Running 2012 NFL coaches carousel thread

A writer in the Bay Area, either the Chron or the Mercury News/Contra Costa group, wondered if 49ers OC/asst HC Greg Roman would get a look from Indy. Roman just happened to have spent his previous two seasons coaching at Stanford.

 

That one makes a lot more sense than some of the other names mentioned.

 

As noted on another thread a little while ago, it doesn't matter if Manning wants to play the mentor role. The kid would get mentored anyway.

From my earlier post:

People who say Manning would never mentor Luck (or anyone else) are missing the point.

See, here's the deal about mentoring. The old guy/star/starter doesn't have to like it. He can be an absolute ass to the new kid and treat him like something he stepped in. He doesn't have to work at it or take him aside and show him techniques or point out that the Mike backer shading ever so slightly to one side means a blitz (or whatever).

But the new kid will be in every quarterback meeting with the old guy. He'll hear everything the coaches tell him and most of the things the old QB tells the coaches. He'll watch him practice every day, watch film with him during the week and go over the game plan with him before every game. The kid will see where the old guy goes with the ball when certain situations come up, and will find out why when they go over it in the Monday meeting. The QB coach will make sure he tells the new kid as many of the old guy's tricks and tips and reads as he knows.

Don't you think the kid will get something out of all that? Maybe a lot? Even if the old guy completely blows off the new kid, he'll still be mentoring him.

 

That would all make sense if Andrew Luck weren't ready to take NFL snaps from Day One. Think how good Matt Ryan was for a rookie. Luck is waaaaaaaaaay beyond him.

 

That's actually a good comparison. The Falcons hired a no-name coach who has done pretty well and they brought in a good OC to work with Ryan.

 

I also think the mentoring or learn-by-osmosis is vastly overrated. I'm sure Aaron Rodgers picked up some knowledge, but not three years' worth. He does seem to have learned by example not to be such a douchebag.

I go back to Chad Pennington. They made him wait two-plus years and learn at the heels of the great Vinny Testaverde. When he got in he completed almost 70 percent of his passes for the season. I think he probably would have been better off playing by the end of his first year or certainly sometime in his second.

 

I mentioned a few pages ago that Roman could be a candidate, and his hiring would be the clearest signal yet that the Colts are going all-in on Luck.

The Colts today also fired Pete Metzalaars, their O-line coach, and Frank Reich, their wide receivers coach. This is a team starting from scratch. For that reason, Manning and Irsay might already be talking about how he will leave. I suspect the Colts will pay the $28 million, let him rehab, see if he's better, and then see if they can work out a deal once it appears Manning is able to play.

 

Bob Kravitz of the Indianapolis Star -- as noted in a Washington Post blog -- offers his opinion about what it all means.

 

It's going to be interesting... I know it sounds crazy to say, but they need to start recruiting Luck. I know they have the pick and people like to say, "Well, there's nothing he can do if they pick him..." but we know how those usually work out. They don't want to get off on the wrong foot with a potential franchise QB.

I think they really have to let the new coach hire his own staff and any coaches left over from the Dungy/Caldwell era probably need to be let go if they haven't been already.

 

I like Kravitz, but if you read that whole column, it really is a piece of garbage. He spend the whole time hinting that he knows what is going to happen and never reveals anything. It read like, "Look I have no clue, but I'm going to pretend that I do..."

 

Well, I think it's true that the Colts are clearly beginning to plan for a post-Manning existence. Also, I don't think any of these moves have caught Manning unaware. I'm sure that Irsay and Manning are talking, and Manning is giving him an honest assessment of what his comeback chances are. The two have a good relationship, and I don't expect either to try to stick it to the other.

 

Admittedly, I didn't see the whole column, but maybe Kravitz and Rob Lowe have been hanging out together.