Bill Muir: Shamed Or Unshamed?
By Big Matt
“Is Muir the best or worst OC, we do not know because anywhere Haley stuck his nose, the picture is distorted.”
-tm1946
I think we can be fairly certain Bill Muir isn’t the best offensive coordinator, but still, this is a money quote from AA mainstay tm1946. What was pretty obvious last season is even more obvious now: Todd Haley had trouble coexisting with his fellow coaches, and was unable to restrain himself from meddling in the offense.
Haley did have an offensive background, so maybe he was entitled to meddle a bit. Of course, if you really want to dig into the past to justify the present, you have to be willing to look at Haley’s entire past. He was gifted a job with the Jets by his father when he was already pushing 30. His degree was in communications and he’d been a golf pro. No coaching experience, no scouting experience, no playing experience. Promoted twice in his first three years while his father was still with the organization. So if the past is in play here, maybe that “offensive expertise” we heard so much about should be taken with a massive grain of salt.
I digress. This post isn’t meant to bash Haley. He’s gone, and very few of us wish him any ill will. I just mean to say, his tactics make it harder to accurately judge Bill Muir. We can’t even be totally sure who was calling the plays. It seemed to me at the time that Haley promoted Muir precisely because it would allow him to control more of the offense. Either that, or he thought a 104-year-old man with no play-calling experience was the best option. You tell me which is more likely.
To be honest, I was never really willing to give Muir a chance. It just felt like Mike Solari all over again. Chiefs lose a good coordinator, and respond by promoting a confused offensive line coach. Surely this Muir guy was going to be awful.
And he was. Or at least, the offense was. But is that is fault? Does the man deserve another chance?
find out my answer after the jump:
No.
Look, I don’t dislike Bill Muir. I know very little about him. And being old is not a big deal at all to me if someone’s mind is still sharp. I think the likelihood of an old coach being stuck in the past is higher, but that doesn’t mean Muir necessarily was. The man should be judged on what he did, and none of us are sure exactly what that is.
There is one thing about Muir that really bothers me though. The guy gives up on drives really easily. And not just when we’re pinned down near our own goal-line. He called a run to Thom Jones on 3rd and from the Oakland 8 yesterday. On another drive, Jones got the ball on first and goal and second and goal. Is it a coincidence this team has trouble getting into the end zone? Not when the offensive coordinator is for some reason desperate to get the worst red zone back in the league a touchdown. Muir has been trying to shoehorn Jones into the end zone all season long, and our offense has suffered for it. There is no excuse for that.
The Green Bay win was nice, but yesterday tells us at least some of this offense’s woes can be placed at the feet of Muir. And it isn’t just red zone drives. The guy goes into a shell whenever the offense is in any kind of hole. 3rd and 6? Jones up the gut. 3rd and 13? McCluster draw. 3rd and 20? WR screen to Breaston. 2nd and 10? More Jones. He got the ball on 2nd and 10 three times yesterday. A simple look at the drive charts reveals coordinator who seems to relish the opportunity to quit on drives.
You aren’t going to win many games in the NFL if you’re not consistently trying to score. Muir concedes defeat far too readily. If you’re scared to throw the ball on 3rd and 13, in a close game, with a potential playoff berth on the line, you just shouldn’t be an offensive coordinator in the NFL.
The Chiefs have had some bad offensive coordinators in the past 15 years. Paul Hackett, Jimmy Raye and Mike Solari haunt my dreams. Muir doesn’t raise my hackles like any of them did, but still, it’s time for him to go. Either that, or become our starting running back.
So I guess I’m gonna go with unshamed, but still needs to go. What say you, Addicts?