Is Schottenheimer a Belichick-in-Waiting?

I got an interesting email from Terry F. in Carlsbad, CA.:

What was the media and fans reaction to the hiring of Bill Belichick as head Patriots coach when his record was under or near .500 prior to his coronation as "genius," given his superlative playoff and Super Bowl record. His record with Cleveland should not have awed anyone. I think this is a good question, and was just wondering. I am a Schottenheimer defender in Charger land, and he still has the heat on him for his playoff record. Thanks.

I remember the day Robert Kraft hired Belichick, the local media was in a frenzy, many of them (and probably none that would admit it) saying Belichick was a step down from Pete Carroll. And to give up a first-round pick? To the JETS? The questioned the ability and sanity of the people making decisions, wondering what they could possibly see in a guy who was never successful as a head coach and just rode Bill Parcells' coattails everywhere.

Perspectives have changed, I dare say.

Before we move ahead, let's go back.

On Jan. 4, 2000, one day after Bill Parcells retired for good for the third and not final time and Pete Carroll was fired by the Patriots, Belichick told the representatives of the Hess estate (Jets' owner Leon Hess had died the previous May, leaving the direction of ownership uncertain) that he didn't want to be the head coach of the New York Jets. It was a day the NFL power structure pivoted on a hinge.

It was more than three weeks before the dust finally settled on Jan. 26. In addition to the first-round pick, the Pats ultimately gave the Jets a fourth-rounder in 2001 and a seventh-rounder in 2002. The Patriots got Belichick, a fifth-rounder in 2001 and a seventh-rounder in 2002. It's a little confusing with all the later trades, but New England ended up with Matt Light in 2001 and Daniel Graham in 2002; while the Jets ended up with Shaun Ellis, Jamie Henderson and James Reed.

Opinion varied widely between the local media in Boston and Cleveland and the rest of the civilized world.

"I think that is a small price to pay for the right guy," Dick Vermeil said then as a TV commentator. "I would give up two first-round picks to have Bill Parcells coach my football team."

OK, let's not go overboard, there, Dick.

"To me, there have been a ton of first-round flops," Vermeil said. "There has been a ton of first-round picks that everyone is mad at for the next 10 years and they hang around the league."

"You get the right coach, he will change your organization."

Not that Vermeil was saying Belichick was definitely the right guy.

"I don't know Bill Belichick that well; obviously they think that much of him," Vermeil said. "If they are right, it is a tremendous investment."

The Jets hired Al Groh.

In retrospect, I think the Patriots did OK.

But let's go back even further.

Cleveland hired Belichick, then the New York Giants defensive coordinator, following the Giants' 1990 Super Bowl victory. The Browns were 3-13. In one year, Belichick had them to 6-10, then back-to-back 7-9s. Then, in 1994, Belichick and the Browns had a breakout year. They went 11-5 and made the playoffs. The Browns beat New England 20-13 in the Wildcard (three Bledsoe picks -- worst clutch quarterback, ever) before falling 29-9 to Pittsburgh in the Divisional Playoffs.

Belichick and the Browns started out well in 1995 -- 3-1 -- and then team owner Art Modell announced he was moving the team to Baltimore after the season. Turmoil spread throughout the city and the team, and the Browns went 2-10 the rest of the way.

Schottenheimer also took over the Browns in a dismal state. He took over a 1-7 team in 1984 and led them to a 5-11 finish (4-4 with Marty). That was followed by years at 8-8, 12-4, 10-5 and 10-6 with playoff appearances every year and two appearances in the AFC Championship game, both losses to Denver.

Then he went to Kansas City, taking over another perennial loser and turning them into an annual contender. A year in Washington, and now in his fourth year at San Diego, Schottenheimer has a career record of 185-121-1. Not too shabby. In all those years (19-plus seasons), he's had just two losing seasons. But, he 5-12 in the playoffs.

Back to Terry's question.

As I said earlier, the majority of Boston media was having a field day at the expense of the Kraft family and the disheveled castoff from, of all places, New York. Another owner had warned Robert Kraft sternly against hiring Belichick, playing the tape of an old Cleveland press conference and saying, "Are you sure you want to hire this guy?" The only thing the Boston media liked was that it was sticking it to Parcells, who left New England high and dry, back-door dealing with the Jets during the Patriots 1996 Super Bowl appearance.

Despite what anyone else thought, Robert Kraft was positive he found his man.

I'll have to dig out my old columns to see what I wrote, but I remember it being far more optimistic than the general media. I remember saying that Belichick was a Parcells defensive disciple (we know better now), and that he had the potential to turn things around. I took the "wait-and-see, he can't be worse than Carroll" attitude.

To me, at least, it was apparent Belichick would have marginal success as long as Bledsoe was quarterback. And until that fateful Mo Lewis -- from the Jets (isn't that weird?) -- hit, things weren't looking good. Belichick's reputation had stuck to him like super epoxy. Ron Borges of The Boston Globe called him "Chuckles" for years, even after the first two Super Bowl wins.

After New England upset St. Louis in Super Bowl XXXVI, there were still Doubting Thomases everywhere. Doubts in Belichick. Doubts in Tom Brady. Doubts in the whole organization.

In 2002, the Patriots went 9-7 and missed the playoffs. The doubters -- mostly Bledsoe backers, by the way -- said, "See? We told you so."

That changed again in 2003, but something strange happened then. It wasn't just Belichick, the Genius. It was Belichick, the Genius, Who Surrounded Himself with Great People. People like former coordinators Charlie Weis and Romeo Crennel. People like director or player personnel Scott Pioli.

I still say there's not a lot of dropoff without Weis and Crennel, but I think it cannot be overstated how important the Belichick-Pioli relationship is.

All that being said, I have always like Schottenheimer. I have a lot of respect for him. I think he's one of the league's better coaches, and I think San Diego is lucky to have him.

Maybe he never quite found his Scott Pioli. Schottenheimer teams always seemed a player or two away. I've been picking the football season for about 20 years, and even during KC's dominating years, I don't remember ever picking them to win it all. It wasn't the coach. There was just always someone out there who was better. And for a long time, it was Dallas, San Francisco and Green Bay, no matter who the AFC sent.

Keep defending him, Terry. He's a great coach. But time is running out. Schottenheimer has done nearly 20 years as a head coach. Even guys like Vermeil and Joe Gibbs took extensive breaks before coaching to their current ages. If he's going to win the Big One, he's going to have to do it soon; or, like it or not, he will be relegated to the Also Ran bin forever.

Resources from http://www.allthingsbillbelichick.com and http://www.pro-football-reference.com were used in this story. I didn't necessarily need to attribute these items, but they deserve credit for the assist.