore a red shirt – which he noted was deliberate – spoke with all the confidence and sincerity of a man accustomed to the microphone and handling the press.
And when he’d finished, many of us were nodding our heads.
The most important thing to him was an organization committed to winning. And that, he told us, was the Cardinals. “Look at their aggression to finding the new Coach,” he pointed out, referring to the public announcement of candidates, and the now scheduled four interviews in four days. No one else has done this.
“Red’s a very bold color. And Mike has been very bold – to come out and announce they’re interviewing me, to bring me in. … that’s a very good sign.”
He was leaving the set of a television show for ESPN 2 when he got the message from his agent: Mike Bidwill had called. After a great conference call with all four parties, Dennis agreed to fly in today.
What the Cardinals want, Coach Green told us, was a plan.
Dennis Green was the head coach of the Minnesota Vikings for ten years, with a total of 18 years as a head coach, and twelve as an assistant, bring his experience to 30 years. He’s been out of coaching – though not precisely out of football – for the last two years.
“I have a great passion for the game of football.” He was a co-chairman of the competition committee; and has a Superbowl victory as an assistant, though not as a head coach.
That remains a goal for him.
He is interested in getting back into coaching, but it would have to be for the right opportunity – which he defines as an organization that wants to win. And after talking to the Bidwills and Rod Graves, he knows the Arizona Cardinals are just that.
“A new stadium is coming … a new stadium that is state of the art.” He smiles.
He pointed out that getting a stadium is not as easy as people suppose. New York still hasn’t gotten one. But Arizona has, and that’s impressive. It took a lot of work.
“Yes, the Cardinals were 4 and 12. But they beat the Vikings, a 9 and 7 team. The Vikings beat a 13 and 3 Kansas City team. The talent in the NFL is very much in a state of flux – the issue is, how do you get everybody to work as well as you can, at the same level. That’s what coaching is really all about.”
At one point he commented that Arizona has the field all to themselves. Other teams have called his agent – some he would like to coach for, others he would not. But the Bidwills and Rod Grave have been very aggressive. No one else has gotten guys in to interview. Nobody else has someone sitting in front of the media. “And I like that,” he tells us.
“We had a great visit.”
When asked about not being the GM as well as the Head Coach, as he had said he wanted, Coach Green didn’t seem at all concerned. He’d known Rod Graves a long time, and he can work well with him. “If I thought the Arizona Cardinals had a personnel guy that was not a good personnel guy, I wouldn’t be interested.”
“It’s not really about who makes the final decisions. It’s about who fits together, and how well you fit together.”
When asked how serious he was about the Cardinal’s coaching position, he replied, “I wouldn’t come in if I wasn’t serious. I really wouldn’t.”
He likes the Cardinals big, physical offensive line. Leonard Davis, he commented, could be in the Pro Bowl every year – as soon as he decides he wants to be. He likes the running back situation; he likes the receivers, and believes there’s more talent on offense than on defense. “There’s a lot of development that can take place.”
“I think there’s a good feeling here, I really do.”
“If I were to come here, my first goal would be to make the playoffs the first year. The first three years I was with the Vikings we were in the playoffs. We were rebuilding the program – but that doesn’t mean you don’t win while you’re rebuilding.
“I’m accustomed to winning. I’m accustomed to helping a team feel good about themselves, and playing hard and going all out … and winning.”
Every player, he points out, knows how to win. They’ve done it … in the NFL, or college … somewhere. But the challenge of coaching is getting everyone marching to the same beat. Everyone – players, coaches, trainers, equipment men, front office.
“You have some great players on this team. Guys that anyone in the NFL would love to have as a starter. But nobody has a whole roster of them. So you’ve got the exceptional ones … you can’t take credit for them. You don’t want to screw them up.
“So you’ve got guys who want to be good, and know how to be good – but you can help them get better. Then you’ve got the guys that you’ve got to help. You develop those guys … you’ve got a good team.
“My philosophy – and this is what I spoke to Mr. Bidwill about -- how important it is to develop players, and develop staff.” Brian Billick and Tony Dungee came from Green’s Viking staff.
And the ‘Cardinal history of loosing?’ He’s not concerned with labels applied to the team, or frankly to himself. “I don’t worry too much about the past. I always focus on the future.”
“Before Tony got to Tampa, no one thought Tampa could win. No one even thinks of Tampa that way now.” Tony showed that working together, all marching to the same beat, could win. Doesn’t matter about the past.
TEMPE, ARIZONA: The former Minnesota Vikings coach held a press conference at the Cardinals training facility, after meeting with Rod Graves and Michael Bidwill. He wore a red shirt – which he noted was deliberate – spoke with all the confidence and sincerity of a man accustomed to the microphone and handling the press.
And when he’d finished, many of us were nodding our heads.
The most important thing to him was an organization committed to winning. And that, he told us, was the Cardinals. “Look at their aggression to finding the new Coach,” he pointed out, referring to the public announcement of candidates, and the now scheduled four interviews in four days. No one else has done this.
“Red’s a very bold color. And Mike has been very bold – to come out and announce they’re interviewing me, to bring me in. … that’s a very good sign.”
He was leaving the set of a television show for ESPN 2 when he got the message from his agent: Mike Bidwill had called. After a great conference call with all four parties, Dennis agreed to fly in today.
What the Cardinals want, Coach Green told us, was a plan.
Dennis Green was the head coach of the Minnesota Vikings for ten years, with a total of 18 years as a head coach, and twelve as an assistant, bring his experience to 30 years. He’s been out of coaching – though not precisely out of football – for the last two years.
“I have a great passion for the game of football.” He was a co-chairman of the competition committee; and has a Superbowl victory as an assistant, though not as a head coach.
That remains a goal for him.
He is interested in getting back into coaching, but it would have to be for the right opportunity – which he defines as an organization that wants to win. And after talking to the Bidwills and Rod Graves, he knows the Arizona Cardinals are just that.
“A new stadium is coming … a new stadium that is state of the art.” He smiles.
He pointed out that getting a stadium is not as easy as people suppose. New York still hasn’t gotten one. But Arizona has, and that’s impressive. It took a lot of work.
“Yes, the Cardinals were 4 and 12. But they beat the Vikings, a 9 and 7 team. The Vikings beat a 13 and 3 Kansas City team. The talent in the NFL is very much in a state of flux – the issue is, how do you get everybody to work as well as you can, at the same level. That’s what coaching is really all about.”
At one point he commented that Arizona has the field all to themselves. Other teams have called his agent – some he would like to coach for, others he would not. But the Bidwills and Rod Grave have been very aggressive. No one else has gotten guys in to interview. Nobody else has someone sitting in front of the media. “And I like that,” he tells us.
“We had a great visit.”
When asked about not being the GM as well as the Head Coach, as he had said he wanted, Coach Green didn’t seem at all concerned. He’d known Rod Graves a long time, and he can work well with him. “If I thought the Arizona Cardinals had a personnel guy that was not a good personnel guy, I wouldn’t be interested.”
“It’s not really about who makes the final decisions. It’s about who fits together, and how well you fit together.”
When asked how serious he was about the Cardinal’s coaching position, he replied, “I wouldn’t come in if I wasn’t serious. I really wouldn’t.”
He likes the Cardinals big, physical offensive line. Leonard Davis, he commented, could be in the Pro Bowl every year – as soon as he decides he wants to be. He likes the running back situation; he likes the receivers, and believes there’s more talent on offense than on defense. “There’s a lot of development that can take place.”
“I think there’s a good feeling here, I really do.”
“If I were to come here, my first goal would be to make the playoffs the first year. The first three years I was with the Vikings we were in the playoffs. We were rebuilding the program – but that doesn’t mean you don’t win while you’re rebuilding.
“I’m accustomed to winning. I’m accustomed to helping a team feel good about themselves, and playing hard and going all out … and winning.”
Every player, he points out, knows how to win. They’ve done it … in the NFL, or college … somewhere. But the challenge of coaching is getting everyone marching to the same beat. Everyone – players, coaches, trainers, equipment men, front office.
“You have some great players on this team. Guys that anyone in the NFL would love to have as a starter. But nobody has a whole roster of them. So you’ve got the exceptional ones … you can’t take credit for them. You don’t want to screw them up.
“So you’ve got guys who want to be good, and know how to be good – but you can help them get better. Then you’ve got the guys that you’ve got to help. You develop those guys … you’ve got a good team.
“My philosophy – and this is what I spoke to Mr. Bidwill about -- how important it is to develop players, and develop staff.” Brian Billick and Tony Dungee came from Green’s Viking staff.
And the ‘Cardinal history of loosing?’ He’s not concerned with labels applied to the team, or frankly to himself. “I don’t worry too much about the past. I always focus on the future.”
“Before Tony got to Tampa, no one thought Tampa could win. No one even thinks of Tampa that way now.” Tony showed that working together, all marching to the same beat, could win. Doesn’t matter about the past.
