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November 30, 2005
Great Teams = Great Organizations
The Detroit Lions fired head coach Steve Mariucci a few days ago. Once a successful coach with the San Francisco 49ers, Mariucci couldn't find the winning formula in Detroit. I think it is a big mistake however to think that the blame is Mariucci's, if at all. Great teams only happen when one has a great organization, and by that I mean the right people running the organization. Excellent coaches leave one team then coach for another and never achieve the same success. Do they suddenly become bad coaches? I would contend that their new teams don't have the right management.
Think of successful professional football teams as an example. The Pittsburgh Steelers seldom won until Dan Rooney turned control of the team over to his son. Suddenly they got very, very good, and have remain so despite changing coaches and the inevitable turnover of personnel. Good teams have bad years, as the Steelers have, but they always manage to come back. They were good with Chuck Noll and are very good with Bill Cowher. The constant is the front office.
Each piece must work perfectly in order for a team to succeed, no matter what the game. Matt Millin, the President of the Lions, never had a high management position in football before the Detroit job. His head coach selections have failed, all of them. It has been so long since this team has been a real factor in the NFL that I can't remember. For any team to win, every part of the organization plays a role, from the front office to the players riding the bench. Ultimately, the team is only as strong as its weakest link. I doubt that the real problem rests with Mariucci.
Posted by Chip Spear at November 30, 2005 4:29 PM
Comments
BALONEY! Look at the lesson of the Carolina Panthers. Under a formerly winning coach they became the worst team in NFL history. Now under Fox they're doing great. Their may be other factors, but the coach is by far the biggest one.
Posted by: Charles Hall at December 8, 2005 10:12 AM
Thanks for the post.
I would agree that the coach is the most important factor, and I don't want to over-simplify a complex subject. To explain a little more what I was getting at, I would say that a coach can succeed in one environment and not in another for a whole host of reasons, they might be better at starting an organization or coming in and making changes that work well for the short term, but fail in the long term, their personality might clash with players over a long period of time, the management might have a philosophy that works better with one person than another over the long haul.
I am sure you can site numerous examples like the Panthers. I am glad they are winning, part of my family lives just north of Charlotte and I spend a fair amount of time there. I guess the issue is one of long term success. I think that Carolina probably has a very good organization that works well with Fox. Keep in mind also that Dom Capers did well his first couple of years until he expanded his responsibilities and took over personnel matters. Perhaps he reached beyond his expertise and abilities there. He has never achieved the same level of success since.
In today's free agency, players move fairly often. It is difficult to keep a team together for more than a few years, so success is fleeting, but the best organizations, with the right coach or coaches, keep coming back to the top. I wonder if Bill B. would achieve the same success at Detroit?
It is all part of trying to figure out what makes excellent teams, or organizations. I think it is more than having one great coach, or one great player, but that is just my thought at the moment.
Cheers,............
Posted by: Political Sports at December 9, 2005 12:11 PM