Coaches Coming, Going in the NFL

Rick Neuheisel’s tumultuous life is moving along dual tracks these days.

While the former University of Washington football coach pursues his case that he was wrongfully fired by the school for participating in an NCAA basketball pool, he’s keeping his eye on the NFL in hopes of landing a job. The San Francisco 49ers seriously considered hiring him to replace Steve Mariucci after last season, and a lot of people believe the onetime UCLA quarterback is better suited for coaching in the pros.

“I don’t have a preference [between coaching in college or the NFL],” Neuheisel said this week. “I understand, given the particulars of my situation, that it probably fits better right now at a professional level. But I also know there might be some trepidation because of my experience. So hopefully an opportunity will present itself, and I promise to make the most of it.”

In eight seasons as the top man, Neuheisel was 33-14 in four seasons at Colorado, 33-16 in four seasons at Washington, and 4-3 in postseason games with victories in the Rose and Cotton bowls. He wants to be a head coach, although he realizes his way back into the game might be as an offensive coordinator. It remains to be seen whether he can generate interest at the pro level; he said he hasn’t been contacted by any NFL teams, even though this is shaping up to be a busy off-season of hirings and firings.

“All I’m hoping for is that someone will be intrigued enough to want to have a conversation,” he said. “And after that conversation, I’ll take my chances.”

Neuheisel has his share of detractors who think of him as an opportunist who will break rules to gain a competitive edge. Critics also portray him as one who is always looking for a better job. He’s determined to dispel that reputation.

“I think that there was a belief that I was on the fast track and in search of the next best deal, as opposed to being content with my personal situation,” he said. “I don’t believe that to be true at all. I turned down several opportunities, so I could stay in both [Colorado and Washington].... I’m a very loyal person.”

An interesting fit for him could be the Oakland Raiders, who might be in the market to replace Bill Callahan and, as the league’s last-chance saloon, they have a history of reviving troubled careers.

*

Two down, at least four to go.

That’s what the NFL coaching landscape is looking like in the wake of the Dan Reeves and Jim Fassel firings. Buffalo, Chicago, Arizona and Atlanta (again) are very likely to make coaching changes. It could well happen in Miami, New Orleans and Oakland too. Nor are Washington’s Steve Spurrier and San Diego’s Marty Schottenheimer in the clear.

The hottest prospects from the college ranks are, in order, Louisiana State’s Nick Saban and Iowa’s Kirk Ferentz, both of whom have NFL experience. It seems unlikely that Pete Carroll will leave USC.

Saban, who has said he plans to stay at LSU, probably will be courted by the Falcons, Bears and Dolphins. St. Louis defensive coordinator Lovie Smith is a leading candidate to replace interim Coach Wade Phillips in Atlanta.

Look for Tom Coughlin to be hired by the New York Giants, and Fassel to wind up in Arizona. Although Fassel could be a fit with the Raiders, too, where he was once their quarterbacks coach.

If Jim Haslett is fired by New Orleans, he could land in Buffalo, where the Bills are set to get rid of Gregg Williams. The Bills will also take a long look at Pittsburgh offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey.

Some teams are certainly going to weigh the merits of New England defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel and offensive coordinator Charlie Weis. Because it’s a double whammy when teams in the same division get stronger by weakening a rival, it makes sense that Miami and Buffalo would be especially interested in Crennel and Weis.

Where does Dennis Green fit in? And what of Dallas offensive coordinator Maurice Carthon, a guy Bill Parcells says is ready to be an NFL head coach?

Really, there’s only one thing we know for sure: It’s a brutal business.

*

When Chicago plays host to Washington on Sunday, Bear quarterback Rex Grossman will oppose Spurrier, his coach at Florida. Grossman, who made his starting debut last Sunday in a 13-10 win over Minnesota, recounted this week how his mother insisted he take a recruiting trip to Florida as long as he was checking out Florida State.

“[Spurrier] showed me little details about the position, how to beat defenses, how to look off defenders, everything a young quarterback can learn coming out of high school,” Grossman said. “He really got me ready for where I am right now.”

It’s unclear exactly where Grossman is on the learning curve. He won his debut, that’s the important thing. But he put up modest numbers, completing 43% of his passes and compiling a ho-hum passer rating of 60.0. But he didn’t turn over the ball and the Bears had no false starts or delay-of-game penalties.

“I could have had a huge day,” he said after the game. “Maybe I was a little hesitant because I didn’t want to screw up.”

*

Not since 1998 have road teams had a lower winning percentage than this season ... except when it comes to “Monday Night Football.” Home teams are 5-10 in those games, the worst winning percentage at this point in the season in the program’s history.

*

Now that Rich McKay is in Atlanta, who’s going to fill the vacancy as general manager of the Buccaneers? My guess is Mike Lombardi, pro personnel director for the Raiders. He worked with Jon Gruden in Philadelphia and Oakland, and is respected around the league. Plus, Gruden will have a much easier time getting his way with Lombardi than he had with McKay.

Gruden bristled this week at the suggestion he drove out McKay.

“This ain’t no power play,” he told reporters. “I don’t care what anybody says. No two people agree on every issue. If you can find a couple, or two grown human beings that have been able to do that their entire lives, I’d like to meet them.”

Maybe it wasn’t a power play, but I was at the owners meetings in Phoenix last spring when Gruden was grousing about the Buccaneers not trying to sign free agents Kyle Turley, Junior Seau or Emmitt Smith. Gruden didn’t bother lowering his voice when McKay walked past, and there was clearly some tension between them.

*

One of the most underrated general manager prospects in football is New England’s Scott Pioli, the team’s ace director of player personnel. Since his arrival in 2000, he has helped the Patriots out of salary-cap purgatory, played a major role in assembling the 2001 Super Bowl team, and pulled off a Drew Bledsoe trade with Buffalo that was at first widely criticized yet now looks like a masterstroke.

Pioli, who happens to be Bill Parcells’ son-in-law, drafted quarterback Tom Brady, defensive lineman Richard Seymour and tackle Matt Light, among other success stories, and signed free-agent safety Rodney Harrison, who proved to be a steal. It will be interesting to see how long Pioli stays a Patriot, especially if more general manager openings become available.

*

Schottenheimer calls LaDainian Tomlinson the greatest running back he’s ever seen and a combination of Barry Sanders and Walter Payton. That’s probably true in more ways than one. In Sanders’ 10 seasons with the Detroit Lions, the team finished with a winning record five times. Payton’s Bears finished with a winning record only three times in his first 10 seasons in Chicago. The Chargers are 16-30 since 2001, when they made Tomlinson the fifth overall pick.

*

If the Cincinnati Bengals win their final two games, they’re in the playoffs. They’re tied at 8-6 with Baltimore, but Cincinnati has the edge in nearly all tiebreakers.

But the Ravens have to like their chances, because they finish at Cleveland and at home against Pittsburgh, and the Bengals have to win at St. Louis before playing host to Cleveland in the finale. Then again, the Ravens can’t get too comfortable. They have lost their last four road games and, in those games, have committed 16 turnovers leading to 53 points.

The Bengals, meanwhile, have lost 40 consecutive road games to teams with winning records. None of their first six road opponents this season had a winning record when the Bengals played them.

*

The Raiders should do whatever they need to do to keep cornerback Charles Woodson, who becomes an unrestricted free agent after the season. They might have to designate him their franchise player, meaning they would be required to pay him at least the average of the top five highest-paid cornerbacks in the league. Woodson says he wants to stay -- as long as the bottom line makes sense.

“I want every penny; I’m not going to keep that a secret,” he said this week. “I feel I go out and play as hard as I can every down. I just want to get something done, regardless. This is the only team I’ve played with, the only team I know. It’s my team.”

Coming off two injury-plagued seasons, Woodson has been solid this fall with 66 tackles, eight deflections, three interceptions and a forced fumble. Quarterbacks still think twice about throwing to his side of the field. He’s the surest tackler on the team, and he’s a locker-room leader.

*

A record-tying four running backs have already rushed for at least 1,500 yards this season: Baltimore’s Jamal Lewis (1,747), Denver’s Clinton Portis (1,591), New Orleans’ Deuce McAllister (1,542) and Green Bay’s Ahman Green (1,538). Three more are close: Carolina’s Stephen Davis (1,387), Kansas City’s Priest Holmes (1,315) and Tomlinson (1,311).

*

Not only is Arizona’s Anquan Boldin headed for the Pro Bowl, he’s headed for the NFL record books. He needs five catches to surpass Terry Glenn’s rookie record of 90 receptions and is 245 yards shy of Bill Groman’s rookie record of 1,473 yards with Houston in 1960. No wonder Boldin was the only rookie to make a Pro Bowl roster.

*

It’s hard to believe that a few weeks ago the Chiefs were dreaming of a perfect season and now are facing the prospect of being a No. 3 seed in the AFC if they lose one of their final two games and Indianapolis wins out. If the Chiefs (12-2) and Colts (11-3) finish 13-3, Indianapolis would win the tiebreaker because of a better record against common opponents. That would mean Kansas City would have to play a wild-card team in the opening weekend of the postseason -- possibly the Broncos, who put a 45-27 pounding on them earlier this month.

As it is, Kansas City is seeded second to New England and, by holding that position, would receive a first-round bye.

*

Denver’s Shannon Sharpe has become intimately familiar with a lot of stadiums in all his years in the league, but he’s only played once in Indianapolis, where the Broncos play Sunday. That came during his rookie season, less than a year after he participated in the scouting combine there.

Understandably, his recollections of the city are mixed.

“One was a great experience because we beat them my rookie year,” he said. “The other I think I ran a 5-flat 40-yard dash, so it wasn’t that memorable.”