ESPN and the National Football League have reported that Dennis Green, who coached the Minnesota Vikings and Arizona Cardinals over 13 National Football League seasons, died Thursday night at the age of 67.
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Green went 10-45 in five seasons at Northwestern, ending in 1985, and he went 16-18 from 1989 to 1991 at Stanford.
Green’s best seasons of coaching were with the Vikings as he led the team to eight appearances in the playoffs in 10 seasons.
Mr. Green went 4-8 in the postseason, one reason he was sacked by Minnesota late in the 2001 season.
Green went just 26-63 in his career as a college coach, but was named Big Ten Coach of the Year in 1982 after leading Northwestern to just three wins.
“The Bears are what we thought they were”.
“He was my wide receiver coach for so many years and we stayed friends over the years also”. Green had died of a heart attack.
Green presided over the Cardinals when they acquired Kurt Warner in 2005 and drafted Larry Fitzgerald, Darnell Dockett and Karlos Dansby in 2004. Former Colts head coach Tony Dungy, who was an assistant under Green in Minnesota, acknowledged Green’s contributions in a tweet Friday.
Cardinals head coach Dennis Green talks to the media in Tempe, Ariz.
After the Bears returned two late fumbles and a punt for touchdowns to pull off the stunning comeback, Green pounded the lectern and yelled, “The Bears are who we thought they were!” – a line that would be replayed endlessly over the years. He added Green frequently brought his family to work with him. This man gave me a chance to pursue my dreams.
“Dennis Green created an outstanding environment for his players and I was privileged to spend four great years under his guidance in Minnesota”, said Del Rio, in a statement.
In addition to Shaw, players on Green’s roster at Stanford included Tommy Vardell, Ed McCaffrey, John Lynch, Bob Whitfield and Cory Booker, now a U.S. Senator from New Jersey.
But it wasn’t enough against Green and the Vikings, who went on to go 10-6, winning the NFC Central with Moon at quarterback. “I lost my mother in April, I feel like I just lost father”.
Football took Green to college at Iowa, where he played halfback and graduated with honors before becoming a coaching pioneer of sorts. “It wasn’t only important for Denny Green to be successful but for the rest of the guys on his staff to be successful”.
If it wasn’t for that fluky loss, Green’s Vikings very likely would have ruined John Elway’s storybook ending to his career in the Super Bowl.
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“Cleveland had come in looking to claim me and put me on the roster and they were really a struggling organization at the time and I could see the light on the horizon with the Vikings and my opportunity to play”. The Bears rallied from 20 points down to beat the Cardinals.
