Sunday, November 28, 2004
Posted on 11/28
It's my favorite time of the year in football. It's when organizations begin to make changes in their coaching situations.
So far, only Miami has made it official and whacked Wanny. I was a fan of the coach during his time with the Bears. People can say what they want about Wanny, but he was a class guy who had time for almost everybody - fellow coaches, reporters, players, sponsors, and fans. He'll get another job and a head coaching position at the college level may be great for him. Think of him as the next Pete Carroll - strong as an assistant in the NFL, struggled as a head coach, but successful at the NCAA level. He could be a good choice at Florida or Illinois. Yet, a year or two at Penn State with Joe Pa may be a good succession plan for Wanny. Plus, he's still getting paid by the Dolphins organization. No need to rush into anything.
Other NFL teams that may make a change include Seattle, San Francisco, St. Louis, New Orleans, Green Bay, Minnesota, Washington, Cleveland, Tennessee, Kansas City, and Oakland.
Here's a list of probabilities about a possible change:
- Seattle. .4 probability. They're sinking fast. A loss at home to Buffalo can't make the billionaire owner happy. How long can Holmgren survive is the question? Paul Allen has plenty of money to pay off the man who made his name by corralling Brett Favre.
- San Francisco. .15 probability. The team sucks, but it's not the coach's fault.
- St. Louis. .25 probability. Who knows with Mike Martz and the ownership group.
- New Orleans. .75 probability. The hatchet is coming for Haslett.
- Green Bay. .4 probability. Sherman doesn't make the playoffs and a change will be made.
- Minnesota. .75 probability. If no playoffs and a couple of wins in the postseason, no job for Tice. Then again, a new coach would demand money and Red owns the team. He's an old car dealer - that means he doesn't like to spend money.
- Washington. .5 probability. Does Joe Gibbs really need this?
- Cleveland. .98 probability. Total control doesn't work in the NFL or the NCAA. Coaches that don't surround themselves with talented people who aren't afraid to disagree with the top dog will end up in the scrap heap. Butch Davis is headed in the direction of the junkyard. Maybe a position at the University of Florida is in his future.
- Tennessee. .12 probability. Sometimes Bud Adams makes irrational decisions. It wouldn't be smart to move out Jeff Fisher, but it also wasn't smart to move from Houston.
- Kansas City. .4 probability. Does Vermeil want to rebuild again?
- Oakland. .3 probability. Nobody knows what Al Davis is going to do.
More to come as to why it's a case study in management theory when observing the inner workings of an NFL franchise and we'll look at candidates for the open college jobs.
So far, only Miami has made it official and whacked Wanny. I was a fan of the coach during his time with the Bears. People can say what they want about Wanny, but he was a class guy who had time for almost everybody - fellow coaches, reporters, players, sponsors, and fans. He'll get another job and a head coaching position at the college level may be great for him. Think of him as the next Pete Carroll - strong as an assistant in the NFL, struggled as a head coach, but successful at the NCAA level. He could be a good choice at Florida or Illinois. Yet, a year or two at Penn State with Joe Pa may be a good succession plan for Wanny. Plus, he's still getting paid by the Dolphins organization. No need to rush into anything.
Other NFL teams that may make a change include Seattle, San Francisco, St. Louis, New Orleans, Green Bay, Minnesota, Washington, Cleveland, Tennessee, Kansas City, and Oakland.
Here's a list of probabilities about a possible change:
- Seattle. .4 probability. They're sinking fast. A loss at home to Buffalo can't make the billionaire owner happy. How long can Holmgren survive is the question? Paul Allen has plenty of money to pay off the man who made his name by corralling Brett Favre.
- San Francisco. .15 probability. The team sucks, but it's not the coach's fault.
- St. Louis. .25 probability. Who knows with Mike Martz and the ownership group.
- New Orleans. .75 probability. The hatchet is coming for Haslett.
- Green Bay. .4 probability. Sherman doesn't make the playoffs and a change will be made.
- Minnesota. .75 probability. If no playoffs and a couple of wins in the postseason, no job for Tice. Then again, a new coach would demand money and Red owns the team. He's an old car dealer - that means he doesn't like to spend money.
- Washington. .5 probability. Does Joe Gibbs really need this?
- Cleveland. .98 probability. Total control doesn't work in the NFL or the NCAA. Coaches that don't surround themselves with talented people who aren't afraid to disagree with the top dog will end up in the scrap heap. Butch Davis is headed in the direction of the junkyard. Maybe a position at the University of Florida is in his future.
- Tennessee. .12 probability. Sometimes Bud Adams makes irrational decisions. It wouldn't be smart to move out Jeff Fisher, but it also wasn't smart to move from Houston.
- Kansas City. .4 probability. Does Vermeil want to rebuild again?
- Oakland. .3 probability. Nobody knows what Al Davis is going to do.
More to come as to why it's a case study in management theory when observing the inner workings of an NFL franchise and we'll look at candidates for the open college jobs.
