The case against Cowher

[BrudLee]

Here's my take on Cowher.

He is a really good coach. He had some dominant defensive talent early in his career (Greg Lloyd, Kevin Greene, Rod Woodson) and got the most out of them. He stuck with an underperforming QB (Kordell Stewart) for too long, to the eventual detriment of his team. During much of his career, the Steelers were in the worst conference in football (The Bengals were horrible until 2003, the Browns had two winning seasons in his tenure, and the Ravens were schizophrenically great or rotten). There was a stretch in his tenure (1998-2000) where he never finished above 3rd in his division (and people were openly calling for his head), which was righted after realignment (which gave him the Browns, Bengals, and Ravens twice a year).

What part of that screams "We gotta get this guy!"

His demand for total personnel control? Do the names Tommy Maddox or Kordell Stewart give you pause when thinking about ceding complete control?

Is stability the real answer? Because, I think I could prove that the Rooney family doesn't know how to fire people. They haven't fired a head coach since 1968. That guy (Mike Austin) won eleven games in three years, and may have deserved it.

Do we feel like he's the guy who can light a fire in the players' collective belly? Here's the major additions to the Steelers this year: coach Mike Tomlin, and punter Daniel Sepulveda. Who's more responsible for the extra three wins they got this year? My guess is the coach.

The popular notion is that we can throw enough money at Cowher to make him consider this. Perhaps the real question is, do we really want a leader who won't be bothered to get off his couch for less than $10 million?

It should be noted that if Coach Cowher is hired, I'll erase this thread and anyone who dares quote it. I'm a moderator, and I'm crazy in the head.