Dennis Green, 67, got start at Dayton
Success included key role in careers of other minorities.
Former Minnesota Vikings and Arizona Cardinals head coach Dennis Green, who began his coaching career as an assistant at the University of Dayton in 1973, died of cardiac arrest Friday. He was 67.
In addition to his 113-94 NFL record, Green will be remembered for a 2006 podium-pounding tirade — “They are who we thought they were!” — after his Cardinals blew a 20-0 halftime lead and lost to the Bears.
Dennis Green, the trailblazing coach who led a Minnesota Vikings renaissance in the 1990s before a less successful run with the Arizona Cardinals, died at 67, his family said Friday.
“His family was by his side and he fought hard,” the family statement read on the Cardinals website. Other details were not disclosed, though the Cardinals said Green had died of a heart attack.
Green was the first black head coach in Big Ten history when he took over at Northwestern in 1981 and was just the third black head coach in the NFL when the Vikings hired him in 1992. Through it all, Green worked hard to provide opportunities for minorities on his coaching staffs and was beloved by his players for his loyalty.
“He was one of the forerunners, standard bearers from an African-American standpoint,” Vikings COO Kevin Warren said. “He was there early and won a lot of football games. He not only got in that position as a head coach, he then hired people and gave them opportunities.”
Green spent 10 seasons in Minnesota, leading the Vikings to eight playoff appearances and two NFC championship games. He only had one losing season and compiled an overall record of 97-62, a mark second only to Bud Grant in franchise history. That included a 15-1 regular season in 1998 spearheaded by a record-setting offense.
Green went out on a limb in the draft before that season, taking Randy Moss at No. 21 after the super-talented receiver fell due to character concerns. Moss was a sensation from the start, teaming with Cris Carter, Jake Reed, quarterback Randall Cunningham and running back Robert Smith as the Vikings scored a record 556 points that season, a mark that stood until New England broke it in 2007.
But the Vikings were upset at home by Atlanta that season and were embarrassed by the Giants 41-0 in their other trip to the NFC title game after the 2000 season.
Green went 4-8 in the postseason, one of the reasons he was fired by Minnesota late in the 2001 season.
“Denny made his mark in ways far beyond being an outstanding football coach,” the Vikings said. “He mentored countless players and served as a father figure for the men he coached. Denny founded the Vikings Community Tuesday Program, a critical initiative that is now implemented across the entire NFL. He took great pride in helping assistant coaches advance their careers. His tenure as one of the first African American head coaches in both college and the NFL was also transformative.”
Smith tweeted, “Rest in peace Denny. I lost my mother in April, I feel like I just lost father.”
Green finished his three years in Arizona with a 16-32 record. Perhaps his biggest accomplishment with the Cardinals was overseeing the drafting of Larry Fitzgerald as the No. 3 overall pick in 2004. Fitzgerald was a ball boy for Green’s Vikings.
Steelers: Running back Le’Veon Bell reportedly is facing a four-game suspension for a violation of the NFL’s drug policy. The suspension is the result of a missed drug test, and the appeals process is ongoing, which is why the suspension wasn’t announced. No date for Bell’s appeal has been set, though it’s expected before the regular season.
Colts: Defensive lineman Arthur Jones was suspended for the first four games of the season for violating the league drug policy. Jones has struggled to stay on the field since signing a five-year, $33 million contract in 2014. He missed seven games in his first season with Indy with an injured right ankle. He missed all of last season with an injured left ankle.
Cowboys: The league said it is reviewing domestic violence allegations against rookie running back Ezekiel Elliott. A police report said Elliott denied allegations he assaulted his girlfriend in Columbus, Ohio, causing bruises and abrasions. The report says the former Ohio State star wasn’t arrested because of conflicting versions of what happened.
Texans: Star defensive end J.J. Watt will begin training camp on the physically unable to perform list after back surgery, but reports indicated he’s expected to be ready for the regular season. He has never missed a regular-season game.
Vikings: A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held for $1.1 billion U.S. Bank Stadium, which opens this season.
Bears: Former Pro Bowl cornerback Charles “Peanut” Tillman signed a one-day contract to retire as a member of the team that drafted him in 2003 and where he spent his first 12 years.