Entering the NFL's inner circle

To crack the code, candidates should follow Cottrell's lead

MONTCLAIR, N.J. -- I'm going to say something that is bound to generate a ton of what-an-idiot-you-are e-mail. I welcome said mail.

I think the African-American coaches who were asked to interview with the Detroit Lions but refused because Steve Mariucci had a near-lock on the job made a big mistake.

I'd been thinking this since five black coaches each said no to an interview request from Lions CEO Matt Millen, thus igniting the hot-stove-league firestorm around the issue. I even asked Millen about it, and he said he had tried to make the same argument, the contention being that black coaches know there are 32 white men, the owners of NFL franchises, holding those 32 sacred jobs hostage. To get one of those jobs, you have to break the code. You have to get inside the circle. You can only get inside the circle one way -- by meeting these men, impressing them and convincing them you ought to be in their little club. And even if they don't hire you, you're three percent closer (1/32nd) to your goal than you were. You've met with one of the gatekeepers of these jobs, and hopefully made an impression on him. And when a vacancy occurs somewhere else, the owner with the opening then might call Millen or one of the Fords (Bill Sr., or Jr.) and ask about you.

This was reinforced last week when I talked to Ted Cottrell, the Jets defensive coordinator who was spurned by San Francisco in favor of Dennis Erickson. Now, the prevailing opinion is that Cottrell was just a flunky keeping the seat warm until the Niners found a white coach they liked better. That he was a phony leading candidate. I can say with certainty that this is total horsecrap. Dr. John York, who, with his wife, Denise DeBartolo York, rides herd over the 49ers, was the gatekeeper to this job. San Francisco general manager Terry Donahue would identify the leading candidates, then run the list through York, and the two would decide on a coach together. (Team consultant Bill Walsh was, shall we say, "consulted." But this hire was not his call. He advised both men.)

Had Erickson blown the interview with York and Donahue nine days ago, or had some red flags gone up when Erickson met them, this would have been Cottrell's job. Two separate Niners sources, including York himself, told me this. Three times York dined alone with Cottrell -- breakfast, lunch and dinner -- and they didn't talk about the blue-plate specials. They discussed the nuts and bolts of the job: which coaches Cottrell would want to keep, how he'd fit in the strict front-office setup. "I really, really liked Ted Cottrell," said York, "and I think he's going to make a very good head coach in the league. And I'll tell anyone who asks me that. I will recommend him highly."

My point? That now the 49ers, unless three men (York, Donahue and Walsh) are lying, have a very high opinion of Cottrell. And when the next head-coaching position becomes available, Cottrell will have a much better chance at the job after going through the interviewing process with San Francisco.

"There are far more coaches than jobs," said Walsh. "Ted Cottrell is an outstanding man. I'm going to do everything I can to help him become a head coach. In the final analysis, he was the other candidate for this job. It was a tough decision for everybody, because Ted is really outstanding. But Dennis has a track record and he's proven himself."

This is why Cottrell wasn't down when I spoke with him. He knows that this interview did as much to boost his reputation as any great defensive performance by his Jets players could.

"I think this has really helped me from a few standpoints," he said. "It gave me a chance to get exposed in the West Coast media. Those folks got to know me. I had a very strong visit -- actually, more than one visit -- with an owner. You know, you can say whatever you want about how you interview with a GM or a president, but only 32 people actually give the final approval for these jobs. I met with one of them for a long time. And I'm quite sure Dr. York will relay our discussions to other teams if he's asked. That will hold me in good stead next year, provided we have a good year with the Jets. That's why I'm not really disappointed. I mean, I'm disappointed I didn't get the job, obviously. But the only thing I've ever asked out of a job interview is to be treated the same as the other candidates. Let us compete for the job, and if the other guy wins, I congratulate him. Dennis Erickson is a quality coach. He'll be a good coach for the 49ers."

The NFL still has a problem with the lack of diversity among its head coaches. That issue wasn't going to to be solved in one offseason. Three minorities out of 32 is still an awfully low percentage. I do think, however, that I would have advised any black coach who was asked to do so to meet with Millen in Detroit, to convince Millen why he deserved a head-coaching job and to insist on meeting one of the Fords. So even if you know you're not getting that job, have confidence in yourself, and keep plugging away. Make an impression. It can only help your cause next year, or the year after, or the year after that.

One last point: Cottrell has had seven interviews. As I wrote last week on this Web site, the reason that he wasn't hired by the 49ers is because Erickson has head-coaching experience, and Cottrell has had none. It's Catch-22ville. "Someone's got to say 'yes' for me to get that experience," said Cottrell. "If no one ever gives me a chance, how can I get the experience they're all looking for?"

Then Cottrell told me about the uplifting conversation he had with Jets coach Herman Edwards after Cottrell had lost out to Erickson. Cottrell said to Edwards, "Now we've got to finish the task. We've got to get the Jets into the Super Bowl."

His 15 minutes of fame -- for this year, anyway -- are up. But Cottrell doesn't mind. "I'm not giving up my dream," he said. "It's going to happen."

"If Dennis Erickson's in your living room recruiting you, then a week later he's the coach of the 49ers, that's consumer fraud. There has to be some sort of accountability with college coaches who jump to the NFL."
--ESPN Radio host Dan Patrick last week, after Oregon State coach Erickson interviewed with the 49ers two days following national letter-of-intent day, then signed a contract with San Francisco three days later.

This week's first thing I think I think: Amen, brother.

… with Houston GM Charley Casserly, the newest member of the NFL's rules-making competition committee:

MMQB: Where do you stand on the proposal to change the overtime rule?

Casserly: Around midseason I sent a letter to the league advocating a change in the overtime rule. I think we ought to give each team at least one possession in overtime. Nine games this year were decided on the first possession of overtime. Nine teams never had a chance to win in overtime.

MMQB: Lots of times an issue that's hot during the season cools off by the time the owners meet in March. Will that happen with this issue?

Casserly: I have not talked to anyone about overtime. But you're right. My experience is that if you held a vote on this during the season, there might have been a groundswell of support. But you go three months into the offseason and sometimes the issue dies. I just don't have an opinion yet about whether a new overtime rule will pass.

MMQB: Will the competition committee try to do anything to improve the quality of officiating?

Casserly: Do I think officiating is dramatically different than it was five years ago? No. Not at all. All you can do is keep working at it and try to correct things when they come up. A lot was made of the mistake committed in the playoff game between the Giants and San Francisco. But those kinds of mistakes are made pretty often in this game. I realize it's magnified because it's a playoff game, it happened right at the end and it's New York. But if that play happened in Houston-Cincinnati? It'd be between two cities. It wouldn't be the end of the world.

Keyshawn Johnson's son is in the same elementary school class as Barret Robbins' daughter in suburban Oakland.

ALL RIGHT. I'LL DO A PSA FOR NFL FILMS. From Manny Cruz of San Diego: "Your Feb. 3 column on NFL Films' breakdown of Super Bowl XXXVII so caught my attention that I would like to see it myself. Where can I order the tape?"

Manny, go to the Web site (www.nflfilms.com) or write them at 1 NFL Plaza, Mt. Laurel, N.J. 08054.

OH CANADA! HE STANDS ON GUARD FOR ME. From Paul McAllister of Cornwall, Ontario: "I have been a longtime reader of your MMQB column and was intrigued by your idea this year to include reader e-mails. But here's what I think you must think but not write re: your apparent favoritism toward Brett Favre: Are these people watching the same league I am? While I am no Packers fan, I can't help but cheer for Favre when I see him play. He appears to one of the few real people left in pro sports today, and his enjoyment of the game is childlike. The insight you provide about him, other players and coaches, and the league in general is why I read your column."

You made my week. Thanks.

I KNEW IT COULDN'T LAST. From Mark Orlicky of Colorado Springs, Colo.: "Pete, what have you been drinking? Quoting your Feb. 10 column, 'I think the Broncos sound more and more like the future employers for Jake Plummer. Good move. He'll blossom under Mike Shanahan.' So, why in heck hasn't Brian Griese blossomed under Mike Shanahan? Everyone pronounced Griese as the Broncos QB of the future, a bright guy who could read defenses and deliver the short ball accurately. So, why didn't Griese work out? Clue one: Shanahan isn't the genius that the media proclaims him to be."

Time may prove you right, but I don't think so. Shanahan (and I) may well have been wrong about Griese being so precocious that he could assume John Elway's job seamlessly and keep the Broncos on the fast track to the playoffs every year. Griese has made too many mistakes, obviously, particularly in the big games. The reason why Plummer may be the man for Shanahan is that he's mobile, in the Elway mold, and he can make every throw. Now, Plummer is not as accurate as I'd like my quarterback to be, but I think Shanahan could figure out enough things he does well and trust him late in games -- which he can't do now with Griese.

VERY GOOD POINT. From Chris of Oakland: "Thank you for your comments regarding the need for the NFL to do the right thing with regard to black coaches. Your characterization of the move as 'affirmative action' is somewhat telling. The term usually conjures up the idea of an unqualified black applicant who takes the place of white applicants. I think you should not throw the term around without making clear that this is not what the league (or even Johnnie Cochran) is trying to do. The issue is merely giving the qualified applicants real, and not token, opportunities."

Wish I'd said that.

COULD I HAVE ERRED BY SAYING DAN MARINO'S FIRST AGENT WAS NICK BUONICONTI? From Peter Nigro of Boynton Beach, Fla.: "Peter, wasn't Dan Marino's first agent actually his dad? I recall that his father negotiated his first contract with the Dolphins in 1983."

Nope. Marino tells me he needed an agent to negotiate with the USFL in 1983, before the NFL draft, and so Buoniconti began those negotiations. Marino later replaced Nick with Marvin Demoff, who quite ably negotiated Dan's deals for the rest of his career.

YOU'RE RIGHT ON THE MONEY. From John Jacobs of Bridgewater, N.J.: "I want to take this opportunity to thank you for putting the time into your online column. A thought from a diehard Giants fan: I still can't believe Harry Carson hasn't made the Hall of Fame. He was truly one of the great linebackers of his time. What bothers me more than anything is that Mike Singletary made it in his first year. I know Singletary was an incredibly valuable guy for the Bears, but I honestly don't think that he was that much better or more influential than Carson. I still remember those games when Carson would get something like 18 or 19 tackles. During my time as a fan, I never saw anybody better as a short-yardage run-stopper. I can't help but have the feeling that guys such as John Riggins, Wilbert Montgomery and Ottis Anderson would agree with me."

Maybe you should come to the Hall of Fame meeting with me next year, John. Unfortunately, stopping the run isn't considered very sexy. The point I've tried to make in those meetings for the last three or four years is that the Giants and Redskins were doing Texas Death Matches in the NFC East when Carson was at his mental and athletic peak, and Carson deserved at least as much credit as Lawrence Taylor does for the Giants usually winning those games. Carson and Gary Reasons would often play sort of a 5-2 (instead of a 3-4), moving from inside linebacker to plug holes over the guards. You're right. Opponents simply did not run on the man. There should be room for Carson in Canton. I laugh when people talk about the New York bias in things such as Hall of Fame voting. The Giants won two Super Bowls in their glory years. And 16 years after winning the first one, those teams have only one player in the Hall. Now, I wouldn't argue that six of them should be in. I have argued that Phil Simms deserves a hard look, because he was the quarterback, leader and ultimate team guy on a winner. But realistically I think three Giants guys from that era should be in the Hall -- Taylor, Carson and Bill Parcells.

1. I think the only great thing about this snow -- and I had to shovel out the front door this morning to let the dog out in the midst of New Jersey's State of Emergency -- is the quiet. Once or twice a year in Megalopolis it is truly quiet, and this is one of those days.

2. I think one of the things that surprises me about the early offseason is the lack of activity in the pre-free-agent market. There's not that much money out there, and if I were a middle-of-the-road free agent, I'd probably try to grab a little of it right now. The lesson from last year's crop: If you snoozed, you lost.

3. I think this is how I interpret Rams coach Mike Martz's remarks Sunday night to St. Louis TV station KPLR that, as opposed to what he said last December about the likelihood of an open quarterback competition heading into training camp, Kurt Warner is now his starting quarterback: Martz is extinguishing a fire that needed to be put out. He's throwing Warner a peace bone. He's saying, "Kurt, it's still your job, still your team. Now just go out and play the way you played a couple of years ago." What Martz said is hardly a declaration that Warner will start the opening game. "Kurt's our quarterback," Martz said, "and Marc [Bulger] will back him up. They are not competing for the job, per se. I feel very confident with both of them." I will translate that for you. It means Warner will take the first snap of training camp, and he'll be the starter early on, and in the first couple of preseason games. Then, if he's playing lousy, Bulger will get his chance. It'll be interesting. I think, without question, that Bulger will have a chance to win the starting job before opening day.

4. I think, in my last word for the moment on Warner, that I would be stunned if Martz believes unequivocally that his quarterback is healthy and will certainly be his opening-day starter.

5. I think these are my non-football thoughts of the week:

a. Jeter vs. Steinbrenner. More trees were killed over this incredibly minor tempest-in-a-teapot than any small controversy in recent New York history, and that's saying something. Hey, when the Yankees go two years without winning a World Series, the Boss is going to say some dumb things. And, by the way, if you think it's excessive that a baseball player is out even semi-regularly at 3 a.m., you're nuts. Yankees home night games end at 10:30-ish. By the time the players are out of the stadium and free of the gridlock around the place, it's at least 11:30. You go out and get a bite to eat and three beers, and it's 2 or 3 o'clock. Big hairy deal!

b. Can you believe my good buddy Don Banks has missed most of this weather fun while vacationing in Hawaii with the family? Come home, Donnie! We need you! The weather's great here!

c. I love watching Mock Trials. If your high school has one, you should go sometime. I watched the Montclair (N.J.) High Mock Trialers beat a tough Millburn High squad last week in the Essex County semifinals, and those kids work as hard as any athletic teams Mary Beth King has been a part of. It shows. Poised, smart, excellent. I do not fear for the future when I see those kids. By the way, Mary Beth is the best and most pathetic darned plaintiff (a burn victim) you've ever seen, complete with the tears and the limping.

d. Bill James has told my Red Sox to go without a closer. They have listened. I hope he's right, or baseball will never listen to stat nerds again.

e. Question for you Rotisserie players: I have a dilemma. We protect three players from one year to another in my league. I'm protecting Nomar and Barry Zito for sure. Now I have to decide between Ichiro, Jim Thome and Garret Anderson. I'm leaning toward Ichiro. Categories: BA, R, H, RBI, SB minus CS, HR. Your thoughts?

6. I think we braved the Orange Alert and spent the weekend in New York. Great, great time. You can't believe the number of people who protested the war -- I mean, you couldn't walk on the East Side of Midtown at any time Saturday afternoon without running into a protest. Saw a great play, The Exonerated, about six people wrongly sentenced to death row and later freed after years and years of life-wasting. That Kyra Sedgwick can really act.

7. I think most of the NFL probably snickered at the hiring of Bob Ferguson as the Seattle GM, and it clearly had something to do with Mike Holmgren and prospective GM Randy Mueller being oil-and-waterish. But I like Ferguson. Always have. So he couldn't make chicken salad out of chicken feathers in Arizona. Who could? Ferguson on the Seahawks offseason needs: "Our first-round pick was [newly hired defensive coordinator] Ray Rhodes. His energy and passion will get everybody off their asses."

8. I think the Bengals, entering the scouting combine this week, are leaning toward taking Carson Palmer with the first pick in the draft.

9. I think, too, they will be hard-pressed to get real value from any team for the pick. Palmer probably needs half-a-year to a year of practice time to be ready.

10. I think it's going to be interesting at the combine to watch the quarterbacks shake out. A bunch of teams will be watching Kyle Boller, the Cal QB, closely. He has vaulted from middle-of-the-draft status to first-roundville.

Sports Illustrated senior writer Peter King covers the NFL beat for the magazine and is a regular contributor to SI.com. Monday Morning Quarterback appears in this space every week. Click here to send him a comment.

 

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