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Timing a problem


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Timing a problem

Mangini on top of wish list, but Jets in limbo while Pats play

BY KEN BERGER

STAFF WRITER

January 13, 2006

Identify the most talented head-coaching candidate available, hope you're right in pegging him as a 34-year-old Bill Belichick, make your best run at him and hope he can do for your franchise what Belichick has done for the Patriots.

Sounds like a good plan.

All signs indicate that the Jets' interview with Patriots defensive coordinator Eric Mangini on Sunday is the fulcrum in their search for a new head coach.

But the quest to hire Mangini, a coaching prodigy who is as elusive as he is bright, and who is intensely loyal to Belichick, presents a field of pitfalls for the Jets.

Some NFL people who have watched the Jets' coaching situation unfold in the last week are puzzled by how deliberately management is moving to find a replacement for Herman Edwards. Head-coaching vacancies are being filled by the day, and the pool of quality assistant coaches is shrinking.

The Jets' assistants, meanwhile, can only wait. Unlike, for example, the Saints, who fired Jim Haslett, the Jets are not allowing their coaches to explore other jobs while the team looks for a new head coach.

"There doesn't seem to be any sense of urgency," one industry expert who has kept tabs on the Jets' search said on condition of anonymity. "You're going to start losing a lot of good guys."

Evidence that Mangini is the Jets' targeted candidate is everywhere - even in the comments of the Jets' former head coach. Edwards has twice made a point of publicly thanking owner Woody Johnson, general manager Terry Bradway and team president Jay Cross but not assistant GM Mike Tannenbaum, who is believed to be the driving force behind the team's pursuit of Mangini.

How quickly the Jets can move with Mangini when they meet with him Sunday near Foxborough, Mass., will depend on the outcome of the Patriots' divisional playoff game Saturday night in Denver. If the Patriots win, the Jets will not be permitted to make Mangini a formal offer until after New England's season is over.

The key word is formal. Last season, everyone in the NFL knew that then-Patriots defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel would get the Browns' job, but it wasn't made official until after the Super Bowl.

As a result, Crennel lagged behind other newly hired head coaches in hiring coordinators and assistants. For example, he was certain he'd be able to hire Mangini as his defensive coordinator but had to go to Plan B, Todd Grantham, once Mangini decided to stay with Belichick in New England.

With the expansion Browns in 1999, head coach Chris Palmer had no assistants - not even a secretary - as late as seven months before the Browns' first game. Palmer's staff was filled with second-tier assistants, and he was fired after two seasons with a 5-27 record.

If the Patriots win Saturday night, the Jets will need to come out of Sunday's meeting with Mangini with a strong sense of whether they'll be able to hire him. If there's any doubt, Bradway might be best served by moving on.

"He'll string 'em along and string 'em along, and then at the last minute, he'll stay," one person familiar with Mangini's track record predicted.

The fallback options are Haslett, Mike Tice and Giants defensive coordinator Tim Lewis, who interviewed yesterday along with Jets offensive coordinator Mike Heimerdinger. Former Packers coach Mike Sherman still is a possibility, and Jets special-teams coach Mike Westhoff will make his case tomorrow. Haslett is expected to be a favorite for the Bills job.

The Lewis File

Name: Tim Lewis. Age: 44.

Current job: Defensive coordinator, Giants.

Background: Native of Quakertown, Pa. Began his coaching career in 1987 at Texas A&M under Jackie Sherrill, his coach at the University of Pittsburgh. Went on to coach defensive backs at Southern Methodist from 1989-92, then coached at Pitt from 1993-94.

Pro experience: Was the 11th overall selection by Green Bay in 1983 and played cornerback for the Packers and Steelers. His playing career was cut short by a neck injury in 1986. Was the Steelers' defensive backs coach from 1995-99 before being promoted to defensive coordinator. His defenses have consistently ranked in the top 10, including No. 1 in total yardage allowed in '01, although the Giants' defense has not cracked the top 10 in total defense under his leadership.

Bottom line: The list of Giants defensive coordinators who have gone on to become successful head coaches - Bill Parcells, Bill Belichick, John Fox, Mike Nolan - is impressive. Lewis interviewed for the Jets' defensive coordinator job that went to Donnie Henderson in 2004, so the Jets know what they'd be getting. - KEN BERGER

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