Look no further than the Chiefs hiring of GM Scott Pioli, or the Broncos hiring of Josh McDaniels to tell you how much influence the New England Patriots have on the front offices around the NFL.Or even the Browns hiring of Eric Mangini, who replaced another ex-Patriots coach, Romeo Crennel.
Forget the fact that New England didn't make the playoffs this year. They still went 11-5 despite losing former MVP Tom Brady the first week of the season. And while they're not playing into January, their disciples have made many of the headlines the last few weeks.
I'm not a Patriots fan, and frankly, I root against them every week. But the Patriots, despite not being a playoff team this year, are the gold standard of the NFL.
Their coaches are the most sought after commodities year after year. If a coach has spent any time on the same sideline as Bill Belichick, even ten minutes, he is considered a hot commodity among NFL owners and General Managers. And now, with Scott Pioli hired as the Chiefs new GM, the fans in Kansas City will soon expect Vince Lombardi trophies to pile up in Arrowhead Stadium's trophy case.
The Patriots are having the same effect on the league that many of the great dynasties of the past have had on the league. Look around the NFL's defensive coaches and you find many members of the 1985 Bears team that had what many consider the best defense of all-time. Mike Singletary is the 49ers head coach. Leslie Frazier is the Vikings defensive coordinator. Rex Ryan, son of former Bears defensive mastermind Buddy Ryan is handling the Ravens stifling defense. And Ron Rivera is a linebackers coach for San Diego.
The same can be said for proteges that have worked with greats like Bill Parcells, Bill Walsh, and other great coaches of the past.
Now, it's the Patriots that everyone wants to emulate. They're the first team since the turn of the century to have such a widespread effect on the NFL. Years from now, we'll look back on the New England dynasty and see which of their ex-coaches created dynasties of their own. But maybe even beyond the three Super Bowls they've won over the past decade, their influence on the game is their greatest achievement of all.
The Patriots have defined greatness for the new NFL. When teams struggle and need new direction, there's one place to find the model for sustained excellence and success.
And that is Foxboro, Massachusetts.
And Eric Mangini got fired then hired by a bad team to eventually get fired again.
ReplyDeleteRomeo Crennel was fired.
Charlie Weis should've been fired for being overpaid, useless and any success he had is thanks to what Willingham did.
True. However, would Eric Mangini or Romeo Crennel be even considered for these head coaching positions had they not come from New England? Most likely not.
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