More proof the Vikings are a mess

[GoPackGo]

vice president of player personnel Fran Foley lied on his resume and got himself fired. courtesy of ESPN



http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=2431511

[GoPackGo]

My bad Scott Campell beat me to this...


delete this thread

[Iron Mike]

My bad Scott Campell beat me to this...


delete this thread

At least you're man enough to admit it!!!! :smile:

[GoPackGo]

i love talking $hit about the Vikings so much I got a little too excited and posted quickly

[HarveyWallbangers]

Foley will sue Vikings over termination
By JON KRAWCZYNSKI, AP Sports Writer

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- The Minnesota Vikings on Wednesday fired personnel director Fran Foley, who plans to sue the franchise and have an arbitration hearing before NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue.

Foley's lawyer, Jeffrey Kessler, said Wednesday that his client was "the victim of a power struggle" and was "stunned" when told of his termination, which ended a tumultuous three-month tenure that included an inaccurate resume and a draft that has been widely panned.

Kessler said he planned to file a proceeding with the league on Thursday to initiate an arbitration hearing with Tagliabue.

"Mr. Foley had a guaranteed contract and the Vikings breached that contract," Kessler said. "They induced him to leave a job he was very happy at in San Diego by offering that guaranteed contract."

The Vikings made the announcement in a one-sentence statement. Owner Zygi Wilf declined to comment on the decision after a Wednesday afternoon news conference at the Capitol, where the team is trying to secure public funding for a new stadium.

Vikings vice president for legal affairs Kevin Warren, acting as a spokesman on behalf of the organization and not in a legal capacity, said the pending legal proceedings prevented him from offering much detail on the move.

"We're not going to make this into a media circus," Warren said. "We felt it was the best interests of the organization, and the future of this franchise, to terminate the contract of Fran Foley."

Foley signed a three-year contract with Minnesota on Jan. 26, coming over from the San Diego Chargers. But he admitted to several inaccuracies on the resume he provided the team, including in his early work history and in exaggerating his playing career at Framingham State College.

On a resume given to the Vikings, Foley said he held coaching positions with the Citadel, Rutgers and Colgate when he was actually a graduate assistant at all three schools.

He also said that he played four seasons at Framingham State, when he only played two.

The team issued a revised biography for Foley last month.

"He met with the owner, who assured (Foley) the resume was not a problem at all," Kessler said.

Foley was part of a three-way executive structure that included coach Brad Childress and vice president of football operations Rob Brzezinski and was three days removed from playing a major role in helping to shape the Vikings' future on draft weekend.

The Vikings selected Iowa linebacker Chad Greenway and Texas cornerback Cedric Griffin with their first two selections, but raised eyebrows for picking center Ryan Cook and trading up to take quarterback Tarvaris Jackson in the second round. Both were projected to go in the late-third round or fourth round.

"They waited until after the draft, so they could have the benefit of his services and expertise on the draft," Kessler said. "Then they lowered the boom."

Wilf also declined to say if the team would hire a replacement for Foley, but did laud his executive team's draft weekend on Sunday, saying, "We got everyone we wanted to get."

If they decide to replace Foley, college scouting director Scott Studwell could be a candidate. Studwell declined comment Wednesday.

"He was aware that other people in the organization were unhappy with the amount of power (Foley) had," Kessler said. "It appears those forces have prevailed."

[Fritz]

What makes me happiest is that it's a sign that perhaps Zygi Wolf will be just as good an owner as ol' Red McCombs, and in time may reach the dizzying heights of the Lions' owner, Bill Ford.

[Scott Campbell]

PFT

POSTED 10:04 p.m. EDT, May 3, 2006

WILL VIKES GET IT RIGHT THIS TIME?

The most pressing question in the wake of the Vikings' stunning-but-not-surprising decision to part ways with V.P. of player personnel Fran Foley is whether, given a new chance to hire a guy with "final say" over the roster, the organization will alter the approach that resulted in Foley getting hired in the first place.

The unanimous opinion of a variety of league and industry sources from whom we've heard over the past couple of weeks is that Foley is a lightweight who never should have gotten the job.

So why did he get the job?

Several sources have opined that the move was aimed at ensuring a high level of influence for V.P. of football operations Rob Brzezinski, V.P. of operations and legal counsel Kevin Warren, and coach Brad Childress. Since, as the theory goes, Foley didn't come through the door as an ass-kicker and name-taker, Brzezinski, Warren, and Childress would have more juice.

"THIS IS ABOUT TURF PROTECTION," as one league source with extensive knowledge regarding the operation of NFL front offices has explained to us via a Wednesday night e-mail, using all caps for emphasis.

The central figure in all of this, as the source opined, is Brzezinski. It was Brzezinksi, after all, who cozied up to Zygi Wilf last season, sitting next to him in the owner's box and securing the owner's trust. So at a time when Wilf couldn't call up any of the other 31 members of the Billionaire Boys Club and ask for basic advice on how to run a pro football team, Wilf did the only thing that he could.

He gave Brzezinski a significant voice in the process.

And as another source previously has explained, part of the problem is that Wilf didn't appreciate the importance of a personnel chief to the team, budgeting something in the neighborhood of $500,000 per year for the job. Indeed, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports that the three-year deal is believed to be worth in excess of $1 million.

Wilf's focus was the coaching position. It appears in hindsight that he focused on it too much.

Our recommendation for a next step? Hire a respected person from an organization with a proven track record of success and give him the reins.

And spend the money necessary to make it happen.

Here's the interview list we'd compile, right now, in no particular order: Kevin Colbert of the Steelers, Jason Licht of the Eagles, Scott Pioli of the Patriots, Chris Polian of the Colts, Jerry Reese of the Giants, Scott Pioli of the Patriots, Dan Rooney Jr. of the Steelers, Ted Sundquist of the Broncos, Mike Lombardi of the Raiders, Eric DeCosta of the Ravens, Greg Gabriel of the Bears, Ruston Webster of the Bucs.

None have "final say" -- thus, any of them can be hired as long as they get "final say" in Minnesota.

We're not saying which one of these guys we'd ultimately hire. The final decision depends on the manner in which the candidate fits within the existing structure.

But we'd interview all of them, and we'd hire one of them.

ASAFP.

[Rastak]

Foley will sue Vikings over termination
By JON KRAWCZYNSKI, AP Sports Writer

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- The Minnesota Vikings on Wednesday fired personnel director Fran Foley, who plans to sue the franchise and have an arbitration hearing before NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue.

Foley's lawyer, Jeffrey Kessler, said Wednesday that his client was "the victim of a power struggle" and was "stunned" when told of his termination, which ended a tumultuous three-month tenure that included an inaccurate resume and a draft that has been widely panned.

Kessler said he planned to file a proceeding with the league on Thursday to initiate an arbitration hearing with Tagliabue.

"Mr. Foley had a guaranteed contract and the Vikings breached that contract," Kessler said. "They induced him to leave a job he was very happy at in San Diego by offering that guaranteed contract."

The Vikings made the announcement in a one-sentence statement. Owner Zygi Wilf declined to comment on the decision after a Wednesday afternoon news conference at the Capitol, where the team is trying to secure public funding for a new stadium.

Vikings vice president for legal affairs Kevin Warren, acting as a spokesman on behalf of the organization and not in a legal capacity, said the pending legal proceedings prevented him from offering much detail on the move.

"We're not going to make this into a media circus," Warren said. "We felt it was the best interests of the organization, and the future of this franchise, to terminate the contract of Fran Foley."

Foley signed a three-year contract with Minnesota on Jan. 26, coming over from the San Diego Chargers. But he admitted to several inaccuracies on the resume he provided the team, including in his early work history and in exaggerating his playing career at Framingham State College.

On a resume given to the Vikings, Foley said he held coaching positions with the Citadel, Rutgers and Colgate when he was actually a graduate assistant at all three schools.

He also said that he played four seasons at Framingham State, when he only played two.

The team issued a revised biography for Foley last month.

"He met with the owner, who assured (Foley) the resume was not a problem at all," Kessler said.

Foley was part of a three-way executive structure that included coach Brad Childress and vice president of football operations Rob Brzezinski and was three days removed from playing a major role in helping to shape the Vikings' future on draft weekend.

The Vikings selected Iowa linebacker Chad Greenway and Texas cornerback Cedric Griffin with their first two selections, but raised eyebrows for picking center Ryan Cook and trading up to take quarterback Tarvaris Jackson in the second round. Both were projected to go in the late-third round or fourth round.

"They waited until after the draft, so they could have the benefit of his services and expertise on the draft," Kessler said. "Then they lowered the boom."

Wilf also declined to say if the team would hire a replacement for Foley, but did laud his executive team's draft weekend on Sunday, saying, "We got everyone we wanted to get."

If they decide to replace Foley, college scouting director Scott Studwell could be a candidate. Studwell declined comment Wednesday.

"He was aware that other people in the organization were unhappy with the amount of power (Foley) had," Kessler said. "It appears those forces have prevailed."


Good luck with that Foley...LOL.......give me a fucking break....

[mngolf19]

I believe this shows a lack of experience by Mr. Wilf. But ultimately he made the right decision in firing Foley. And I applaud him for that. I'm sure he'll get better with time and I approve of an owner who makes mistakes while trying as opposed to one (McCombs) who really wasn't trying. He just wanted to make money. I don't see this as a knock on anyone but Foley.