Posted by ESPN.com's Kevin Seifert
EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. -- You could have muted your television Monday night and still understood one of the primary storylines during Monday night's game at the Superdome. As ESPN's cameras panned from Minnesota coach Brad Childress to owner Zygi Wilf and back to Childress, the theme was clear: Childress is on the proverbial (public) hot seat.
After a 1-3 start in his third season with the Vikings, Childress' job security was very much a topic of public conversation -- even though few know whether it's a serious consideration for Wilf and his investment partners. Monday night's 30-27 victory over New Orleans might dispel such discussion for the time being, but Childress has accepted it as a part of the territory.
Asked Tuesday afternoon if the talk was fair, Childress said:
"Does fair have anything to do with it? [The media] drives that, and wins and losses drive that. That just goes with the place that you stand. I just ignore it and worry about who we've got to get ready for this week."
(Childress would probably do well to ignore ESPN's coaching ratings. As of Tuesday afternoon, he ranked last among all NFL coaches with a 13 percent approval rating, as voted on by ESPN.com users. Vikings fans appear relatively adamant about it; more users had weighed in on Childress than all but one other coach.)
The Vikings' immediate future appears brighter after escaping New Orleans with a victory. They'll play three of their next four games at the Metrodome, beginning Sunday against winless Detroit, and in reality they are only one game off the pace in the NFC North.
The wild card is Wilf, who has hired only one coach in four seasons as the Vikings' owner. He is famously aggressive and emotional when it comes to football, but it's not clear how that element of his personality would manifest in a decision of this magnitude.
Childress entered Monday night's game with a 15-21 record as the Vikings' coach. Would Wilf have fired him with another loss? Or has he already decided to give Childress the full season -- and perhaps beyond -- to get the team turned around? Either scenario is equally possible amid the uncertainty of Wilf's thought process.
It seems relatively safe to suggest Wilf expects a winning record and a playoff berth this season. But will a failure on either count result in a coaching change? Not necessarily. Such ambiguity makes only one thing certain: Those cameras will remain focused on Childress for the foreseeable future.
Seifert joined ESPN.com in 2008 after covering the Minnesota Vikings for the Minneapolis Star Tribune for eight years. He lives in the Twin Cities with his wife and daughter.
