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Another go-round
Quick-canning head coaches not always the answer
Posted: Thursday January 06, 2000 11:15 AM
By John Donovan, CNNSI.com
Every year, this happens, and every year it gets screwier.
"This," New England owner Bob Kraft was saying the other day, "is a business of accountability."
Sure it is. The NFL is a win-or-else place. Unless you coach in Cincinnati.
Fans are going to rumble. Owners are going to react. Heads are gonna roll.
But, c'mon. Ray Rhodes gone after one year in Green Bay? The man barely had time to unpack. Pete Carroll gone in New England? Half the coaches in the league would swallow their whistles for his record. Bruce Coslet sticking around in Cinci?
And then there's the whole fiasco in New York. Bill Parcells wants to move on, but Bill Belichick doesn't want to take over, or at least not without exploring all his options, so one of the best defensive minds in football may be sitting at home next season.
What the heck is going on here?
Mike Brown, the Bengals' owner who has a decidedly long fuse when it comes to retaining coaches, pointed out this week that the Packers made a change just last year, hiring Rhodes. And that didn't seem to help, considering they're making another. Brown also recalled how the Rams and Colts didn't make a change after last season -- the Rams were 4-12, the Colts 3-13 -- and this year they're the toast of the league.
Brown and the Bengals, of course, are hardly examples of good football management. But the point is this: Coaches get fired all the time. Often, it's too late. But once in a while, it's too soon.
On to the Glance, which this week asks the puzzling playoff question: What happens to Bills coach Wade Phillips if Rob Johnson stinks it up this weekend?
The answer: Other than a lot of grief from fans, probably nothing. But Ray Rhodes is available, just in case.
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Coast-to-coast joke
Miami and Seattle? All the talk is how these two teams backed into the playoffs. It's fitting, considering they played the second half of the season as if their helmets were on backwards. |
Flutie flops
Last year's hero is this one's goat. Less than a week before the Bills start their playoff run against the Tennessee Oilers, QB Doug Flutie gets the bench in favor of Rob Johnson. Will it help? Will it hurt? What's going on up there? |
Hurtin'
The Jaguars lose starting LT Tony Boselli to a knee injury. The Bucs lose starting LT Paul Gruber to a broken leg. The Colts lose Cornelius Bennett to a bad knee, QB Charlie Batch of the Lions is out with a broken thumb. Now starting for YOUR team ... Joe Willie Namath! |
Spinnin'
Wanted: Coach with big ego and sufficient media skills to run NFL team in major East Coast market. Must follow in footsteps of respected former coach. Ownership in flux. Keyshawn wants the ball. Fans hungry. Jim Fassel need not apply. |
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Flattery -- Bill Parcells:
He can be bombastic, caustic and just plain -icky, but you have to appreciate the job he's done and the fact that he goes out on his own terms -- as a winner, leaving a winning team for his successor. |
Flag -- Wade Phillips:
Maybe Rob Johnson gives you a better chance to win. Maybe not. But the timing of this move stinks, all around. Thanks for getting us here, Doug. Now step the heck aside. |
Flag -- The Dolphins and Seahawks:
Wow. Nice streaks, guys. Is there a hockey game on? |
Flattery -- The Titans:
Even without their big guns, they wipe out the Steelers to finish 13-3. This is a team that is peaking at the right time. |
Flattery -- Cortez Kennedy:
One good thing about the Seahawks backing in: Kennedy finally gets a taste of the playoffs. One of the best and most under-sung interior linemen in the game. |
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| We like Emmitt, but no way the Vikings collapse at home for the second straight playoff game. |
| Detroit is 0-19 all-time in Washington. Detroit plays in Washington Saturday. We say 0-20. |
| While we're at it: Tennessee and Seattle, too. A lot of home cooking. |
| Flutie says he wouldn't mind playing in Canada again. He may get his wish at this rate. |
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| Buffalo at Tennessee (Saturday, 12:30 p.m. ET). The beaten-up Bills have a QB controversy, and they're playing in a place where the Titans have yet to lose. Yikes! |
| Detroit at Washington (Saturday, 4 p.m. ET). Gus Frerotte will have to rescue Detroit. He could do damage against the Redskins' iffy "D." But if Stephen Davis is back, Skins roll. |
| Dallas at Minnesota (Sunday, 12:30 p.m. ET). The 'Boys snapped out of a funk, thanks to the Giants. Randy Moss has snapped out of his, too, and the Vikes are at home. |
| Miami at Seattle (Sunday, 4 p.m. ET). Two teams playing their worst football. The Kingdome is loud, and the Dolphins can be shaken. Marino or Huard? May not matter. |
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| It's a bit unsettling seeing teams like Seattle and Miami and Detroit and Dallas stumble into the playoffs. Even a little more so knowing at least one of those teams will advance to the divisional playoffs. But you wanted parity, folks. This is it. |
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