What is it with the NY media and fans? And this topic probably isn’t specific to NY, but this is what I read about on a daily basis. These days, in the fall of 2005, I’ve been following the Jets and Knicks without much luck in the win column. But why is it that losses always bring requests for the coaches, or general managers, head. This is a concept I just don’t understand. Since when does bringing a coach in, giving him a quarter of a season (or less than 10 games for Larry Brown), and calling for his head a good thing. Or, in the case of the Jets, how does bringing in a new coach help the fact that the Jets are an injury bugged team this year. Let’s say they stay healthy next year and go 10-6. Is that because of the new coach? Maybe he’ll be a good coach, but he’ll be reaping the benefits of the team Herman Edwards put together. You think Barry Switzer was the mastermind of the Dallas Cowboys in 1995?! If you do, stop reading this blog.
When I think of the best teams in recent history, the Bulls, Steelers, and yes, those Yankees, they all have something in common, they allowed their coaches to coach and build a team. At the first, second, and third sign of trouble, the coach wasn’t given his walking papers.
Take the Bulls of the mid-90′s. Last I checked, when the infamous Michael Jordan left for a couple of seasons, the Bulls went downhill. The second season, right before Michael Jordan returned, the Bulls were hovering around .500. Wow, what would life be like today if the Bulls had fired Phil Jackson before that point. Wouldn’t that have a smart move?
How about the Steelers?! Bill Cowher has been coach of the Steelers since 1992. From 1998-2000, the Steelers had 2 seasons under .500 and 3 seasons without making the playoffs. Wow, wouldn’t that have been a great idea for the Steelers to fire Bill Cowher.
How about them Yankees? I’m not a big fan of talking about the Yankees, being a Mets fan. And as much as I don’t like George Steinbrenner, you can’t discount the fact that in the 90′s he figured out that firing the coach every couple of years doesn’t work. No matter how much money he puts into the Yankees, he still needs Joe Torre to bring it all together.
So now, here we are, in Herman Edwards 5th season as coach of the Jets. Three out of 4 seasons the Jets have made the playoffs. Ok, make it 3 out of 5 years. I’m pretty sure they won’t make it to the playoffs this year. How about we let him continue to build a sold foundation for a winning franchise? Oh yeah, last I checked, he has done more for the Jets than any coach in Jets history. You know what, this is NY, Herman Edwards should be fired. Why should we let him build a winning franchise? How about this? The Jets should bring back Rich Kotite. No, no, no, we should bring back Bruce Coslet. Now that’s the ticket.
In all seriousness, Herman Edward isn’t perfect, but neither are the coaches listed above. We should keep Herman Edwards and his faults, this way we won’t regret the move when the next coach comes around. Even worse, if he were to go to Kansas City and take the Chiefs deep into the playoffs. We all now the Jets head coach would have been fired earlier in the season when he lost the first game of the season.