Bickley: Cardinals must keep strength guru John Lott

[Dayman]

http://www.azcentral.com/sports/car...2/29/20091229bickley-cardinals-john-lott.html

Yet coaching wages don't count against the salary cap, and to be fair, the Cardinals have shown some growth here. They anted up for both Russ Grimm and Todd Haley, paying two assistant coaches more than $1 million a year. And yet word is the Cardinals' initial offer to Lott was so unappealing that he hired an agent.

"We can't afford to lose him," Fitzgerald said. "He's just too valuable to what we're trying to do."

Like many others, Fitzgerald has reason to believe. During a recent loss to the 49ers on "Monday Night Football," the best receiver fell to the ground, and two San Francisco players fell on the back of his legs. Doctors later told Fitzgerald if his legs weren't so chiseled, the injury could've been devastating.

The player knew just whom to thank for that.

"We're talking about saving the season, maybe even my career," Fitzgerald said.

That should be worth a lot of money. Let's hope the Cardinals reach the same conclusion.

I sincerely hope the FO comes to their senses with Lott. The guy is imperative to this team's success.

 

[Cbus cardsfan]

anybody know what Lott makes?

 

[ThunderCard]

Keep him at all costs. Why are the Cards low balling him ??

 

[Shane]

Why are the Cards low balling him ??

No you dont keep him at ALL costs. Plus regardless of this article we have no clue if he wa slow balled or Lott just wants to damned much.

 

[Arizona's Finest]

This reeks of SOC and it sucks. Its obvious alot of people are watching how this gets done and just for perceptions sake, the Cards better ante up.

And Shane has been right alot on this board but he couldn't be more wrong on his stance on this. This isn't just some strength coach. That Fitzgerald testimony says more then anything I can type to attest to that.

Bidwills. PAY THE MAN. Simple. I would rather keep Lott then Dansby. THATS how important I think he is.

Why mess with success. Again you can't keep everybody but too many people have credited Lott to be lacadaisical in these negotiations. Imagine him going to the Seahawks and all of a sudden the get tons bettter just by not being as soft and being healthier. I shudder at the thought.

If they don't pay Lott, how far are they lowballing a guy like Wiz. Apples and Oranges maybe, but I hate to think the Bidwills would get cocky at a time like this. Take Graves money and give it to Lott and Kiem. Please.

 

[Shane]

This reeks of SOC and it sucks. Its obvious alot of people are watching how this gets done and just for perceptions sake, the Cards better ante up.

And Shane has been right alot on this board but he couldn't be more wrong on his stance on this. This isn't just some strength coach. That Fitzgerald testimony says more then anything I can type to attest to that.

Bidwills. PAY THE MAN. Simple. I would rather keep Lott then Dansby. THATS how important I think he is.

Why mess with success. Again you can't keep everybody but too many people have credited Lott.

If they don't pay Lott, how far are they lowballing a guy like Wiz. Apples and Oranges maybe, but I hate to think the Bidwills would get cocky at a time like this. Take Graves money and give it to Lott and Kiem. Please.

Saying Lott is the reason Fitz didnt have a devastating injury is pure conjecture and fantasy. The guy is and was a physical freak long before Lott ever go to him. It could purely be genetics and nothing more. Lets not make this like Lott is irreplaceable. There are plenty of teams that dont have rash of injuries on a yearly basis.

Lott doesn't get a blank check. Not should he. He is not irreplaceable in any sense of the word. He is a wonderful hype machine and cheerleader. Those are his best attributes.

 

[Arizona's Finest]

Saying Lott is the reason Fitz didnt have a devastating injury is pure conjecture and fantasy. The guy is and was a physical freak long before Lott ever go to him. It could purely be genetics and nothing more. Lets not make this like Lott is irreplaceable. There are plenty of teams that dont have rash of injuries on a yearly basis.

Lott doesn't get a blank check. Not should he. He is not irreplaceable in any sense of the word. He is a wonderful hype machine and cheerleader. Those are his best attributes.

LOL. Conjecture and fantasy? Fitz himself said he saved his season and career with his work. Who else do you need to hear it from?We have never been this healthy 2 years in a row. We get better as the season goes on.

No one is talking about a blank check. But he most certainly has done his job and should be paid like one of the top SC's in the game, which he unequivically is.

That's not even an argument.

 

[ajcardfan]

Saying Lott is the reason Fitz didnt have a devastating injury is pure conjecture and fantasy. The guy is and was a physical freak long before Lott ever go to him. It could purely be genetics and nothing more. Lets not make this like Lott is irreplaceable. There are plenty of teams that dont have rash of injuries on a yearly basis.

Lott doesn't get a blank check. Not should he. He is not irreplaceable in any sense of the word. He is a wonderful hype machine and cheerleader. Those are his best attributes.

It was Fitz, our best player, giving Lott the credit for preventing the injury. I know when i saw the play, i was sick to my stomach, i was sure a ligament would be torn. So, saying it's pure "fantasy" is a little strong. Fitz knows what happened to him, what the doctors said, and the work he did.

Could someone else have gotten the same results? I guess. But, these last two seasons have been, and it's not even close really, the healthiest we've enjoyed in Arizona. We were 32nd in time lost to injury last year, and we were 31st in the league one month ago.

 

[lauraw]

If Fitz says Lott is irreplaceable, and he does, I agree!!

 

[TJ]

This reeks of SOC and it sucks. Its obvious alot of people are watching how this gets done and just for perceptions sake, the Cards better ante up.

And Shane has been right alot on this board but he couldn't be more wrong on his stance on this. This isn't just some strength coach. That Fitzgerald testimony says more then anything I can type to attest to that.

Bidwills. PAY THE MAN. Simple. I would rather keep Lott then Dansby. THATS how important I think he is.

Why mess with success. Again you can't keep everybody but too many people have credited Lott to be lacadaisical in these negotiations. Imagine him going to the Seahawks and all of a sudden the get tons bettter just by not being as soft and being healthier. I shudder at the thought.

If they don't pay Lott, how far are they lowballing a guy like Wiz. Apples and Oranges maybe, but I hate to think the Bidwills would get cocky at a time like this. Take Graves money and give it to Lott and Kiem. Please.

I agree. And the question that has to be asked is why is he even a lame duck conditioning coach??

People like Lott are so underrated. He is one of the major reasons we dont have very many nagging injuries and players on IR

 

[Shane]

LOL. Conjecture and fantasy? Fitz himself said he saved his season and career with his work. Who else do you need to hear it from?We have never been this healthy 2 years in a row. We get better as the season goes on.

No one is talking about a blank check. But he most certainly has done his job and should be paid like one of the top SC's in the game, which he unequivically is.

That's not even an argument.

I really don't care what Fitz says. We all know that Fitz has been singing Lott's praises for a long time now. Its not uncommon to give a shout out to your buddy etc... to try and help him out.

Fitz quite frankly has no idea why he was lucky enough to come out of that unscathed either. It is conjecture anyway you slice it. You will never have anything scientific to prove one way or the other. Fitz is genetically a physical freak and has been his whole life.

I didn't say he hasn't done his job or that he doesn't deserve to be paid. But it certainly shouldn't be an astronomical #. But he certainly isn't irreplaceable like you all make him sound.

 

[Cbus cardsfan]

i like Lott and hope the Cards keep him but let's not get carried away. If he wasn't on the NFL network for the combine people wouldn't likley even know who he is, or what he's like. Also, before coming to the Cards, he was let go by Cleveland and one of the reasons was that the Browns were among the league leaders in injuries while he was there. I admit he's done a very nice job for the Cards but the guy is not irreplacable. His demands may be unreasonable as well. We don't know. I do know that i think it seems kind of strange that a strength coach would hire an agent. That,to me, hints that he is looking for big bucks. Hasn't every other coach signed an extension or renewal? That also points to him maybe over-valueing himself.

 

[Second Deck]

I have no idea what a strength and conditioning coach makes but I believe Lott should be paid in the top ten of the NFL. If the Cards are offering less they should think again. We have been pretty injury free the last two years.

 

[RedRob]

I've been watching Cardinal football for nearly 40 years, this team over the past couple of years remains the healthiest I've EVER seen a team. Plus, as mentioned, they seem to get stronger as the season goes on.

Could this be luck? Sure, but I would bet a LOTT of money it is not.

Pay the man. By the way, it doesn't count against our salary cap...my point here is that if he's not in the top 3 paid for similar coaching positions across the league then we are low balling the guy.

 

[BullheadCardFan]

During the Rams game the announcers gave credit to Lott for Beanie losing 15 lbs and retaining his strength. Alan Branch has become a beast. Is it all Lott? I don't think it's all Lott, but why change what is working for us? Just the difference of these young players excelling a small amount is huge overall.

The Cards need to sit down with Lott and make it work.

 

[Treefiddy]

There was a lot of hype about Lott when he arrived, and there is still a lot of hype about him now. This is a good thing, because players buy into that hype and train with him. In his first year, didn't the Cardinals have like 90% participation in Lott's program while in the past with prior Strength and Conditioning Coaches they were lucky to get 40%?

 

[perivolaki]

I've been watching Cardinal football for nearly 40 years, this team over the past couple of years remains the healthiest I've EVER seen a team. Plus, as mentioned, they seem to get stronger as the season goes on.

Could this be luck? Sure, but I would bet a LOTT of money it is not.

You know this is an interesting arguement. I have been watching Cardinal football for many years also and I think Lott has done a good job and the Cards have most certainly done better in the injury department.

But could we apply this same arguement to Rod Graves? I know I've never seen the Cardinals in a Super Bowl and we've done it with Graves as GM.

Someone drafted these players and someone hired Ken Whisenhunt who then hired Lott. Yet most on this board would seem to have a fit if we might lose Lott and yet they also think Rod Graves is incompetent.

Is it also just luck that we've drafted better and that we've hired better coaches?

Most on this board would have a fit if Lott leaves and yet would cheer if Graves left over money.

Who really is more important to the franchise?

 

[NYCARDS]

Pay him what he is due and if the players love having him so much then pass the hat around. Unfortunately there is a limited amount of $ and the team cannot just "pay the man" every time they have someone up for renewal. Call it a Christmas bonus or whatever it takes and Fitz and everyone else can contribute what they feel he is worth.

 

[TigToad]

Alright, lets put this in perspective. The Phoenix Suns have one of the best conditioning/medical staffs in the NBA. Look at Shawn Marion here, then traded. He went from never hurt to immediately hurt. The Suns did great things for SHaq's career. Maybe a coincidence, maybe not.

This is an extremely important and underrated part of professional sports. I, obviously, have no idea what they offered or if he was low-balled, but he deserves a good contract and I think he is that important to keep.

 

[Redheart]

You know this is an interesting arguement. I have been watching Cardinal football for many years also and I think Lott has done a good job and the Cards have most certainly done better in the injury department.

But could we apply this same arguement to Rod Graves? I know I've never seen the Cardinals in a Super Bowl and we've done it with Graves as GM.

Someone drafted these players and someone hired Ken Whisenhunt who then hired Lott. Yet most on this board would seem to have a fit if we might lose Lott and yet they also think Rod Graves is incompetent.

Is it also just luck that we've drafted better and that we've hired better coaches?

Most on this board would have a fit if Lott leaves and yet would cheer if Graves left over money.

Who really is more important to the franchise?

Rippin' post, Mr. P!

There is a ton of whipping marks on Graves, yet in this whole fantastic, two-year run, the best he has received is to fall off the whipping post.

Graves has earned his pay and deserves a contract extention.

Someone else who deserves head-shead recognition is Micheal Bidwill; when he arrived on the scene, things started to change for the Cardinals. Remember, we were the Sun Devil Stadium Arizona Cardinals until Micheal decided to prosecute a different kind of case.

Bottom line, pay Lott; he is good for the lockeroom and we are going to need him when next year's decisions concerning Dansby, Rolle, and Boldin come due.

 

[Second Deck]

You don't know how much Graves was involved with the picks of Wadsworth, Wendel Bryant trading down and drafting Bryant Johnson when Suggs was on the board. Somehow I cannot be a big fan of Graves. This had changed since Michael and Whiz have shown up.

 

[Dr. Jones]

Lott is the 2nd most important coach on this team.

Whis
Lott
The rest of them

 

[az jam]

Keeping the coaching staff together is critical and Lott is an important part of the staff. He reports to Whisenhunt. He needs to help get this done. If he wants him back he can make it happen if Lott is reasonable in his salary demands.

 

[JeffGollin]

The history of why franchises in any sport fall from the top of the pack to the middle of the pack (or worse) correlates pretty highly with how rapidly they jettison the guys who got them to where they are.

Blame it on free agency. Blame it on personal greed. Blame it on an impetuous owner, Blame it on front office stinginess. Blame it on an obsession with youth.

Doesn't matter - Fix what ain't broke, and you'll discover quickly that you just broke yourself.

John Lott is part of the winning combination that brought us to the playoffs twice in a row.

Although the cloud over the Cardinals heads from the "old days" appears to have been lifting, there remains the danger that - human nature being what it is - Management will revert to its old ways (best described by one NFL owner after the Cardinals traded out of Suggs Country and into Pace and Bryant Johnson Country as being: "If you give them half a chance, they'll find a way to screw it up...")

Don't screw up a good thing?

 

[MigratingOsprey]

once again, please let this guy hit the open market

forget hype, the level of health the cardinals have had the past 2 years is unbelievable .... not to mention this year coming off a SB appearance (with the extra games and short offseason that come with it) and to have this few injuries is really remarkable

if the cards are dumb enough to let this guy walk then I really hope there is a private room on paul allens yacht for this guy