National Football League

Phillips, Childress falling well short of expectations

Published Oct. 17, 2010 6:21 a.m. ET

foxsports

Two months ago, Wade Phillips and Brad Childress were probably thinking they might be facing each other in the NFC championship game instead of today’s version of Panic Bowl I. The Vikings-Cowboys game may restore hope for one of these franchises, but the loser could be in deep, deep trouble of missing the playoffs altogether.

In the last 20 years, only five out of 240 teams that began a season with a 1-4 record have ever advanced to the playoffs. And the last one had Brett Favre at quarterback, the 2004 Green Bay Packers.

In the year of the Super Bowl being played in the House That Jerry Built in North Texas, Phillips is again feeling the heat from everyone except owner Jerry Jones. You can bet that Jones isn’t happy with the current results, but he doesn’t make in-season alterations to his coaching staff. He says he won’t do it this time, either. The main reason is probably because the obvious replacement, offensive coordinator Jason Garrett, isn’t viewed as a disciplinarian, either.

In Minneapolis, Vikings owner Zygi Wilf is also standing behind Childress. Meanwhile, word is leaking out that the coach’s contract extension – awarded to him for the team’s playoff run last season – will be easily absorbed financially should the Wilfs decide to make a change. Interpretation: His four-year extension won’t save Chilly’s job.

This is a bizarre state of affairs for two of the most-talented teams in the NFL. But when both have 1-3 records it’s always easier to blame the head coach than the players. Phillips has always been under siege from the media, network pregame shows and talk radio. He is a butt of jokes even if he has lost 30 pounds, but his laid-back, player-friendly style has always been criticized when penalties and turnovers are high (the Cowboys are awful in both areas) despite his well-known talents as a top defensive coordinator.

Childress is a different story. Whereas the Dallas locker room would probably unanimously vote to keep Phillips, the Minnesota players would vote for a change.

Childress has always come across as above-it-all and his players don’t understand that side of him. I mean, they still blame him for putting 12 players on the field with 19 seconds left, taking his team out of field-goal range, in last year’s NFC title game in New Orleans. And who can forget his indecision in the fourth quarter Monday against the Jets when the Vikings were forced to waste a valuable timeout when he changed his mind to go for two points instead of simply kicking a PAT?

The defensive players in Minnesota respect coordinator Leslie Frazier, who could potentially serve as an interim coach. Still, such a midseason change is unlikely. Both teams figure to wait until January before making any decision with the fates of Phillips and Childress. And if the Vikings decide to clean house and rebuild next season, they probably will do it with a new head coach.

The one coach who could be in big trouble if he loses today is San Francisco’s Mike Singletary. A home loss to the rival Oakland Raiders would be devastating. “It would be like losing two or three games in one,” said one league executive. “The biggest headache that would cause is in ticket sales. It would really hurt the 49ers' move to a new stadium.”

Owner Jed York opened his mouth to say that Singletary and the 49ers had the talent to go on and win the NFC West. Well, York could change his mind if his team falls to 0-6.

Dallas at Minnesota, 4:15 p.m. ET

WHAT TO WATCH FOR: This game is pretty simple. Can the Vikings apply enough pass-rush pressure on Tony Romo, who was sacked six times last Sunday, in order to protect a depleted secondary? The Metrodome crowd noise could help the Vikings, who are getting nothing out of DE Jared Allen. In last year’s playoff whipping here, Allen sacked Romo once. Over the previous three seasons, Allen had 44.5 sacks. The Cowboys want to be balanced on offense and figure to follow the Jets’ game plan of sticking with the run and throwing at CB Asher Allen with Cedric Griffin sidelined again with a torn ACL. The Cowboys O-line can’t be making mistakes like false starts or they won’t have a chance to run against Minnesota. Romo says that that rookie WR Dez Bryant (ankle) will play.

Brett Favre will start and reportedly threw well on Friday, with a lot of zip and accuracy. Favre threw well against the Jets and with the presence of Randy Moss has a new target in Percy Harvin out of the slot. Dallas nickel back Orlando Scandrick could have his hands full. The Cowboys have struggled on pass defense because FS Alan Ball has been taking a lot of wrong angles while RCB Mike Jenkins is slumping, losing track of the deep pass. If Favre has enough arm and time, Moss could be a factor on deep posts. Moss is excited about his Metrodome homecoming game and keeps talking about being upset about not being drafted by the Cowboys.

CZAR’S SCOOP: ESPN analyst Jon Gruden, who would have to negotiate his way out of his television contract in order to coach next season, is one name that would intrigue Cowboys owner Jerry Jones. Because of his struggles in Tampa Bay, Gruden only wants to coach an NFL team that has a proven quarterback. The Cowboys and Chargers are his two favorite teams. Gruden and Jones could co-exist because the coach knows that Jones wants to win and will pay to get talent, always a problem with the Bucs. Plus, Gruden doesn’t care about having personnel control; he just wants to be heard in those meetings. The Chargers would be less likely because of GM A.J. Smith’s power and the tighter purse strings on player salaries.

Privately, a couple Dallas coaches will tell you that the Vikings’ talent is a little better than theirs. If the Vikings lose, a couple club executives wonder if they will offer up any of next season's potential free agents in trades. Some of the players they may want to unload are LT Bryant McKinnie, FS Madieu Williams, WR Bernard Berrian and maybe DE Ray Edwards. The strength of the Vikings has been their linebacking corps.

The Cowboys went 19 consecutive games without allowing a 100-yard rusher, but surrendered 106 yards to Houston’s Arian Foster, then 131 yards to Chris Johnson last week. Today, they face Adrian Peterson. “He’s one of the hardest runners in the NFL,” linebacker DeMarcus Ware said. “It doesn’t get any easier, plus he can catch the ball out of the backfield.”

Other Sunday games

N.Y. Jets at Denver, 4:05 p.m. ET: Broncos QB Kyle Orton has thrown for over 300 yards in four consecutive games, but the Jets figure to be too much defensively. Jets QB Mark Sanchez still hasn’t thrown an interception this season and the passing game figures to improve with Santonio Holmes in the lineup. LaDainian Tomlinson has scored 20 career touchdowns against the Broncos. LT is averaging 5.7 yards a carry and looks like he did back in 2007.

Oakland at San Francisco, 4:05 p.m. ET: Jason Campbell starts for the Raiders with Bruce Gradkowski nursing a sore right shoulder. 49ers WR Michael Crabtree, who had nine catches for 105 yards last Sunday night against the Eagles, has made a big deal this week about Al Davis passing him over in the 2009 draft, taking Darrius Heyward-Bey instead. 49ers QB Alex Smith is on a short leash with coach Mike Singletary, but few believe that David Carr would perform much better. San Francisco must be concerned with Oakland’s running game, which is averaging 148 yards a game.

Indianapolis at Washington, 8:20 p.m. ET: The Redskins don’t have a deep secondary to combat Peyton Manning, but Washington’s LaRon Landry is having a great year now that he’s been moved back to his favorite position, strong safety. Landry leads the NFL with 52 tackles, plus he forced a fumble and had an interception in last week’s upset of Green Bay. The Colts still can’t run consistently, but Joseph Addai (neck) made the trip and will start with Donald Brown and Mike Hart out. If the Redskins win, that will match last season’s win total of four.