Speculation that Vikings head coach Brad Childress and agent Bob LaMonte are trying for a contract extension makes sense to an NFL insider who spoke to Sports Headliners on condition of anonymity. “If I were Brad, and Bob was my guy, I would have Bob on the horn regularly because they’ve got to work that out,” the source said on Saturday. “They’ve (the Vikings) got a favorable schedule out of the bye but when they get to December that’s a tough situation.”
The Vikings were 6-0 last week when reports were published that Childress, who is in the fourth year of a five year contract, was looking for a new deal. Whether that’s true isn’t confirmed by the Childress-LaMonte team, or the Vikings, but the source said the coach should “strike now while the iron is hot.”
Although the Vikings lost to Pittsburgh yesterday, the team’s impressive start to the 16 game season provides the 53-year-old Childress with leverage for a contract extension. His annual coaching records have reflected progress: 6-10, 8-8, 10-6 and now 6-1.
In the fragile world of coaching security, results and employment can change fast. The Vikings play at Green Bay next Sunday, and then have the next weekend off. Following that are likely wins in November at home against Detroit (1-5) and Seattle (2-4). After that starts a run of games against Chicago (3-3) in late November, with December dates versus Cincinnati (5-2), Carolina (2-4), Chicago again and the early January finale with the Giants (5-2).
If the Vikings falter in their late season games, the record won’t be so sparkling and the contract negotiating leverage is gone. Childress is in a strong position now not only because of the team’s impressive start in the first seven games but also for his gamble to make Brett Favre a Viking.
Childress helped convince the 39-year-old legend to postpone retirement, also moving aside the hoped for plan to make Tarvaris Jackson the starting quarterback. Jackson was drafted in 2006 and schooled for three prior seasons by Childress. “Brad Childress pushed all his chips to the middle of the table on Favre, essentially giving up on Tarvaris Jackson,” the source said.
However, the Vikings ownership, including Zygi Wilf, has sound reason to wait until the season ends before negotiating with Childress on a contract extension. The full 2009 results and four coaching seasons will be complete in January. Waiting and then evaluating also avoids a potential distraction for the team during the season, the source said.
Childress is believed to earn less than $2 million annually, making him among the lower paid head coaches in the NFL. Prior to coming here Childress had never been an NFL head coach.
Data on NFL coaches’ salaries is scarce, so figures can involve some guesswork. The source said Childress and his agent might be looking for a new five year deal that provides security and compensation reflecting the average of what the upper tier of NFL coaches is paid. What’s negotiated, though, could be less than the average and for perhaps $4.5 million a year with incentives that let Childress make more based on performances.