Patience is out the window in today’s NFL.
There are no more five year plans, no time given to a young coach to put in his system. It’s funny when people bring up the Steelers giving Chuck Noll three years before his first winning season because that was 40 years ago!
When Noll left and was replaced by Bill Cowher, the new coaches first three seasons were 11-5, 9-7, and 12-4, with all three years making playoff appearances. It’s easy to have continuity when that happens. Mike Tonlin’s first three years resulted in 10-6, 12-4, and 9-7 with the second year being a Super Bowl champion year.
The NFL today has one last place team from the year before making the playoffs the next season virtually every year. It happened to Kansas City this season. So, every owner and every GM, as well as every fan wants to know why that same kind of turnaround can’t happen to them.
Heck, Marvin Lewis took Cincinnati to the playoffs just a year ago, and it looks like the Bengals will not try to negotiate a new contract with him. The Vikings went to the NFC title game last year and Brad Childress got the gate before the current season ended.
There is no more patience in today’s NFL.
That’s the NFL we live in today and that’s one of the reasons Mike Holmgren fired Eric Mangini as Browns’ coach today after two straight 5-11 seasons.
Another reason is today’s professional football is played in the air and Holmgren wanted his franchise to join the 21st century in that regard. Mangini’s emphasis on running the ball and stopping the run is important, make no mistake about that, but today’s game is played through the air. Look at the NFL’s elite: New England (Tom Brady), Pittsburgh (Ben Roethlisberger), Indianapolis (Peyton Manning), New Orleans (Drew Brees), and Atlanta (Matt Ryan).
The league’s leading rusher this season was Houston’s Arian Foster. The Texans finished 6-10.
The team president wants someone to come in with the same passing game as the big boys in the NFL. Whether he is correct or not, The Big Show feels the wide receivers on the roster aren’t terrible, they are just part of an archaic offensive system. How many crossing routes did you see the Browns run this season? That’s a staple for many teams in the National Football League.
Holmgren will bring in somebody he is familiar with, something perhaps he should have done last season. However, he gave Mangini a chance and you can’t fault him for that. Holmgren has been in the league a long time with many branches on his coaching “tree”. No doubt, someone he has worked with before will be the new coach of the Browns.
Speculation will run wild that Jon Gruden will be a leading candidate, but Holmgren said he is open to all candidates and wants to find the right man to make the Cleveland Browns relevant in today’s game.
It is telling that all the assistant coaches were told they still have a contract for 2011 with the Browns. This could be because the front office wants to keep defensive coordinator Rob Ryan and special teams coach Brad Seely.
In the end, the Browns didn’t win enough football games and Eric Mangini paid for that with his job. A generation ago, he would have been given more time to put his plan in place. Now, he didn’t turn it around soon enough.
JD
Cleveland Sports Perspective 