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Category Archives: Jeff Fisher

They hired who?

27 Jan

 

Well, we are a few days away from the Pro Bowl (does anyone know or even care who’s playing in that?) and a little over a week than the event that mustn’t be named and all teams have a head coach for the 2012 season. There were some shockers, some good hires and some baffling decisions. We have already talked about Kansas City hiring Romeo Crennel, Jacksonville hiring Mike Mularkey and St. Louis hiring Jeff Fisher. Let’s look at the other 4 teams that have fired and hired in the past couple of weeks.

Indianapolis Colts – fired Jim Caldwell – hired Chuck Pagano - The firing makes since, although I still say they shouldn’t have hired Caldwell in the first place. I mean, come on it’s not too hard to see a disaster that he is while he was coaching Wake Forest. Jim Caldwell should have never been hired, but to put this year’s blame on him is unfair. This team had no direction, lack of talent and until the last couple of weeks looked like they were satisfied with the #1 pick and mailed it in. For them hiring the wrong man, blaming him for the crap-fest that was they’re wasted season, I have to say STUPID. Weird how this franchise was looked upon as one of the smartest and most stable franchises over the last decade. Should we re-asses that? Only time will tell. The hiring of Pagano is really interesting. First of all, since 1998 this franchise has been all about offense and now they go and hire a defensive minded coach. But, last year was the first and only year as a defensive coordinator. This could be a great hire but I think it is a huge risk. Also, what does this say about Peyton Manning’s future? How about the future of this franchise? By March, we will know whether the Colts want Peyton or not and pretty soon we will see what direction they will be going in. For the hire and new direction, so-so but this can/will be re-evaluated in a couple of years.

Oakland Raiders – fired Hue Jackson – hired Al Davis Dennis Allen - Too early for an Al Davis joke? The firing of Hue Jackson is the WORST decision of the year for any team (ok, maybe tied with Kansas City firing Todd Haley and Philly putting their O-line coach, Juan Castillo, as their D-coordinator). Hue couldn’t help the injuries to the key players on the team (Jason Campbell and Darren McFadden to name a couple). And with all of that he still got them to 8-8. This marks 2 straight years the Raiders have fired a coach after he did a really nice job with the team. The firing stupid. The hiring of Allen is also strange. Like Pagano with the Colts, Allen was a first year Defensive Coordinator with Denver last year. Again, we really can’t tell what he will be. I just thought that once Al Davis left, this franchise would act a little more normal. But I guess I was wrong! Hiring was so-so.

Miami Dolphins – fired Tony Sparano – hired Joe Philbin - The firing was probably a year or two late. Ross had cut Sparano’s legs out from under him since the beginning. They were always looking for the next coach and when they couldn’t find him, only then did they “back” Sparano. The firing is a so-so because it was about time, but very poorly handled. I love the hiring of Joe Philbin and actually think this is one of the better hires this year. Unfortunately, Philbin’s son will never get to see his dad make his dream job, to be an NFL head coach. Philbin has been the OC in Green Bay since ’07, so he made the transition from Favre to Rodgers without a hick-up in the offense. The hiring is good (GREAT).

Tampa Bay Buccaneers – fired Raheem Morris – hired Greg Schiano - The firing of Morris was just like that of Indy…they never should have hired him. Morris was clueless from day one. I can’t believe they hired him but they ended up what was right and the firing is good. Now on to the crazy part. What in the world were the Glazer family doing? Seriously, they wanted Marty Schottenheimer, Mike Sherman, Chip Kelly and finally settled on Greg Schiano. Talk about a bizarre head coach hiring process. I can understand Marty, although he is pretty old now. What I don’t understand is Mike Sherman (he failed at both Green Bay and Texas A&M and you want him as your head coach?) and the 2 college coaches. It was like Tampa had to get a “name” candidate. I am one to believe that it’s almost never a good idea to bring in college coaches to NFL franchises. Schiano did a nice job at Rutgers and probably the best they could have ever wished for. But, Schiano has rarely any NFL presence. I think the hiring of Schiano is borderline stupid. I will put a so-so because I like the type of offense in (which I love). Good luck Tampa.

I will see you tomorrow and pretty soon we will be talking about the big game that mustn’t be mentioned!

 
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Posted by on January 27, 2012 in NFL, Indianapolis Colts, Kansas City Chiefs, Green Bay Packers, Oakland Raiders, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Miami Dolphins, St. Louis Rams, Jacksonville Jaguars, Peyton Manning, Jeff Fisher, Mike Mularkey, Romeo Crennel, Jason Campbell, Al Davis, Jim Caldwell, Marty Schottenheimer, Chip Kelly, Chuck Pagano, Mike Sherman, Hue Jackson, Dennis Allen, Darren McFadden, Tony Sparano, Joe Philbin, NFL Head Coach

 

NFL’s annual changing of the guard.

17 Jan

Ch-ch-ch-changes!!! This has been a bi-annual event in the District of Columbia since Mr. Dan Snyder took over as First Galactic Emporer owner of the Washington Redskins. Yet, DC stays quiet after 2 years of the Shanahan Era. Now, as long as the sports world continues to stay quiet through the week, I will have a lot more on this later this week along with what is going on in the Big Apple with the Coughlin Era, as I see a lot of similarities and quite frankly, it disgusts me. But that’s for another day. Today, we are here to discuss the recent firings and hirings of head coaches in the NFL and whether each are good, so-so or stupid. We will go with all the teams that have already hired a new coach (in order of when they fired “the bum”) and then look at the teams that have fired but not hired. So, let’s get to it.

Jacksonville Jaguars, Fired Jack Del Rio – Hired Mike Mularkey - The River City got things started early this year. Well, when you look at how long a leash they gave Del Rio I’m surprised they didn’t wait until the next century. Look, I understand they want stability and want to create the atmosphere that is up in Steel Town, PA. But, come on! Holy crap…could we not see Del Rio for what he was 6-7 years in? The man got 8 years and 11 games and he would have probably been given the full season had he not screwed up with Blaine Gabbert so much. The firing is good but the timing is stupid. They wasted 3 years of Jaguars fans and talent on a crappy head coach. Just go back and look at all of the issues he’s had with his QB’s. The Jags then went out after the season and hired Atlanta Falcons OC Mike Mularkey. I understand a lot of Jags fans aren’t happy with this and honestly this is not a sexy/big splash hire. But, when you’re looking to build a winner do you have to go with a sexy pick? Especially when a lot of those big name hires wanted absolute power? I think cooler heads need to prevail and do a wait-and-see. I know we are a society that wants everything and wants everything NOW but you have to wait on this one. Mularkey comes into a situation with a talented defense but a one-trick pony when it comes to the offense. Now, that one-trick is a pretty darn good one. MJD is one of the best RB’s in the league and that’s on a team with no passing game. So if you have to grade Mularkey’s hire you would have to say so-so but unknown and pending a grade in 3-4 years. Jacksonvlle: Give the man a chance and give him some time!

Kansas City Chiefs, Fired Todd Haley – Hired Romeo Crennel - The Chiefs were STUPID in firing Todd Haley. The man won the AFC West last year in just his second year on the job. This year they suffered massive injuries to their best players. Eric Berry, Matt Cassel, Jamaal Charles and Brandon Siler all lost for the season. That just decimated a team, I don’t care how much depth you have on your team. How could Haley succeed? Yes, they did have quite a few blowout loses but after only 3 years Haley should have been kept. Someone will be a lucky franchise to pick him up. The hire was with Romeo Crennel. Crennel seems like a great guy and a possible a good-great head coach. Who could anyone have succeeded in Cleveland with the lack of talent back then? I think the Crennel hire is a good one but the verdict is still out.

Miami Dolphins, Fired Tony Sporano – Hired Todd Bowles - Now this is a fire that I believe to be a good one. But this is what it comes to when you take all authority away from the head coach and dangle him in the wind. Miami is lost right now and needs a lot of fixing. The Fins chose to put their franchise in the hands of Todd Bowles who was last the Secondary Coach at Miami. Bowles became the interim and they decided to go with them because of the decision of Mr. Jeff Fisher to go with St. Louis. The hiring of Todd Bowles is sort of like what is going on in Jacksonville. Not a splashy or big name hire. Again we need another 3-4 years to see what Bowles is.

St. Louis Rams, Fired Steve Spagnuolo - Spags was a huge name after the dominance of New York’s defense in 2007. The Rams picked him up and he just never could get the plane off the ground. He looks like a great coordinator but bad head coach. But don’t worry Steve…if Norv Turner can get 3 chances in the NFL you probably can too. Just a few days ago I wrote about Jeff Fisher going from coming oh-so-close to beating the Rams in Super Bowl XXXIV to being hired on as their new head coach. St. Louis now has a bright future with one of the best coaches in the game. Firing - good, hiring - good.The next three teams have fired their head coaches but have yet to fill their own spots.

The next 2 teams have fired but have not yet hired:

Oakland Raiders, Fired Hue Douglas -  This is probably the most bafflinf change for many years to come. How can you say anything about Douglas when there. Douglas had only 1 year and had Jason Campbell and Darren McFadden go down for the season…and he still got them to go 8-8. I think Jackson has a great chance to go somewhere and succeed. But, I am beginning to wonder if Al Davis is sending messages through Jesus to Tim Tebow and then to GM Reggie McKenzie. The firing was beyond stupid.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Fired Raheem Morris - The man should have never been hired in the first place. This was immediately after the wild success of Mike Tomlin in Pittsburgh and Tampa wanted to copy it…too bad they didn’t get Mike Tomlin because Morris was a failure from Day 1. Firing - good,  timing – stupid.

Enjoy your day and look out for more on the coaching situations in NY and DC later this week.

 
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Posted by on January 17, 2012 in NFL, Tim Tebow, New York Giants, Atlanta Falcons, Kansas City Chiefs, Tom Coughlin, Oakland Raiders, Cleveland Browns, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Washington Redskins, Miami Dolphins, St. Louis Rams, Jacksonville Jaguars, Todd Haley, Jeff Fisher, Dan Snyder, DC, Jack Del Rio, Mike Mularkey, Blaine Gabbert, Maurice Jones-Drew, Romeo Crennel, Eric Berry, Matt Cassel, Jamaal Charles, Brandon Siler, Tony Sporano, Todd Bowles, New York, Hue Douglas, Jason Campbell, Al Davis, Reggie McKenzie, Raheem Morris, Mike Tomlin, Steve Spagnuolo, Norv Turner

 

NFL Playoffs Divisional Round, Day 1

14 Jan

NFL Playoffs bracket

Day 1 and boy, do we have some match-ups to watch today! You have high powered air attacks, a smash-mouth defense, old-school 80′s style football, a defense that a wet noodle could score on…heck we even have the option for all of you. If you’re not satisfied by that well, than you need to go talk to Mick Jagger! But the story lines don’t stop there. We have a city’s “savior”, the “next-Montana”, an archangel who can’t throw the ball but he still beats you nonetheless and we can’t forget the coach who not only beats you but afterwards slaps the crap out of you and pumps his fist in your face. Yes, and we have it all in one day!! So, let’s take a closer look at these matchups.

New Orleans Saints @ San Francisco 49ers, 4:30 on FOX - Sean Payton and Drew Brees take their air show on the road. Luckily, for them and us we aren’t at the mercy of San Fran generators. On the other side we have Jim Harbaugh who has resurrected the 49ers and their QB Alex Smith. I’m not going to try and fool you into thinking Smith is a great QB. He is not. But, when he has a strong running game and a great defense the man can manage a game. Well, manage is not really giving him enough credit. Alex Smith in any other year had an outstanding year. But 3, yes THREE, QB’s threw for over 5,000 yards this year. Heck, even a rookie threw for over 4,000 yards. The Niners also have one of the best backs out there in Frank Gore. The most shocking stat is that the Saints have rushed for more yards this season than the 49ers. The Niners have more of a grind-it-out, very balanced offensive approach while the Saints are like Air Coryell on steroids. But the Saints have a running game too, they just don’t need to use it that much. On the defensive front, the 49ers are everything you want. They not only shut you down and don’t allow many yards and/or points but they also lead the league, with Green Bay, in takeaways. We all know what the Saints are on defense. Not a lot of great talent but a master-schemer in Greg Williams who loves to put pressure on you and make you turn the ball over. The only thing is, they are one of the worst defenses in takeaways. This game is really going to come down to what the 49ers do in the redzone. They are going to have to score touchdowns not settle for field goals or leave points on the board. I love the 49ers and think this is a game they can definitely win but I have to pick the Saints who I think are on a roll right now. Saints 23, 49ers 21

Denver Broncos @ New England Patriots, 8:00 on CBS - In the AFC we have…well, I really don’t know what we have. Seriously, can anyone please tell me what in the world is happening in the city “high in the sky” this year? I thought the Steelers, even with all of their injuries, would never let the Broncos beat them in the playoffs (well, according to some only one man…nay, one demigod beat the Steelers). I can throw all of the stats I want at you and in the end what will it mean? Absolutely zilch! If the Patriots defense (yes, that one I said a wet noodle could score on) allows Thor Tebow to keep his team in the game late, you can guarantee we just might see another magic show happen in the end. I have to say that I would absolutely love to see the whole Broncos team Tebowing literally on top of Belicheat but I really don’t think they will win. I think this is where the T-train ends and Brady and the Patriots move on to the AFC Championship Game. The Patriots defense, well…the 11 men that just so happen to be on the field when we say “the Patriots defense” will allow the Broncos to keep up but I think the Pats are too powerful and have been here too many times to allow the Broncos to steel (ha, like that one?) this one away. But, I said that last week about the Steelers and look where we are right now! So, I will stop running my mouth (better yet, typing with my fingers) and predict the score. Patriots 24, Broncos 17

On another note, we have one of the weirdest things to come around in some time. I mean, this was pretty weird and so was this, this, this and this. But 12 years ago, did anyone ever even think that they would see this happen? I have to say I didn’t but hey, if you can’t beat them… I wonder if Fisher will get to the Super Bowl in a few years and have to give one of those “They’re celebrating right now! Look at them!” speeches to pump his team up, only to have them fall 1/2 a yard short this time. I think Jeff Fisher is a great coach and is bound to win one someday. The Rams finally have a coach that can lead them back to the promise land. But a word of the wise to you St. Louis…don’t dump Sam Bradford and go with a knucklehead like this guy. It might not work out too well.

Enjoy the games today and we will be back tomorrow to have me gloat about just how smart I am at picking NFL playoff games to preview Sunday’s match-ups.

 
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Posted by on January 14, 2012 in AFC, Alex Smith, Bill Belichick, Denver Broncos, Drew Brees, Frank Gore, Green Bay Packers, Greg Williams, Jeff Fisher, Jim Harbaugh, New England Patriots, New Orleans Saints, NFL, NFL Playoffs, Pittsburgh Steelers, Sam Bradford, San Francisco 49ers, Sean Payton, St. Louis Rams, Super Bowl, Tennessee Titans, Tim Tebow, Tom Brady

 
 
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