Yes, the first (and only) round of the NFL coaches draft is completed (if you missed parts 1 & 2, see here), but there were more coaches than spots. Why did these coaches miss the cut?
Tom Cable (Oak): As explained during Oakland's pick, Cable is probably the only coach on this list willing to work woth Al Davis, and that's the problem: he likely only has the job because no one else wants to touch the Raiders with Al in charge. Maybe he's actually a decent head coach (see Gruden, Jon) and quite possibly he's an incompetent stooge (see Shell, Art).
Brad Childress (Min): Much like Brian Billick, he's a reputed quarterback guru who gets consistently awful play from the QB position. He's hitched his wagon to Tarvaris Jackson (terrible), confident that he can turn chicken **** into chicken...well, I honestly have no idea what the best case scenario is supposed to be here.
Romeo Crennel (FA): Got 4 years in Cleveland. Couldn't settle on a quarterback, couldn't resurrect the defense, couldn't get anything working that well. His one year of success was on the back of Braylon Edwards (who needs surgery to remove the butter from his hands), and Kellen Winslow II (who's certifiable). It quickly proved to be unsustainable as Cleveland went all in last year...and finished 4-12.
Herm Edwards (FA): Perhaps the worst coach in recent memory at managing the clock in the last 2 minutes of either half. Unlike other butchers like Andy Reid and Mike Holmgren though, Edwards doesn't bring a great strength to the table to offset his questionable in-game decisions. Well, unless you count his entertaining post-game press conferences. YOU PLAY TO WIN THE GAME!
Jim Haslett (FA): Jim Haslett is kind of like Wade Phillips if Wade Phillips were thinner, angrier, and an average defensive coordinator. Players love Haslett because Haslett doesn't require things like discipline. That's all well and good, until the team hits a rough patch, and under Haslett, the rough patches are going to come quickly, as his teams aren't known for on-field discipline either.
Lane Kiffin (Universty of Tennessee): Was a tempting pick because his father is revered defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin and the fact that Al Davis hates his guts (so he's probably doing something right). After Al's abomination of a press conference to discuss why he fired Kiffin, Lane's stock was pretty high. Then Lane took the job at Tennessee and started running his mouth about every other coach in the SEC...I'm not willing to say Davis was right, but maybe both parties were at fault in the doomed Raiders marriage. If I'm an NFL team, I want to see Kiffin succeed at the major college program first before I think about tabbing him to run my franchise.
Marvin Lewis (Cin): Was brought into Cincy for 2 reasons: 1) To restore order after years of inmates running the asylum, and 2) to improve an atrocious defense. Well, Chad Ocho Cinco is still there and raising havoc, and the one successful season was on the back of an outstanding offense. Now the pieces from that offense are either washed up or have moved on, and the defense, while better, isn't good enough to lead the team. Lewis has put up with an inordinate amount of BS and not succumbed, but then again, the head coach has to shoulder a good deal of the blame when his team looks out of control...even if that team is the Bengals.
Scott Linehan (FA): Jim Haslett was an improvement. And look at the Rams. They weren't 0-16...and that's everything positive I could think of to say about them.
Eric Mangini (Cle): Learned everything he knows from Bill Belichick, except how to give his team a schematic advantage in every game they play. Seems like an intelligent coach, and it's not his fault the Jets thrust him into the spotlight likely before he was ready, and he did get a bit of a raw deal in watching Brett Favre submarine the last month of his last season (though, as HC, he could have steped in and replaced Brett's carcass with a live body). Probably the best coach not drafted, but you get the sense that a) he's not going to steer the team to wins above its talent level and b) he seems to turn off a lot of players. As a coach, you don't need to be liked, but you do need to be able to convince the players to run through walls for you, and there's a bit of question as to whether Mangini can coax that.
Rod Marinelli (defensive line coach): Presided over 0-16 trainwreck in Detroit. One of his assistant coaches gained infamy for driving through a Wendy's with no pants. Forgot to instruct young QB that there's a back out of bounds line in the end zone. Classic respected position coach out of his league as a head coach.
Mike Nolan (defensive coordinator): Thoroughly botched his handling of his #1 overall pick quarterback. Changed defensive schemes when he got to San Francisco, but never got the players to fit his scheme. As such, his defenses (his specialty) never reached above an average level. Also seemed unable to coax great efforts out of his team.
Jim Zorn (Wash): His team looked like a high school team in the season opener against the Giants. Then they caught fire, and then the fire went out...halfway through the season. Zorn was hired to work with Redskins QB Jason Campbell, and it's hard to say whether Campbell improved by the end of the season or not. Add to that some public fires started by his star running back, and it paints a worrisome picture. Add to that the fact that Zorn was hired as offensive coordinator first, then hired as head coach 2 weeks later, and there's just a fishy smell hanging over Zorn's head. Doesn't mean he can't turn things around in DC, but at this point, he's not one of the 32 best options to run a team.
No comments:
Post a Comment