By Matt Morley
The Indianapolis Colts have not hired a head coach yet after firing Jim Caldwell and 8 assistants. With that, the people are frantically speculating who will the named as the new man in charge at the end of this week. I will jump on that wagon as I break down the men who have been interviewed so far, and I name some guys who should be considered, in my opinion.
First, lets look at the man who we know has had two interviews with the Colts….Jim Tressel. This is something that I and my friends joked about when he was hired as the Colts “video consultant” at the beginning of the season. As it turns out, it wasn’t such a funny idea. The man who is best known for his time at Ohio State does have an interesting resume, but never popped out to me as someone who would be a good head coach in the NFL. He went 229-79-2 in his time at OSU and Youngstown State. Before becoming the head coach at YSU in 1986, he was the quarterbacks coach at Miami(OH), then at Syracuse and finally at Ohio State where he was also in charge of receivers. In his 15 years at YSU, his teams made it to 6 D1 AA Championships, winning 4 of them. His Buckeyes also won the National Championship in 2002. He has also won 12 various coaching awards and his Alma-mater named their football field after him. With all of that being said, why is Jim Tressel a good option? I think the first thing to look at is, he is a quarterbacks coach. The Colts will probably get Andrew Luck and if he is our man come next August, I think this former college coach would know very well how to handle him. He is a smart, intelligent man who is very good at what he does. I believe, if hired, he will have to open up his offensive schemes and he will definitely have to get away from hiring unknown assistants that worked with him at Youngstown and played with him at Baldwin-Wallace. With all of that being said, I’m still not sold on this man, but I wouldn’t be completely upset if he was hired.
Another name that is popping up is Titans Defensive Coordinator, Jerry Gray. My first opinion is that the Colts interviewed him for the Rooney Rule. I thought this was a name that only Titans fans and die-hard fans would recognize. Looking at his history in the NFL has brought a little light to why he would be interviewed over a guy like Perry Fewell from New York. He has been the Titans DC for just one season where his unit was 18th best this season in yards allowed and 8th best in points allowed. (It helps they got to play the Jags and Colts a combined 4 times) He was also the Bills DC from 2001-2005 where had one of the leagues best defenses in 2003 & 2004. He has no head coaching experience, but has been interviewed by the University of Memphis and also the Redskins as they were firing Jim Zorn. He is a former player who played in four pro bowls and played his college ball at Texas. From what I have heard and read he is a guy that players respect and listen to. I do not see the Colts hiring Gray, but I think in the next few years more teams will look at him and possibly hire him.
Another name that has popped up is Saints Offensive Coordinator Pete Carmichael. Carmichael is a relatively young coach but has been in the NFL since 2000 in various offensive positions. Many people, myself included, figured he was a man who would be cashing in on the success of Drew Brees. The fact is, that Drew Brees has had his best years with Pete Carmichael in charge of the passing game, or as the OC. I figure that Carmichael does deserve some credit for what Brees has done since he started with the Saints. In an interesting note, he was a receivers coach with the Chargers before going to the Saints so I am under the impression that he watched Brees and figured out his strengths and weaknesses but may have never been given the chance to work with him? Whatever has happened in New Orleans is certainly working for them! He is another quarterbacks minded coach that could create a great atmosphere for Andrew Luck in the coming seasons. If we get an Offensive minded head coach, I think Pete Carmichael would be my first choice.
It was announced Monday night that the Colts would also interview Ravens Defensive Coordinator Chuck Pagano this week. For most of his career he was a defensive assistant with various college teams since 1985, including time as the DC for North Carolina. He moved into the NFL in 2001 when he was the secondary coach for the Browns. In 2003, he helped the Browns tie a franchise record for the fewest passing touchdowns allowed with 13. In 2001, the secondary accounted for 28 of the Browns’ NFL-high 33 interceptions, and, in the same season, rookie cornerback Anthony Henry led the league with ten interceptions. After leaving Cleveland in 2004, he spent two seasons as defensive backs coach of the Oakland Raiders. In 2006, the Raiders’ pass defensive allowed just 151 yards per game, and total defense just 285. The Colts are typically horrible in the secondary, so I think with Pagano and whoever he brings in to coach the defense and the secondary, we could see a lot of improvement on that side of the ball. If we hire a defensive minded head coach, I really like Chuck Pagano.
These are the guys who have been interviewed or have been confirmed as someone the Colts will interview. With those names out there, I want to throw 5 more names in the mix. One of these men is being courted by other teams right now. One man seems like a good fit because of where he came from ties into where the Colts are headed and three of them are personal favorites of mine that I think will get a head coaching job soon. They are: Mike Zimmer, Greg Roman, Russ Grimm, Rob Chudzinski, and Winston Moss.
Mike Zimmer, who is currently the DC of the Cincinnati Bengals, is a name that has been thrown into many coaching vacancies including Jacksonville, Miami, and Tampa. Zimmer was the DC in Dallas for several years before taking the same job in Atlanta for one season and then moving to Cincinnati in 2008. Ever since he made the move to Cincinnati his defense has been the stable point of the team. They are a top ten defense every year and they were ranked number one this season for a while. That hasn’t happened for the Bengals in 28 years. He has expertise in the 4-3 and the 3-4. He also holds the admiration of his players and fans, which is something the Colts coaching staff hasn’t had since Coach Dungy departed. In an interesting note, he started off his college career as the QB, then moved to linebacker after he suffered an injury on his throwing hand. Mike Zimmer is a man that I think deserves a chance to coach in the NFL, and should get it soon.
Another person that I believe deserves looking at is 49ers OC, Greg Roman. He has interviewed with Penn State and Tulane already this year for their head coaching positions but turned down Tulane and lost the PSU job to Bill O’Brien. This year as the 49ers OC, the Smith-led offense was anything but flashy but Alex Smith was successful for the first time since being drafted in 2005. During the regular season the 49ers only had 5 interceptions and only 10 total turnovers. (Again, that doesn’t include the playoffs) What I, and others, like most is the fact that he coached two Heisman runners up while serving as the OC at Stanford, in Toby Gerhart and Andrew Luck who many believe to be to the next QB of the Colts. He has spent a total of 14 seasons in the NFL serving on the coaching staffs for the Carolina Panthers, Houston Texans, and Baltimore Ravens. Former quarterback David Carr had his best season in the NFL while Roman was the QB coach in Houston.
Someone who I really like, but believe wont get a lot of attention with the Colts is Rob Chudzinski. He is currently the OC for the Carolina Panthers. Now, just looking at the fact that he was the OC of the sub .500 Panthers this last season doesn’t mean he should be thrown out of consideration. He started off at his Alma-mater, U of Miami in 1996 as the Tight Ends coach and helped 3 players make it to the NFL: Bubba Franks, Jeremy Shockey, and Kellen Winslow Jr. In 2007, Chudzinski was named the offensive coordinator of the Cleveland Browns. That year the Browns ranked eighth overall on offense, sent 4 offensive players to the Pro Bowl(Including QB Derek Anderson who owes Chud a hefty chunk of his big contract, in my opinion.), and finished 2nd in the AFC North with a record of 10-6, their most wins since 1994. However, after the 2008 season Chudzinski was replaced following the firing of Browns head coach Romeo Crennel. This last year as the Panthers OC, he took one of the league’s worst offenses in 2010 and transformed it into one of the top 10 offenses in 2011. The Panthers finished seventh overall in the league on offense, fifth in points scored, and set a new franchise record for total yards in a season.
Another name that I would like to throw out there is Hall of Famer, Russ Grimm. This may seem like an odd selection to many of you, and I must admit, it is far fetched. This is a man that is one of the best offensive linemen in NFL history and has been able to bring his playing talent to the coaching realm and has helped foster some of the best O-line units in the last two decades. He started his coaching career with the team he played for, the Washington Redskins. He was, oddly enough, the tight ends coach from 92-96, then named as the O-line coach from 97-00. After his coaching stint with the Redskins, Grimm joined the Pittsburgh Steelers as offensive line coach. In 2004 he was promoted to Assistant Head Coach/Offensive Line. Also in 2004, the Chicago Bears considered Grimm as a top candidate for their HC job. Under Grimm’s guidance in 2005, the Super Bowl champion Steelers averaged nearly 140 yards rushing per game during the regular season to rank fifth in the NFL while also getting 181 rushing yards in their Super Bowl XL victory. In 2006 Steelers offensive line helped pave the way for running back Willie Parker to gain 1,494 yards and 13 touchdowns on 337 carries with 4.4 yard avg. Pittsburgh offense finished the 2006 season with the 10th best rushing attack in the NFL, helping to give the Steelers the 7th ranked total offense in the league. For that reason alone, I think he should be considered for at least the Colts offensive Coordinator position. After Bill Cowher retired, Rooney ruled it down to Grimm, Tomlin, and Whisenhutt. After Tomlin got the job and Whisenhutt took the Cardinals HC job, Grimm followed Whisenhutt and has been there ever since as the O-Line/Assistant Head Coach. In his first season in Arizona, his offensive line allowed only 24 sacks, 6th best in the NFL and the fewest given up by the Cardinals since 1978 with 22. Grimm’s offensive line also paved the way for running back Edgerrin James to rush for 1,222 yards, the fifth best total in team history. The Cardinals offense finished with the 5th best passing attack in the NFL and threw for a team record 32 touchdowns. I recognize that the Cardinals have regressed over the last couple years, but I think Russ Grimm is still a qualified candidate and would be an interesting “dark horse” candidate for the Colts head coaching job.
Lastly, I would like to point out Winston Moss to you. Moss is currently the Assistant HC/linebackers coach for the Green Bay Packers. He has already interviewed for the Raiders head coaching job, which is not surprising since new Raider GM Reggie McKenzie came from the Packers organization. Moss has a pretty interesting record though. He helped guide Green Bay’s defense to top-five overall finishes each of the past two seasons, the first time the Packers had accomplished that feat since 1968-69. Under his guidance, the Packers kept pace despite the fact that starter Nick Barnett got injured in week 4. A.J. Hawk has had a fantastic start to his career while Moss has been the LB Coach as well. Moss began his coaching career in 1998 as a defensive quality-control assistant for the Seattle Seahawks, then went on to coach linebackers at New Orleans for 6 seasons. He is a former player (11 years in the NFL) and played his college ball at Miami. He was a four year letterman while playing under Howard Schnellenberger.
These are the guys on the radar and who I think should be on the radar. Notice I left of Bill Cowher and John Gruden. Just let them go, I don’t believe either one will ever come back to coaching. One name that I am uncertain of is Brian Billick. I cant tell if he likes the TV gig good enough to stay away from coaching or not, so I left him off the list as well.
What are your thoughts?
Matt Morley is a Free-Lance writer from Muncie, IN and is currently a senior at Indiana Wesleyan University. He loves sports and puppies. If you would like to contact him, you may email him at mattjomorley@gmail.com.
January 24, 2012
Colts, Sports