Reed83HOF Posted November 18, 2009 Share Posted November 18, 2009 I think the clear reason that Fewell was named interim head coach instead of April is that when a new guy is hired, there's no way he'll keep the interim head coach on staff. I don't think Fewell's a terrible defensive coordinator, but he's a lot easier to replace than April. +1 There is a good chance the next HC will want a different D philosphy unless its Dungy or someone who is a Tampa 2 guy, so there is little use for Fewell. Bobby April on the other hand has consistently had the STs in the top 5 of the league. STs are STs there is a good chance that the next HC will want to employ one of the top STs coaches on his staff. It could also be that maybe they don't want April to lead this crappy team the rest of the year and have the wrath of the fans for not doing any better...I would make an assumption that as an Assistant HC he might be given the opportunity to interview for the position after the season... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dancing_joker Posted November 18, 2009 Share Posted November 18, 2009 Jesus, the guy made like 3 catches 2 years ago. He's a 6th round pick with average skills who can't break off of special teams and can't beat out three other receivers on a very bad football team. Give it a rest already. Did you feel the same way about Fred Jackson and Jabari Greer? One thing you can easily point to w/DJ is that he is (was) married to his current starters Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dancing_joker Posted November 18, 2009 Share Posted November 18, 2009 And Stevie Johnson was a 7th round pick, not a 6th round pick. Don't discount him just because he was picked so late. Good football teams get good players in the later rounds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beebe's Kid Posted November 18, 2009 Share Posted November 18, 2009 For the same reason that Steve Johnson doesn't get much playing time... the Bills never recognize a good thing when they have it. Steve Johnson is not even human. The pure amount of athleticism and leadership he would display, if we would only put him on the field, would revolutionize the game forever!!!! We don't know what we have, and will be sorry when he is immortalized at Canton. At least we will be able to look back at his 12 catches and say we were there!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Caveman Posted November 18, 2009 Share Posted November 18, 2009 I don't know. Why don't you look at the career history of Coordinators in the NFL. THere are plenty started with the special teams then moved up the ladder. Please name 3 ST Coordinators who moved into OC or DC positions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drey Posted November 18, 2009 Share Posted November 18, 2009 I don't know. Why don't you look at the career history of Coordinators in the NFL. THere are plenty started with the special teams then moved up the ladder. Of the current offensive and defensive coordinators in the NFL, there are 7 that were previously special teams coaches. 2 of those (Brian VanGorder and Pat Shurmur) only coached special teams in college. 4 of those (Dick Lebeau, Frank Bush, John Marshall, and Greg Williams) went from coaching special teams to being positional coaches (defensive backfield for Lebeau, linebackers for the other three) before becoming coordinators. Only 1 (Mike Nolan) went directly from special teams coach to a coordinator (defensive) position. Although it should be noted that he was also the linebackers coach while he was the special teams coach. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. WEO Posted November 18, 2009 Share Posted November 18, 2009 Ever stop to think that April doesn't want that job? This is the bottom line---April has a deal that could get no sweeter (let's face it, coaching STs is not a stay-up-all-night-thinking job) and he knows his limitations. He absolutely has no interest in a more substantial coaching job, especially when everyone is always referring to him as "the best ST coach in the League" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steely Dan Posted November 18, 2009 Share Posted November 18, 2009 I find that hard to believe (and these really aren't necessary, you're not that clever) Anyway, I should have addressed this to to people that wanted him as the interim head coach (or permanent head coach), as well as the people that seem worried about losing him as the ST coach because a new guy might want someone else. That's absurd to me. "Nah, we don't want Mike Shanahan if he will get rid of Bobby April" or some such nonsense. I haven't heard anyone saying that they wouldn't want a HC that would fire April. My opinion is that a new HC would be foolish to fire him. My guess is that if he wants to stay he'll stay. THANK YOU! I find it so annoying that Steely Dan thinks he can misuse the crap out of those smiley faces. But to the OP, he was named Assistant Coach for the very reason you're suggesting. One of the reasons you don't want your Asst HC to be the Interim HC is he can be snapped up by another team once the "interim" period is over. If anything, it's better to keep him the Asst HC / ST Coord to allow the next coach the option of retaining him or not. Finally, a thinking man. I don't know. Why don't you look at the career history of Coordinators in the NFL. THere are plenty started with the special teams then moved up the ladder. Marv Levy http://www.profootballhof.com/hof/member.aspx?player_id=128 Levy began his pro coaching career in 1969 as kicking teams coach for the Philadelphia Eagles before joining George Allen’s staff as a special teams coach for the Los Angeles Rams in 1970. Bill Cowher http://www.pabook.libraries.psu.edu/palitm...wher__Bill.html He began his coaching career as a special teams coordinator and secondary coach for the Cleveland Browns. Cowher then went on the coach for the Kansas City Chiefs as the defensive coordinator until he landed the job as head coach for the Pittsburgh Steelers for fourteen years. John Harbaugh http://www.nfl.com/news/story?id=09000d5d8...mp;confirm=true Harbaugh brings 24 years of coaching experience with him, even though he has never been in charge of an offense or a defense. That only intensified the excitement he derived from becoming the third head coach in the 12-year history of the franchise. ______________ He was an assistant at the college level with Pittsburgh, Morehead State, Cincinnati before joining the Philadelphia Eagles as special teams coach in 1998. Harbaugh was promoted to secondary coach last season, and this month emerged among six candidates to replace Brian Billick as the leader of the Ravens. Bill Belichick http://www.boston.com/sports/football/patr...lenging?mode=PF No NFL head coach looks forward to a special teams turnover, and Patriots coach Bill Belichick, who gained legitimate entree into the league as an assistant special teams coach, is no exception. But some turnovers are unavoidable. Frank Gansz http://www.thedenverchannel.com/nfl/19306976/detail.html Gansz was at the helm of the Chiefs from 1987-88. He also had a pair of stints as an assistant with the team, first as the tight ends and special teams coach from 1981-82. He rejoined the Chiefs as the special teams coach in 1986 and spent 24 seasons as an NFL coach and 38 seasons overall as a coach on the college and NFL levels. This is the bottom line---April has a deal that could get no sweeter (let's face it, coaching STs is not a stay-up-all-night-thinking job) and he knows his limitations. He absolutely has no interest in a more substantial coaching job, especially when everyone is always referring to him as "the best ST coach in the League" You know this how? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malazan Posted November 18, 2009 Share Posted November 18, 2009 Steely Dan with some serious pwnage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steely Dan Posted November 18, 2009 Share Posted November 18, 2009 Some more; Dick Vermeil http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/art...86675/index.htm In 1969, when Allen was head coach of the Los Angeles Rams, he made a breakthrough by hiring Dick Vermeil as the league's first assistant coach in charge of special teams. Ron Zook on the importance of ST. http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/columns/stor...&id=1643921 Ron Zook, current head coach at Florida, loved his days as an NFL special teams coach because he knew his coaching impacted more players than offensive and defensive coordinators. In practices, he was the boss of 53 players during the practice time invested to special teams. Zook felt it's the best training ground for future head coaches because the special teams coach gets to know players on each side of the ball. And, the job is all football. Special teams coaches must be quick. They must present their strategies quickly to keep players' attentions, and they must pump energy in the meeting rooms and on the field. Romeo Crennel http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news/2008...ms-for-an-edge/ Cleveland coach Romeo Crennel began his NFL career as a special teams coach. Paul Ferraro http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/rumors/post/Vi...?urn=nfl,136166 Paul Ferraro, who served as the Vikings special teams coordinator since Brad Childress took over as head coach in 2006, has resigned to become the St. Louis Rams linebackers coach, according to people with knowledge of the situation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coach55 Posted November 18, 2009 Share Posted November 18, 2009 Rumor is out that Fewell was not the first choice, hence the long lag between the announcements. Odds are that April was who Ralph/Russ wanted and he turned it down for one reason or another. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drey Posted November 18, 2009 Share Posted November 18, 2009 Steely Dan's examples help emphasize the fact that people who solely coach special teams don't tend to move directly into offensive/defensive coordinator positions. It's certainly possible for them to move up the coaching ladder, but most tend to move into positional coaching jobs before moving up to an offensive/defensive coordinator position. Levy stands out as someone who went directly from coaching special teams to being a head coach without anything in between. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thoner7 Posted November 18, 2009 Share Posted November 18, 2009 How come he hasn't gotten a coordinators job? I like the special teams, but people seem to worry about retaining him after they hire a new head coach. If the new guy wants someone else, let it happen! For the same reason Dick Lebou hasnt gotten an offensive coordinators job - Aprils expertise is special teams, Lebous is defense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steely Dan Posted November 18, 2009 Share Posted November 18, 2009 Steely Dan's examples help emphasize the fact that people who solely coach special teams don't tend to move directly into offensive/defensive coordinator positions. It's certainly possible for them to move up the coaching ladder, but most tend to move into positional coaching jobs before moving up to an offensive/defensive coordinator position. Levy stands out as someone who went directly from coaching special teams to being a head coach without anything in between. HC >DC or OC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geno Smith's Arm Posted November 19, 2009 Author Share Posted November 19, 2009 I guess I should have asked the question "If Bobby April is so great, why hasn't he been offered a job as a position coach?" or "If Bobby April is so great, why hasn't he been offered a head coaching position" Of course if I had, there would have been lots of these , and suggestions that it would be more likely that he would be promoted to one of the coordinator positions, because a position coach would be a demotion, and a head coaching spot would be considered to be a big jump. So I took the "easy way out" and chose "Coordinator position". I also know that lots of coaches start out working in some capacity, with the Special Teams, then progress to the Defensive side of the coaching tree. SteelyDan did the work for me (thanks, I had to go to work, so I just suggested that the poster look into the history of NFL coaching careers). Anyway, I hope he stays, but if not maybe he can turn the Cleveland Browns, or Tampa Bay Bucs, or Oakland Raiders special teams into one of the leagues finest! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thewildrabbit Posted November 19, 2009 Share Posted November 19, 2009 Please name 3 ST Coordinators who moved into OC or DC positions. Yea that would be a first to see a special teams coach become a decent offensive or defensive coordinator,very rare. Now if he had said ST coach becoming a head coach, then there is a big list of coaches to make that transition, some very successfully. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steely Dan Posted November 19, 2009 Share Posted November 19, 2009 I guess I should have asked the question "If Bobby April is so great, why hasn't he been offered a job as a position coach?" or "If Bobby April is so great, why hasn't he been offered a head coaching position" Of course if I had, there would have been lots of these , and suggestions that it would be more likely that he would be promoted to one of the coordinator positions, because a position coach would be a demotion, and a head coaching spot would be considered to be a big jump. So I took the "easy way out" and chose "Coordinator position". I also know that lots of coaches start out working in some capacity, with the Special Teams, then progress to the Defensive side of the coaching tree. SteelyDan did the work for me (thanks, I had to go to work, so I just suggested that the poster look into the history of NFL coaching careers). Anyway, I hope he stays, but if not maybe he can turn the Cleveland Browns, or Tampa Bay Bucs, or Oakland Raiders special teams into one of the leagues finest! ST coach is a coordinator position. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geno Smith's Arm Posted November 19, 2009 Author Share Posted November 19, 2009 ST coach is a coordinator position. Okay, thanks man. I'll write that down! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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