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Cleveland owner Randy Lerner wants to hire a big name and wants to please the Browns’ fan base. I believe that Scott Pioli of the Patriots would be a perfect choice. Michael Lombardi

Bookmark and Share Print This Send This December 29, 2008, 04:52 PM EST
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MONDAY’S TAVERN TALK….

*Be sure to check out the NFL Network tonight between 6:00 and 8:00pm eastern.  I will be on to discuss all of the Week 17 action.

FIVE THINGS I LEARNED TODAY.....

1.   When Eric Mangini lost the support of his friend and general manager, Mike Tannenbaum, he lost his job.  In addition, it did not help that most of the people in the building were seen marching into Tannenbaum's office to complain about Mangini and his management style.  Tannenbaum is now on the hot seat. As time passes, owner Woody Johnson and the coaching candidates will learn how badly the Jets’ cap has been managed and how badly their talent base is right now.  Tannenbaum skirted the firing today, but the bull’s eye is clearly on his chest.  He has become the Isaiah Thomas of the NFL; bad cap, but he saved his own job.

2.   Detroit is going to give extensions to its management team already in place -- Tom Lewand as president and Martin Meyhew as general manager, who will both select a new head coach.  I expect them to talk to Tom Heckert of the Eagles and Jimmy Raye Jr. of the Chargers as a potential vice president of personnel.  I hope this front office has a great Power Point presentation to convince the next coach they can find talented players.  I’ve always felt that past performance predicts future achievement, and part of hiring a head coach is convincing him that you can find talent to help him win. 

3.   Cleveland owner Randy Lerner wants to hire a big name and wants to please the Browns’ fan base.  I believe that Scott Pioli of the Patriots would be a perfect choice.  The prospect of Pioli and Josh McDaniel as head coach might be a great ticket.  The Browns made their run at Bill Cowher, but he turned them down.  Pioli and McDaniel might give them everything they need to fix their problems.  

4.   Kansas City will wait until it decides on a new GM before determining the future of Coach Herm “Let’s Build Something Together” Edwards and his staff.  Herm is not excited about coming back, but owner Clark Hunt is inclined to bring him back. 

5.   The Bucs were preparing to throw a big party with pizza and beer over at Ronde Barber’s house to watch the Cowboys-Eagles after they beat the Raiders.  I guess that was a bad idea.  Love you, Bro.....

FIVE THINGS I HEARD TODAY.....

1.   The Patriots will in fact have to franchise Matt Cassel, as I’ve been saying all season.  He is too much of an asset for the Pats to let him go in return for a compensatory third-round pick. 

2.   None of the Jets assistant coaches was fired along with Eric Mangini.  As of now, they are not free to look for other jobs.  I have a very strong hunch that current offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer might have a great chance to be the next head coach.

3.   The Broncos, the Packers, the Jags and the Texans might not be firing their head coaches, but they will have plenty of openings on their staffs -- especially on the defensive side of the ball. 

4.   People in the NFL told Jerry Jones two years ago that Jason Garrett would need some help coordinating the offense.  Losing Tony Sparano was a huge blow to the Cowboys’ offensive staff.  I suspect the ‘Boys will find some help for Garrett this off-season. 

5.   In their first round of interviews, the Rams will not talk with any of the coaches that new General Manager Billy Devaney interviewed in Atlanta last year.  I suspect that Rex Ryan will have a good shot to be the next coach of the Rams. 

Comments

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Josh
Dec 29, 2008
05:43 PM

Schottenheimer a candidate for the Jets job? I'm assuming thats a baseless guess, right? The guy has been beyond atrocious in his play calling this year and was garbage last year as well. What would make you think that?

SurfTheEarth
Dec 29, 2008
05:56 PM

Mike, Why would the Jets keep their assistants with the exception of Callahan and Westhoff?

Sutton and Schottenheimer have no business continuing to gameplan at the NFL-level. They were consistently outschemed and rarely made in-game adjustments. Shotty seems to have no feel for the game or play-calling.

Also, have you seen the Jets cap projections for 2009 or are you basing the captastrophe on the "everyone eventually pays the piper" theory following their 2008 spending spree?

Mike Housman
Dec 29, 2008
06:13 PM

I disagree on the talent base of the NYJ - they are certainly not bereft of talent.

Def - Jenkins, Harris, Pace, Revis, Rhodes is a good base.

Off - TJ, Leon, Keller, Mangold, D'Brick, Cotch, is also a good base.

They were undone after being 8-3 by horrible play by Favre and some piss poor decisions by Mangini.

They are not the most talented team but to say they have no talent is off base.

What are the facts on their cap? People have been saying for years they are in trouble and it is never so.

Dan
Dec 29, 2008
06:14 PM

It seems the trend in hiring an NFL head coach is to go after the hot coordinator at the time. But history tells us that many hot coordinators, although great at their current job, may not have the experience and leadership to lead. Guys like Cam Cameron, Wade Philips, Dan Henning, Norv Turner seem to have a much greater effect as coordinators vs head coaches. How much of hiring is "coordinator hype" versus good old fashion interviewing and finding the right fit? It seems like the Ravens, Dolphins and Falcons got it right by hiring the right guy vs buying into "hype" guys.

mark
Dec 29, 2008
07:02 PM

"The Broncos, the Packers, the Jags and the Texans might not be firing their head coaches, but they will have plenty of openings on their staffs — especially on the defensive side of the ball. '

Don't get the packer faithfuls hopes up...Sanders was awful this year !

Bob
Dec 29, 2008
09:04 PM

Hey Jets Fans, don't blame it all on Mangini. The Jets were over valued all season as Mike has done in his post. The Jets need a lot of help in addition to a new coach.....

Michael C.
Dec 29, 2008
09:28 PM

Jim Mora Jr. got a hc job even though the 49ers defense was near the bottom of the league statistically. While Mora Jr. did reach the NFC championship game in Atlanta is he really worthy to replace Mike Holmgren?

Mike Nolan got the job in SF partly because his father used to coach the 49ers.

Wade Phillips keeps being re-hired despite having never won a playoff game.

Somehow David Shula ended up as the HC of the Bengals for 4 seasons despite himself.

Nepotism runs rampant in many walks of life and the NFL is no exception when it comes to the coaching ranks.

If the Jets name B.Schotty the hc I don't think we should be all that surprised...

Scott
Dec 29, 2008
09:57 PM

Michael - I think you meant Marty Shottenheimer not Brian. The ONLY way Brian keeps his job is if Favre comes back.

JP
Dec 29, 2008
10:15 PM

Michael, what about the Chiefs GM search? I know everyone is targeting Pioli, but who would realistically be a good choice in KC??

Justin
Dec 29, 2008
10:20 PM

Great stuff again, Mike.

I'm a die-hard Lions fan. I realize that we are in a huge mess right now. I don't understand why we kept two front office guys that were a part of the Millen-era.

Then again, people say that Martin Meyhew is well respected across the NFL. There has been a lot of talk in Detroit about talking to Scott Pioli. Have we found the next Scott Pioli in Martin Meyhew? I guess we have no where to go but up so why not roll the dice with Meyhew? I don't know whether to be upset or get excited.

Eric Green
Dec 29, 2008
10:36 PM

According to Robert, Mora has a pretty good chance of being successful the second time around.

Michael,
Interesting thought on Dallas. I wonder if they will go after Martz, if he is let go.
As for Detroit, the current guys might be ok, but it seems like both they and Detroit need a fresh start.

Nikos
Dec 29, 2008
11:55 PM

"2. None of the Jets assistant coaches was fired along with Eric Mangini. As of now, they are not free to look for other jobs. I have a very strong hunch that current offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer might have a great chance to be the next head coach."


Michael,
Could Marty ball be headed for the NYJ's?? Maybe they keep the son to entice dad to come aboard??

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