Minnesota Vikings part with Rick Dennison after refusing COVID-19 vaccine
Rick Dennison has refused to get the COVID-19 vaccine and now is out of a job with the Minnesota Vikings.
The Minnesota Vikings announced Friday that they parted ways with offensive assistant Rick Dennison after he refused to get the COVID-19 vaccine.
Dennison will now cede his role within the organization to assistant offensive line coach Phil Rauscher, as the franchise moves into a new offensive philosophy under first-year offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak, son of former offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak, who won Super Bowl 50 in Denver as a head coach with Dennison as his offensive coordinator.
The NFL has put in a mandate that the vaccine is required for all Tier 1 staff, including coaches and front-office executives. Players can choose to forgo the vaccine, but those who do will face stricter protocol in training camp and during the season than those who comply.
Additionally, the league announced that this season, a game cannot be rescheduled due to a COVID-19 outbreak among unvaccinated players, therefore resulting in a forfeit and a loss being implemented for playoff seeding.
Rick Dennison’s departure shows how NFL organizations are taking the new rules seriously.
When the NFL announced these new rules, it was not only Rick Dennison who was against the decision, but numerous players as well, who took to social media to voice their displeasure but have since deleted their tweets.
However, no player has been more prominent about being against the vaccine than Buffalo Bills wide receiver Cole Beasley. Beasley tweeted that he would not get vaccinated and also responded rather sarcastically to an opinion of him being a potential distraction and that the Bills should consider cutting him, citing that cutting arguably the best slot receiver in the game would be wise.
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Dennison has a long history in the NFL, from playing as a linebacker in the early 1980s to winning three Super Bowls with the Broncos as an assistant and coaching various teams over a lengthy period. Now, he’s out of a job, and where he goes from here remains to be seen.