San Diego Union-Tribune (Sunday)
Naysayers of Chargers’ Staley hire off base
Sez Me …
It was the best of jobs, it was the worst of jobs.
Very difficult, it is, for this position to make up its mind.
Why does it always seem as though whenever The NFL Team That Used To Be Here — you know, the Judases/ L.a.lodgers/backup Singers — hires a new head coach, it appears to be interim?
Because it is. The franchise now is working on its 17th head coach, or one every 3.5 years.
As the 2021 NFL coaching carousel began to spin, consensus had it that the open seat created by the canning of Anthony Lynn was the most attractive among the seven available.
It was. It wasn’t. It is. It’s not. There are many followers of the J’s who are up in arms over their hiring of 38-year-old Rams defensive coordinator Brandon Staley as their latest head coach.
• Cheap way out. Didn’t even have to fly him in. Will coach for less. Some truth to that, but the Spanoses are far from alone among the hiring owners who didn’t overspend. Jacksonville did, and there are no guarantees with Urban Meyer.
• Too young. Nobody is too young. Don Shula was 33 when the Colts hired him. Sean Mcvay was 30, Mike Tomlin and Jon Gruden both 34.
• Hasn’t done anything to warrant a head coaching job. Not buying that. In Staley’s rookie year as Rams coordinator, L.A. led the NFL in defense. Idiots don’t lead The League in defense.
But does that mean he will be a successful head coach? No. But possible.
Why must fans prefer recycles? The Padres hired Jayce Tingler, who hadn’t so much as managed his checking account, and he took the team to the postseason his rookie year. Pat Riley was yanked out of a broadcast booth.
I keep going back to what my father said (and if you don’t like it, too bad): “You never know what a captain’s like until you get on the water with him.”
How many current head coaches with any longevity on the job weren’t assistants?
Bill Belichick, assistant. Pete Carroll, assistant. Sean Payton, assistant. John Harbaugh, assistant (special teams, no less). Andy Reid, assistant. Mike Mccarthy, assistant. Mike Zimmer, assistant. Mike Tomlin, assistant. Bruce Arians, assistant. Jon Gruden, assistant.
Every coach in today’s final four was an assistant.
The only hire with zero NFL coaching experience is Jax’s Meyer, and he was a college assistant for many years before beginning his Urban Sprawl at Bowling Green.
Rex Ryan on the Meyer hire: “You can’t schedule a victory in the NFL.”
For some reason, I like the Staley hire (which of course means nothing). He’s obviously bright. I think Lynn last year personally cost the team at least three wins — not by a lack of preparation, but game-day flubs.
And that was not the owner’s fault.
The roster Staley inherits, if healthy, is more than good enough to win games. He has to hire an innovative offensive coordinator to work with stupid-good young quarterback Justin Herbert. The Tommyjohn football ops tandem of Tom Telesco and John Spanos have to get him an ambulatory offensive line (the expected starters never played together in 2020), a few more players here and there, and somebody who can find their way to work without a police escort to manage what have been historically awful special teams.
And he must have a game manager next to him to help with clock management, situations and replays.
Staley will have to overcome ownership, but many teams lack towering bosses. And, of course, there’s the fact that few people in Los Angeles give one damn about what the team does.
I like this hire. But, then again, I’ve never been on the water with him. …
Staley was a newspaper clerk, so we have something in common. But let’s see how long it takes him to lie to sportswriters. …
As for complainers complaining the J’s needed an offensive-minded coach, Staley is a former quarterback, and has spent his life looking at offenses.
Ernie Zampese, the groundbreaking offensive coordinator, coached DBS. …
Somebody mentioned “Chargers Nation” the other day. That probably is the Vatican (pop. 1,000). Plenty of forgiveness and prayers for the hopeless there. …
The Rooney Rule. Kicking ass and taking no Black names. …
New Lions head coach Dan Campbell said “we’re going to bite a knee cap off.” Pressed, he explained two of his corpulent ancestors were surviving members of the Donner Party. …
Hall of Fame football man
Gil Brandt tweeted that it took “a lot of guts” for former Packers GM Ted Thompson, who passed Thursday, to draft
Aaron Rodgers. At 24th overall? …
All I know is I saw Cal’s Rodgers completed 23 straight passes (NCAA record) vs. the best defense in the country, USC’S. A great college quarterback. Guts? Didn’t have to be
Gen. Patton to draft that guy. …
Kurt Warner says all NFL playoff games should be played indoors. Colin Cowherd says the NFL should postpone the game if Mahomes can’t play. What the hell is going on with people making a lot of money? ...
Nothing worse than media doctors. …
Stink O’ The Week Sezment: The fumble-rolling-out-of-theend-zone-and-the-defensewhich-did-not-recover-the-ballgetting-possession rule. What totally insane person came up with that? …
Prediction: The old rule is gone by summer. …
Notre Dame, home of Rockne, Leahy, The Four Horsemen, The Gipper, on NCAA doublesecret probation? Sigh. Is nothing sacred? …
Growing up, my favorite baseball player was Hank Aaron, my favorite football player Jon Arnett. Hammerin’ Hank and the Jaguar. They died within a week of one another. Damn. RIP. …
Nobody ran like Jaguar. And,
Jimmy Cannon could have been writing of Hank when he wrote of Joe Louis: “He is a credit to his race. The human race.” …
Aaron and Willie Mays played on the same side in 22 All-star Games. Any analytics for that? …
How about Hank homering in 692 different games? ...
Baseball is nowhere near as boring as the way it’s played and managed . ...
If “Pac-12” had been a Broadway play under outgoing Commissioner Larry Scott, it would have been a money-making flop. …
Saw Draymond Green score after walking more than Moses. No call. …
Money? Tennessee will hire its sixth full-time football coach since 2008, its fifth AD since 2011 . ...
I said lower Fifth Avenue should become a promenade, and it’s happening. India between Beech and Grape should be next . ...
Just think how many coaches and GMS would still have their jobs if not for Twitter/ unsocial media. …
Bernie Sanders is 79. He gets cold. Nothing funny about it. Nothing . ...
One day on Mercury is 1,407 hours, 30 minutes long — or about as long as it took us to get our vaccine at Petco (actually, 4½ Earth hours). Cars cutting in. No police presence on Imperial, or CHP on I-5 south. Great to get it. Folks are friendly. But we must be able to do better than this. …
The extemporaneous handling of the vaccine rollout — the lack of a plan when the feds knew it was coming for months — is a stain that’s never washing out.