Media Whining Over Josh McDaniels Hiring: Did the Patriots "Cheat the System?"
by Greg Knopping on Jan 9, 2012 2:51 PM EST
in Opinion/Analysis
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The Patriots' decision to re-hire Josh McDaniels in the middle of the 2011 postseason was a bit unconventional, I'll give you that. But when the Patriots hired McDaniels over the weekend, they had no idea that he would be facing his former team in the Denver Broncos.
Nonetheless, multiple media outlets are complaining (rather whining) about the Patriots' decision to re-hire McDaniels. For example, Mike Klis of the Denver Post said on Saturday that Bill Belichick has once again found a way to "cheat the system" and that NFL commissioner Roger Goodell should step in and stop the move:
Once again, Bill Belichick has figured out a way to cheat the system. And once again, he caught the NFL standing there sucking their collective thumbs.
...
This is the 2011 season. McDaniels finished the 2011 season as the Rams' offensive coordinator. He got his chance to contribute this year. His Rams scored an embarrassing 12.1 points per game, making them easily the league's lowest scoring offense. His season should be finished.
...
People around here and St. Louis might not think much of McDaniels' coaching ability. But I'm telling you this is a smart football coach. This is a talented person. He may not be a leader of men, but he is good enough as a coach/talent evaluator to give the Pats a decided competitive advantage against the Broncos, if it should come to that.
...
All the Pats have to do is hire away Steve Scarnecchia from Syracuse and the whole cheating gang gets back together. Come on, Mr. Goodell. Exercise those commissioner power and put a stop to this.
Really? Cheating? Is that what the Patriots are doing here? As the NFL has said, there's no rule against hiring a coach in the postseason. Any NFL team can make any coaching transaction they please in the middle of a season. Should the NFL prevent teams from hiring their head coach mid-season or bringing in an outside consultant?
Only allowing teams eliminated from the postseason to make coaching changes would be giving those teams a competitive advantage, wouldn't it? If what Klis is saying is true, then no NFL team should be allowed to make a single coaching change until the end of the 2011 league year... which is in March (or at least until after the Super Bowl). Why should Josh McDaniels be prevented from going to the Patriots, but instead be hired by a non-playoff team as the head coach (he could have been a candidate for the Chiefs' coaching vacancy, for example)? Accord to Klis' argument, teams in the playoffs shouldn't allowed to be make a coaching hires as well?
More of my response after the jump!
Mike Klis has lost a significant amount of credibility with me with his childish anti-Patriot rant. As Tom Curran pointed out on CSNNE, the Cowboys made a similar coaching transaction back in 2009. In fact, Curran's words perfectly sum up the situation in my opinion:
So when I read the, "Not fair! Not fair" foot-stomping column written by my friend from the Denver Post, Mike Klis, whining about the Patriots hiring Josh McDaniels for the playoff run after the Rams let McDaniels out of his contract, I know it's just an instance of someone wanting a separate set of rules for 31 teams and another set or rules for the Patriots.
Exactly. As I said earlier, if the NFL wants to prevent a move such as the one the Patriots have made with McDaniels, then they need to change the hiring process for new coaches with all NFL teams. They would need to make it so that no coaching acquisitions can be made official until after the new league year or at a minimum after the Super Bowl. They would need to institute new rules and a policing system for those rules - such as what the NFL does with tampering charges in free agency.
But the reality of the situation is that putting in place such a set of rules would not only be difficult, but completely impractical. If the NFL wanted to institute a system that would prevent such a coaching transaction, then every team without a head coach or full staff would have to sit around and "suck their thumbs" while the playoff teams finished their respective seasons. There's a reason there isn't a highly policed coaching "free agency": it just wouldn't work.
So before a well respected columnist such as Mike Klis makes suggestions that the Patriots have found a way to "cheat the system," he needs to consider everything at hand. He doesn't even begin to ponder the ramifications of what he is suggesting the league does - and that, in my opinion, is inexcusable.
I'm all for having a passionate voice in sports reporting. Heck, it's the reason I began blogging six years ago. It's the reason I joined SB Nation nearly two years ago. But when you write passionately and take a stance, you have to have something to back up what you're saying.
Maybe the NFL needs to institute a system where coaches can't be hired mid-season. It may be impractical for the reasons I've outlined, but maybe it needs to be done. I wouldn't have a problem with a reporter such as Klis taking such a stance. But, as Curran said, "foot-stomping" and whining for Commissioner Goodell to stop a move because you don't like it... I can't support Klis making such an argument (regardless of whether or not I were to agree with him).
The Josh McDaniels coaching acquisition is completely within the rules. Sure, he could give the Patriots an advantage. But isn't that the entire point of coaching? What, were the Patriots going to hire a new offensive coordinator as someone who wouldn't give them an advantage? No, that's ridiculous. This is simply a shrewd move on the Patriots' part (with the timing). Any attempt to connect the Patriots' hiring of McDaniels to "cheating" is downright ridiculous. And I'm not just talking about Klis' column, I'm looking at you too Michael Silver.
To conclude: You can complain about the Josh McDaniels' hiring all you want, but to associate it with cheating is just irresponsible reporting. McDaniels will likely help the Patriots in some capacity as they take on the Broncos. But don't forget, this Patriots team is a squad that went 13-3 and beat the Broncos 41-23 just three weeks ago. It's the players that play these games, and the media shouldn't let a side-story, such as the McDaniels saga, take precedent in the week leading up to what should be a great playoff game.
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Never feed the trolls!
I saw this article and figured that we would look past it, as it is just the media trolling their own.
I'm not drunk, I'm......hydrated. On Twitter @jtanniehill
I agree.
A surprising piece of hackery from a mainstream sports section.
"Every time I call it a game, you call it a business. Every time I call it a business, you call it a game."
"The longer they play, the more they lose. In the end, we get it all."
by JohnHannahRules on Jan 9, 2012 6:07 PM EST up reply actions
Denver fired him
Denver writers should be happy.
I had a conversation with Mike Silver over Twitter...
…and he didn’t have anything to say about competitive advantage. Just said that the coaching move should wait until after the season because teams not in the playoffs “aren’t competing” so it’s not a competitive advantage. Not sure he really understood what I was saying.
If McD wasn’t connected to the Broncos/Patriots, this wouldn’t be a conversation. So that’s a sham.
Nobody
in their collective right mind(s) saw the events of Sunday afternoon unfolding quite like they did. The Steelers advance and this is a moot point.
The re-integration of Brandon Spikes and Patrick Chung in this game will have a far greater impact than any additional intel Josh McDaniels may or may not be able to supply.
Can I Scream?
They are competing at some point in time.
Let’s say you lose a coordinator: he takes another job (like ours have) or dies (like with Philly a couple years ago), and you are in the playoffs.
Saying you can’t replace that guy puts you at a competitive DISadvantage. Not only are you going to be without him, but the scrub teams who aren’t in the playoffs can hire all the top candidates. Hardly fair.
I’d say either you can hire them anytime (like the rules now state), or all teams have to wait until the competition is done (after the Super Bowl) to be “fair”. There’s already enough penalties for top-end teams. Including the fact that someone can snatch your coordinator from you post-season to make them the head coach of some bottom-dwelling team. Perfectly legal, but only “fair” if you’re allowed to replace the guy.
The more you know, the more you know that you don't know.
Some people can learn from the mistakes of others, while some people need to pee on the electric fence themselves.
Belichick is looking for a new name for his boat: VI Rings sounds pretty good.
by SlotMachinePlayer on Jan 9, 2012 3:29 PM EST up reply actions
Remember Charlie Weis lost out on a head coaching job with the Bills in 2003
because the Patriots won their playoff game against the Titans, and advanced to the AFC Championship game against the Colts. Someone from the Bills organization told Weis that if NE won, the Bills would be going in a different direction because they didn’t want to wait before they hired someone. The Patriots won and the Bills hired Mike Mularkey. Now, that doesn’t sound very fair either, does it.
Keep the faith!
Bill Belichick's crystal ball obviously told him that we'd be playing the Bronco
if it was the steelers, he was ready to bring on Bill Cowher as an adivsor
by lololol on Jan 9, 2012 3:12 PM EST reply actions 3 recs
LOL
The more you know, the more you know that you don't know.
Some people can learn from the mistakes of others, while some people need to pee on the electric fence themselves.
Belichick is looking for a new name for his boat: VI Rings sounds pretty good.
by SlotMachinePlayer on Jan 9, 2012 3:30 PM EST up reply actions
And apparently some troll thinks he can keep going in and voting no haha
by Greg Knopping on Jan 9, 2012 3:19 PM EST up reply actions
Prolly was a jet fan
"Thirty-seven points on the best defense in the league, suck my d–k" - Bill Belichick
The Ryan Brothers: Two brother's who never played a down as an NFL player, Yet feel the need to trash talk like they are in the Hall Of Fame
being a managing editor is funny isnt it?
"Thirty-seven points on the best defense in the league, suck my d–k" - Bill Belichick
The Ryan Brothers: Two brother's who never played a down as an NFL player, Yet feel the need to trash talk like they are in the Hall Of Fame
Fun
"Thirty-seven points on the best defense in the league, suck my d–k" - Bill Belichick
The Ryan Brothers: Two brother's who never played a down as an NFL player, Yet feel the need to trash talk like they are in the Hall Of Fame
It has its perks haha
I better watch myself, don’t want something like this to send me on a poll management power trip… Mwa. Ha. Ha.
by Greg Knopping on Jan 9, 2012 3:27 PM EST up reply actions
lmao!
"Thirty-seven points on the best defense in the league, suck my d–k" - Bill Belichick
The Ryan Brothers: Two brother's who never played a down as an NFL player, Yet feel the need to trash talk like they are in the Hall Of Fame
If someone esle in the playoff signed him would it be a problem?
No, who even cares what some writer in Denver said ? He wouldn’t tell BB That he “cheats the system” in his face
"Thirty-seven points on the best defense in the league, suck my d–k" - Bill Belichick
The Ryan Brothers: Two brother's who never played a down as an NFL player, Yet feel the need to trash talk like they are in the Hall Of Fame
The media will run with whatever story allows them to link "Patriots" and "cheating."
People love it, because it lets them write off whatever success NE has. As long as there is some version of a “Cheatriots” story floating out there (which there almost always is, despite a complete and utter lack of evidence since 2007), everyone feels a little bit better about how poorly their team has performed over the last 10 years.
It’s bad journalism, but it sells.
Definitely a cheap shot
I still think that what happened in the past was way overblown. Trying to steal signals is all part of the game in my book. And so is hiring coaches.
The funny part is that not only we here, but the Patriots were thinking that McD would be a good hire as soon as BoB took his job at Penn St. It had absolutely nothing to do with the Broncos.
You’re right though, it gets people to read. Yellow journalism will go as far as you allow it to because it brings attention.
by Aluminum Penguin on Jan 9, 2012 3:29 PM EST up reply actions
Not to mention that videotaping was, and is, completely legal.
The only stipulations are WHERE you can and can’t videotape from. The stipulations pertaining to videotaping during games/practices are as follows: you can’t videotape from an on-field location (what the Patriots did), in the locker room, in the coaches booth. Also, the location from which you videotape must be an enclosed area with four walls and a roof.
So, the Patriots were on the sidelines doing what they could have done if they were in a blimp, or in the stands. “Oh noes, Cheatriots! Take away their Super Bowls! Ban Brady and Belichick from ever stepping on the field again!”
It sickens me how some people just LIVE for writing off the success of this team.
It matters not how strait the gate, nor charged with punishments the scroll:
I am the Master of my fate. I am the Captain of my soul.
by BigRussNovak on Jan 9, 2012 7:20 PM EST up reply actions 7 recs
Maybe a Denver senator should sue the Patriots
With all the ‘evidence’, this one is cut an dry.
Whoever your OC is now...
what’s he think? Short-term, this could lead to hurt feelings, distraction, pissiness and dysfunction. Seems like weird timing, and this “cheating” may help Denver more than it hurts Denver.
Maya: "What are your first impressions of Denver?"
Mozgov: "I must break you..."
You are right
I was thinking what happens when BoB and McD clash on ideas before/during the game? It will be easy to point fingers. I really hope it’s a non issue and the Pats destroy the broncos. If they lose to the Broncos because their offense sputters, then it’s going to be an ugly story. Not as bad as the Red Sox, but not good at all.
But
Didnt they work together for 2 years (07,08) ?
"Thirty-seven points on the best defense in the league, suck my d–k" - Bill Belichick
The Ryan Brothers: Two brother's who never played a down as an NFL player, Yet feel the need to trash talk like they are in the Hall Of Fame
If the Patriots win
no story. If they lose – well…too many cooks in the kitchen.
and, Denver radio is saying the McDaniels hiring just adds another subplot ...
… to the inevitable upcoming Disney movie about Tebow. “Winnah!” starring Shia Lebouf as Tebow, Paul Giamatti as Orton, and Jason Alexander as McDaniels.
Maya: "What are your first impressions of Denver?"
Mozgov: "I must break you..."
Bill Simmons had the title Fourth and God.
Pedey: Dear Playstation, So MLB the Show '09 says I can't hit the high and inside, huh? That's ridiculous, ask Ramon.
Ramon: Yeah, he can hit it. In fact, if I were to die today and went to some weird...(grabs script) some weird limbo afterlife, where I can gaze at one thing for eternity. Dustin's swing, or my daggers? (DAUGHTERS!) daughter's first steps, I would choose that swing.
Lazer Show: I can hit that pitch!
by BrokenbatGrandSlam on Jan 10, 2012 8:36 PM EST up reply actions
He's gone
I don’t think his feelings can be really hurt since he already took a job elsewhere. It’s his fault that the Pats had to be proactive in finding his replacement. Luckily the offense really runs through Tom Brady, so I don’t think any minor disagreements in play calling will get in the way.
by Aluminum Penguin on Jan 9, 2012 3:32 PM EST up reply actions
I also think he tried to time the departure as best as he could during the buy week.
He might have even suggested McD, since they worked together.
The more you know, the more you know that you don't know.
Some people can learn from the mistakes of others, while some people need to pee on the electric fence themselves.
Belichick is looking for a new name for his boat: VI Rings sounds pretty good.
by SlotMachinePlayer on Jan 9, 2012 3:35 PM EST up reply actions
My take
Is that it helps the transitional period immensely. Instead of Bill O’Brien and Bill Belichick having to meet with Josh McDaniels at some point during the offseason and bring him up to speed, this presents a rare opportunity for McDaniels to literally jump back into the driver’s seat with hands-on experience during high-impact games. That has to be more valuable than any offseason coaches’ meeting. Case in point, this saves a tremendous amount of time for everyone involved in the O’Brien-McDaniels transition and makes it as seamless as humanly possible.
Short-term, I honestly think McDaniels won’t have too great of a role. He’ll probably just hold a clipboard and observe O’Brien from afar. It’d be too much of a shock to hand over the key to the city at this point in time, especially during the all-important postseason. A fresh perspective—or even a dissenting opinion—in the days leading up to the game would be only beneficial for the Patriots, imo.
Can I Scream?
Well, if the Pats run the ball Saturday
the McDaniels era has begun…um…again.
Not the worst thing in the world
An effective running game only assists the passing game. I’ve also been very impressed with Ridley and hope they use him a bunch going forward.
Can I Scream?
That was my point
BoB doesn’t use the run effectively. Brady is a great play action QB. That trait (which made Brady great to begin with) is not being taken advantage of. I hate the “pass sets up the run” argument.
You're absolutely right
I remember when the play-action was our forte. Every time you’d see the fake handoff and Brady hiding the ball, you’re looking to see which WR made it downfield to anticipate a 50 yd.+ completion.
Can I Scream?
I think Josh still remembers how to draw up screens as well.
The more you know, the more you know that you don't know.
Some people can learn from the mistakes of others, while some people need to pee on the electric fence themselves.
Belichick is looking for a new name for his boat: VI Rings sounds pretty good.
by SlotMachinePlayer on Jan 9, 2012 3:36 PM EST up reply actions
Screens to welker were very effective
"Thirty-seven points on the best defense in the league, suck my d–k" - Bill Belichick
The Ryan Brothers: Two brother's who never played a down as an NFL player, Yet feel the need to trash talk like they are in the Hall Of Fame
Yep, but so were screens to Faulk.
We’re going to be facing a few blitz happy teams. RB screens are great against the blitz.
The more you know, the more you know that you don't know.
Some people can learn from the mistakes of others, while some people need to pee on the electric fence themselves.
Belichick is looking for a new name for his boat: VI Rings sounds pretty good.
by SlotMachinePlayer on Jan 9, 2012 3:44 PM EST up reply actions
also woody
"Thirty-seven points on the best defense in the league, suck my d–k" - Bill Belichick
The Ryan Brothers: Two brother's who never played a down as an NFL player, Yet feel the need to trash talk like they are in the Hall Of Fame
Especially since Welker is such a good blocking receiver.
They had him blocking for Gronk on a couple plays (which I found funny).
The more you know, the more you know that you don't know.
Some people can learn from the mistakes of others, while some people need to pee on the electric fence themselves.
Belichick is looking for a new name for his boat: VI Rings sounds pretty good.
by SlotMachinePlayer on Jan 9, 2012 4:09 PM EST up reply actions
gronk should have a couple screens too
Tedy Bruschi- "How do we feel about a victory?"
Team- "Aww Yeah!!!"
This team used to live on screens.
The more you know, the more you know that you don't know.
Some people can learn from the mistakes of others, while some people need to pee on the electric fence themselves.
Belichick is looking for a new name for his boat: VI Rings sounds pretty good.
by SlotMachinePlayer on Jan 9, 2012 5:35 PM EST up reply actions
I read this article this morning and just rolled my eyes..
..whats funny according to denver people McD sucks, so what will it matter??
Wait till the denver press BB was taping from the field last night..
"There is an old saying about the strength of the wolf is the pack, and I think there is a lot of truth to that. On a football team, it's not the strength of the individual players, but it is the strength of the unit and how they all function together." - Bill Belichick
Ya, I am pretty sure.
"There is an old saying about the strength of the wolf is the pack, and I think there is a lot of truth to that. On a football team, it's not the strength of the individual players, but it is the strength of the unit and how they all function together." - Bill Belichick
er*Wait till Denver press Find out BB"
"There is an old saying about the strength of the wolf is the pack, and I think there is a lot of truth to that. On a football team, it's not the strength of the individual players, but it is the strength of the unit and how they all function together." - Bill Belichick
It doesn't even look that much like him..
I think of BB as being a little on the heavy side. The dude in the pic is pretty thin. Pic dude kind of looks like an old, retired hippie turned gym teacher.
Oh my god a floor zombie! Oh wait, thats you
- Toby Turner
by New Century Silver on Jan 10, 2012 5:16 PM EST up reply actions
I shake my head at some of the reporters now-a-days.
I want to be a film editor, but people like those two steer me in sports writing/sports broadcasting instead. sigh
I’ll take 11 players with heart on the field over 11 guys with just talent. Talent is fleeting, it goes away over time. Heart is what drives you to be better. To push yourself beyond what you think your capabilities are. To show us that when you strive, all things are possible.- SMP
Just checked out Mile High Report
Some are level headed, but there are some absolutely clueless people over there. They are fired up about this, and accusing the Pats of cheating. it is almost too ridiculous to ignore.
First, off, no McDaniels = no Tebow in Denver. Also no Thomas most likely.
Second, Denver fired him after one year, and somehow it’s McDaniels fault that he went to St. Louis, then was caught up in another head coach being fired and found himself available to a team that just lost their O coordinator to a college, in the midst of the playoffs, which just happened to be the team he came up with on the pro level, so it’s a natural fit in a somewhat unique situation, and somehow McDaniles is scum in this scenario.
Brian Billick and Dennis Green didn't help the cause either
on the Coaches Show last night. Neither one mentioned any rule that was being broken, but both insisted that it wasn’t right and that Roger Goodell was sure to nix the deal.
The hypothetical one brought up was that Sean Payton could then go out and try to hire a coach from the NFC West to help them with the 49ers and then let him go afterwards. Thing is, the Patriots put this deal in the works when everyone in the country thought Denver would lose that game, and if Pittsburgh did win, no one would care. Also there is a natural relationship and a logic that went into the Patriots reaching out to McDaniels that goes above and beyond this playoff game alone. McDaniels won’t be discarded after the game.
Keep the faith!
Wait a minute....
The Patriots DID hire a coach from the NFC West. Not the AFC West. Just sayin’. He has more info on the Rams than the Broncos.
The more you know, the more you know that you don't know.
Some people can learn from the mistakes of others, while some people need to pee on the electric fence themselves.
Belichick is looking for a new name for his boat: VI Rings sounds pretty good.
by SlotMachinePlayer on Jan 10, 2012 8:34 AM EST up reply actions
but not solely for the purpose of wringing info out of him.
and you’re right. I don’t want to get too technical about why the Denver Post’s argument is wrong but it boils down to this: It’s stupid.
Keep the faith!
by Marima on Jan 10, 2012 9:16 AM EST up reply actions 1 recs
We do play the Rams next year
Damn the BB is a diabolical genius.
doesn't seem like any subterfuge is really needed
to beat that team though. That means YOU Sam Bradford! (He was supposed to be my breakout fantasy quarterback.)
Keep the faith!
Does acne count?
breakout fantasy quarterback
The more you know, the more you know that you don't know.
Some people can learn from the mistakes of others, while some people need to pee on the electric fence themselves.
Belichick is looking for a new name for his boat: VI Rings sounds pretty good.
by SlotMachinePlayer on Jan 10, 2012 4:53 PM EST up reply actions
I say big whoop.
Haters are always going to find something to hate about. They’re jealous because BB is 3 moves ahead of almost every other head coach in the NFL.
Now if we could just finagle the 2nd pick from the Rams and draft Justin Blackmon from Okie State…
"Pain heals. Chicks dig scars. Glory...lasts forever."-Shane Falco, "The Replacements"
Consistent with the Broncs
Jesus theme Josh Mc Daniels will be cast in the role of Judas [even though the Romans hired him rather than letting him go]. While I think this is a frivalous complaint if Tim rides in on a donkey I’m taking the points.
dallas did this too
Per Tom Curran this is not the first time. Dallas did that by hiring a Miami coach. Look at the link below
http://espn.go.com/blog/afceast/post/_/id/9294/pasqualoni-from-unemployed-to-playoffs
.
looks at title
looks at my icon
=)
Seriously, though, we should get Steve Scarnecchia back just to make everyone even madder. And then not actually film anything illegal, ofc.
Oh my god a floor zombie! Oh wait, thats you
- Toby Turner
by New Century Silver on Jan 10, 2012 5:10 PM EST reply actions
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