Tomlin
Hired��Thoughts and Q&A
As you've seen by now, Mike "Tommy" Tomlin has
been hired to be the head coach of the Pittsburgh Stillers.�� He beat out Fat Russ Grimm and Bears
assistant Ron Rivera, who could not be hired until after the Super Bowl on Feb.
4th.�
Tommy has an interesting background & history.� In high school, where he played football and
ran track at Denbigh High school in Hampton, VA, he was voted "most likely
to succeed" by his classmates.� He
then went on to star at WR at College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, VA,
graduating in 1995.� His coaching tenure
has been as follows:
1995��� ���������� VMI��������������� WR
coach
1996��� ���������� Memphis������� Grad Asst.
1997��� ���������� Ark. St.����������� WR coach
1998��� ���������� Ark. St.����������� DB coach
1999-2000����� U. of
Cinci������ DB coach
2001-05��������� Tampa
Bay����� DB coach
2006������������� Minn
Vikes����� Def Coord.
Tom appears to have the demeanor of a leader, and all
commentary around the league and country has said the same.� Obviously, he's not had not a lot of high
level coaching responsibilities, be it in the NCAA or in the NFL.�� Being a DB coach means you're shielded by
about 3 layers, and you get interviewed maybe 3 times a month.� The heat, spotlight, and responsibilities are
30 times larger and hotter as a HC than a DB coach.�
Some questions that I've fielded via email the past coupla
days, and answers:�
"Are you worried that Tomlin is a
4-3 guy?"�
Right now, no.�� I've
never been wedlocked to the 3-4 defense.�
Unlike guys like Billy Cowher, I've never wanted to pound the square peg
into the round hole.� You play the
scheme that best fits your players, not force your players to play a scheme
that doesn't fit.�� Now, I'm not saying
the Stiller roster today doesn't fit the 3-4.�
But tomorrow is another day, and the draft hearkens.� And, most of our current defensive players
could excel in a 4-3 just as easily as a 3-4.�
Let's face it -- a front-7 defensive stud can excel in most any
defense.� I absolutely loved when Tomlin
stated that he'd consider using both the 3-4 and the 4-3.� Apparently, LeBeau himself wanted to do
that, but Lord Billy Cowher, the great guru of football, immediately squelched this
idea.�
"How 'bout Tomlin and the Tampa (Cover)
2?"�
This does worry me some.� I've never been a fan of passive defensive schemes like the Cover
2.� Further, if fully implemented, the Tampa
2 relegates Troy Pola to a passive, pedestrian role rather than the Tasmanian devil
role that he does with considerable aplomb.�
I've always promulgated an attacking defense.� I'm hoping Tom and Dick (and Harry if needed) can develop a
hybrid of sorts.�
"Do you think he was hired because
of the Rooney Rule?"
Let's hope not.� He
was interviewed, in large part, because of the Rooney Rule.� The Rooney's should have hired the best man
for the job, regardless of race, creed, national origin, political orientation,
or any other totally irrelevant factors.�
We weren't privy to the interviews, so for now, we can give Rooney the
benefit of the doubt that Tomlin was the best candidate.� However, if Rooney hired him merely to
reinforce his Rooney Rule, then Rooney himself should be fired and removed immediately.��
"What are your thoughts about Russ
Grimm?�� Wasn't he a good
candidate?"�
I had some doubts about Fat Russ.� The O-line sagged amidst a plethora of slop and lethargy this
season, despite an abundance of talent.�
Isn't the O-line supposed to be Fat Russ's one area of
expertise??� �I was also worried about his ability to handle the complexities of
the NFL, as he seemed to be more of a neanderthal "cloud of dust"
kind of guy.�
"You revolutionized the nicknaming of Bill Cowher (and Gailey, Gilbride, Sherman, Haslet, and others), with staples like "Cowhard", "Asslet", and "Kevin Gaypride" that are world renown thanks to the internet.� Any immediate plans for Tomlin?"�
Unfortunately, none yet.�
"Tommy" is an obvious nickname, although rather dry.� Tomlin's name simply doesn't lend itself to
the extent that Cowhard's name did.� If
Tomlin bombs, there's always "Bomlin", but that's about it for
now.� Given some time, I'm sure Steel Trap
and I can think of a few clever monikers.�
"Tomlin is a defensive guy.� Biggest challenge for Tomlin with our
defense?"�
Getting Joey Porter to stop standing around like a complete
pussy and start wreaking some havoc.�� Associated
to that, is finding a way to generate pass pressure and harassment on opposing
QBs, totally regardless of whether we employ a 3-4, 4-3, 5-2, or 6-1.�� The pass pressure from this defense was as
feeble as ant piss last season.�
"When will Tomlin start to receive
your ridicule the way Coach Cowher did?"�
When he starts making dumbassed decisions like Billy
Cowher.�� For example, the minute he
inserts a brick-fingered stooge like Dicardo Colclough to catch punts, he gets
ridiculed.� The instant he shows up at a
Super Bowl to a muddy, soupy field and starts a scatback instead
of a bruising, 235-pound mud-chewing power back, he gets ridiculed.� The second he inserts a piece of shit like
Mike Tomgack as the starting QB, he gets ridiculed.�� The moment he keeps worthless players on the roster for years
and years upon end, such as Tomgack, Jon Wittman, Mark Bruener, Jason GilDong, and
Justin Kurpeikis, he gets ridiculed.�
It's that simple.�� A head coach
doesn't "receive" ridicule; he earns it.�
"Were you surprised by the
contract and salary that Tomlin received?"
YES.� Absolutely.� Here you have a guy with ZERO head coaching
experience and a whopping one season as a defensive coordinator.� And Rooney, who ran off Hall of Famer Rod
Woodson 10 years ago while squabbling over a paltry $75K, simply shovels over
$2.5M per year on a 4-year contract. �Go
figure!!� �Here's Tomlin, without a single ounce of leverage, and the guy
gets lavished with this enormous contract.�
I can't fathom why Rooney didn't call Tomlin and say, "Hey Mike,
one mill per year, 3 year deal.� Take it
or leave it; we've got Grimm on the other line, and Rivera will be plenty
hungry once the Colts riddle the Bears in the Super Bowl.� Oh, and Al Davis is looking for a coach, if
you're interested in coaching over in that circus. �We've known Oakland Al for years -- longer than you've been alive,
in fact -- and we can highly recommend you to him.� What's your decision?"��
"What do you expect the team to
achieve under Tomlin in '07?"�
The same as I expected -- but clearly wasn't provided -- under
Cowhard in 2006: a team that fights like rabid demons 15 games a season (every
team has a letdown game) and wins 11-12 games and makes the playoffs.� Unlike new coaches in Oakland and AZ, the
cupboard is far from bare in Pittsburgh.�
The talent is there for 11-12 wins.�
What was missing last season was hunger, attention to detail, and
enforcing standards & discipline.�
Tomlin appears to be man enough to correct those deficiencies.�
"Biggest hope for Tomlin?"
That he plays no favorites with veterans.� Every single job, from long snapper to free safety
to #5 WR to the starting offensive guards -- should be wide open for
competition when training camp begins.� We've
not seen fiery competition for jobs in over a decade.� Tomlin would go a long way in my book if he were to boldly
implement this idea.�
(Still Mill and Stillers.com -- when
it comes to the analysis of the