SB Nation Kansas City - Chiefs, Raiders Were Among Teams Interested In Mike Sherman Before Dolphins Hired Him

Romeo Crennel Called 'Best Candidate' Chiefs Could Have Hoped For

2012-02-14T16:00:47Z

One thing was clear at the end of Romeo Crennel's interim period as head coach of the Kansas City Chiefs this season: he was the clear player's choice in the locker room. And fans had warmed up to the idea as well after the team took down the mighty Green Bay Packers and even handled Tim Tebow and the Denver Broncos at season's end. The Chiefs, in other words, showed signs of life against playoff teams, and that makes a major difference .

That was enough to give Crennel the job and others agree that they made the right move. The latest column from Seth Wickersham at ESPN points out the off-season coaching hires and Wickersham says the Chiefs made the best move they could have made in promoting from within.

Wickersham writes, "Like [Jeff] Fisher, Crennel is a so-called retread, which means that he's held a previous NFL head-coaching job. It's an undervalued trait. According to NYU, hires with previous NFL head-coaching experience win 57 percent of their regular-season games and 52 percent of their playoff games in their second jobs. It makes sense: Most coaches cannot be choosy their first time around and often walk into awful situations. (See: Cleveland.)

"But remember, they have to be good retreads. One of the most important factors in retreads was whether factors outside of their control reasonably contributed to their losing. NYU analyzed the win-loss records for each coach's team three years before his hiring and three years after his departure. It's safe to say that Crennel was not the only reason that the Cleveland Browns have lost; the Browns have won 14 games since he was fired. He was the best candidate the Chiefs could have hoped for."

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Tom Clements Promoted To Packers Offensive Coordinator, Chiefs Must Move On

2012-02-03T14:49:19Z

If the Kansas City Chiefs were ever truly interested in the services of Tom Clements as their own offensive coordinator, they apparently waited too late. Tom Clements was promoted to the offensive coordinator position with the Green Bay Packers yesterday, as announced by Adam Schefter, and the Chiefs are now left with an even smaller pack of candidates to choose from.

Clements had been rumored as a possibility over the last few weeks, but now it looks like Al Saunders of the Oakland Raiders and internal quarterbacks coach Jim Zorn are the two in play. Perhaps another could come from the Patriots and Giants after the Super Bowl, but other teams are likely thinking the same thing. Plus the Patriots tree has been plucked of most available fruit who would qualify.

The Chiefs decision should come soon and it’s hard to tell how they will choose. If Zorn does not get the job, it’s rumored he will walk. If that’s the case, the new offensive coordinator will have at least one position to fill.

Romeo Crennel Doesn't Renew Contracts Of Three Assistant Coaches

2012-01-31T15:52:21Z

Now that Romeo Crennel has been the Kansas City Chiefs permanent head coach for almost a month, his coaching staff is coming into shape.

On Tuesday, the Chiefs announced that they wouldn't renew the contracts of three assistants from the Todd Haley era -- special teams coach Steve Hoffman, WR coach Mike Anderson and assistant OL coach Bill Muir.

Hoffman has already been replaced with Tom McMahon, who held the special teams job in St. Louis for the last three seasons under Steve Spagnuolo.

It may take longer to fill Anderson and Muir's places, since Crennel, a defensive-minded coach, has yet to hire an offensive coordinator, the biggest hole remaining in his staff. Until he knows what type of offensive philosophy his new coordinator has, it will be tough for him to fill out the remainder of his offensive coaching staff.

For the latest news and notes on the Kansas City Chiefs off-season, head over to Arrowhead Pride.

Kansas City Chiefs Name Tom McMahon Special Teams Coach

2012-01-30T22:25:07Z

The Kansas City Chiefs are finalizing their last pieces to their coaching staff puzzle, as they have announced on Monday of their hiring of Tom McMahon to serve as the club’s special teams coach. McMahon joins the Chiefs after a three years of services for the St. Louis Rams working as their special teams coordinator.

Chiefs head coach Romeo Crennel on the hire of McMahon:

"I am pleased to add Tom to our staff," said Head Coach Romeo Crennel. "He is a diligent worker and passionate coach. It is a great addition for us."

McMahon on the opportunity to join Crennel's staff on Monday:

"I'm very blessed to have the opportunity to come to Kansas City and be a part of Romeo's staff," McMahon said. "Romeo and I have a shared vision of what it takes to win and I'm excited to get started."

McMahon’s previous prized work was his tutelage of the Rams' primary punt returner, Danny Amendola. Amendola led the NFL with 12 returns of 20-plus yards in 2009 and 2010 combined before his injury-ravaged season of 2011.

For more on the Kansas City Chiefs be sure to check out Arrowhead Pride. For more news and analysis on the NFL, check out SB Nation's NFL Football Hub.

Chiefs, Raiders Were Among Teams Interested In Mike Sherman Before Dolphins Hired Him

2012-01-30T21:51:39Z

The Kansas City Chiefs still have not filled their offensive coordinator position, and fans are wondering when the day will finally arrive with even a hint of news. Unfortunately, the only news coming through comes after the fact, with the word dropped by Dan Pompei recently that the Chiefs were interested in now-Dolphins OC Mike Sherman. The former Texas A&M head coach was formerly with the Green Bay Packers and Pompei said the Chiefs were just one of several teams interested in Sherman’s services.

Pompei writes, “The Dolphins are fortunate to have landed Mike Sherman as their offensive coordinator. Sherman could have had a number of jobs, as teams that were interested in him included the Browns, Chiefs and Raiders. Sherman’s relationship with Dolphins head coach Joe Philbin, and the fact he will have a say in some of the other assistants, steered him to Miami.”

Word is that Brian Daboll and Jim Zorn are among other possibilities.

Kansas City Chiefs Will Have Romeo Crennel Coordinate Defense

2012-01-28T17:44:11Z

The Kansas City Chiefs will look to carry over their end of year success on the defensive side of the ball into 2012, as general manager Scott Pioli said he expects newly installed head coach Romeo Crennel to double as the team’s defensive coordinator.

"I’m not sure if he stated it publicly, but I get the sense Romeo wants to be the coordinator on defense," Pioli said while attending the Senior Bowl. "I don’t know if he’s made the absolute final decision, but I’m pretty sure that’s the way he wants to go."

Crennel handled both duties for the final three games last season after replacing fired Chiefs coach Todd Haley. The Chiefs won two of their last three, including hanging the first loss on the undefeated and defending Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers on week 15. The Chiefs allowed just 11 points/game under Crennel's leadership.

For more on the Kansas City Chiefs be sure to check out Arrowhead Pride. For more news and analysis on the NFL, check out SB Nation's NFL Football Hub.

Mike Lombardi Lists Brian Daboll As Possible Outside Finalist For Chiefs Offensive Coordinator

2012-01-27T19:53:23Z

Fans of the Kansas City Chiefs are primarily interested in one thing at this point in the off-season: who is going to be the team’s next offensive coordinator? The reason is that the position and who fills it means a lot for what the team will do with the rest of their off-season on offense. Draft picks and free agent targets will all be selected with the offensive schemes of the OC in mind, so the hire is a major one for Romeo Crennel’s first year as the permanent head coach.

Mike Lombardi says the Chiefs could go with the familiar Jim Zorn, the team’s current quarterbacks coach, or they could step outside with Brian Daboll, a face that both Scottt Pioli and Romeo Crennel know quite well.

“When the Chiefs hired Crennel as their head coach, everyone was happy, from the front office to the players,” writes Lombardi. " Crennel certainly won’t have as long a leash as Fisher — he’ll have to show significant progress in the next two years. He does have the full support of the front office at the outset, though, so the players know he is in charge. The key hire for Crennel will be who he chooses to become his offensive coordinator. Will it be Jim Zorn from the current staff or former Dolphins coordinator Brian Daboll?"

Daboll has been offensive coordinator the last three season with the Cleveland Browns and the Miami Dolphins. Those teams are definitely bottom feeders in recent years, so that’s not an inspiring stamp of approval. But it’s also likely that if he’s hired, the team would know exactly what he is capable of since they worked with him in New England where Daboll was an assistant from 2000 to 2006.

It would not be surprising in the least if the Chiefs stick with the men that they know and bring in Daboll to helm the offense. Then again, everything is so secretive that it’s impossible to tell what they will do at this point.

Romeo Crennel Hiring Graded As Best Off-Season Coaching Hire In NFL

2012-01-27T19:38:43Z

Jeff Fisher’s hiring got all of the praise. Greg Schiano is getting all of the criticism. Somewhere in between, Kansas City Chiefs fans would figure that Romeo Crennel would land somewhere in the middle in terms of perception of new coaching hires. However, Chris Burke of Sports Illustrated says that the Chiefs made the single greatest coaching hire of the off-season with their promotion of interim head coach Romeo Crennel to permanent status.

That’s surprising since Crennel is not the sexy name for sure. His last go around in Cleveland left something to be desired, and other teams reached for promising young hires left and right. Yet Burke says that Crennel’s steady qualities are what qualifies him to earn Burke’s best grade of all coaching hires at an “A-”.

Yes, I’m well aware that Crennel finished 16 games under .500 (24-40) during four years in Cleveland. I am also aware that he didn’t exactly have a stacked deck to work with there — in his tenure, Trent Dilfer, Charlie Frye, Derek Anderson, Brady Quinn and Bruce Gradkowski all started at quarterback.

Crennel’s brief stint as Kansas City’s interim head coach was impressive, with wins over then-undefeated Green Bay and at Denver in Week 17. Those performances alone aren’t enough to guarantee Crennel has success going forward, but the reason this is a great hire is that it goes the exact opposite direction of Todd Haley. Between his unusual sideline personality and clashes with GM Scott Pioli, Haley walked the tightrope his entire tenure.

Crennel has full support in the Chiefs’ locker room, experience as a head coach and a smart defensive-minded approach. His second go-round leading a team should be better than his first.