Dennis Green, former NFL coach, dead at 67
Dennis Green, who coached both the Minnesota Vikings and Arizona Cardinals, died of cardiac arrest Friday morning various media sites reported including ESPN.com.
Green, who led the Vikings to a 15-1 season in 1998 which fell just short of the Super Bowl, was 67.
A pioneering collegiate coach at Stanford and Northwestern, Green became just the second African-American head coach of the modern NFL era in 1993 when he left Stanford to coach the Vikings.
Green is second all-time in Minnesota franchise history for victories and led the Vikings to the playoffs eight times in 10 seasons yet was fired by the team in 2002.
Rest in peace Denny. I lost my mother in April, I feel like I just lost father.
— robert smith (@Robert26Smith) July 22, 2016
After leaving Minnesota, Green spent two seasons with ESPN before being hired by the Cardinals.
It was in Arizona in 2006 in which Green’s most memorable off-field event took place as he went on a colorful postgame tirade known best for the line “they are who we thought they were” following a loss to the Chicago Bears on Monday Night Football.
Green was fired by the Cardinals after three years and spent three seasons coaching in the now-defunct United Football League.
My heart goes out to family of my former coach Denny Green - we lost a good man way too soon!
— Kurt Warner (@kurt13warner) July 22, 2016
This story was originally published July 22, 2016 at 12:10 PM with the headline "Dennis Green, former NFL coach, dead at 67."