NFL Coaching Carousel: Getting You Ready for Black Monday(s)
This week brought the end of the tenure of Todd Haley in Kansas City and Tony Sparano in Miami. They’ll join the recently ousted Jack Del Rio in the unemployment line, at least for the next few weeks, and so goes the annual tradition of end-of-season firings in the NFL. As we approach the holiday season, we can usually find a deserving coach losing his job, a few hanger-ons that should have already been fired, the usual hot-seat burning and lastly a coach or two who was finally put out of his misery. The following will give you something to chew on about the recent coaching changes, the firings that will likely happen, and those that should happen.
Going holiday hungry (already axed)
Tony Sparano – History will generally agree that Sparano was the fall guy for front office deficiency. There were clear off-field distractions with Jeff Ireland openly wooing Jim Harburgh while desperately hoping to not lose face with the organization and failing miserably on all accounts. Had the organization addressed the quarterback issues, an average QB could have helped the Dolphins compete for the playoffs this year. After the team went 11-5 in Sparano’s first year, they failed to have a winning record in the subsequent three years. I’d suspect Ireland will look to install a “yes man” at coach (feels like a Norv Turner calling – yes, we’ll get to that) and they’ll proceed to lose for another couple of years before Stephen Ross decides to blow it all up.
Jack Del Rio – I like Del Rio, but a year or two overdue on this coaching change. It’s just the marriage of an organization and coach can only last so many years of not quite breaking through before it gets stale. The team has a phenomenal, if not now aging running back in Maurice Jones-Drew and yet has been unable to muster an even respectable offense. Del Rio was always defensive minded and spent too many years neglecting the offense. The team needs to make a splash to bring some much needed attention to the organization and if they open up the wallets, it would be an ideal fit for Jon Gruden to resurrect the team.
Todd Haley – A conflict of egos between Haley and GM Scott Pioli, forecasted this divorce and given the clash I’m a little unsettled on how I feel about Haley as coach. He’s a little unconventional, which can be good to push forward or just create confusion within the team. Since he seemed to be able to keep the team, I’m buying that Haley can be the right fit in another place. The rumored replacement is Josh McDaniels whose history with Pioli in New England makes him the odds on favorite; however, McDaniels was run out of Denver so fast after the implosion a year ago, I’m not sure he had time to pack. I’m a believer that people learn from mistakes and McDaniels is clearly a smart football coach, but I don’t think ready yet to run another team. Putting McDaniel in charge after Haley could set the Chiefs franchise back another five years or they’ll be contenders next year. Either way, this one will be fun to watch.
Buying the ham now and freezing (hoping not to be fired before Christmas)
Tom Coughlin – The annual “Coughlin lost the team” discussion began after the blow-out to the Saints, but after a competitive game with the Packers and a win at Dallas, they control their own destiny to win the division. Even if the Giants were out of it completely, the Mara’s aren’t the type of ownership to fire mid-season. More importantly the four-game losing streak came against the three best teams in the NFC and the über-talented even if completely dysfunctional Eagles. The schedule sets up nicely to run the table and close out with another win against the Cowboys to end the season. Giants in the playoffs and Coughlin in as coach for at least one more year.
Steve Spagnuolo – Admittedly I don’t know what went wrong with this situation. Seemed like a smart hire and he had support from Rams front office. Even if Sam Bradford stayed healthy, this team wouldn’t have won more than six games, and in a weak NFC West this team should have been able to compete with the 49ers. If they fire Spagnuolo, they’ll want to go with a coach with head coaching experience. Fortunately, they seem savvy enough to avoid the usually recycles (i.e. Wade Phillips), while being frugal enough to not overspend on a big name whose been sitting on the sidelines. Expect a coaching transplant from an East Coast NFC team. As for Spagnuolo, he’ll find a spot quickly as a D-coordinator for a team on the come.
Jim Caldwell – I’m pretty sure it's in the NFL by-laws that if you go 0-16, you get fired and don’t get another job. How long will it take for them to just make Peyton Manning the head coach? I mean it feels like he runs the team. Can he run the offense with Andrew Luck taking snaps from center? In all seriousness, Archie Manning has expressed some concern about Peyton handing over the reins to Andrew Luck, so Peyton will likely be traded to a contender looking for a QB. As we learned from the Eli Manning draft day experience, what the Mannings want, the Mannings get.
Andy Reid – Reid has a lot of equity with Eagles ownership, Jeff Lurie, after a decade of success. Under the pretense of shortened off-season and needing a couple of years for the all high-profile free-agent acquisitions to come together, Reid will likely get one more season. Unless the Eagles do something to address the real issues, lack of discipline and leadership in the locker room, not to mention weak up the middle on the football field, expect a similar season next year.
Norv Turner – Will likely be let go as soon as the Chargers are eliminated from playoff contention, which will be about . . . let's see he was hired in 2007 . . . so four years too late? By all accounts, Norv seems like a good guy and very smart football coach, but some guys are not meant to be a head coach. He took over the most talented, deepest team in the NFL and they slowly digressed to non-contender in the AFC West. All the Tebow mystique aside, have you watched the AFC West teams play football?! – The Chargers can’t get their poop in pile and beat out this mess of teams and somehow that’s not the coach’s fault? In fairness to Norv, this mostly falls on A.J. Smith, the ego-maniac GM who got into a pissing contest with Marty Schottenheimer and is now going to push Norv Turner into the speeding train of missed expectations.
Cold Cut (Potential Surprise Firings)
Ken Whisenhunt, Mike Smith, and Raheem Morris: A range of two to four years of tenure in the group and varying degrees of success for all three. Whisenhunt took the Cardinals to the Super Bowl in 2009 in just his second season, Smith is on the verge of leading the Falcons to the playoffs for a second consecutive year, and Morris, the youngest head coach in the NFL, has turned around the Bucs franchise to a 10-win team in just his second year. So aside from some success, what common trait binds these coaches – high expectations. Almost every year there is a coach that is ousted under similar conditions: moderate success, and elevated expectations. One of these coaches will lose his job, and it will probably come as a surprise to most. Morris is likely safe. He is assured a losing season this year and despite the big drop-off, it is only his third year leading the Bucs. At 9-5, Mike Smith has the Falcons on the lead rail a wild card and a good play-off run will likely keep him safe. However, a blow-out loss to the Giants (assuming a 4-5 matchup with Giants winning the east and the Falcons as the top NFC wildcard) in the opening round of the playoffs may spell trouble for Smith, and if Falcons stumble the last two weeks, failing to the make the playoffs – could be the end of the coaching union . Lastly, Whisenhunt, I can’t imagine the Cardinals ownership will be happy with two consecutive years on the outside of the playoff picture. A lost this weekend to the Browns will officially eliminate the Cardinals from playoff contention and could lead to the firing of Whisenhunt.
Lastly, who should get fired, but won’t: Although any number of coaches fit the bill, Jim Schwartz jumps to mind for me. They will likely earn the final NFC wild card spot and he has the team playing at a level that far exceeds traditional Lions fashion. He put together a solid nucleus to build on, but he’s failed to control his team as evidenced with Ndamukong Suh and Cliff Avril leading the NFL in personal foul penalties. What he’s really failing to do is make the team accountable. To me, this is characteristic of team that will never reach the ultimate prize of a Super Bowl and if that’s the goal, why wait to change. The players' attitudes and issues are indicative of a coach who is complacent to this behavior or unable to change it, either of which is unacceptable and necessitates a change in the coach.
