Rice to Be Deactivated for Season if He Doesn’t Play vs. Packers

It looks like Brad Childress is done letting Sidney Rice call the shots in his own recovery from surgery.  Up till now, Chilly has let Rice decide from week-to-week whether he is able to play.  But, the coach has now informed everyone that, if Rice doesn’t make it on the field this Sunday against the Packers, the team will shut him down from the remainder of the season.

This certainly seems like a calculated move by Childress to force Rice’s hand.  It will be interesting to see now what Rice does.  If he isn’t quite ready to play this week, will he force himself out there to keep from being deactivated for the remainder of the season?  Or will he stick with his long-term-health-comes-first approach and not play no matter what tricks Chilly tries to pull?

Another question:  What does Chilly’s apparent attempt at forcing Rice onto the field for Sunday say about the coach’s job status?  Does this prove that Chilly is worried about getting fired should the Vikings lose?  If so, he would certainly want Rice on the field.

Let’s hope for Chilly’s sake this move doesn’t blow up in his face the way the Randy Moss move did.  The last thing old baldy needs is another PR disaster.

Update: Sidney Rice has given Brad Childress his answer:  he will play Sunday.  For the first time this year, Brett Favre will have his favorite receiver target from the magical 2009 season.  Whether this will make a different to the Vikings’ struggling offense remains to be seen.

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