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Bernie Miklasz
<a class="postlink" href="http://www.stltoday.com/sports/columns/bernie-miklasz/fisher-has-the-leadership-the-rams-need/article_04cf503d-1e99-59bd-9673-6d78f07a779e.html#ixzz1jRwl9tek" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.stltoday.com/sports/columns/ ... z1jRwl9tek</a>
[wrapimg=left]http://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/b6/ab6cfc5e-3e20-11e1-b0cd-001a4bcf6878/4f1108e6d7e8a.preview-300.gif[/wrapimg]The hiring of coach Jeff Fisher is a giant step forward for a Rams franchise that's been stuck in the landfill at Earth City for too long.
One word immediately comes to mind with Fisher:
Leadership.
The Rams haven't had it in years.
Give Rams owner Stan Kroenke credit for stepping up and landing his No. 1 choice for a head coach. This wasn't the best time to be shopping for a new coach. The pool of available candidates was decidedly unexciting. But Fisher stands among the most respected coaches in the industry. And given the context of the Rams' brutal run of futility, he's arriving at the right time.
The Rams have suffered through a long procession of failed GMs and coaches who brought the franchise down with a losing combination of inexperience, insecurity and incompetence. That explains the grotesque 15-65 record since 2007.
Fisher may not be Vince Lombardi or Chuck Noll, but he sure as heck isn't Scott Linehan or Steve Spagnuolo, either. This time the Rams won't have to worry about what they're getting in hiring an untested first-time head coach.
Fisher brings instant stability and credibility to Rams Park. No more training wheels for a Rams head coach. Fisher has played in the NFL. He's coached in the league. He's been a respected leader of men in this league.
If you'd like to chip away at Fisher's Tennessee record, have at it. He had only six winning seasons. He didn't win a Super Bowl. He made it to one Super Bowl. He's 5-6 in the postseason. His teams finished 8-8 five times.
All Fisher did was coach up his teams for many years, often turning them into something better than they should have been. Fisher coached those teams up, and turned them into something fierce and unforgiving.
"I loved playing against Fisher's teams, and I hated playing against them," retired Rams wide receiver Torry Holt said. "I loved it because you knew you had to be at your best to beat them. And I hated it, because you knew they were going to be hitting you and coming after you all day long."
And as Pro Football Hall of Famer Dan Dierdorf recently noted about Fisher's 8-8 teams: they should have been 6-10 or 5-11. Fisher never had the most talented roster in Tennessee, but the Titans often overachieved. Fisher's Titans proved there's still a place for toughness in the sport of tackle football.
Fisher's teams had a personality, an identity. They'd run the ball, and stuff the run, and bully your quarterback. The Titans' physical offensive line would protect their QB and set him up to throw darts on play-action passes. And the Titans would try to punish opponents as much as possible for three hours every Sunday.
How long has it been since the Rams had a team personality? When is the last time that the Rams stood for something? For the first time since "The Greatest Show" closed down, Fisher will give this team a clearly defined persona.
I'd argue that Fisher's record is actually better than it looks. After a chaotic franchise move from Houston to Nashville, the Titans finally settled into their new stadium in 1999. And over a 10-year period, from 1999 through 2008, Fisher's Titans ranked fifth among the 32 NFL teams in winning percentage. Impressive.
Along the way Fisher had to rebuild after a roster purge caused by salary-cap problems. He had to put up with a meddling owner and unwanted surprises, including the drafting of quarterback Vince Young. Fisher didn't fall apart. He kept coaching. Adversity doesn't rattle him.
After going through a long and depressing void at the top of the football organization, after bad coaching hires and wrong turns, the Rams have finally hired a leader to reform their sad-sack operation. Finally, there's hope. Fisher may need his sunglasses as he leads the Rams out of the darkness.
Reading Time, 5 Minutes:
Kroenke got it done Thursday night during a timely and crucial phone conversation with Fisher. The coach was wavering. He couldn't choose between Miami or St. Louis. But Kroenke was a closer. He persuaded Fisher to take the Rams job.
Fisher picked the Rams for the reasons that we thought he'd choose the Rams: (1) commitment from the owner; (2) a chance to take a blank slate and create an entirely new football operation rather than inherit the problems of an existing setup; (3) playing a major role in the choice of a GM; (4) the presence of a franchise QB; (5) a healthy salary-cap situation; (6) having a firm ally in place in Rams' chief operating officer Kevin Demoff; (7) a chance to move up quickly in the NFC West.
Fisher wants to have the final say on the roster (as all NFL coaches do), but he has no desire to be a kingpin at Rams Park who micro-manages everything. Fisher wants to bring some smart football people into the organization and let them do their jobs; he wants to concentrate on coaching. That's his focus.
What kind of man is Fisher? This story tells us a lot: In 2010 Fisher watched his close friend and colleague Mike Heimerdinger slowly wither away in a devastating battle with cancer. Heimerdinger, clinging to hope, badly wanted to coach in 2010.
From a football standpoint, it probably wasn't the best thing for the Titans. But it was best for the ailing coach. Fisher, believing that the energy and the drive of coaching would extend Heimerdinger's life, encouraged his friend to stay on as offensive coordinator. Fisher wanted to do everything he could to keep Heimerdinger fighting and hoping. It was an admirable act of humanity that made the team's 6-10 record seem trivial. Heimerdinger passed away on Sept. 30, 2011.
Am I completely sold on Fisher? There are questions. In an upcoming column, I'll look at Fisher's ability to adapt to the changes in the NFL and the movement to a wide-open passing game. That's one question I have about his hiring.
Fisher's top priority in putting together a staff: find a terrific offensive coordinator. It's such an important hire. The Rams have to get QB Sam Bradford going. They have to put the right scheme in place. Bradford was a big winner on Friday for a simple reason: Finally, he will have continuity. Fisher will sign a long-term deal, and Bradford can have the peace of mind knowing that he can lock into one system.
[hil]Bradford and Fisher really hit it off during their meeting Sunday; whatever questions Fisher had for Sam were answered to his satisfaction (and then some).[/hil]
This is Fisher's won-loss history with his primary quarterbacks; records are based on starts only: Steve McNair (76-55), Vince Young (30-17), Kerry Collins (15-17), Neil O'Donnell (6-2), Billy Volek (3-7) and Chris Chandler (6-6). The Collins record is misleading; in 2008 the Titans went 12-3 in games started by Collins and made the playoffs.
<a class="postlink" href="http://www.stltoday.com/sports/columns/bernie-miklasz/fisher-has-the-leadership-the-rams-need/article_04cf503d-1e99-59bd-9673-6d78f07a779e.html#ixzz1jRwl9tek" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.stltoday.com/sports/columns/ ... z1jRwl9tek</a>
[wrapimg=left]http://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/b6/ab6cfc5e-3e20-11e1-b0cd-001a4bcf6878/4f1108e6d7e8a.preview-300.gif[/wrapimg]The hiring of coach Jeff Fisher is a giant step forward for a Rams franchise that's been stuck in the landfill at Earth City for too long.
One word immediately comes to mind with Fisher:
Leadership.
The Rams haven't had it in years.
Give Rams owner Stan Kroenke credit for stepping up and landing his No. 1 choice for a head coach. This wasn't the best time to be shopping for a new coach. The pool of available candidates was decidedly unexciting. But Fisher stands among the most respected coaches in the industry. And given the context of the Rams' brutal run of futility, he's arriving at the right time.
The Rams have suffered through a long procession of failed GMs and coaches who brought the franchise down with a losing combination of inexperience, insecurity and incompetence. That explains the grotesque 15-65 record since 2007.
Fisher may not be Vince Lombardi or Chuck Noll, but he sure as heck isn't Scott Linehan or Steve Spagnuolo, either. This time the Rams won't have to worry about what they're getting in hiring an untested first-time head coach.
Fisher brings instant stability and credibility to Rams Park. No more training wheels for a Rams head coach. Fisher has played in the NFL. He's coached in the league. He's been a respected leader of men in this league.
If you'd like to chip away at Fisher's Tennessee record, have at it. He had only six winning seasons. He didn't win a Super Bowl. He made it to one Super Bowl. He's 5-6 in the postseason. His teams finished 8-8 five times.
All Fisher did was coach up his teams for many years, often turning them into something better than they should have been. Fisher coached those teams up, and turned them into something fierce and unforgiving.
"I loved playing against Fisher's teams, and I hated playing against them," retired Rams wide receiver Torry Holt said. "I loved it because you knew you had to be at your best to beat them. And I hated it, because you knew they were going to be hitting you and coming after you all day long."
And as Pro Football Hall of Famer Dan Dierdorf recently noted about Fisher's 8-8 teams: they should have been 6-10 or 5-11. Fisher never had the most talented roster in Tennessee, but the Titans often overachieved. Fisher's Titans proved there's still a place for toughness in the sport of tackle football.
Fisher's teams had a personality, an identity. They'd run the ball, and stuff the run, and bully your quarterback. The Titans' physical offensive line would protect their QB and set him up to throw darts on play-action passes. And the Titans would try to punish opponents as much as possible for three hours every Sunday.
How long has it been since the Rams had a team personality? When is the last time that the Rams stood for something? For the first time since "The Greatest Show" closed down, Fisher will give this team a clearly defined persona.
I'd argue that Fisher's record is actually better than it looks. After a chaotic franchise move from Houston to Nashville, the Titans finally settled into their new stadium in 1999. And over a 10-year period, from 1999 through 2008, Fisher's Titans ranked fifth among the 32 NFL teams in winning percentage. Impressive.
Along the way Fisher had to rebuild after a roster purge caused by salary-cap problems. He had to put up with a meddling owner and unwanted surprises, including the drafting of quarterback Vince Young. Fisher didn't fall apart. He kept coaching. Adversity doesn't rattle him.
After going through a long and depressing void at the top of the football organization, after bad coaching hires and wrong turns, the Rams have finally hired a leader to reform their sad-sack operation. Finally, there's hope. Fisher may need his sunglasses as he leads the Rams out of the darkness.
Reading Time, 5 Minutes:
Kroenke got it done Thursday night during a timely and crucial phone conversation with Fisher. The coach was wavering. He couldn't choose between Miami or St. Louis. But Kroenke was a closer. He persuaded Fisher to take the Rams job.
Fisher picked the Rams for the reasons that we thought he'd choose the Rams: (1) commitment from the owner; (2) a chance to take a blank slate and create an entirely new football operation rather than inherit the problems of an existing setup; (3) playing a major role in the choice of a GM; (4) the presence of a franchise QB; (5) a healthy salary-cap situation; (6) having a firm ally in place in Rams' chief operating officer Kevin Demoff; (7) a chance to move up quickly in the NFC West.
Fisher wants to have the final say on the roster (as all NFL coaches do), but he has no desire to be a kingpin at Rams Park who micro-manages everything. Fisher wants to bring some smart football people into the organization and let them do their jobs; he wants to concentrate on coaching. That's his focus.
What kind of man is Fisher? This story tells us a lot: In 2010 Fisher watched his close friend and colleague Mike Heimerdinger slowly wither away in a devastating battle with cancer. Heimerdinger, clinging to hope, badly wanted to coach in 2010.
From a football standpoint, it probably wasn't the best thing for the Titans. But it was best for the ailing coach. Fisher, believing that the energy and the drive of coaching would extend Heimerdinger's life, encouraged his friend to stay on as offensive coordinator. Fisher wanted to do everything he could to keep Heimerdinger fighting and hoping. It was an admirable act of humanity that made the team's 6-10 record seem trivial. Heimerdinger passed away on Sept. 30, 2011.
Am I completely sold on Fisher? There are questions. In an upcoming column, I'll look at Fisher's ability to adapt to the changes in the NFL and the movement to a wide-open passing game. That's one question I have about his hiring.
Fisher's top priority in putting together a staff: find a terrific offensive coordinator. It's such an important hire. The Rams have to get QB Sam Bradford going. They have to put the right scheme in place. Bradford was a big winner on Friday for a simple reason: Finally, he will have continuity. Fisher will sign a long-term deal, and Bradford can have the peace of mind knowing that he can lock into one system.
[hil]Bradford and Fisher really hit it off during their meeting Sunday; whatever questions Fisher had for Sam were answered to his satisfaction (and then some).[/hil]
This is Fisher's won-loss history with his primary quarterbacks; records are based on starts only: Steve McNair (76-55), Vince Young (30-17), Kerry Collins (15-17), Neil O'Donnell (6-2), Billy Volek (3-7) and Chris Chandler (6-6). The Collins record is misleading; in 2008 the Titans went 12-3 in games started by Collins and made the playoffs.
