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Who should be the next Head Coach for the Cleveland Browns? Click to read what Mark and Fletch have to say.
The Gospel according to Fletch:
Here is the way it breaks down today in the NFL when it comes to head coaches; one was promoted from within to the head coaching job, one was promoted from special teams, nine were promoted from the offensive side of the ball, 11 were promoted from the defensive side of the ball, 10 were head coaches for another team before they became head coach of their current team and only seven current head coaches had a real career in the NFL as a player.
So who should become the next coach of the Cleveland Browns when Romeo Crennel is canned or steps down? In the media and most fans minds, one man comes to mind, and a coach I got to know over the years, William Laird Cowher.
Cowher understands Cleveland football having coached and played here. He is fond of the city as his daughters were born here. But Cowher also is power hungry, and if he comes in Phil Savage would have to go. The question is, would Browns owner Randy Lerner be willing to do that? Maybe another ownership group, but I don't think Lerner has the gumption to fire Savage.
Cowher is a future Hall of Fame coach, and still young. He says he is comfortable doing television, where he rakes in more money then he did as a coach and is enjoying family time, and I think transforming a terrible program around would just add to his legacy. The rumors have been flying lately, but lets be real. He will be costly, He'll want control, and when he had that problem in Pittsburgh before management fired its then director of football operations, the team posted its worst records under his tenure.
But remember this Browns fans, over the past five years, 32 head coaching jobs became vacant and 31 were filled by coaches with either previous head coaching experience in the league or at a major college program or after having served apprenticeships as an offensive or defensive coordinator.
Why not Marty Schottenheimer then you say? Not a bad choice, but today teams seem to want youth and vigor. How about this name Tampa Bay secondary coach Raheem Morris: WHO? Exactly, but many insiders believe he is the second coming of current Steelers coach Mike Tomlin and he has NFL playing experience, plus is a minority, which is a must in the hiring process.
Last year, the heir apparent was Rob Chudzinski, who at the time, took the worst offense in the NFL, and made it one of the best. I think Chud would still be a great candidate, but would he want to stay in Cleveland? My guess is no and to be realistic, the Browns would be crazy to hire on internal candidate. Unless of course, Crennel steps down, they promote him to interim, and the team goes hog wild.
Here's another to put on the watch list, Philadelphia quarterbacks coach Pat Shurmur.
Again, Who? Shurmur is 43, and has done a great job with not only Donavan McNabb, but also Jeff Garcia and Aj Feely. With Quinn here, he would worthy a look.
Most fans will cry they need a proven coach here, something that has not happened since the team came back in 1999. While that may be true, if you look down the road at what the Steelers have done, it makes you wonder.
When they needed someone to replace Chuck Noll, they went with Cowher, and when Cowher stepped down, instead of staying with Ken Whisenhut, now doing wonders in Arizona, they chose another coordinator in Tomlin, yet another success.
Here's a few who I think should be given prime consideration, starting with the man many thought would get the Steeler job Russ Grimm. He is tough, but fair and everywhere he has been, the players had a lot of respect for him, including Pittsburgh where they petitioned for him to get the job.
Grimm had a contract in hand according to many sources, but Art Rooney II wanted this to be his selection and part of his lore, thus going with Tomlin. Grimm understands football, and if he has two good coordinators surrounding him, could transform a bad team very quickly.
Another great candidate without experience would be Rex Ryan who is with the Ravens. Ryan is well loved, and has earned the respect of every player on that unit as a person and as a coach. It is something that Crennel has never had here, nor in New England.
Ron Rivera would also be an exceptional candidate, but there will be others out there with head coaching experience such as Dom Capers, now in New England and Jim Haslett, if he doesn't sign an extension.
Both are Cowher disciples and have done well in the league. Mike Mularky in Miami is another from Cowhers staff with head coaching experience, and there is also Mike Nolan and Jim Fassel still out there, not to mention Brian Billick, who knew in 1999 something was wrong here, and didn't even come to town.
Whatever happens it will be interesting. Oh and as for who I really like? Russ Grimm, because he gets it, and one more guy with no head experience who I didn't mention; current Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo. I like his attitude and he is a guy who players respect greatly.
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Mark's thought:
So, who is going to replace Romeo after this season is in the books? As we look around the NFL and among the inactive coach’s, many of the fans would agree that anything would be an improvement over what we have seen in the last 4 seasons. Some like the idea of Bill Cowher or Marty Shottenheimer, but I don’t know if either situation is really in the playing cards. Let’s be honest, the Browns will take a coach willing to take over the mess that was created by Crenel. Cleveland will probably settle on an offensive coordinator who had decent season this year, or a defensive coordinator with the same situation. We may even see a promotion from within, though I doubt that will happen. With the Browns organization, you never know what to expect.
I honestly think they may stay in house. I actually think that Rob Chudzinski or Mel Tucker could be given the reigns to this team. Would they be a good fit, I really don’t know. I don’t know how much of the teams success or lack there of can be attributed to the assistant coaches. Both offense and defense have shown spurts of success, but on a very limited basis.
First the offense struggled, but we’ve seen them turning the corner in the past couple of weeks. They have not been an elite team, but have shown drastic signs of improvement. We’ve seen the team increase their scoring and efficiency on the field, but thanks to the defense, have not seen any more w’s in the win column.
As for the defense, the team actually had a pretty good stretch of improvements for the first 8 weeks of the season but in the past 2 weeks, have crumbled and had a relapse. They’ve never been able to stop the run, but most recently the pass has been an issue.
Again, how much can we really blame on the Coordinators?
Overall I think a defensive minded coach would serve this team better, however the Browns are not built to be a defensive team. We’ve already seen a defensive coach in Romeo Crenel, and all know how that has turned out. This team has all the potential to be an offensive juggernaut. This team is built to score first and play defense later. I think an offensive mentality will produce a season much like we saw last year.
The team also needs a creative coach. Again an offensive minded coach would help in this situation. Part of the problem with this season is the predictability in play calling. 1st and 2nd down is almost 95% always a run. I don’t know who makes that call, but since Crenel is the head coach, he gets the blame. I understand the need for establishing the run because it helps control the clock, but there is no creativity. You can’t pound the ball up the middle on every 1st and 2nd down play and expect to win.
The Browns also need to find a disciplinary coach. This team has a lot of drama that has unfolded over the past several weeks. We need a coach who won’t take any crap from the players. Someone who demands respect and has control of the team. ( I know in your mind all you can picture is Cowher, but what if he doesn’t want to come to Cleveland?)
I don’t know if a coach like that is available or will be available. I really would love to see Bill Cowher as the next head coach of the Browns. I think he has most of the qualities that this team needs. I understand he is a defensive coach, but he’s the kind of coach that will surround himself with the right personnel to cover his weaknesses. Time will only tell with the Browns. It’s hard to pick just one coach, because we really don’t know who will be available by the end of the season. As much as we would like to have Cowher back on the Browns sideline, I think this is one battle the fans won’t have any influence on.
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