Winning just isn't what it used to be as boos come down

Vikings coach Brad Childress said he didn't hear the "Fire Childress" chants that cascaded from the Metrodome seats throughout the second half of a 12-10 victory against the Detroit Lions on Sunday.

His players heard them. And the loud boos.

And they weren't happy.

"We're just trying to keep the fans in the building," defensive end Jared Allen said. "Now if we can just keep them from booing us every other minute. Geez. ... It's not how you like to win, but it's a win."

Asked specifically about the "Fire Childress" chants, Allen looked into a television camera to deliver his message.

"Chilly is my guy," Allen said. "Chill out, people. We have a lot of season left. Just chill out."

Allen's teammates offered a similar message, if not as forceful.

"It's just a weird dynamic right now," linebacker Ben Leber said. "I understand the fans are frustrated, but we're getting wins. They may not be as pretty as some of them were in the past, but we're getting wins."

"That's just frustration," safety Darren Sharper said. "That's all it is. When we start winning more games, those chants will change to positive chants."

Fans became restless in the first half as the Vikings struggled against a winless team that ranked last in the NFL in total defense. The Vikings were booed off the field after several offensive drives and again when they went to the locker room trailing 3-2 at halftime.

Childress has come under fire for the Vikings' relatively slow start and offensive struggles, and consecutive victories have not calmed fan frustration. Sunday's sloppy performance only dialed up the temperature.

That left his players defending their coach.

"We really don't pay attention to that," running back Adrian Peterson said. "[The chants] are crazy. Coach Childress does a great job of leading us. I wouldn't want any other guy to be leading us right now and inspiring us to go out and play as a team. He's a good leader, a guy we need."

Peterson said that play-calling is not the problem, that it's the execution.

"We keep stepping on our foot," he said. "We have a system out there and we just need to execute and do better as an offense."

Sharper said the chants and boos don't necessarily inspire players to perform better.

"We're always motivated," he said. "No matter what the fans are chanting, we're always motivated to go out there because we know how important each game is and what our goal is, and that's to win a championship."