I would rather have a PROVEN NFL head coach before a 1st time coach or a college coach myself
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I would rather have a PROVEN NFL head coach before a 1st time coach or a college coach myself
It could be hit or miss either way. The proven coaches aren't coming to KC as long as Pioli is there.
Many 1st time coaches have had success -- the Chiefs very 1st HC, Hank Stram is one of them.
Now, if one were to prefer a 1st time HC with experience in the NFL coaching ranks as opposed to a college coach that never coached in the NFL, that's quite understandable.
But look at a guy like Harbaugh vs Shanahan.
I read this great book that attempts to throw out solutions to fixing failed NFL franchises: Game Plan: A Radical Approach to Decision Making in the National Football League: Frank DuPont: Amazon.com: Kindle Store@@AMEPARAM@@http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/415rdN5QybL.@@AMEPARAM@@415rdN5QybL
One thing it talked about was the age of a coach. It had a really nice graph that basically said that humans start to lose mental abilities as they age, and that 42-51 is about the best age for a head coach. After that, there is a significant decline. He has some great examples of coaches that won Super Bowls and really were an embarassment as they got older including Tom Landry, Ditka, Gibbs, and Coryell. Take a look at Mike Shanahan, he was around 45 when he won a couple of Super Bowls. He hasn't had a winning record in 2+ season with the Redskins.
Just food for thought for everyone when thinking of new coaches. The average age of Super Bowl winning coaches is 48.6 years old.
That's a very interesting point. And I do agree that one can get to old to be a good head coach. I said at the time that age was a bad thing with Romeo. Even if he had been good he wouldn't have been there for the long haul. But I never knew the age of super bowl winning coaches stat
Sure there are a lot of exceptions. I'm definitely not saying this is the only way to find an excellent head coach, just sharing the info. And yes, Matt is correct too, a lot of college coaches have failed at the NFL level.
Coughlin is another example. He's 66 and certainly an exception to the rule. I worry about a guy like Cowher coming in though. I know that sounds crazy, but he hasn't coached in 5 years. The game evolves more and more each year, and the guys that can innovate (Belichick) continue to have success.
I look at a guy like Dave Wannstedt in Buffalo. Been running the same defense for years. It was good for a while, and now he just gets trounced every game. Then you have Greg Knapp in Oakland. He loves the zone blocking scheme, but McFadden doesn't succeed in it at all. Coaches that can't adjust their playbook and know how to utilize their best players are going to continue to be failures.
I want Cowher or Mike Mccoy as coach. Polian and Cowher like eachother, I certainly would not mind that combination.
I want Andy Reid as our OC.
I also wouldn't mind a younger coach to help grow with this team, Jay Gruden comes to mind.
And to add to my above post, I see a guy like Chip Kelly as an innovator. Just look at how Oregon does things. He would obviously need the support of a solid defensive coordinator, but I really think he could have success at this level.