Would Minnesota Dump McKinnie Over Legal Issues?

Could the charges that have Vikings OT Bryant McKinnie in trouble be the deciding factor if he comes back to Minnesota in 2008? That is the rumblings out of the St.Paul Pioneer Press today, that states McKinnie may be let go if things involving his issues with a brawl outside a nightclub in February in Miami get too hairy. Head coach Brad Chlidress was quoted by the paper as saying that McKinnie is “entitled to his due process,” but that “we could face some difficult decisions down the road” in regard to McKinnie.

Childress from day one has been very careful on what to say about the situation involving his left tackle, and even though the tackle pled not guilty on Monday to the charges facing him, that is not the end of the story. He is facing three charges, including aggravated battery, which is a felony. The police report said that McKinnie was “in the middle of a large crowd, throwing punches and yelling obscenities.”

McKinnie’s next court date is April 11th. Chlidress is the kind of no-nonsense coach that will not put up with the kind of acts like what McKinnie was involved with. If he is found guilty in anyway of being involved in that brawl in Miami, the Vikings, who have been trying to crack down on their off the field issues following the “love boat” fiasco of a few years back, may part ways with the former first-round pick.