My Chief Concerns: Todd Haley Can Do Whatever He Wants To
By author
A good coach is strictly defined by his win and loss record. Nothing else matters.
There has been a lot of Haley bashing recently, and I think it is grossly misplaced. Getting the Kansas City Chiefs, a perennial losing team, into the playoffs in your second year as a head coach is quite impressive. I know you all agree with that, but I just wanted to remind you of that fact.
Has there ever been a Kansas City Chief Head Coach more polarizing than Haley? I can’t think of one. If I recall, of the most recent coaches, everyone loved Marty and everyone liked Vermeil too. Generally speaking everyone disliked Edwards. Am I wrong?
Haley is different. You either love him or hate him. However, whether you like Todd Haley or not, is not important. He does not have to answer to you. He has to answer to his win and loss record. If, or when, the hammer falls, it will fall squarely on him, and because of that Haley should be able to do whatever he wants to.
More after the jump…
If Todd Haley wants to yell and scream at his players, he can. If he wants to misuse his running backs, he can. If he wants to bench and cut perfectly good players, he can. If he wants to be the offensive coordinator, he can. If he wants to give the most meaningless answers when answering media questions, he can. If he wants to go for it on fourth down, he can. If he wants to point his “mean finger” at other coaches, he can. If he wants to emulate Bill Parcells, he can, and if he wants to run off good coaches, he can do that too.
He can do all of those things as long as he does one thing: win. And that is just what he did this year.
There are many NFL teams and NFL fans that would love to have a winning coach. We now have one. I am not trying to silence you or anyone; everyone has a right to criticize. In fact, I have some criticism of Haley too, but as long as he is winning, and continues to do so, then everyone should keep that criticism in perspective.
Haley’s 2010 record was 10-6; and because of that he just bought himself another year. He also bought himself even more pressure. Now he has to have the same or better record, get the Chiefs to the playoffs (again), and win a playoff game (this time), otherwise the 2011 season would be considered a regression. When the winning or improvement ends; so too will Todd Haley’s reign. Just ask Josh McDaniels.
Good luck Todd, we are all rooting for you, (or should be).