If you have something critical to sat to a player, preface it by saying something positive. That way when you get to the criticism, at least you know he'll be listening.

Bud Grant

Categorized in : Listening Player Coaching

First of all the name, and the color purple, I think those two things distinguish the Vikings as much as anything. You go anywhere in the country and say 'Vikings,' they know exactly where you are. You say 'Cardinals,' well, Cardinals who? There are a dozen Cardinals teams in the country in professional and amateur sports.

name think you sports

Come September, the middle of September when the first frost comes, that's hunting season. Fishing poles are hung up and the hunting season starts. You've got to be careful, if you're a hunter, that it doesn't become an obsession.

you be-careful hunting fishing

The quarterback is the most vulnerable one on the field. He's in an awkward position a lot of times when he throws the ball. So he does have to be protected. You lose a quarterback, you're in trouble. I don't know if they can make it too safe. I think health becomes an issue.

lose think you health

Being cold for a short period of time is not life-threatening. You can perform a task when you're cold. We proved that when the Vikings played outside.

short you cold time

If you're a coach, you've got to have a lot of confidence in what you're doing. Your egos are so large that you know it all anyway if you're a coach.

doing know you confidence

I happened to be in a position in Superior where I could play three sports, and when I came to Minnesota, I had the understanding they would allow me to play three sports. Kids now don't have the same amount of time. You have coaches that think baseball is 10 months a year. Hockey is 11 or 12 months a year.

me you time sports

Over the years, I've always had one Labrador and usually two. I've had some great dogs, and I've had some dogs that didn't work out. I found them good homes and gave them away.

great good always work

At some point, we're going to have to get to the point where, before you play football, I'm going to test you at some stage in your life to determine if you're susceptible to concussions. We need a test that shows us that your brain is situated a certain way that puts you at risk. If you are susceptible, don't play football.

you brain football life

I met Burnsie at Iowa when he picked me up from the airport when I was visiting down there, and from that point on, we started talking football and never stopped, we were on the same page a lot. When I went to Winnipeg, I’d have him come up as a guest coach. Our friendship grew over the years, and we became very close friends and so did our families.