Rocky's Football Corner #21

by Rick Rockwell

Rebuilding is on the calendar in the National Football League (NFL). Sure, the Super Bowl has yet to be played. But unless you are the Indianapolis Colts or Chicago Bears, your team is already retooling. So reload. Rethink. Reconceptualize.

Let’s face it, some teams just need to start from scratch. And that’s happening with half a dozen teams because they are replacing head coaches.

This week, Bill Parcells added the Dallas Cowboys to that list when he retired. Quarterback Tony Romo’s fumbled snap in the playoffs may have been the last straw for Parcells who never achieved greatness in the Big D, although he did get the team back to the playoffs a few times. Parcells has made a name as a rehabilitation specialist, someone who can turnaround a downtrodden lot and get them playing playoff caliber football. Few expected he would last four years in a system where the micromanaging Jerry Jones doesn’t just own the team but acts as general manager. Like it or not, Jones started the process of pushing Parcells out the door when he brought in controversial receiver Terrell Owens, whom Parcells referenced only as “the player.” Jones likely would have parted ways with Owens to keep Parcells, but that would have been too little too late in that relationship. Dealing with Owens, Jones, and all the other giant egos in Big D was apparently too frustrating for Parcells, who usually likes it best when he is respected as the biggest ego in the stadium.

But without Parcells, and maybe without Owens, watch the Cowboys fade for at least a season or two. Yes, fans in Dallas (and the owner too) are notoriously impatient for winners. They want their Super Bowls back from the 1990s.

But there aren’t many NFL Coaches like Sean Payton of the Saints, who can retrofit a team and get them into the playoffs in a year.

Look at Lovie Smith, a Super Bowl coach this year. Last year, Smith was the Coach of the Year. He has steadily rebuilt the Bears, but it is a multi-year project. And they have yet to win the Super Bowl under Smith. After producing the best Bears team since the 1980s, the Bears’ management is overdue to reward Smith’s success with a contract extension. Bears management seemed to be holding its breath to see if Smith could improve on the Bears’ playoff record. Now, that he has, he also provides a picture of how it is done in the modern NFL. You want a team to get to the Super Bowl? Better give over three or four years to that project.

So Dallas, unless you can lure Sean Payton back (not likely) put the playoffs in the freezer for a few years.

And here’s the short prescription for the other teams with new coaches:

Pittsburgh Steelers: The core of last year’s championship team is still there and new coach Mike Tomlin showed in Minnesota he likes a tough bare-knuckles defense. They could be back next year.

Miami Dolphins: Cam Cameron, the coach who drew up the plays for the innovative Chargers’ offense is now at the helm. Even with voodoo though, the Dolphins need two years to contend.

Atlanta Falcons: This team needs to build around the multi-talented quarterback Micahel Vick and get him mentally back into the fold. If they create a college style, run-first, multi-set approach, (new coach: Bobby Petrino) they could be back next year. But more likely they are two years away.

Arizona Cardinals: They stole two of the key coaches who made the Steelers’ offense run (new coach: Ken Whisenhunt), and they have great offensive skills players. But remember, the Bidwell family owns the Cards. Three years, at the very least, until they hit success.

Oakland Raiders: Talk about dysfunctional owners! Al Davis is the definition of the out-of-control owner. First, he wants an offensive mind who can deal with the great (but wasted talent) on the team. So there was Norv Turner as coach. Oh, but he couldn’t get the talent to work hard, so then there was Art Shell as the disciplinarian coach. But that didn’t work when the players realized the front office was undermining Shell. Davis has gone back to his old pattern: hire a young coach (new coach: Lane Kiffen) and micromanage the team from above. It worked for Jon Gruden and John Madden. The Raiders are catatonic. Who knows if they can be saved during this decade.

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