Kentucky Jet Posted January 11, 2008 Share Posted January 11, 2008 Jets eye Chief line candidate BY RICH CIMINI DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER Friday, January 11th 2008, 4:00 AM The Jets continued their search Thursday for an offensive line coach, interviewing former Chiefs offensive coordinator Mike Solari. Solari was fired recently by Herm Edwards after the Chiefs finished 31st in total offense and last in the NFL in rushing offense. Jets coach Eric Mangini appears to be looking for a line coach who also can coordinate the running game. On Wednesday, he met with Bill Callahan, formerly the head coach of Nebraska and the Raiders. The Jets haven't made any announcements regarding the status of their two line coaches, Tony Wise and Mike Devlin, but both are believed to be in trouble. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kentucky Jet Posted January 11, 2008 Author Share Posted January 11, 2008 Chiefs fire offensive coordinator, 3 other coaches THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Wednesday, January 2nd 2008, 12:32 PM KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The Kansas City Chiefs have fired offensive coordinator Mike Solari and three other assistant coaches following a 4-12 season. Solari, offensive line coach John Matsko, receivers coach Charlie Joiner and running backs coach James Saxon were let go Tuesday after a season in which the Chiefs were among the worst offensive teams in the NFL. Solari, Saxon and Joiner had been on the staff of previous coach Dick Vermeil. Tight ends coach Jon Embree and assistant head coach/quarterbacks coach Dick Curl were the only offensive assistants who were retained. Kansas City scored just 226 points, worst for a 16-game season in Chiefs history, and averaged 276.8 yards in total offense, second worst in the NFL behind San Francisco. The Chiefs also managed just 1,248 yards rushing, their worst total in a non-strike year, and allowed 55 sacks, second most in team history. Solari joined the Chiefs as the offensive line coach in 1997, a job he held under three coaches until Herm Edwards promoted him to offensive coordinator in 2006 when Edwards became Kansas City's head coach. Joiner, a Hall of Fame receiver, and Saxon, a former Chiefs player, joined the team in 2001 under Vermeil. Saxon was the offensive line coach for St. Louis from 1999-2005 before moving across Missouri to join Edwards in 2006. Discuss This Article Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4HCrew Posted January 11, 2008 Share Posted January 11, 2008 Based on information from Sirius NFL Radio Solari is a highly regarded O line coach Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NIGHT STALKER Posted January 11, 2008 Share Posted January 11, 2008 Former Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Mike Solari took most of the heat for the Chiefs losses this year and deservedly so. Those clamoring for his removal, myself included, were rewarded yesterday when Solari and three other offensive coaches were let go. Today, we take a look back at a tenure that resulted in some of the worst offensive performances in Chiefs history. Mike Solari was promoted from offensive line coach (1997-2005) to offensive coordinator in 2005. In February 2006, right after he took over for former OC Al Saunders, Solari said, "We'll make a few changes, but when I say a few changes I truly believe you won't notice it. There's not going to be a lot of changes. This is the Kansas City Chiefs offense, and we're going to do what we do. We want to move forward and improve." We noticed. Mike Solari took over an Al Saunders' offense that in 2005 ended the season ranked first in yards and sixth in points. In 2006, the offense had worsened to sixteenth in yards and fifteenth in points. Finally, in 2007, the downfall was complete. The offense finished the season ranked 29th in yards and 31st in points. Truly a 180 degree turn in just two years. A drop off in offensive production was to be expected in 2006. The Chiefs lost Trent Green during the first game of the season and also lost Willie Roaf to retirement earlier in the year. Still, Larry Johnson rushed for nearly 1800 yards and the Chiefs made the playoffs. The same points and yards weren't there but there were excuses. We were less talented on the offensive line and were playing with a backup quarterback. Regardless, the Chiefs still made the playoffs. Mike Solari's success rode into 2007 on the back of an overworked Larry Johnson. Something was different in 2007 though. It was obvious from the early minutes of the season opener in Houston, TX, that the offense had something wrong with it. It was like an unloaded gun. You'd pull the trigger and nothing would happen. The Chiefs offense, for the most part, looked like the team that helped Larry Johnson rush for nearly 1,800 yards in '06. Solari and Herm Edwards displayed an inability to adjust to their opponents during games and an unwillingness to stray from their conservative, establish-the-run-at-any-cost philosophy. With the state of the offensive line as terrible as it was, these decisions became obstacles too large to overcome and set up the Chiefs to fail each and every time. The Solari experiment is a great example of the Peter Principle, which states that, "In a hierarchy every employee tends to rise to his level of incompetence." Solari was a fantastic offensive line coach, coaching one of the best units ever for a number of years. But leading an entire offense was beyond his level of competence. It's not that Solari isn't one day capable of serving as an offensive coordinator, even though I seriously doubt he'll never coach in that position again. It's that the skills that were relevant to coaching an offensive line were not relevant in the position of offensive coordinator. Mike was in way over his head and it really began to show as the 2007 season wore on. Without Larry Johnson rushing for 1700 yards, Solari's bad decisions had nowhere to hide. Herm Edwards repeatedly voiced his approval of Solari over the last two years, even in the face of great criticism. He also repeatedly made mention of Solari needing to learn on the job and becoming more and more comfortable in his role. And that's what we'll ultimately remember about Mike Solari's offense. His tenure was a failed experiment where his skills never materialized. He didn't learn on the job fast enough. Solari was unimaginative and lacked the experience to understand what was truly wrong with our offense. I'll continue to say it until next year starts - The inability of Mike Solari and Herm Edwards to recognize the failing talent on the offensive line was the single biggest mistake the Chiefs made in 2007. Everything starts with the offensive line and Mike Solari just didn't know how bad it was. That is sad, considering he was the offensive line coach for so many years. Its coaching moves like that that make me think the guy had no idea what the hell he was doing. It's almost as if Solari stopped having any influence over the offensive line when he took over as OC. Solari leaves behind one of the league's worst offenses and probably the worst offense in Chiefs franchise history. His legacy is one to learn from, not emulate. Goodbye Mike Solari. You served the Chiefs organization well but unfortunately the position of offensive coordinator proved too much for you to handle. Here's to a new offensive coaching staff and a fresh start in 2008. May I suggest an offensive coordinator who has actual experience being an NFL offensive coordinator? Crazy, I know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NIGHT STALKER Posted January 11, 2008 Share Posted January 11, 2008 Former Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Mike Solari took most of the heat for the Chiefs losses this year and deservedly so. Those clamoring for his removal, myself included, were rewarded yesterday when Solari and three other offensive coaches were let go. Today, we take a look back at a tenure that resulted in some of the worst offensive performances in Chiefs history. Mike Solari was promoted from offensive line coach (1997-2005) to offensive coordinator in 2005. In February 2006, right after he took over for former OC Al Saunders, Solari said, "We'll make a few changes, but when I say a few changes I truly believe you won't notice it. There's not going to be a lot of changes. This is the Kansas City Chiefs offense, and we're going to do what we do. We want to move forward and improve." We noticed. Mike Solari took over an Al Saunders' offense that in 2005 ended the season ranked first in yards and sixth in points. In 2006, the offense had worsened to sixteenth in yards and fifteenth in points. Finally, in 2007, the downfall was complete. The offense finished the season ranked 29th in yards and 31st in points. Truly a 180 degree turn in just two years. A drop off in offensive production was to be expected in 2006. The Chiefs lost Trent Green during the first game of the season and also lost Willie Roaf to retirement earlier in the year. Still, Larry Johnson rushed for nearly 1800 yards and the Chiefs made the playoffs. The same points and yards weren't there but there were excuses. We were less talented on the offensive line and were playing with a backup quarterback. Regardless, the Chiefs still made the playoffs. Mike Solari's success rode into 2007 on the back of an overworked Larry Johnson. Something was different in 2007 though. It was obvious from the early minutes of the season opener in Houston, TX, that the offense had something wrong with it. It was like an unloaded gun. You'd pull the trigger and nothing would happen. The Chiefs offense, for the most part, looked like the team that helped Larry Johnson rush for nearly 1,800 yards in '06. Solari and Herm Edwards displayed an inability to adjust to their opponents during games and an unwillingness to stray from their conservative, establish-the-run-at-any-cost philosophy. With the state of the offensive line as terrible as it was, these decisions became obstacles too large to overcome and set up the Chiefs to fail each and every time. The Solari experiment is a great example of the Peter Principle, which states that, "In a hierarchy every employee tends to rise to his level of incompetence." Solari was a fantastic offensive line coach, coaching one of the best units ever for a number of years. But leading an entire offense was beyond his level of competence. It's not that Solari isn't one day capable of serving as an offensive coordinator, even though I seriously doubt he'll never coach in that position again. It's that the skills that were relevant to coaching an offensive line were not relevant in the position of offensive coordinator. Mike was in way over his head and it really began to show as the 2007 season wore on. Without Larry Johnson rushing for 1700 yards, Solari's bad decisions had nowhere to hide. Herm Edwards repeatedly voiced his approval of Solari over the last two years, even in the face of great criticism. He also repeatedly made mention of Solari needing to learn on the job and becoming more and more comfortable in his role. And that's what we'll ultimately remember about Mike Solari's offense. His tenure was a failed experiment where his skills never materialized. He didn't learn on the job fast enough. Solari was unimaginative and lacked the experience to understand what was truly wrong with our offense. I'll continue to say it until next year starts - The inability of Mike Solari and Herm Edwards to recognize the failing talent on the offensive line was the single biggest mistake the Chiefs made in 2007. Everything starts with the offensive line and Mike Solari just didn't know how bad it was. That is sad, considering he was the offensive line coach for so many years. Its coaching moves like that that make me think the guy had no idea what the hell he was doing. It's almost as if Solari stopped having any influence over the offensive line when he took over as OC. Solari leaves behind one of the league's worst offenses and probably the worst offense in Chiefs franchise history. His legacy is one to learn from, not emulate. Goodbye Mike Solari. You served the Chiefs organization well but unfortunately the position of offensive coordinator proved too much for you to handle. Here's to a new offensive coaching staff and a fresh start in 2008. May I suggest an offensive coordinator who has actual experience being an NFL offensive coordinator? Crazy, I know. On second thought, it seems Solari stepped out of his element when he became the O cordinator... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#27TheDominator Posted January 11, 2008 Share Posted January 11, 2008 Former Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Mike Solari took most of the heat for the Chiefs losses this year and deservedly so. Those clamoring for his removal, myself included, were rewarded yesterday when Solari and three other offensive coaches were let go. Today, we take a look back at a tenure that resulted in some of the worst offensive performances in Chiefs history. Mike Solari was promoted from offensive line coach (1997-2005) to offensive coordinator in 2005. In February 2006, right after he took over for former OC Al Saunders, Solari said, "We'll make a few changes, but when I say a few changes I truly believe you won't notice it. There's not going to be a lot of changes. This is the Kansas City Chiefs offense, and we're going to do what we do. We want to move forward and improve." We noticed. Mike Solari took over an Al Saunders' offense that in 2005 ended the season ranked first in yards and sixth in points. In 2006, the offense had worsened to sixteenth in yards and fifteenth in points. Finally, in 2007, the downfall was complete. The offense finished the season ranked 29th in yards and 31st in points. Truly a 180 degree turn in just two years. A drop off in offensive production was to be expected in 2006. The Chiefs lost Trent Green during the first game of the season and also lost Willie Roaf to retirement earlier in the year. Still, Larry Johnson rushed for nearly 1800 yards and the Chiefs made the playoffs. The same points and yards weren't there but there were excuses. We were less talented on the offensive line and were playing with a backup quarterback. Regardless, the Chiefs still made the playoffs. Mike Solari's success rode into 2007 on the back of an overworked Larry Johnson. Something was different in 2007 though. It was obvious from the early minutes of the season opener in Houston, TX, that the offense had something wrong with it. It was like an unloaded gun. You'd pull the trigger and nothing would happen. The Chiefs offense, for the most part, looked like the team that helped Larry Johnson rush for nearly 1,800 yards in '06. Solari and Herm Edwards displayed an inability to adjust to their opponents during games and an unwillingness to stray from their conservative, establish-the-run-at-any-cost philosophy. With the state of the offensive line as terrible as it was, these decisions became obstacles too large to overcome and set up the Chiefs to fail each and every time. The Solari experiment is a great example of the Peter Principle, which states that, "In a hierarchy every employee tends to rise to his level of incompetence." Solari was a fantastic offensive line coach, coaching one of the best units ever for a number of years. But leading an entire offense was beyond his level of competence. It's not that Solari isn't one day capable of serving as an offensive coordinator, even though I seriously doubt he'll never coach in that position again. It's that the skills that were relevant to coaching an offensive line were not relevant in the position of offensive coordinator. Mike was in way over his head and it really began to show as the 2007 season wore on. Without Larry Johnson rushing for 1700 yards, Solari's bad decisions had nowhere to hide. Herm Edwards repeatedly voiced his approval of Solari over the last two years, even in the face of great criticism. He also repeatedly made mention of Solari needing to learn on the job and becoming more and more comfortable in his role. And that's what we'll ultimately remember about Mike Solari's offense. His tenure was a failed experiment where his skills never materialized. He didn't learn on the job fast enough. Solari was unimaginative and lacked the experience to understand what was truly wrong with our offense. I'll continue to say it until next year starts - The inability of Mike Solari and Herm Edwards to recognize the failing talent on the offensive line was the single biggest mistake the Chiefs made in 2007. Everything starts with the offensive line and Mike Solari just didn't know how bad it was. That is sad, considering he was the offensive line coach for so many years. Its coaching moves like that that make me think the guy had no idea what the hell he was doing. It's almost as if Solari stopped having any influence over the offensive line when he took over as OC. Solari leaves behind one of the league's worst offenses and probably the worst offense in Chiefs franchise history. His legacy is one to learn from, not emulate. Goodbye Mike Solari. You served the Chiefs organization well but unfortunately the position of offensive coordinator proved too much for you to handle. Here's to a new offensive coaching staff and a fresh start in 2008. May I suggest an offensive coordinator who has actual experience being an NFL offensive coordinator? Crazy, I know. NS, who wrote this article? Blaylock? Solari is interviewing for OL coach/running game co-ordinator (whatever the **** that is) NOT OC. The Chiefs had a pretty good OL under him and both Priest Holmes and Larry Johnson did some serious damage. He may be a good addition in this capacity. Just as long as he seeks quality players and doesn't try using **** like Adrien Clarke at LG or Kyle Turley at T. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jack48 Posted January 11, 2008 Share Posted January 11, 2008 NS, who wrote this article? Blaylock? Solari is interviewing for OL coach/running game co-ordinator (whatever the **** that is) NOT OC. The Chiefs had a pretty good OL under him and both Priest Holmes and Larry Johnson did some serious damage. He may be a good addition in this capacity. Just as long as he seeks quality players and doesn't try using **** like Adrien Clarke at LG or Kyle Turley at T. exactly. I am sure herm had a lot to do with the offensive decline. But this guy has a great track record with O lines. better him than Callahan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SouthernJet Posted January 11, 2008 Share Posted January 11, 2008 i have no problem with him as a off Line coach... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rillo Posted January 11, 2008 Share Posted January 11, 2008 i have no problem with him as a off Line coach... Same here....however we must get talent. I don't care who's coaching, if Clarke and Moore still on this Oline it won't make a difference IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drago Posted January 11, 2008 Share Posted January 11, 2008 I would be beyond happy to land Solari. Oline seems like a unit that can have studs, and they may still under preform. Solari had studs, and had them preforming at HOF type levels. We currently don't have the talent that they had, but we do have good athletes up front, as soon as Clement and Clarke are replaced. I really hope we pursue this, and even more, i really hope we sign him to a long term contract. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
124 Posted January 11, 2008 Share Posted January 11, 2008 The question with Solari is when the Chiefs did have one of the best lines in the league, was it because of his teachings and the talent they had there or was the talent on that line overshadowing Solari's skills as a coach? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Favorite_Toon Posted January 11, 2008 Share Posted January 11, 2008 We actually are looking for a guy thats had the wort offense in football to help us? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drago Posted January 11, 2008 Share Posted January 11, 2008 We actually are looking for a guy thats had the wort offense in football to help us? and he had the best unit, under his supervision, in football for about 5 years. As 124 said, were they good because of him, or inspite of him? I'd still like to see him help this unit out. I think he could do numbers on Brick. I remember seeing the chiefs getting roaf and shields into space to just clobber some CB's. Say what you want about bricks run blocking, but if we can utilize his quickness and get him in front of Leon, we could have a very nice edge rushing attack. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RSJ Posted January 11, 2008 Share Posted January 11, 2008 I said when he was fired that he would be a great addition to our staff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rillo Posted January 11, 2008 Share Posted January 11, 2008 We actually are looking for a guy thats had the wort offense in football to help us? Last year he was a OC....thats not his specialty. He's a Oline coach...and had one of the better units when he was coaching them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
serphnx Posted January 11, 2008 Share Posted January 11, 2008 We'll see, but we need more talent to actually be coached. Also we will probably have a "finesse" OL (read guys that come cheap) and Solari usually had pretty damn big units on KC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RSJ Posted January 11, 2008 Share Posted January 11, 2008 We'll see, but we need more talent to actually be coached. Also we will probably have a "finesse" OL (read guys that come cheap) and Solari usually had pretty damn big units on KC. You could be right. The chiefs lines under Solari were punishing - but it had a good mixture of maulers and finesse guys. I think they will do the same thing with the Jets whether it be under Solari or another person. Lets face it if the coaching was that bad, we really don't know what Brick is yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoFlaJets Posted January 11, 2008 Share Posted January 11, 2008 Same here....however we must get talent. I don't care who's coaching, if Clarke and Moore still on this Oline it won't make a difference IMO. Clarke is gone-inactive the last 2 games as for Moore-we may be forced to keep him but the weakest link on that OL was definitely Anthony Clement at RT-he's GOT TO GO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drago Posted January 11, 2008 Share Posted January 11, 2008 Clarke is gone-inactive the last 2 games as for Moore-we may be forced to keep him but the weakest link on that OL was definitely Anthony Clement at RT-he's GOT TO GO Where ya been SFJ? We have indeed seen the last of Clarke. I'm still ok with Moore. We signed him long term and if he is the worst player on our line, i think we are doing ok. He's athletic and is able to pull, so if we do get a guy like solari, we can do the creative things that he became known for with those 400 pound speedsters in KC. If anyone hadn't seen some good footage of willie roaf, you need to find some. I saw it once on NFL network, or Youtube...man that guy can run. Just an incredible athlete. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#27TheDominator Posted January 11, 2008 Share Posted January 11, 2008 Clarke is gone-inactive the last 2 games as for Moore-we may be forced to keep him but the weakest link on that OL was definitely Anthony Clement at RT-he's GOT TO GO IMO, in order of horror: 1. LG 2. RT 3. RG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUM-KNEE Posted January 11, 2008 Share Posted January 11, 2008 Where Solari has gotten his feet wet as an OC, as an OL coach he could work well in conjunction with our OC and things could go a little smoother for our offensive unit. (in theory) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jack48 Posted January 12, 2008 Share Posted January 12, 2008 Where Solari has gotten his feet wet as an OC, as an OL coach he could work well in conjunction with our OC and things could go a little smoother for our offensive unit. (in theory) Bill Muir is another guy who should get consideration, if he is really out in TB. He did a great job when he was here before. e may want to stay in the South, but he has a great rep. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thor99 Posted January 12, 2008 Share Posted January 12, 2008 Bill Muir is another guy who should get consideration, if he is really out in TB. He did a great job when he was here before. e may want to stay in the South, but he has a great rep. His contract with the Bucs is up, but I have no doubt that Parcells will scoop him up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PatriotReign37 Posted January 12, 2008 Share Posted January 12, 2008 If Herm fired him he must be very good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.