Former Vikings Coach Taught Players To Injure Opponents
By Josh Sanchez
While the NFL is probably ready to move on from Bountygate, more accusations are coming to the surface. Surely the league doesn’t want to know how widespread this problem is, but Roger Goodell’s harsh punishment of the Saints staff demands the league to take a closer look at the problem.
Former Minnesota Vikings defensive lineman Brad Culpepper was speaking with Mike Bianchi on an Orlando radio show and revealed that coaches used to teach defenders to injure opponents.
“We practiced techniques to injure players,” Culpepper said via the St. Paul Pioneer Press. “We would dive on a mat and aim for the knee portion of a pad like it was the quarterback, and we would practice going at that and trying to bust the quarterback’s knee. You knock the quarterback out, you win the game. . . . If you pull on their arm and land on their shoulder, you can dislocate [the shoulder] and then they’re out. We used to practice that, too.”
The Vikings defensive coordinator during Culpepper’s time with the team in the 1990’s was Tony Dungy. However, Dungy was not named as a coach who taught the techniques. In fact, Culpepper followed Dungy to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and said no such thing went on in Tampa Bay.
Former Vikings defensive line coach John Teerlinck was specifically mentioned. Teerlinck had a meeting with then commissioner Paul Tagliabue back in 1996 to discuss his reputation for teaching defenders to go low on the quarterbacks.
To hear Culpepper tell his story in his own words, you can listen to the full radio interview here. I would highly recommend everyone takes the time to listen to Culpepper. It is a fascinating take on the entire situation that brings a true NFL player’s perspective.
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