As I watched the pre-game show on the NFL Network last night an intriguing subject came up for debate. The question asked, do former Hall of Fame players make good NFL coaches, certainly the percentages are not in their favor, but that number is small as there have only been 4 of them. The broader question was, do former players in general make good coaches. Former head coach Steve Marriuchi chimed in with his belief that most ex-players do not want to pay their dues to move up through the ranks, they will not commit to the 18 hour days necessary to be a good coach, and lastly he felt as though they may not be equipped to lead 53 men and a staff of coaches. Marshall Faulk a for sure first ballot Hall of Famer and Deion Sanders another future Hall of Famer had some interesting insights. Marshall interjected with the thought, why should I have to be someones do boy, go get coffee and draw up practice cards when I have paid my dues on the field. Deion echoed some of the same sentiments, “I paid my dues in game time experience,” often time coaches know that some of these former players  have the ability to coach, but will never receive the opportunity because they refuse to go through the process.

As a former player my sentiments are in line with Marshall’s and Deion’s, after playing for defensive minds like Buddy Ryan, Bud Carson and Fritz Shurmur there isn’t much about defensive schemes, blitzes and coverages that I don’t know. Granted not all former players can be coaches, coaching is so much more than the X’s and O’s of the game. With repetition someone with a great memory could learn a defense or offense, a great coach also has to be a great teacher though, able to teach in a variety of ways given the fact that some people are visual learners, while others may learn verbally and others still kinetically. Experience plays a role, while I will concede that there have been some great coaches that have never played the game and had great success, they were smart enough to surround themselves with coaches with playing experience. It is hard to teach others something you have never done or experienced, and one must alway s consider the level of coaching as well, many things are learned by trial and error and successes and failures. I have always felt as though the “Process” so to speak or the paying of your dues was used more as a deterrent, than a means to earn your way up the coaching ladder, challenging ones commitment to the rigors of coaching. Is it a tough job with long hours, absolutely, as a former player I put in the hours, sometimes 8 AM-8 PM and the coaches were almost always there before I got there and after I left. Whether those kinds of hours were and are necessary are still up for debate, modern technology has cut down on the work load that coaches have had to do manually.

In basketball you see a lot of former players coaching and most of the successful ones are former players, out of  30 head coaches only 6 do not have any NBA playing experience. In major league baseball all 28 coaches have some playing experience, most on the major league level and a few on the minor. Upon a study of Soccer the most popular sport on the world level, a major portion of the team owners are turning to former top-level players to coach their teams, with great success. In the NFL out of the 32 head coaches there are only 7 with professional playing experience, while the majority have only college playing experience, division III at that. Once again I reiterate, I have seen and experienced some good coaches who have never played at the top-level, but at some point once I understand the X’s and O’s, the scheme of things and trust me as a student of the game it was my intent to gain such knowledge, what was left for a coach with little or no NFL experience to teach me?

In pro sports we have ushered in a new athlete and culture, with more money than pro sports have ever seen. I’m of the opinion that it takes a different type of coach to get the job done. Someone who can look at the situation from an angle familiarity, someone who’s been there and done that, and can motivate this new age player. There have been documented instances where players haven’t respected a coach because that coach brought no real life experience to the table. Young players don’t know what they don’t know, veteran players can clearly see what’s window dressing and what’s truth. There’s too much at stake, head coaches will begin to realize the necessity for former players who want to coach, and have experience, their input will not only help them win, but will make them look like  geniuses in the process. This will undoubtedly open opportunities for these position coaches as well, in coordinator and head coaching positions. I’ve paid my dues with 13 years of service, 6 surgeries, 3 pro bowls and a Super Bowl Championship. That is a lot of information and wisdom to be sown into a young player just coming into the game, Deion stated last night, ”there are plenty of former players that would jump at the chance to pass their wisdom on, if the opportunity was presented the right way.”

Seth Joyner

12/17/10

Donovan McNabb feels disrespected, with good reason, but what’s new. Andy Reid disrespected him by sending him to the Redskins, I give Reid credit for respecting McNabb’s wishes, but it was a clear sign of disrespect to trade him within the division. Essentially the message was sent that the Eagles didn’t fear Donovan even knowing they would have to play him twice this season. Now he feels disrespected by Mike Shanahan. Shanahan benched him last week in favor of much maligned Rex Grossman. The benching is one thing, how it was done was most troubling. It wasn’t until Thursday afternoon through the media, that McNabb found out about the benching, not from the head coach or his son offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan. The question I ask, would this happen to Peyton Manning, Tom Brady or Dan Marino? I think we all know the answer to that question. Play defines respect in the NFL more than anything else, and Donovan hasn’t had a good year at all. That being said, it takes a team to win, and the Redskins are 5-9. Without the elements to have a successful season it is hard for any QB to be successful, no running game, not O-line protection and limited skill position players. I think it is quite cowardice for Shanahan and his son Kyle to throw Donovan under the bus, they are just as responsible for the product that was put on the field. With a contract extension that will serve as nothing more than an insurance policy for the Redskins next year, it’s time for McNabb to stop being politically correct and ask for his release. Yea, yea I know there is $10 million bonus looming in August if he is on the roster, but I think McNabb and his agent knew when they signed that deal that if he didn’t tear it up the rest of this season he’d never see that bonus.

This is the same set of circumstances that surround Jay Cutler when Josh McDaniels took over as head coach of the Denver Broncos. McDaniels shopped Cutler, after not getting the interest he thought he’d get McDaniels tried to smooth things out with Cutler, too late damage done, Cutler was ticked off  and demanded a trade. What I don’t get is why Donovan would say he thinks his relationship with his head coach and coordinator hasn’t been damaged and he still wants to be a Redskin next year. Why would you want to be someplace that you are obviously not wanted. Even with his struggles this year and age there’s enough teams that need a competent QB, if he had all the tools that good QB’s have, a consistent running game and/or a good O-Line to protect him and some talent to throw to, he’s still talented enough to help a team win.

12/21/10

What a NFC South battle tonight, Drew Brees and the Saints prove why they are still the reigning champs. despite 2 turnovers for TD’s and an absentee running game the Saints still found a way to pull out a critical victory to keep their playoff hopes alive. Brees just wouldn’t let him defending champs lose. Like Houdini or Copperfield he avoided pressure all night, but faltered early in the second half trying to do too much, an ill-advised shuffle pass was intercepted and returned for a TD. Then Falcons D-End John Abraham tipped a pass and intercepted it for what seemed like the dagger for the Saints. But the Saints defense rose up and held to force a punt. This lead to a Brees drive that swung the momentum and lead back in the Saints favor, 17-14.

The most telling outcome of this game is not so much what the Saints did, but what we discovered about the Falcons. The Saints defense came in with a clear plan to shut down Michael Turner and put the ball in Matt Ryan’s hand to win the game. Although the final score was 17-14, the Falcons offense accounted for zero points. Turner was  a none factor and Roddy White was taken away as the Saints pressured Ryan all night. The Falcons considered the best team in the NFC was anything but that. While it is probable that they will secure the #1 seed and home field advantage throughout the playoffs in the NFC next week against the Panthers, I think the rest of the conference has been given the blueprint for beating the Falcons. Turner is a down hill, power runner. To stop him you need to get to him early, before he gets turned up field, he must be tackled low around the legs. This takes away the play pass for the Falcons, couple this with the ability to get pressure on Ryan with a four man rush and you can render this offense average. Things could get interesting as the playoffs roll around in the NFC, with the Bears dominating, the Eagles explosiveness and the Saints rounding into playoff shape after struggling all season, the question is who is the top team in the NFC?

Seth Joyner

12/27/10

With Michael Vick at QB, the Eagles offense has been one of the NFL’s most explosive offenses this year. With so much team speed, big play threats, a versatile RB and a chain mover at TE, the Eagles seemed unbeatable. Tonight the Minnesota Vikings may have given the rest of the league a blueprint for stopping Vick and the Eagles. First of all give the Vikings credit they earned this victory. Andy Reid’s propensity for throwing the ball twice as many times as they run it, did the Eagles in tonight. LeSean McCoy ran the ball 13 times and Vick put it in the air 43 times. To make matters worse in the first half the Eagles never came up with an answer for the blitz that brought Antonio Winfield of the edge. That inefficiency cost them right before the half, Winfield had a strip sack, recovered the fumble and returned it for a 45 yd TD with 55 seconds left. The Eagles repeatedly settled for dropping Vick back rather than hand it to McCoy occasionally to keep the Vikings defense honest. I don’t get it, you finally have a Pro-Bowl RB and you don’t use him. This is the same MO as last season when the Eagles were beaten 3 times by the Cowboys with McNabb at QB. The question remains, when will Andy Reid learn, I know he hears the rumblings, but the temptation to throw seems to be to great for him to overcome. How dynamic of a QB would Vick be with a running game that made play-action passing real. It would open up the middle of the field for Celak and vertical routes for the WR’s. The team that has the superior talent and the ability to make on the run adjustments will usually be the team to win. The Vikings rookie QB Joe Webb 17 for 26 and 185 yds and RB Adrian Peterson, 22 carries for 118 and a TD provided good balance run  to pass and stole one to put the Eagles in a pinch. The Eagles were in the running for the # 2 seed, now a 3rd seed is the best they can manage. They will have to play 3 games within a 12 day span, including a first round playoff game. With some of the injuries the Eagles have they could’ve used a bye.  It is a shame that with all of the weapons that the Eagles possess, the coaching staff still hasn’t learned how to best use their talents. This team could make some major noise in the playoffs. Reid has to give Michael Vick and the Eagles offense a fighting chance by utilizing the running game to open up the play book to more than 40 plus passing attempts per game. They will face the better defenses as they move into the playoffs.

Seth Joyner

12/28/10