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SpursFanFirst
12-29-2008, 07:49 PM
Mangini has Favre to thank for pink slip
http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/9001016/Mangini-has-Favre-to-thank-for-pink-slip?MSNHPHMA

He was a Man-genius five weeks ago.

On Monday, to play off the New York Post's brilliant nickname, he became Canned-gini.

I'm not going to say Eric Mangini's firing as New York Jets head coach was shocking. That's an adjective better used to describe such wonders as Wade Phillips still having a job and Detroit promoting two front-office executives after an 0-16 season. Nonetheless, Mangini had posted a winning record in two of his three seasons and received a vote of confidence for 2009 as recently as March from team owner Woody Johnson.

The tap-dancing Johnson wouldn't specifically say why he reneged on his word during a Monday morning news conference. He instead used clich้s like, "It's a judgment call," and, "We had to go in a different direction. There's nothing specific."

Come on. The cause couldn't be any clearer: New York (9-7) didn't make the playoffs after losing four of its final five games, including Sunday's 24-17 home clunker against new AFC East champion Miami.

Here's where the debate gets interesting. Why did the Jets nosedive and is Mangini, like coaches often are under such circumstances, being made a scapegoat for the failures of others?

Let's start the blame game with Brett Favre. Green Bay's management was ridiculed for trading Favre after New York jumped to an 8-3 start. But concerns that a 39-year-old quarterback would fade down the stretch were one of the reasons he was dealt.

That assessment was one of the few things Green Bay got right in 2008. Favre had two touchdowns and nine interceptions in New York's 1-4 stretch. He was particularly awful in what may have been his final NFL game, ( :rolleyes Great. It's that time of year again.) committing three turnovers against the Dolphins (including an interception that was returned for a touchdown).

Mangini and offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer unsuccessfully tried to curb Favre from throwing an NFL-high 22 interceptions by stressing discipline and patience. Besides saying "pretty please," what else could the duo do? Even with his late-season shoulder pain, benching an icon like Favre was never a viable option — especially with 2006 draft bust Kellen Clemens as the alternative. The Jets were locked into playing Favre — warts and all — from the minute he began wearing a new shade of green.

This leads us to the general manager who pulled the trigger on the Favre deal in August: Mike Tannenbaum. He hoodwinked, err, convinced Johnson into signing off on a Steinbrenner-esque spending spree that netted veterans like Alan Faneca, Calvin Pace, Damien Woody and Kris Jenkins. Those offseason moves created the modest expectation that New York could rebound from a 4-12 record and make the playoffs. By then acquiring an aged legend who admittedly could be playing in his final season, the stakes were raised to Super Bowl-or-bust proportions.

"Expectations were set so high for us," tight end Dustin Keller told Jets media Monday. "They should be."

But while trying to buy a championship in one season may work in other sports — i.e. the 2007-08 Boston Celtics — it doesn't fly in the NFL. Just ask Washington Redskins owner Daniel Snyder. Or, better, try talking to the front offices for the top four seeds in this year's playoffs. Tennessee, Pittsburgh, Carolina and the New York Giants were built primarily through the draft.

Like with any team, there are players who didn't come through when it mattered most. Keller, who had emerged as Favre's favorite receiving target, hit the rookie wall with only eight catches in the final four games. Outside linebacker Vernon Gholston ran smack-dab into it from the get-go. The draft's No. 6 overall pick, Gholston couldn't even get on the field playing special teams, let alone defense. That forced the Jets to stick with outside linebacker Bryan Thomas, who had one sack in the final 11 games.


Mind you, none of this gets Mangini off the hook. He allowed the Jets to become too fat and happy around Thanksgiving after back-to-back road victories against archrival New England and previously unbeaten Tennessee. A defensive specialist, Mangini couldn't schematically patch a shaky secondary or fix problems stopping the run between the tackles that didn't exist earlier in the year. An 0-4 road record against West Coast teams that didn't finish with winning marks was inexcusable, especially a 13-3 loss to Seattle in Week 16. That game made Jets fans long for the days of Rich Kotite. Mangini made bad coaching decisions and rubberstamped Schottenheimer's pass-happy game plan on a snowy day. Favre was sacked four times and intercepted twice on 35 attempts, while AFC rushing leader Thomas Jones received only 17 carries. And let's not even get started on how the Jets underutilized Leon Washington in the backfield.

Perhaps the final straw was Mangini's strained professional relationship with Favre. As reported exclusively Sunday by FOXSports.com's Jay Glazer, Mangini's tendency to emphasize minutiae with players during weekly game preparation didn't fly with a headstrong quarterback notorious for having shaky study habits.

Had Mangini stayed, Glazer believes Favre was a goner. Maybe Favre would have retired (again) regardless. Maybe he still will. After the Dolphins loss, Favre said he didn't have a timetable and a decision wouldn't be made for at least a week. (Haven't we already done this? :bang )

By then, the Jets will be well into their head coaching search. That means Favre will be under more pressure than he ever faced in Green Bay toward making a quick judgment about his NFL future.

Whoever gets the Jets job will want to know whether Favre plans to play, his commitment to participating in an off-season program and if his problematic right shoulder requires surgery. Heck, that coach may not even want Favre back no matter how many No. 4 Jets jerseys the NFL sells.

In turn, a returning Favre could heavily influence who is hired as Mangini's replacement. Favre isn't afraid to speak his mind on that front. In 2006, Favre lobbied the Packers to hire Steve Mariucci for the spot that went to Mike McCarthy. Mike Holmgren, the only coach who won a Super Bowl with Favre, also is on the market even though he vows not to coach in 2009.

With a veteran roster in place, Jets ownership will be expecting a deep playoff run from Mangini's replacement in 2009. It doesn't take a genius — or Man-genius — to figure that out.

J.T.
12-29-2008, 08:02 PM
The bright side about the Favre thing is that if he retires again, no team is going to be dumb enough to take him back after the way he fucked over the Jets.

BlackSwordsMan
12-29-2008, 08:08 PM
yes

2centsworth
12-29-2008, 09:06 PM
most overrated QB in the history of the NFL. Very good, but nowhere near the caliber of Staubach, Montana, Bradshaw, Brady, Peyton or even Aikman.

dirk4mvp
12-29-2008, 09:19 PM
most overrated QB in the history of the NFL. Very good, but nowhere near the caliber of Staubach, Montana, Bradshaw, Brady, Peyton or even Aikman.


:tu :tu

Reggie Miller
12-30-2008, 12:24 AM
most overrated QB in the history of the NFL. Very good, but nowhere near the caliber of Staubach, Montana, Bradshaw, Brady, Peyton or even Aikman.

You forgot some more: Young, Moon, and Griese (the Elder).

Reggie Miller
12-30-2008, 12:28 AM
To paraphrase myself from another thread in another forum, I hope a disabled Vietnam veteran climbs out of the stands and clubs Favre to death with one of those V.A. aluminum crutches.

sa_butta
12-30-2008, 11:20 AM
http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/dd123/pro--sports/DolphinsD.jpg

mrspurs
12-31-2008, 04:24 PM
Brett doesnt care about the Jets. All he cares about is that big chunk of change in his pocket. Call him whatever you want. But the man secured his family for another 20years with that chunk of change. At the expense of Jet Fans.