Jan. 4
Dennis Green will be fired next week unless Minnesota Vikings owner Red McCombs has a last-minute change of heart, according to league and team sources who say that McCombs has privately backtracked on the public vote of confidence he issued to Green last month.

	Dennis Green has reached the playoffs eight times in his 10 seasons with the Vikings.

McCombs is expected to meet with Green on Tuesday after the Vikings end the regular season Monday night in Baltimore. Team and league sources say McCombs has decided to fire Green unless the owner "flat-out changes his mind." A league source also said that McCombs is "unpredictable."

Buccaneers coach Tony Dungy would be a leading candidate as Green's replacement if Dungy is also fired in Tampa, the sources said.

Green told WCCO-AM in Minneapolis on Friday that the media attention given the report was disappointing and said he was preparing as usual for Monday's game.

"I have not talked with Red at all about anything other than, you know, the game that's taking place," Green said.

Green also spoke to radio station WMNN on Thursday, saying, "I've not had any conversations about the job or anything like that. Everyone knows that this is not something that hasn't been talked about a great deal. I think it's the first time it's been on ESPN. I just stand where I've always stood, which is always on the high ground, always take a positive approach and keep on doing my job."

McCombs could not be reached for comment, but the sources say he has grown in his conviction that major changes are needed to put the franchise back on track.

Despite Green's overall 97-62 record in 10 seasons, the sources say McCombs believes Green has lost his effectiveness as a leader, citing numerous discipline problems this season.

Previously, sources said the owner was thinking about stripping Green of his power and title as the team's vice president of football operations but decided that an outright dismissal made more sense. Green has been contemplating major changes of his own, sources said, including the possible dismissal of his respective offensive and defensive coordinators, Sherman Lewis and Emmitt Thomas.

The coach and owner have had at least one serious confrontation over Green's staff, according to sources. Green almost resigned around midseason because McCombs insisted that he fire assistant coach and director of pro personnel Richard Solomon, a close friend of Green's, the sources said.

There were initial discussions of a negotiated settlement, the sources said, but McCombs backed off and Green wasn't about to walk out on a contract that pays him about $3 million per year through 2004. Solomon remained on board, too.

Green almost resigned around midseason because McCombs insisted that he fire assistant coach and director of pro personnel Richard Solomon, sources said.

McCombs also has monitored Green's unpopularity in Minnesota, despite eight playoff seasons in 10 years. The owner is at a critical juncture in his attempt to have a new stadium built, and changing coaches "could only help the dynamics" on the political front, the sources said, though it is not the driving force behind the potential dismissal.

While Texas coach Mack Brown has been speculated as a possible successor to Green because of his close relationship with the owner (who lives in San Antonio), the sources say that Dungy would be the favorite if the Buccaneers fire him.

Dungy's familiarity with the NFC Central, his experience as a popular defensive coordinator in Minnesota under Green and his status as a former University of Minnesota player make him a popular choice, the sources said.

The Vikings and the university are cooperating on efforts to build a new retractable dome stadium.