Last week we looked at three NFL coordinators who are new to their jobs and hold a lot of promise. We’re going to look at the other side of things this week – five guys who are on hot seats. All of them are in desperate need of a big year this year, and some of them probably shouldn’t have been given the chance they have been given this year. What they definitely all have in common is that we should keep a close eye on them and their units, because there is a pretty good chance that they are going to have problems:
Scott Linehan, OC, Detroit – Linehan is entering his second year as the offensive coordinator at Detroit after three seasons as head coach in St. Louis, so he certainly knows what working for bad teams feels like. Last year Detroit’s offense just wasn’t very good – they had just the 26th best offense in the league, and there wasn’t a whole lot there to keep the opposition guessing. there’s an obvious and acceptable excuse, of course – he was working with rookie QB Matthew Stafford. Stafford is a year older and wiser, though, and much more should be expected of him this year. The team has a solid offensive line, and they have upgraded their skill positions in this offseason. Linehan obviously isn’t going to be able to turn this unit into an elite one, but he needs to show us some real improvement this year or there are going to be real problems in Detroit. Based on his last five years I’m not sure he can pull it off.
Chuck Cecil, DC, Tennessee – In the seemingly endless Jeff Fisher era in Tennessee we have gotten used to seeing teams that are defensively sound, and often better than that. That certainly wasn’t the case last year. Only four teams allowed more points per game, and the definite low point of the season and probably the decade was a 59-0 loss to New England in week six. Tennessee’s defense dropped from 7th to 28th in Cecil’s first year after he took over from Jim Schwartz. That’s obviously not acceptable. There will be added pressure to succeed this year because there is a chance that Jeff Fisher could be in trouble if he doesn’t put forward a good year, and he can’t do that without competent defense. This is Cecil’s first shot at being a coordinator, and he’ll need to be much better this year if he doesn’t want it to be his last.
Greg Olson, OC, Tampa Bay – Only four teams had fewer yards on offense than the Bucs did last year under Olson, and none of those teams were very good. Olson had excuses last year – he was only given the job the day before the final preseason game of the year after Jeff Jagodzinski left in bizarre circumstances, and the quarterbacking situation was far from certain. He’s had an offseason to establish himself now, though, and Josh Freeman has been established as the quarterback of the future – or at least the near future. The Bucs were a total circus last year under the questionable head coach choice of Raheem Morris (and calling him questionable is kind). Olson is under pressure to perform or the whole Morris regime will be shown the door – maybe even before the season ends if things don’t show signs of real improvement.
Jimmy Raye, OC, San Francisco – For several years now the Niners have underperformed. The obvious excuse for that was simple – Raye was the seventh OC hired in seven years, so there was no consistency in schemes, and the offensive stars didn’t show any real progress. That excuse is gone now as Raye is entering his second season in the role. The team is seen as the favorite to win the NFC West by many, and Raye has some nice tools to work with – a developing Alex Smith under center, depth and talent at running back, Michael Crabtree at the top of a very nice receiver depth chart, Vernon Davis at tight end, and an impressive offensive line. Raye has no excuse, and the team and its fans will have no patience if the unit stumbles out of the gate.
Rob Ryan, DC, Cleveland – It wasn’t long ago that Ryan was seen as a defensive genius. Now his brother Rex gets all of the headlines, and Rob really needs to show that he still has a winning touch. The end of his tenure at Oakland was ugly, and his first year at Cleveland last year was disastrous – only Detroit was worse when they didn’t have the ball. Somehow Ryan and his boss, the incredibly incompetent Eric Mangini, managed to survive for a second year even though Mike Holmgren joined the team and has taken aggressive steps to turn this mess around. Needless to say, though, the leash is short, and Ryan is going to be long gone if there isn’t dramatic improvement. No one can reasonably expect miracles given the talent he doesn’t have to work with, but he definitely needs to give more than he has.
