Merlin's GM And Head Coach Picks
I was going to wait till later to drop this, but with the Browns going real hard after Pioli and other teams looking for a GM, we may have to move faster than we had hoped. Five names have been linked to the Chief’s GM job. They are: Scott Pioli (Pats VP of Personnel), George Kokinis (Ravens pro personnel director), Eric DeCosta (Ravens college scouting director), Chris Polian (Colts assistant GM) and Phil Savage (former Browns GM).
Other than Savage, the choices all look solid. Pioli is the hottest name and with good reason. He does have ties to the Browns and they are the odds on favorite to land him. Working with this list, my choice is: Eric DeCosta.
Eric is one of the brightest young minds in the game today and is rooted in college player evaluation. He is extremely smart earning Deans list at Colby College and a Masters from Trinity. He was named one of the most powerful people in sports under the age of 35. He was the only football guy listed.
It’s not enough to just bring in one guy at the top and expect this to work. Folks working under him need to be on the same page. Accordingly, I would expect Eric to, in the words of Emmitt Smith, debacle the Ravens. He should know the Raven’s scouting personnel extremely well. Finding another young hot shot there to become our Director of College scouting, plus raiding a few scouts would be a great start.
The new head coach needs to be with the program to. Like Adam, I am staying in the same organization for my new head coach. My choice has been paying for his last name for years. It’s time to give this man his due. Eric should bring Rex Ryan over to be our new head coach. Rex is a fine defensive coordinator. Before becoming a defensive coordinator, he coached defensive line.
On a side note, these moves could open the door for some current Raven defensive players (Suggs among others) to come over to the red and gold.
OK Addicts, have at it. DeCosta and Ryan are the Merlin picks. What do you think?
I will start by saying, I do not know to much about Rex Ryan other than he has lead a great Def. for years. My question is, why hasn’t he been a head coach before? Even last year, the Ravens felt they needed to bring in a relatively unknown to be there coach when they had Rex Ryan on their staff already.
Decosta is a good choice, although I would rather have Pioli and Polian first.
December 31st, 2008 at 6:53 pmVery good point, bannyc9…I also think with Pioli drafting the defensive rookie of the year well after our ‘gift’ of Glenn Dorsey speaks well of his credentials. I had heard that he was to interview with the Chiefs after Cleveland and make his choice based on the best offer. Lets keep our fingers crossed.
December 31st, 2008 at 7:15 pmWhile I like Piola a great deal, much of the Pats success goes to the coaching. THey are able to succeed with multiple players with a great coaching scheme, utilizing best what they have..
My number 1 choice hands down is DeCosta….Mangini looked great with the Pats, but look at how he performs exposed…
DeCosta is a VERY bright person. A dual english and classics major, masters in English…How many others in the NFL have degrees like that?? His drafts have been excellent. Take him now, or when Ozzie retires, you can bet the Ravens name him GM. Ozzie has already said he has only 1 or 2 years left as GM….
December 31st, 2008 at 7:21 pmbanny: The scuttlebut is that Rex Ryan and his brother Rob have been blackballed for head coaching jobs because they are Buddy Ryan’s kids.
December 31st, 2008 at 7:22 pmkcdan, check back in a year or two before you dump all over Glenn Dorsey. Often, d-lineman take a couple of years to develop.
Melin you are singin my tune – DeCosta is also my odds on favorite….I don’t mind the chase for Pioli because of credentials, but it has always been a long shot. DeCosta on the other hand seems to fit exactly what Mr. Hunt is looking for.
On the other hand I hadn’t even thought about Ryan – I have been so enamored with the thought of Cower (pipe dream) that I ignored anyone else.
Good thoughts Merlin!
December 31st, 2008 at 7:22 pmI like Scott Pioli and then Chris Polian as GM. I do believe our next head coach should be defensive minded. I’m so sick and tired of having the worst defense in the NFL for the past 7 years.
Can we please fucking get someone here to pick up this fucking defense PLEASE!!!!!! Way over my head on this one.
December 31st, 2008 at 7:25 pmAlso, you can make a great argument, that the aggressiveness of the Raiders and Broncos’ front offices has gotten them nowhere. But they have both been to a superbowl in the last decade-ish too. Pioli is smart, but aggressive and I think it is time we step up and follow suit with the other teams in our division. I know the Raiders and Broncos have reached and been burned. i.e. Hall, and Henry, but at least they show signs that they want their team to get better.
December 31st, 2008 at 7:27 pmLast thing, and then I’ll shut up. Even when the Chiefs were 13-3, they were underdogs at home in the playoffs. There has been something fundementally wrong with attitude of the front office of this team. Let’s assume that the Chiefs caught the breaks in their close games this year. 6-10?, 7-9?, even 8-8? San Diego is 8-8 and being picked to make quite a bit of noise in the playoffs. Brady went down and the Pats went 11-5. Cowher left and the Steelers are right back where they were. When is the last time that the Chiefs came into a season as one of the favorites to go to the superbowl, not just sneak into the playoffs? This team needs to be led by a front office of winners. Not just accept the 4th best GM/coach option out there and hope to be 10-6 in 5 years.
December 31st, 2008 at 7:50 pmkcdan. First choice does not mean best. Hank Stram was not the first choice to coach the Texans.
December 31st, 2008 at 8:04 pmI fear our front office is still living in the Hank Stram era. Glad to know there are so many Chiefs addicts out there that share my passion for this team. All the comments are great!
December 31st, 2008 at 8:26 pmHey if this guy can Suggs and draft as well as the Ravens have in years past (mostly on defense) then lets give him a shot. Obviously I like someone else more, but I think Merlin said it best when all of these guys are good except Savage.
December 31st, 2008 at 9:40 pmPolian and/or one of Ozzie Newsome’s young apprentices are right behind Pioli on my list. DeCosta is under 40 and I think he’d be a great fit with Clark Hunt. Good call, Merlin.
December 31st, 2008 at 10:54 pmCHIEFS CHASING PIOLI, TOO
Posted by Mike Florio on December 31, 2008, 5:47 p.m.
As Pats V.P. of player personnel Scott Pioli interviews with the Cleveland Browns, the Kansas City Chiefs reportedly have entered the mix.
Mike Reiss of the Boston Globe reports that the Chiefs have requested and received permission to interview Pioli for the team’s vacant G.M. job.
Earlier this week, ESPN’s Chris Mortensen reported that the Chiefs are interested in Pioli, Ravens director of pro personnel George Kokinis, Ravens director of college scouting Eric DeCosta, Colts assistant G.M. Chris Polian, and possibly former Browns G.M. Phil Savage.
December 31st, 2008 at 11:00 pmI want an organization led by a FOOTBALL man who is committed to crushing the division rivals. Beating the H*LL out of the Broncos, Raiders, and Chargers seems to be a ho-hum after thought in the last several years. I want nasty, venomous, face crushing, A$$ stomping, DIVISION VICTORIES. I want them infused BACK into the front office, Back into the coaching staff, and Back into the players. If we dominate the division, the rest of the schedule will be a snap, 11-5 easy.
December 31st, 2008 at 11:59 pmThe good news for Chiefs fans who think this is a long shot is the fact one of Hunt’s closest friends in the NFL ownership arena is Jonathan Kraft, the son of Patriots owner Bob Kraft. That relationship could bridge any hesitancy about Pioli taking over in Kansas City. /Cool widgets at statbeast. Check it.
January 1st, 2009 at 1:07 amI just read in a forum at warpaint that the talks involving Pioli and Cleveland have broke down. That was early this morning around 3 or so. Sounds good to me, Pioli is the best choice for our Chiefs Nation.
January 1st, 2009 at 5:20 amI’m with ya’ Merlin. DeCosta seems like the best choice out of the non-Cowher/Schottenheimer camp. He’s young, has a proven record, and should be a great fit here.
January 1st, 2009 at 9:41 amHonestly, I’m more and more impressed with Clark Hunt. All of those names, with the glaring exception of Savage, are legitimate candidates. I like Merlin’s idea. My only concern is this: isn’t Ryan a 3-4 defensive coordinator? We don’t have the d-line personnel to make that switch, and Dorsey is definitely not suited for it. I have also heard that the Ryan bros. are blacklisted because of their father, which is a shame, as they both seem to be talented coordinators. If we bring in Savage, I’m burning all of my Chiefs gear, and mailing the ashes to Arrowhead. I’m excited about the direction Clark seems to be taking the franchise, and I hope a decision is made sooner rather than later, so we can get the new coaches in place and get our scouting started for the draft. GO CHIEFS!!!!!!!!!!!
January 1st, 2009 at 11:05 amDeCosta definitely looks like a solid candidate. I wouldn’t be upset if we got him at all.
January 1st, 2009 at 12:01 pmLatest on Pioli is that negotiations broke down with Cleveland they have demanded answer from him today, he apparently made demands no team could honor. Chiefs are apparently next interview
January 1st, 2009 at 1:11 pmRandy:
Be careful, that is Cleveland putting that information out, so take it with a grain of salt. One thing seems clear. The negotiations between Pioli and Cleveland are not going well.
January 1st, 2009 at 1:30 pmDon’t know Clark Hunt, never met him, don’t know his friends, but so far not impressed with his decisions re a new GM for KC. He fired the previous GM in public weeks ago, supposedly when Peterson had already committed to being gone at some point w/i this year or next, and supposedly to get the jump on all the other end-of-season searches. Now we’re in 2009 and all he’s got is a list. Who knows if considering Savage is real or a media creation or some other kind of fake, but given Cleveland’s troubled recent history, I can’t see anyone who would actually hire Savage as being a very insightful person.
Hunt should have decided to let Peterson go at the end of this year, and should have made his list, settled on his own top candidates, a LONG time ago, i.e., well before training camp began in 2008. He should have used the spring/summer of 2008 to decide on whether he was going to promote from inside the organization or outside, and if it was a person from outside, whether it would be someone high-profile like Pioli, or one of the younger guys lower down in their prospective organizations such as Kokinis or Decosta. If it was one of the younger guys, he should have asked permission to talk to them LAST SPRING after the draft re hiring them as director of personnel or assistant GM (in any case, a promotion), interviewed out of the media spotlight and decided who he liked, and then possibly have had his guy on board throughout the season, so they would already have an insider’s detailed view of the Chief’s coaching staff and front office personnel and current rebuilding strategy. If he liked the guy, then he could have had Peterson ‘resign’ at the end of the season, run a quick sham search, promote from inside and have continuity. Any head coach and assistant coach staff decisions would already have been made and they might have already hired the replacements.
If he wanted Pioli, he should have moved immediately to contact Pioli and make his offer, and had the guts to fire Edwards already, not leave the whole coaching staff in limbo while he diddles around. As it is, Edwards has received an effective ‘no confidence’ vote in public, so even if Hunt foolishly decided to keep Herm, Edwards’ authority and effectiveness are undercut. And they’ve given the assistant coaches and coordinators time to jump ship and find other jobs, which is a bad idea when you don’t have your new GM yet and you MIGHT want to keep some of the staff.
Bottom line: Hunt knew he needed to find a replacement for Peterson by 2009, possibly by the end of 2008, he should have identified his own guy a long time ago. Clark should have been much more aggressive about evaluating and putting his own stamp on this team. With luck things might work out for him, but right now he has– potentially– a big mess on his hands.
January 1st, 2009 at 1:34 pmgot ya Keith
January 1st, 2009 at 4:53 pmJacket: That scenario of interviewing last spring because you know he is going to be gone in December is completely unrealistic. That is the recipe for complete disaster in a Professional Football Organization…
I think Rex Ryan would do a great job as a Head Coach. No, contrary to popular belief on this site apparently, his defense is NOT a 3-4. Ever since the Bears of the 80’s the Ryan’s have run 4-3’s including their famous 46. I think DeCosta/Ryan is a great combination. This all does hinge on us keeping a solid offensive mind on the team to take care of that side.
January 1st, 2009 at 8:05 pmI’m from Baltimore and am very familiar with the Ravens. Savage for a while looked like the genius here, but after being recently fired by the Browns, it is apparent that it was Ozzie all along. DeCosta is a great choice for a new GM. Rex runs a hybrid defense with multiple looks, which makes them impossible to block. If you watch tape of their D, he moves his players all over the place. That includes 3-4, 4-3, and 46. He would be a solid hire as head coach. I’m starting to think McDaniels would be a bad choice considering no NE coordinators do shit after leaving Belicheck’s staff. I want T Sizzle as bad as anybody else. Put him next to Dorsey and watch them both dominate.
January 2nd, 2009 at 12:36 amBy the way kcdan58, no need to be surprised that a linebacker won the defensive ROY this year. Since 2000, only non linebacker to win the award was Peppers back in 2002. It is well documented that rookie LB’s make the easiest transition to the NFL on defense. That is why we should go with Aaron Curry with our 1st round pick if we can’t trade down for Maualuga.
January 2nd, 2009 at 12:41 amYea, especially since it is people like Suggs that make his scheme work so great because they are versatile….The whole “different looks” thing was what made the debate about his franchise tag this past spring when they classified him a linebacker because he plays up alot and he wanted DE money cuz he is down even more of the time lol…
I want a dominant D so bad…
January 2nd, 2009 at 12:58 amSizzle needs to add some bulk to be an every down hand in the dirt DE but he is very young and athletic. Another 10-15 pounds of muscle wouldn’t be impossible. Even so he had 40 sacks in his first 4 years. Sick!
January 2nd, 2009 at 1:07 amI’m down with everything but I’m not sold on rex ryan
January 2nd, 2009 at 11:44 amI watched the last episode of “Knights of the Round Table” on the Chiefs website the other day. Rich Baldinger had some of the best comments I had heard from a broadcaster in a while.
January 2nd, 2009 at 10:36 pmKCDan, you are right on with me. I wonder how many folks in the front office are prepping thier resumes right now and seeing whats available. A while back I commented on the scouting personnel and Peterson advisors. There has been too much unaccountable loyalty in the head shed. That said, I thank Carl for the 90s and I thank Clark for the cajones.
Last week there was a link to a column about how this guy would “rebuild” the front office of the Chiefs. Did anybody else read that? Could someone re-post the link? Whether or not you agree with the guy, it’s well written and has good points.
January 2nd, 2009 at 10:51 pmLet me preface this by saying that I wouldn’t be at all opposed to the Chiefs hiring DeCosta as GM. It would be great to FINALLY get some fresh blood the organization, and I’d be behind that hiring 100%.
But if you’re looking at drafts, why no mention of Jimmy Raye III from the Chargers? If you look at San Diego’s drafts side-by-side with Baltimore’s over the time that Raye and DeCosta have been with the respective teams, I don’t know how you can’t clearly say that – although the Ravens have done a very good job – the Chargers have drafted even better. I had no idea who Jimmy Raye III was until this GM search started, other than the fact that his father was with the Chiefs as OC or QB coach about 10 years ago – but the I looked into this guy, the more impressed I became.
January 3rd, 2009 at 10:11 amJudge for yourself -
Jimmy Raye III vs. Eric DeCosta
Raye:
2008
Rnd Name College
1 Antoine Cason Arizona
3 Jacob Hester Louisiana State
5 Marcus Thomas Texas-El Paso
6 DeJuan Tribble Boston College
7 Corey Clark Texas A&M
2007
Rnd Name College
1 Craig Davis Louisiana State
2 Eric Weddle Utah
3 Anthony Waters Clemson
4 Scott Chandler Iowa
5 Legedu Naanee Boise State
7 Brandon Siler Florida
2006
Rnd Name College
1 Antonio Cromartie Florida State
2 Marcus McNeill Auburn
3 Charlie Whitehurst Clemson
5 Tim Dobbins Iowa State
6 Jeromey Clary Kansas State
6 Kurt Smith Virginia
7 Chase Page North Carolina
7 Jimmy Martin Virginia Tech
2005
Rnd Name College
1 Shawne Merriman Maryland
1 Luis Castillo Northwestern
2 Vincent Jackson N.Colorado
4 Darren Sproles Kansas State
5 Wesley Britt Alabama
6 Wes Sims Oklahoma
7 Scott Mruczkowski Bowling Green
2004
Rnd Name College
1 Eli Manning Mississippi
2 Igor Olshansky Oregon
3 Nate Kaeding Iowa
3 Nick Hardwick Purdue
4 Shaun Phillips Purdue
5 Dave Ball UCLA
5 Michael Turner Northern Illinois
6 Ryan Krause Nebraska-Omaha
7 Ryon Bingham Nebraska
7 Shane Olivea Ohio State
7 Carlos Joseph Miami (FL)
2003
Rnd Name College
1 Sammy Davis Texas A&M
2 Drayton Florence Tuskegee
2 Terrance Kiel Texas A&M
3 Courtney Van Buren Arkansas-Pine Bluff
4 Matt Wilhelm Ohio State
5 Mike Scifres Western Illinois
6 Hanik Milligan Houston
7 Andrew Pinnock South Carolina
2002
Rnd Name College Note
1 Quentin Jammer Texas
2 Toniu Fonoti Nebraska
2 Reche Caldwell Florida
3 Ben Leber Kansas State
4 Justin Peelle Oregon
5 Terry Charles Portland State
6 Matt Anderle Minnesota
7 Seth Burford Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo
2001
Rnd Name College
1 LaDainian Tomlinson TexasChristian
2 Drew Brees Purdue
3 Tay Cody Florida State
4 Carlos Polk Nebraska
5 Elliot Silvers Washington
5 Zeke Moreno USC
7 Brandon Gorin Purdue
7 Robert Carswell Clemson
DeCosta:
Rd Sel # Player Position School
1 10 Terrell Suggs OLB Arizona State
1 19 Kyle Boller QB California
3 77 Musa Smith RB Georgia
4 109 Jarret Johnson DE Alabama
4 134 Ovie Mughelli FB Wake Forest
5 146 Aubrayo Franklin DT Tennessee
5 173 Tony Pashos T Illinois
6 182 Gerome Sapp DB Notre Dame
7 223 Trent Smith TE Oklahoma
7 250 Mike Mabry C Central Florida
7 258 Antwoine Sanders — Utah
2004 – Baltimore Ravens
Rd Sel # Player Position School
2 51 Dwan Edwards DT Oregon State
3 82 Devard Darling WR Washington State
5 153 Roderick Green LB Central Missouri State
6 187 Josh Harris QB Bowling Green State
6 199 Clarence Moore WR Northern Arizona
7 244 Derek Abney WR Kentucky
7 246 Brian Rimpf T East Carolina
2005 – Baltimore Ravens
Rd Sel # Player Position School
1 22 Mark Clayton WR Oklahoma
2 53 Dan Cody LB Oklahoma
2 64 Adam Terry T Syracuse
4 124 Jason Brown C North Carolina
5 158 Justin Green RB Montana
6 213 Derek Anderson QB Oregon State
7 234 Mike Smith LB Texas Tech
2006 – Baltimore Ravens
Rd Sel # Player Position School
1 12 Haloti Ngata DT Oregon
2 56 Chris Chester C Oklahoma
3 87 David Pittman DB Northwestern State-Louisiana
4 111 Demetrius Williams WR Oregon
4 132 P.J. Daniels RB Georgia Tech
5 146 Dawan Landry SS Georgia Tech
5 166 Quinn Sypniewski TE Colorado
6 203 Sam Koch P Nebraska
6 208 Derrick Martin CB Wyoming
7 219 Ryan LaCasse LB Syracuse
2007 – Baltimore Ravens
Rd Sel # Player Position School
1 29 Ben Grubbs G Auburn
3 74 Yamon Figurs WR Kansas State
3 86 Marshal Yanda T Iowa
4 134 Antwan Barnes LB Florida International
4 137 Le’Ron McClain FB Alabama
5 174 Troy Smith QB Ohio State
6 207 Prescott Burgess LB Michigan
Jared Gaither T Maryland
2008 – Baltimore Ravens
Rd Sel # Player Position School
1 18 Joe Flacco QB Delaware
2 55 Ray Rice RB Rutgers
3 71 Tavares Gooden OLB Miami (Fla.)
3 86 Tom Zbikowski FS Notre Dame
3 99 Oniel Cousins G Texas-El Paso
4 106 Marcus Smith WR New Mexico
4 133 David Hale T Weber State
6 206 Haruki Nakamura FS Cincinnati
7 215 Justin Harper WR Virginia Tech
7 240 Allen Patrick RB Oklahoma
Both have done a great job, but in my opinion, Raye has done the best job. Wonder why he wasn’t one of the finalists?
January 3rd, 2009 at 10:31 am303:
Raye is a good candidate worthy of consideration. I have no idea why he was not on the list ESPN reported.
January 3rd, 2009 at 7:05 pm