Re: HC Hire - Open letter to the NY Jets

[Green Jets & Ham]

Dear NY Jets:

My beloved NY Jets, so I speak from the heart and with the best of intentions

It appears Eric Mangini is the flavor of the month ... the new wiz kid ... the new MUST HAVE ... but I would like to take this opportunity to remind you that it wasn't too long ago, in fact only last year, when Mike Heimerdinger was viewed in much the same way throughout the league ... and oh yeah, Mike Heimerdinger had a much Greater body of work as a coordinator with which to judge.

Think about it .. I HAVE .. I've actually given this a lot of thought, and I've come to the conclusion that Mike Heimerdinger {NOT ERIC MANGINI} is not only the best available option for the Jets {as I will proceed to explain}, but is also the much safer choice and quite possibly a darn good head coach just waiting to happen.

But before we get to Heimerdinger, let's first place Eric Mangini under the microscope and get a much closer look.

Other than his affiliation with Bill Belichick {Great Coach, but when last seen at hofstra he was dolling out one of the most humiliating moments in franchise history}, what do we really know about this kid {and he is sort of a kid} that should make him such a desireable candidate?

Well we know that he hitched his wagon to Belichick way back in college, at Welseyan to be specific, and but for one brief moment while still under contract with the Browns {as a GoFer}, he hasn't left Belichick's side for a nano-second ... so he has never, by choice, cut the cord with his meal ticket and setout to apply his trade without his Guaradian Angel peering over his shoulder, if for no other reason than to prove to himself that he indeed has what it takes to be a successful coach all by his lonesome.

Doesn't that strike you as odd?

Think about it .. I HAVE .. this young man has been with Belichick for quite some time ... somewhere in the area of 15 Years ... and most of that time was spent in extremely low level positions on Belichick's staff {basically the eqivalent of a coffee fetcher} ... and never once did he consider applying for higher positions in college based on his affiliation with Belichick, which easily could have gotten his foot in the door for a number of interviews ... and if he's even half as bright as he has been portrayed, wouldn't it stand to reason that after 5+ Years with Belichick he could have convinced some college HC to offer him a position as defensive coordinator?

Instead of that, for many years Eric Mangini felt it was better to serve as a GoFor under Bill Belichick than to Get out in the coaching world and make his own way after his initial training had taken place.

At this point I would encourage you to study the bios of coaches you respect, some of the coaching immortals from years gone by and some of the current titans of the profession as well ... see how many of these men chose a similar course to the one Mangini has chosen ... chose to hitch their wagons to any one man and toil in low level positions for a decade or better, as opposed to constantly moving and advancing up the coaching ladder no matter where that journey took them.

I can assure you, you won't find many!

What you will find, far more often than not, are a group of highly motivated men who chased the best coaching jobs they could find throughout the country, their journies often taking them far and wide, but always it was seeking a Greater challenge with Greater responsability in their ultimate Quest to one day be fully prepared to take the reigns as the top man in bigger and better places.

This was true of everyone from Vince Lombardi to Bill Parcells to Jon Gruden ... it's the common thread that runs through most successful coaches ... their bios often read exactly the same, only their stops along the way may differ.

It is rare, EXTREMELY RARE, that a Great Coach can have his entire bio attached to only one mentor ... and even rarer still that he would have toiled under that one mentor in low level positions for close to a decade before he was finally promoted to even the task of position coach {DB's} ... if for no other reason, I don't suppose that ever could have satisfied their appitites to coach much less their egos {and yes, sadly Greatness and ego are often intertwined to one degree or another, a fact it would be foolish to ignore}.

I mean, ask yourself the following ... you are all intimately familiar with Bill Parcells and Bill Belichick from their days as NY Jets employees ... can you even imagine either man toiling in the equivalent postions of equipment manager or quality control coach and alike for even 3 Years under the same man much less close to a decade?

I think the answer is obvious ... these men would have served their short apprenticeship like troopers and then been on the first train out of town the moment a better opportunity presented itself ... and no doubt they would have been searching for that better opportunity.

Having said all that, I think you would be wise to consider that not all men are born leaders and not all men have a burning desire to reach the pinacle of their chosen professions ... far more are perfectly content to toil in relative obscurity so long as it provides a fairly comfortable life ... and there's nothing worng with that so far as I can see, it's a course most men choose and perfectly fine ... but it's not the stuff GREATNESS is made of.

Lastly, and this will be a perfect segue to Mike Heimerdinger ... Eric Mangini, the new flavor of the month, has actually been a coordinator for, well, only a wee bit longer than he has been the new flavor ... and this only happened after the exodus of Romeo Crennel or Eric Mangini would still be performing as DB Coach under Bill Belichick and no doubt perfectly content to do so!

And his first year as DC, lest we forget, was not exactly a smooth ride

Last I checked, the Pats finished 26th Overall in defense .. league wide .. and by last count there are only 32 teams

If my math is correct, that means the wiz kids defense finished above 6 teams and behind 25 in the overall rankings ... and after a brutal beginning they needed a tremendous final quarter of the season just to finish that high!

Mike Heimerdinger's offense didn't finish a whole heck of a lot lower than that {which is mathematically impossible}, and he didn't have a Quarterback, Offensive line, legit #1 WR, Playmaking TE, or even a healthy franchise RB!!

Which brings us back to Mike Heimerdinger ....

As I stated above, it was not too long ago when dinger was widely considered one of the best and brightest coordinators in all of football ... on the absolute fast-track to becoming a head coach.

In my opinion only a fool would allow this complete abberation of a season to scar the incredible resume this man constructed while serving as the brains behind one of the leagues most explosive, balanced, and feared offensive attacks in Tennessee.

And Guess what ... he repeated that success over and over again ... not just one year, but for a number of years ... and his offense never finished anywhere's near 26th Overall until fate basically took a Granade to his offense during his first year in New York.

But most of the time if you wanted to find Mike Heimerdinger's offense in the overall rankings, you need look no further than the TOP half-dozen or so ... and it was not uncommon to find his offense at the tippy-top or damn close too it.

And dig this ... he gives you the added benifit of being a grown man who was not the least bit afraid to cut the cord with Jeff Fisher, to make a lateral move, because he felt that coaching in a higher profile market would only serve to enhance his prospects of becoming a head coach in this league.

DON'T KNOCK IT .. as we discussed above, there is something to be said for drive and ambition amongst coaches.

Dinger, by all accounts, has also been noted as a strict disiplinarian ... something Kevin Mawae recently inferred this team desperately needs.

And finally there is the issue of the all important coaching staffs, something that has been the death blow of many first time HC's who were not capable of constructing a staff to their liking.

It's hard enough to construct a quality staff when you've coached in a million towns and developed genuine friendships with a number of coaches along the way {and that's NOT Eric Mangini} ... even those first time HC's have a tough time getting the assistants they most desire ... but dinger has worked with this current staff for one whole season, has no doubt cultivated somewhat of a bond with most of these assistants {to varying degrees}, so he makes it far more likely that we can keep the current staff in place {for the most part} and not have to deal with the dreaded "coaching staff" issue to the extent that we would have to tackle that issue with an Eric Mangini.

And consider this ... even if Mangini agreed to keep the current staff for the most part, for one thing it would most likely be out of necessity as opposed to choice, and for another thing there exists at least the possiblity of friction within the ranks, because it's a fairly safe bet that a few of these coaching lifers will not be thrilled after having been passed for this position in favor of the 34 Year old wiz kid from New England.

Anyhow, there's my case for the dinger ... I think it's a strong case

I say drop this fascination with Eric Mangini and offer the Job to Mike Heimerdinger ... not Haslett, Tice, Sherman, Fassel, or any other retread ... offer the Job to one of the leagues most respected coordinators, who just happens to be sitting right under our noses, and let's call it a wrap.

You know once upon a time the Giants had two assistant coaches sitting on their very own staff at the same time ... right under their noses ... and did not think highly enough of either man to make him their head coach.

Those two assistants were Vince Lombardi and Tom Landry.

So sometimes the best candidate is staring you dead in the face, and you failed to recognize it.

Food for thought.

[Ranger]

I hear what your saying Ham and i agree to an extent. I think Mangini might be a little bit better at handling the media since he is from the area. Both will make excellent Head Coaches IMO. Tim Lewis is another coach that I believe will do well.

Whatever they do, I pray it's not Tice or Haslett. Both of these guys need to be riding the short bus to work.

[4HCrew]

Well done!!! I could not agree more

[faba]

The Jets hopefully will avoid a rehashed coach that could not make it with other teams

To promote from within is always a good policy in business if you have quality people. If Dinger gets the job though you think Henderson is going to want to stay GJ & Ham

[Preston Howley III]

Woody just had a restraining order put on GJ&H.

[AFJF]

This seems odd to me. A guy with Dingers resume. Nine coaching spots have opened up, and I haven't heard a word about anybody inteviewing him. As much as I would support the Jets promoting him to HC, I can't understand why his phone isn't ringing off the hook. Could other teams be holding this past season against him? IMO that wold be foolish (as ham mentioned in the letter) He's done enough in this league to earn a spot as a HC somewhere and as a Jet fan of course my biggest fear is that he goes elsewhere, and proves himself to be well worth the job while we're stuck with Tice or Haslett.

[afosomf]

and then she died........

Seriously i doubt Boygina takes the job, him and pioli are both afraid to be on their own, they are both joined at BB's hip.

BTW I would be ok with Dinger... in fact anybody but Vitt, Haslett or tice.

Not sure why Rivera is not in picture!!!!

[LionelRichie]

I am with you 100%. Give Dinger a shot to run the show. it's a win/win with dinger - if he succeeds, great. if he fails, woody will finally unload bradway and all remnants of herm's stay here.

[Green DNA]

You make some good points Ham and I don't disagree. The apparent slap at Dinger is curious. There are two things that are a little off base though.

1) What is the big deal that Mangini did no leave Belichicks side to get another job or that it is unusual to stay with one mentor. Maybe that means that he is smart and realized that he was learning from a great defensive mind. Belichick was the architect of two SB winning defenses before going to Cleveland. why not learn from him. The fact that Belichick kept him around all those years, gradually giving him more and more responsibility is a good thing. The boss recognized a talent and gradually moved him up the organizational ladder into a position of significant responsibility. I see no negatives in that, only positives. Is he ready for a HC job? I don't know. he is a little green with only one season of DC experience.

2) Dinger did not make a lateral move because he wanted to expand his horizons, he moved for money, period. His salary was doubled and was too much to turn down. Fisher wanted to keep him, which to me says a lot about him in a positive way. I would have no problem making Dinger the coach even though some of his play calling was curious last year.