Childress signs extension to remain as coach of Minnesota Vikings

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Childress signs extension with Vikings

EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. — The man who brought Brett Favre to the Minnesota Vikings will be sticking around for a while.

The Vikings signed Brad Childress to a contract extension on Thursday, nine games into what is shaping up as a promising season for the men in purple. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. ESPN.com cited anonymous sources in reporting that the extension will carry through the 2013 season.

“Brad has done a tremendous job leading this football team and we value the positive environment he has created for the Minnesota Vikings on and off the field,” Vikings owner Zygi Wilf said in a statement issued by the team. “He has continued to positively impact this team and create a strong foundation for future success.”

Childress, in the fourth year of his original five-year, $10 million deal, was hired in 2006 to take over a team in turmoil. The Vikings had become a national punchline for a string of incidents under the loose regime of Mike Tice, including the infamous “Love Boat” scandal and Tice’s admission to scalping Super Bowl tickets that prompted Wilf to institute a code of conduct for the organization.

Childress has restored order and dignity to the franchise, and has done plenty of winning of late, as well. The Vikings have improved each year under his watch. They went 6-10 in 2006, 8-8 in 2007 and 10-6 with an NFC North title last season.

This season, he convinced Favre to come out of retirement one more time to join the Vikings, even going so far as to pick up the quarterback at the airport on the day of his arrival in August.

Favre leads the NFL in quarterback rating, has thrown 17 touchdowns and just three interceptions, and has helped put the Vikings (8-1) in position to compete for the top seed in the NFC.

“I am grateful for the opportunity I was given,” Childress said. “I’ve got a good group of guys in the locker room, which I’ve said over and over. I’ve got a great ownership group. Not only am I grateful for them, they’ve been good owners from a standpoint of empowering us with players. They listen. There’s a good dialogue.”

The Wilf family has broken the bank to sign big-money players like defensive end Jared Allen, who leads the league in sacks, All-Pro guard Steve Hutchinson and receiver Bernard Berrian.

They have also poured money into upgrading the team’s headquarters in Eden Prairie and steadfastly supported Childress even when he was the subject of criticism by fans early in his tenure.

“They have to buy into the vision of how you see the Minnesota Vikings going forward and we’ve been good enough to be able to fulfill part of that vision,” Childress said.

The next step is to do some damage in the playoffs. The Vikings were beaten at home by the Philadelphia Eagles in the first round last season, the first time Childress has been a head coach in the postseason.

Thanks to the addition of Favre, the team is much more balanced this season. The Vikings have already built a commanding three-game lead on the Green Bay Packers in the NFC North and are one game behind the New Orleans Saints for the best record in the conference.

Childress, Wilf and the rest of the Vikings organization were unavailable for further comment after the news was announced on Thursday night.