Several years ago, when we lived in Red Wing, Dennis found himself to a pair of tickets to see the Vikings play the 49ers at the Metrodome. It was the last game of the season, and the Vikes had already clinched their playoff berth, and San Francisco really didn't have much to prove at that point, either.
As you might have guessed, it was a pretty laid-back affair. The A-list for both teams clocked in for the first quarter, and then let the second and third strings rack up numbers. Not a bad game for all that--certainly no nail-biter moments, but it was also a pretty clean game penalty-wise. So everybody seemed to head out in a good mood.
With today's sacking of Brad Childress (and rumors of Number 4 meeting the same fate in a less physical sense than normal), the Vikings do have the option of capitalizing on an abysmal season as they did with the stellar one a decade or so back. Rather than watch the first string try to rack up yards or sacks or what-have-you in lieu of actual wins (which is the tempting option), the higher payoff would likely come from mixing it up with the supporting cast.
Or so sayeth Armchair Head Coach fivechimera (and her consort Dennis). The twist, though, is that I think that the premise applies to doomed projects in the business world just as it does unredeemable playing seasons. If instant shut-down isn't an option, there is still experience to be gained. Technical as well as teamwork experience. And, perhaps just as important, a chance to find out who the glory-hounds are before they're on a more visible project.
