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EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. -- Surrendering control of the defense worked well for Brad Childress in his first season as head coach of the Minnesota Vikings. So he will do that again in 2007.
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Leslie Frazier became the first assistant to leave Super Bowl champion Indianapolis on Thursday when he accepted the job as defensive coordinator of the Vikings.
A special assistant to Colts coach Tony Dungy and also in charge of the team's defensive backs, Frazier couldn't interview for the position until after the Super Bowl. But Childress was willing to wait for someone with a diverse background and a strong familiarity with the Tampa Cover 2 scheme run primarily by Minnesota under Mike Tomlin this past season.
A couple of rings, including one won by Frazier as a player in 1986 with Chicago, didn't hurt, either. Though Tomlin was here for only one year before he became Pittsburgh's head coach last month, Childress wasn't concerned that Frazier also aspires to eventually run his own team.
"I think you want guys that have an aggressive mentality," Childress said.
Frazier was Cincinnati's defensive coordinator in 2003 and 2004, but was fired by coach Marvin Lewis following problems the Bengals had stopping the run and preventing big gains. Lewis presided over some of the league's best defenses as a coordinator, so it was difficult -- according to Frazier -- for him to hand over some decision-making and give Frazier room to make his own impact.
"If you hire me, let me do my thing," Frazier said.
Childress spent little time or energy on the defensive side during Tomlin's season.
"I have some things that are important to me," Childress said, "but I think you screw it up as a head coach that has been involved offensively to think you are going to jump in and say: 'You know I've done offense my whole life, but in this job I'm going to jump in and I'm going to get real involved with the defense.'
"You hire guys to be experts and stay in their lane and be experts at what they do and then you let them do their job."
The Vikings went 6-10 because of offensive struggles and a pass defense exploited by opposing quarterbacks Tom Brady, Brett Favre and Chad Pennington.
Frazier, a cornerback for the Bears from 1981-86 before a serious knee injury suffered in the Super Bowl ended his career, helped Indianapolis improve its pass coverage during his two years there.
"We'll improve the pass defense. History says so," Frazier said.
The seventh defensive coordinator employed by Minnesota in the last nine seasons, Frazier worked with Childress when they were Eagles assistants. Frazier was defensive backs coach from 1999-2002, and their existing relationship was another attraction.
"We've hugged each other after some big wins in the locker room," Frazier said.
He plans to copy some blitzing strategies that Philadelphia defensive coordinator Jim Johnson uses, and signs of Buddy Ryan's famous 46 defense that Frazier played in Chicago might also show up.
In the bigger picture, Frazier eagerly described his goal to get another championship before worrying about the next step in his career.
"If you win, things happen for you in this league. ... Whatever happens after that, so be it," he said.
