Hire Power
by Luke Paul Chandler
Dave Gardner grades the new NFL head coach hires.
By Dave Gardner
In both 2006 and 2007, there were seven head coaching vacancies after “Black Monday,” the feared day for coaches across the league. 2006 was a bad year for Mikes: Mike Tice (Vikings) was replaced by Brad Childress; Mike Martz (Rams) was replaced by Scott Linehan; and Mike Sherman (Packers) was replaced by Mike McCarthy (okay, so that one balanced out). In addition, Dom Capers (Texans) and Jim Haslett (Saints) were fired for not being able to turn around the luck of habitual losers. Oh, and of course, Dick Vermeil retired being replaced by Herm Edwards, who switched from the Jets to the Chiefs. Edwards was replaced by Eric Mangini. Did you follow all that?
In 2007, it was slightly less complicated, and marked mainly by retirements. Both Bill Parcells (Cowboys) and Bill Cowher (Steelers) retired to briefly pursue broadcasting careers (it won’t be long before the second Bill is back on the sidelines). Jim Mora (Falcons) and Nick Saban (Dolphins) both got in a little bit of collegiate trouble, Mora for joking that the head coaching vacancy at his alma mater, the University of Washington, would be his dream job; and Nick Saban for erroneously being linked to the Alabama job, or so he would have had you think. In addition, Dennis Green (Cardinals) and Art Shell (Raiders) were fired for being unable to change the luck of perennial losers. Of course, the most puzzling fire came the latest, with Marty Schottenheimer (Chargers) being fired after achieving football’s best record (14-2), but losing in the first round to the Patriots.
This year, the trend ended, thankfully. Although many coaches were supposed to be on the hot seat (Tom Coughlin, Jon Gruden), only two coaches — Brian Billick and Cam Cameron– were actually fired. Joe Gibbs, one of the classiest men ever to grace the sidelines, retired after a tough, but successful four years with his old franchise. Bobby Petrino pulled a Nick Saban by denying his link to a college coaching job and then accepting it days later. Owners showed patience this offseason: at least two franchises already have their head coaching succession in place (Colts - Jim Caldwell, Seahawks - Jim Mora), but the real curiosity is the coaches that were hired. Five out of eight coaches in the playoffs were on their second head coaching jobs, including the two Super Bowl coaches. With good former head coaches like Steve Marriuci and Jim Fassel out there, it’s hard to understand why John Harbaugh, Mike Smith and Jim Zorn are now head coaches. Here’s a look at the new members of the fraternity, including a grade for each hire:
John Harbaugh, Baltimore Ravens: A
The Ravens were hoping to get Dallas offensive coordinator Jason Garrett as their new head coach, but he took a lucrative deal to stay with the Cowboys. Instead, they hired Eagles secondary coach John Harbaugh. Harbaugh has never been an offensive or defensive coordinator, but he definitely has head coaching in his genes: his father is a former head coach of Kentucky, and his brother is the current head coach of Stanford. He made a name for himself as a special teams coach, which is actually a good indicator of head coaching success because it requires the coach to balance both offensive and defensive players, and to keep the spirits up of guys who aren’t getting much playing time at their regular positions. Marty Schottenheimer, Dick Vermiel, and Bill Cowher all had special teams experience before becoming head coaches.
The Ravens are an upper-tier organization as far as ownership and front office staff; they continuously have successful drafts, and put complete faith in their coaches (Brian Billick was tenured for nine years). This guy is so respected in the league that he was able to assemble an excellent staff. Along with Cam Cameron as his offensive coordinator and Rex Ryan as his defensive coordinator, it’s hard to imagine that Harbaugh won’t be able to steer the Ravens back to the playoffs in 2-3 years. Harbaugh is a great hire.
Tony Sparano, Miami Dolphins: B
Tony Sparano was linked to the Dolphins weeks before the team hired him. When Bill Parcells took over football operation in Miami, everyone figured that he would take one of his guys from Dallas to become the next Dolphins head coach, and he did. And not only did he do that, he also took back many of his assistants and front office staff. The new G.M. of the Dolphins is former Cowboys V.P. of college and pro scouting, Jeff Ireland, and the two took along with them Dallas secondary coach Todd Bowles to be assistant head cach and Dallas linebackers coach Paul Pasqualoni to be the defensive coordinator.
As for Sparano himself, he is a tireless worker who has received praise and success in most of his stops in football. He’s a guy that Parcells likes and trusts, and probably a guy that won’t be afraid to stick up to Parcells if he tries to get too involved in the football practices. He was hired because Parcells and Ireland want to build through the draft, and they believe that Sparano can develop young talent. He may not be a big name, but Tony Sparano (along with the help of Parcells and Ireland) will turn Miami around.
Mike Smith, Atlanta Falcons: C
“I’m thrilled to be a part of this organization,” Smith said as he took the reigns of the team, “There’s no where to go but up.” That may be the overstatement of the year. The Falcons were such a mess that they were reportedly taking upwards of 12 staff members to hire their new G.M., including former G.M. — now team president — Rich McKay. When they settled on Thomas Dimitroff, he began the search for his new head coach. Apparently, Steve Spagnuolo was on the top of their list, but the Giants run to the Super Bowl convoluted the search.
Mike Smith seems like an odd selection because he’s not even the most eligible Mike on the staff, with Mike Tice having been a head coach in the league. He has been the defensive coordinator in Jacksonville for the past six seasons, but it was only in the top ten in two of those seasons. The Falcons claimed to have hired him because of “his combination of intelligence, communication and organizational skills, and strong knowledge of personnel”; it seems more like they were trying to get a guy who wouldn’t run away.
Jim Zorn, Washington Redskins: C
Jim Fassel, along with the rest of the football world, thought that he was the front-runner for this gig. Fassel, an above-.500 coach who made two appearances to the NFC Championship Game and lost in his only try in the Super Bowl, has never had another chance to get back into the NFL. There are rumors that owner Daniel Snyder and G.M. Vinny Cerrato didn’t want someone who would get in the way, and that Fassel would have. But when you’re on your second chance in a job that rarely gives them, you’d do whatever the boss told you to do. It seems that Cerrato and Snyder, who had hired him as offensive coordinator, really did fall in love with Jim Zorn.
No one doubted that Zorn was ready to be an offensive coordinator; he was a very good quarterback in the NFL before the days of micro-management, and he has been an offensive coordinator before, so calling plays and managing the day-to-day operations would have been a manageable task for the extremely bright Zorn. He faces a couple problems as a head coach, though. First, as a young coach, he will have to win the respect of a veteran team; second, he will have to spend more time with Jason Campbell (QB coaching is his expertise) than a normal head coach would with his quarterback. The grade is a C not because Zorn is incompetent, but because it just seems to soon for him to be a head coach. Nonetheless, he will be an excellent coach someday… maybe sooner than any of us expect.