The Rams will introduce Jeff Fisher as their new head coach today, and a foundation will be set. For the first time in many years the Rams and their fans will know exactly what they're getting when the new boss walks into the big room for the first time. The mystery has been eliminated. There's no gamble this time.
Since moving to St. Louis in 1995 the Rams have made a series of risky coaching hires. Their first HC, Oregon's Rich Brooks, was pulled from the college ranks. Steve Ortmayer, the GM at the time, made the hire because team president John Shaw was consumed by negotiating the Rams' move from Los Angeles to St. Louis. Brooks was and is a good football man, but the NFL didn't fit him well. After winning his first four games as Rams coach, Brooks went 9-19, lost control of the locker room, and was fired after the 1996 season.
Next came Dick Vermeil. He is a football saint. Who doesn't love him? But let's not forget the circumstances surrounding the DV hiring. The Rams had been rejected by multiple HC candidates, and Shaw desperately turned to Vermeil who was anxious to return to the NFL. Vermeil represented a huge gamble because he hadn't coached since 1982. DV struggled to adjust in his reentry to the NFL, and his first two seasons (9-23) in STL went poorly. But the Rams made some dramatic, franchise-altering moves before the 1999 season -- hiring Mike Martz as offensive coordinator, acquring RB Marshall Faulk, signing free-agent QB Trent Green, signing guard Adam Timmerman. (Green changed the culture and made Rams' players believe they could win but blew out a knee in the third preseason games.) And then Kurt Warner happened. And the Greatest Show on Turf arrived. More than 30 points a game, and a Super Bowl. The Vermeil gamble paid off.
DV retired after the Super Bowl, and Martz was promoted to head coach. He was also a risk. No one doubted Martz's brilliance as an offensive coordinator, but could he handle the pressure of coaching, and the outside forces that cause the stress level to soar? The players loved Martz, who set high standards. The offense continued its spectacular run. Martz went 53-32 and got the 2001 Rams back to the Super Bowl, where he promptly got upset by New England -- in large part because of his refusal to run the ball with Faulk after the Patriots lined up in nickel and dime defenses. Martz was never really the same after that, and cracked during an insidious political battle with team executive Jay Zygmunt. The Greatest Show on Turf ended way too soon -- killed off by burning egos and hideous drafts. Sad.
Next came two newbies, Scott Linehan (2006) and Steve Spagnuolo (2009.) They were good coordinators that had never been coaches before. Each man allowed insecurity to possess them and spent way too much time worrying about controlling minor things, and putting up unnecessary boundaries. The misguided desire for power helped bring both coaches down. Combined record: 21-63. The gamble on inexperienced coordinators blew up ... twice.
That's why it's reassuring to see the Rams bring in a coach that knows what he's doing. As coach of the Houston Oilers/Tennessee Titans, Fisher put up with all sorts of craziness. A three-part franchise move that had him coaching out of makeshift offices set up in trailers. A salary-cap monster that could only be slayed by parting ways with key, important veterans -- requiring an unfortunate rebuild of the roster. There was a meddling and cheap owner who challenged spending and fancied himself as something of a draft expert.
Fisher never cracked; through it all, he just jept coaching. Fisher had the league's 5th-best record over a 10-season period from 1999-2008. His teams were tough, tenacious and played with considerable flair and a brash attitude. Fisher knows how to motivate, knows how to delegate. He doesn't build walls, either. All of the silly, petty stuff that's been going on at Rams Park for too long -- well, prepare for a culture change. Compared to most NFL head coaches, Fisher is largely devoid of paranoia.
He's just a football coach, damn it.
And a good one.
This does not guarantee that Fisher will lead the Rams to daylight and playoffs and Super Bowls. But they have a chance now. They've brought in a genuine leader. The "Greatest Show" era gave way to the Amateur Hour era at Rams Park. All of that is over. Beginning today, a professional is in charge.
Moving On ...
* Jeff Fisher, Good Samaritan: The Coach provides aid and comfort to accident victims in Nashville. I meant to post this link Monday but forgot. Sorry.
Moving On...
* I like the hire of Gregg Williams as Rams defensive coordinator. The one-time coach of the Class 5 Belton (Mo.) High School football Pirates, Williams is one of the more acclaimed DCs of his era. His New Orleans Saints defense collapsed at the end of Saturday's NFC divisional game, twice failing to stop the San Francisco 49ers to preserve the lead. But it would be extremely stupid to assess the hiring based on five bad minutes in a playoff game.
Williams has been a defensive coordinator for 12 seasons, working for four teams (Tennessee, Washington, Jacksonville and New Orleans.) Of his 12 defenses, nine have finished in the top 15 for fewest points allowed. He had the league's No. 1 defense in 2000 at Tennessee, the No. 3 defense in 2004 at Washington, the No. 9 defense in 2005 at Washington, the No. 8 defense in 2007 at Washington, and the No. 4 defense at 2010 in New Orleans.
The 2009 New Orleans Saints won the Super Bowl, with the Williams defense finishing No. 2 in the NFL with 39 forced turnovers during the regular season, and had eight takeaways in three postseason games. All three of his Saints defenses were good at stopping teams on third down.
Fisher and Williams had a tremendous defense in Tennessee. Over two seasons (1999-2000) ranked No. 2 in sacks (109), 3rd in fewest points allowed (16.1 per game), 4th in fewest yards allowed, 6th in most turnovers forced (70), and 3rd in percentage of third-down stops.
Williams has the well-deserved rep as a blitz master. During his three seasons in New Orleans the Saints blitzed more often than any team on passing downs -- 854 times in 48 regular-season games. (The NY Jets were second with 804 blitzes.) The blitzes caused considerable disruption to opponents; when they blitzed over the three seasons the Saints ranked 3rd in sacks, 3rd in interceptions and allowed the third-lowest passer rating (71.1.)
Williams will certainly crank things up around here.
Moving On ...
* Not that this is a surprise to anyone, but the Blues are on pace to set a new franchise single-season record for best winning percentage on home ice. Their 19-3-3 record for a winning percentage of .820 is No. 1 so far. The next two in line: the 2000-2011 Blues (28-5-5, .780) and the 1980-81 Blues (29-7-4, .775.)
* The Blues have allowed only 29 goals in the third period of their 45 games this season. The Boston Bruins have allowed fewer (27) in the third period, but in 42 games.
* Blues defenseman Alex Pietrangelo leads the NHL in shifts per fgame (32.8). He's 17th among NHL defenseman with an average of 24:17 of ice time per game. Petro turns 22 years old on Wednesday.
* Jaroslav Halak was 28-27-7 with a .905 save percentage as a Blue before Ken Hitchcock took the reins as coach. Playing for Hitchcock, Halak is 11-1-5 with a .939 SP.
Thanks for reading ...
-- Bernie
