Bob in STL Posted January 28, 2010 Share Posted January 28, 2010 I've seen in a number of threads where posters say Buddy and/or Chan are bad or will be bad simply because they are old. And we should have picked younger guys who are more in touch. But age also means experience... not saying that always leads to success, but their age does not preclude that they will fail. Ok, Ralph is 91, that is old But 58 and 70 years old in this day and age doesn't mean you're ready for the retirement home, or are going senile, or are so hopelessly out of touch with the world that you can't be productive anymore. Chan just turned 58 years old Bill Belichick is 57 (only 3 months younger than Chan) Pete Carroll is 58 (4 months older than Chan) Mike Shanahan is 57 (only 7 months younger than Chan) John Fox is 55 Wade Phillips is 62 Jim Caldwell is 55 (and in a Superbowl) Tom Coughlin is 63 (won a Superbowl at 61) Norv Turner is 57 Marty Schottenheimer was 63 his last year in SD (66 now) Marv Levy was 71 when he retired (went to Super Bowls at age 65, 66, 67, and 68) Dick Vermeil was 69 when he retired (won Superbowl when he was 63) Bill Parcells coached until he was 65 I could go on and on... If we had hired Shanahan would anyone be saying he's too old? Buddy is 70 years old Bill Parcells is 68 Mike Holmgren is 62 Bill Polian is 67 A.J. Smith is 61 Jerry Jones is 67 Al Davis is 80 (ok, bad example) GM info was harder to find and yes, Buddy is one of the oldest current GMs, but would anyone be saying they were too old if we hired Parcells or Polian? Age doesn't mean anything, but experience can mean everything I am not saying these guys will be successful (but I hope they are) and I'm fine with people arguing against them because of their records/resumes, or them being retreads, or in-house hires, or whatever, but please stop with the they aren't good because they are old stuff... Agree. Age today is much different that 20 years ago. Working is good for you. People retire and go back to work, many at least part time. I am 51 -- I run three times a week, and I lift 3 times a week. I can still bench 225 for 3 sets of 5. I weigh the same as I did when I got married at 28. To all the young hotsots posters -- You better take care of your body and your mind because today's medicine and health care is extending vibrant life expectacy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pine Barrens Mafia Posted January 28, 2010 Share Posted January 28, 2010 *yawn* I'm sorry, were you saying something? I must have dozed off watching reruns of "Murder She Wrote." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillsfaninFl Posted January 28, 2010 Share Posted January 28, 2010 And the funny thing is that at 91 the man has built multiple businesses that are worth near a billion dollars. His football operations might be lacking, but his business sense has served him well. We never questioned his love of money or ability to make profits. Every NFL team owner is a successful businessman. But the difference between winners and losers has to do with how they view success for their franchise. If they want more than just profits: like also having pride in winning championships, then their success can be twofold. For 50 years, Ralph Wilson has "talked the talk," but never "walked the walk." The few successful seasons were because of personnel (both staff and players) who were among the best in the game and succeeded in spite of Ralph. The fact that he didn't respect their abilities and didn't place a high priority on keeping these people (as evidenced by not paying the big bucks and/or firing staff because of arguments), shows his real recipe for success was strictly financial and his intolerance for those who challenge him. Even the one time he gave someone (Donahoe) the power to do it their way, it was to shore up profitability. But then he realized how important it was to him to hold the final vote on everything and he admitted after firing Donahoe that he would "never give up that power again." The proof is in Wilson's own words. Like the comments he made this year, which made it clear that his reorganization would follow "his" rules, (which obviously were not intent on building the most competitive team possible). The only thing we do not know is whether the chase for a big name staff was real or just showmanship. But even here we have evidence. When a big name coach did show interest (Marty Shottenheimer), Wilson immediately said "no." It takes a really blindly faithful fan to ignore all this and still believe that the team will be a winner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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