Upon Further Review...

[40yearfan]

I have some doubts about Green also. Having run crews for the past 40 some odd years, I know from experience that one bad apple can spoil the bunch, but I also know that for maximum performance, you need people who are committed and all focused on the same goal. Someone in perpetual fear of losing their job will either try harder or throw up their hands and fail to perform. People are all individuals and each one needs to be treated as such. My fear is that Green is not that type of person and will focus on the team as a whole and thus allow salvageable people to leave and be replaced by people with lesser skills.

The one thing I really liked about the Green hiring was when he stated that the Cardinals had the people necessary to win. They just needed better coaching. This has been my mantra all along and I was thinking, if he can take this team and win, then we know for sure it was coaching. I don't know what happened to change his mind in the past few months, but it's obvious that he does not feel that way now.

All this being said, Green has been very successful in the past, has always been somewhat of a maverick and probably won't be adored by the fans near as much as Coach Mac was. If he can turn this team around, make them competitive and turn the Cardinals into a team to be reckoned with, I will give him his kudos and back him completely.

 

[Russ Smith]

Russ, you are right that Green got a nice settlement from the Vikings when he stepped aside...but consider this scenario. Suppose two years ago, Tampa Bay put Dennis Green on the top of their list over Jon Gruden...Green would have hopped all over that job. The thing is..no team courted Green the last two years. None. This year there were so many head coaching vacancies, Green was finally able to get a sniff.

.

Yes, this coach can win. The question is...is Green's way the way you want the Cardinals to win? If I was Mr. B., I'd send Green packing and name Mike Kruczak the interim head coach...before Green starts cutting the likes of L.J. Shelton, Levar Fisher, Dennis Johnson and Dexter Jackson.

.

Walt I just don't know how you can so emphatically say that. You have to remember any team that wanted Green for 2 years, had to compete with the amount of salary he was already getting, both from the Vikings, and ESPN. As AJ said, other than Parcells, what NFL coach has the clout to demand that much money?

I do agree with you that some of the stuff green does is iffy, and there are clearly NFL teams (the Giants for one) who were so concerned about that stuff that they wanted to structure a contract that gave them a lot of leverage to stop him from doing that stuff. Put clauses in the deal that prevented him from doing some of the "Al Haig I'm in charge" stuff that got him forced out in Minnesota.

Believe me the last thing I want is Dennis Green with TOTAL control, I want him as the coach, but I want Graves and Mike Bidwill involved in other key decisions to keep Green in check.

ON your list the cuts that would really bug me are SHelton and Jackson. I love Fisher but if his knees are a persistent problem, with the depth we have at LB, you can certainly make an argument for reaching an injury settlement and cutting him. I hope he's healthy and competing with Ray Thompson, but it wouldn't STUN me if he's cut. I like Dennis Johnson but he hasn't yet shown he's going to be the guy he was supposed to be coming out of HS. Dockett is already ahead of him at LDE and he's never played it before, that tells you something. I can certainly accept if he's cut.

LJ, I just don't agree we have that many OL's better than LJ, we're fine caproom wise, there's no sensible reason to cut the guy and get nothing in return but a caphit. IF Green really doesn't like him, he should be trying to trade him, which I suspect is what he's doing. I don't want him traded,but I could live with it.

Jackson, if healthy, should be starting, he was our most productive and consistent defensive player last year. I simply do not believe we have added 11 players on defense who are better than Dexter. If he's able to play, and isn't, it's because he was a perceived leader on the team last year, and this year that puts a HUGE target on your back with Green.

 

[Russ Smith]

Sounds like it.

Not on that post though, no way VF would say no matter what DG says, he thinks LJ will start. VF will back EVERY decision DG makes and every comment he says, if DG says LJ is a backup, VF agrees.

 

[Duckjake]

Hey now, don't go lumping Stallings in with what came after him. He was a damn fine coach. Stallings was the best Arizona Cardinal coach to date but maybe Green will surpass that. We can only hope!

I do agree with you about these players having their chance to step it up for Mac. If they liked him so much and wanted him as their coach, why did they give up after 5 minutes in half the games last year? While the players may have liked Mac, I don't think they had a whole lot of confidence in the rest of the coaches and the general scheme of things. Maybe that added to the give up at all costs attitude.

Stallings was a fine coach, at the College level. But the main reason I included him with the others was that he was an unassuming, dilligent, blue collar guy who had a losing record as Cardinal coach.

BTW: Gene's daughter used to come to the local sports bar with her husband to watch the games. The four of us, my wife would go with me, would be the only Cards fans in the place. This was the first two years in AZ.

They had a big upstairs room that the Browns fans, 40-50 of them, would use for the early game and then the 4 of us would get it for the Cards at 3pm. The waitress said she got more tips from us.

 

[abomb]

Agree or disagree, nice work Walter. Keep up the great editorial and journalistic articles.

A-Bomb

 

[black]

Not on that post though, no way VF would say no matter what DG says, he thinks LJ will start. VF will back EVERY decision DG makes and every comment he says, if DG says LJ is a backup, VF agrees.

Are you saying LJ deserves a starting spot? He has proven nothing on a losing team. He has collected paychecks that have not produced wins. Hello? That is the name of the game in the NFL. WIN WIN WIN Give Green a chance to work his magic, and you will see a playoff team in Az. Or we can have it your way....a 4-12 team that sucks with no fans in the stadium.

 

[clif]

Sounds like it.

I dont know who VF is but I am not a green apologist if that is what you are implying. There are certainly moves that DG has made that have shocked me most namely starting Emmitt over Marcel. I have thought for the longest that he was the better back even when TJ was here. I do believe though that Emmitt is a better blocker than Marcel is at this point in his career. That does not mean Marcel would not have carried the ball 20 times a game.

As far as LJ... I certainly feel that he is a better lineman than AC and so I think he will eventually replace him. If I remember correctly LJ said that he would not play any other position other than left tackle. I think his demotion was a "wake up" call that hey you better produce if you want to be on this team. He may have been one of our best linemen, but he was nowhere near a good left tackle, so what do you do... you demote him to get it in his mind the possibility of playing another position..namely right tackle. He comes back with a nasty streak and takes that position and runs with it. What is wrong with that?

 

[earthsci]

Yes, this coach can win. The question is...is Green's way the way you want the Cardinals to win? If I was Mr. B., I'd send Green packing and name Mike Kruczak the interim head coach...

If the question is do I want wins or do I want things the way they have always been, I'll take the wins.

Thanks for your work though Walter.

 

[Russ Smith]

Are you saying LJ deserves a starting spot? He has proven nothing on a losing team. He has collected paychecks that have not produced wins. Hello? That is the name of the game in the NFL. WIN WIN WIN Give Green a chance to work his magic, and you will see a playoff team in Az. Or we can have it your way....a 4-12 team that sucks with no fans in the stadium.

And of course Big has proven something on the same losing team playing different positions and showing no apparent ability to handle speed rushers when he played RT?

My way? I want to win as much as you do, I've followed this team since 1975
long before they were in Arizona. I've seen the good times and a lot more bad times.

What did Big do to earn the LT job? He was handed it when Shelton, coming off surgery, reported overweight. Based on their careers to date it's my opinion that LJ is a better LT than Big, so I don't see how starting Big, and benching LJ improves the team. To my eyes it weakens us at TWO spots.

I hope Big does fine, but again, if Green doesn't like LJ, he should have traded him before he benched him and destroyed his trade value. By not doing so he's essentially going to be forced to either play him, cut him,or make him a highly overpaid backup.

I'm not saying Green is the antichrist, I'm saying some of the moves he's made don't seem to jibe with the everything I do is designed to win games mantra. If he felt Kendall was such a bad influence, why name him the starter AFTER the OTA's?

 

[JeffGollin]

One thing's for sure, Walter. Since you posted those two stories, you haven't heard very much depressing stuff on this board about all the injuries.

Thinking along with you, Over the years, I've philosophically "gone where you've gone." Problem is - over a thirty-year period - it hasn't worked.

Of course, ideally, you want a head coach who is both (a) a good guy and also (b) a winner. But, since 1976 (when we went 10 - 4 under Don Coryell), we've had 22 losing seasons, 4 winning seasons and 2 .500 seasons.

The whole idea of competing in the NFL is - as Herm Edwards so eloquantly put it: "You want to win the game." The Cardinals have not accomplished their mission very often.

You can't blame victory-thirsty fans for beginning to feel that, perhaps we should be making "winning" a somewhat higher priority than being a paragon of virtue.

Coach Green seems to have done some stuff that, at least on face value, seems duplicitous. But often there's more than one side to every story. Maybe we're getting the full picture, but maybe we're not.

Maybe we should be humble enough to at least partially concede that we, as fans, may not have all the answers (otherwise we'd be successful coaches or GM's) and that, maybe just maybe, Dennis' way may turn out to be the right way."

Can someone (Alan, maybe?) put together a time-line going back to 1976 showing head-coaching changes made by the Cardinals compared to the head-coaching changes made by specific teams and the average for all teams?

I suspect we'll find that, if nothing else, the lack of continuity - of coaching philosophy and system - is killing us. Every time you change programs,it means that, instead on zeroing in on doing some minor tweaking and perfecting their game your players usually have to spend a year or two justifying their existance in camp, learning new terminology, adapting to different offensive and defensive philosophies, getting used to playing along more new teammates than normal etc. Instead of gradually improving and building your franchise, you're continuing to dig dirt out of the front of the hole while it fills in with sand behind you.

For this reason, I'd tend to be super-conservative about changing horses this early in midstream. The odds favor our giving Coach Green the chance to succeed before even dreaming about still another coaching change.

 

[Duckjake]

I suspect we'll find that, if nothing else, the lack of continuity - of coaching philosophy and system - is killing us. Every time you change programs,it means that, instead on zeroing in on doing some minor tweaking and perfecting their game your players usually have to spend a year or two justifying their existance in camp, learning new terminology, adapting to different offensive and defensive philosophies, getting used to playing along more new teammates than normal etc. Instead of gradually improving and building your franchise, you're continuing to dig dirt out of the front of the hole while it fills in with sand behind you.

I've always wondered if there really was that much of a change in philosophy and system between Tobin and McGinnis. I think the Cards culture with the exception of the "Ryan" years has basically been the same ever since Coryell left. We're nice guys who do things our old fashioned way regardless of whether that produces a competitive product. They were the local hardware store founded by Grandpa in 1920 trying to compete with Home Depot and WalMart.

Finally we are starting to see indications that the Culture is changing to one where the Cardinals are intent on building their own National Chain.

It's going to be interesting to watch.

 

[black]

And of course Big has proven something on the same losing team playing different positions and showing no apparent ability to handle speed rushers when he played RT?

My way? I want to win as much as you do, I've followed this team since 1975
long before they were in Arizona. I've seen the good times and a lot more bad times.

What did Big do to earn the LT job? He was handed it when Shelton, coming off surgery, reported overweight. Based on their careers to date it's my opinion that LJ is a better LT than Big, so I don't see how starting Big, and benching LJ improves the team. To my eyes it weakens us at TWO spots.

I hope Big does fine, but again, if Green doesn't like LJ, he should have traded him before he benched him and destroyed his trade value. By not doing so he's essentially going to be forced to either play him, cut him,or make him a highly overpaid backup.

I'm not saying Green is the antichrist, I'm saying some of the moves he's made don't seem to jibe with the everything I do is designed to win games mantra. If he felt Kendall was such a bad influence, why name him the starter AFTER the OTA's?

I see your point which will only be a non factor when we do win. I have been a fan as long as you have. True. I live 72 miles from St. Louis and I am 36 years old.


If LJ can't cut it, let him go. Did you think every team was in the hunt for LJ? He does suck.


Pete Kendall should not have snitched on Green. Cut the losers if they don't want to win. Keep the losers if they want to learn how to win. IMO


As far as Big, he makes the dough like LJ. If he can't cut the NFL then let him go too. I'm giving Green 3 years.

 

[Walter Mitchell]

Russ: I think you have one of the best grasps on DG's double standards. I still think, however, that if he was in high demand after he stepped aside in Minnesota, teams would have been willing to pay him top dollar...many more times than what he was making at ESPN.

Did DG as an ESPN analyst ever offer insight? I can't recall ever sitting up and taking notice of anything he ever said. All he seemed to do what iterate the obvious.

For the record...I stated that DG's only offer was from the Cardinals. I didn't say no other teams were interested in him this past year...Oakland and Washington interviewed him. The previous two years...nothing.

Also for the record...Steve Bush was one of the first players DG cut along with Lucas, Parsons, Bell and Tanner. Rod Graves had signed Bush to a modest extension last year.

Also for the record: Yes, I was disappointed to see Preston Parsons get cut. Parsons, IMO, clearly outplayed Josh McCown in last year's pre-season games...and led some furious 4th quarter drives...was one of the main reasons why the Cardinals went 4-0 in the pre-season. What I liked most about Parsons was his size and poise in the pocket. This year, I wanted to see whether Parsons could beat King out for the backup job. I still believe he could have. King moved the chains a little last Sat. night, but he really blew some golden opportunities to get the team into the end zone...for example, badly underthrowing Kevin Kasper when Kasper was wide open near the end zone on a corner route. I liked the way King bounced back from some of the hits he took, but he didn't finish off his drives very well. It's only one game. Let's see what happens this week.

I liked what I saw from John Navarre. Nice set up, good vision, nice touch. Yes, he's not nimble in the pocket, but if he can learn to sidestep to buy time the way Tom Brady does so well, Navarre could develop nicely.

Other players that caught my eye: WR Reggie Newhouse, TE Lorenzo Diamond, G Cantu (what's his first name?)...he really stood Brock Lesnar up a couple of times, good job., DB David Macklin, G Reggie Wells, RB Larry Croom, WR Fabian Davis (nice feet...good hands...remind me a little of Troy Brown), S Michael Stone (nice int.), LB Karlos Dansby (what a physical presence he brings).

Could Calvin Pace be the next Green Acher? He's not happy with his demotion to 3rd string, now that DG has reshuffled the DE deck and switched KVB back to RDE behind Berry, thus relegating Pace to 3rd RDE. Pace's objections were in print in today's Az Republic. I thought Pace's pass rush looks improved...not all there quite yet, but it's coming. If Pace gets cut in favor of keeping KVB and Wakefield...this could get really ugly. I am still worried about Dennis Johnson...someone will make him into a fine football player...put me on record for that statement.

 

[clif]

i really liked croom. man just has the ability to make people miss.. as for dennis johnson.. I liked him too, but if he was going to make a good impression now would be the time to do it.


Oh and Macklin.. man he is way better than barrett

 

[RedStorm]

Walter just want to say I appreciate your work effort for the site and think it's awesome you write articles. Putting your opinions up there to be jeered or cheered for by a group of Die hard fans, I'm sure is alot harder then it looks. We all have are opinions and own Points of view, regardless of that I always read your articles and I hope this doesn't make you 2nd guess doing it.

Walter, I agree with DCF. I do appreciate it that you, as well as others, take the time to put up thoughtful, even if controversial articles. It is what makes this site SOOOOO addicting.

However, I disagree with you. I think Green knows what he is doing and will need time to get the right pieces in place.

 

[Russ Smith]

I see your point which will only be a non factor when we do win. I have been a fan as long as you have. True. I live 72 miles from St. Louis and I am 36 years old.


If LJ can't cut it, let him go. Did you think every team was in the hunt for LJ? He does suck.


Pete Kendall should not have snitched on Green. Cut the losers if they don't want to win. Keep the losers if they want to learn how to win. IMO


As far as Big, he makes the dough like LJ. If he can't cut the NFL then let him go too. I'm giving Green 3 years.

We both want to win, I just don't think we need to sacrifice wins THIS year to get better next year by cutting Kendall. I'm a firm believer in take a step back to go forward, I just don't see it as necessary in that case.

Look at Oakland, they drafted Grove to be their C, they still don't know if he's going to start. They didn't cut Robbins to make room for Grove, they cut him because of his "problems". Adam Treu is currently the first string center, I suspect Grove will start at some point, when he's shown he's ready, but they don't want to sacrifice games now for later, they're content to let Grove learn in the NFL before they throw him to the wolves.

Even if Green did think Step was ready, we have Spikes starting, anybody think Kendall can't do a better job than Spikes?

I don't believe in spite cuts. And anybody who's seen me post in the past knows I'm not a huge believer in chemistry because it's such a vague thing. The next time I see someone in preseason pick the superbowl winner based on chemistry will be the first. First new england superbowl that's all we heard, Bledsoe was bad, Brady was good for chemistry, but I don't recall a single person talking up their chemistry in the preseason that year. On this board people were telling NEM that NE had the worst team in the NFL and had done horribly in FA signings. Chemistry is usually a hindsight thing, sort of like how the Greeks invented Apollo and zeus to explain things they couldn't

I was born in St Louis,used to live on Lindbergh blvd for the first 18 months of my life!

 

[Tangodnzr]

Can someone (Alan, maybe?) put together a time-line going back to 1976 showing head-coaching changes made by the Cardinals compared to the head-coaching changes made by specific teams and the average for all teams?

I suspect we'll find that, if nothing else, the lack of continuity - of coaching philosophy and system - is killing us. Every time you change programs,it means that, instead on zeroing in on doing some minor tweaking and perfecting their game your players usually have to spend a year or two justifying their existance in camp, learning new terminology, adapting to different offensive and defensive philosophies, getting used to playing along more new teammates than normal etc. Instead of gradually improving and building your franchise, you're continuing to dig dirt out of the front of the hole while it fills in with sand behind you.

For this reason, I'd tend to be super-conservative about changing horses this early in midstream. The odds favor our giving Coach Green the chance to succeed before even dreaming about still another coaching change.

Jeff,
A few months ago I had two lengthy articles on coaching history's and changes that Skkorp ran on the front page.
I plan on updating it for this year, including more specifically the history on Dennis Green, who I never got posted, as I just kind of gave up on the project as pointless once he was hired.

I think the one thing I learned more than anything else in researching that, is that to a certain degree, just as in any "business", there are "networks".

I'm not for dumping Green just yet. Although, at this point, my first choice last year, Jim Fassel is still available, last I knew.
What scares me most about Green right now, is something Walter alluded to....
Regardless of how unorthidox it may be....If push comes to shove, and getting rid of Green now, prevents him from further doing a Buddy Ryan imitation with his purge of quality players that are HIS, maybe biting the bullet here would be the right thing to do.
It's a tough, tough call. And it just tweaks me off that the team seems to be placed in that postion by Green, right now.
I'm with Russ here too...as long as Graves and Michael can keep him in some kind of reasonable check...then OK.
But boy..does he seem to be pushing the envelope in that respect. And it the Cards team in the long run that could suffer the most.
That's what worries me, and I think Walter too. (among others).

 

[Walter Mitchell]

By the way, I really appreciate your posts, Jeff Golin. You are, without question, the voice of reason on this board. Between yours and Russ' posts, you keep us all on a nice equilibrium. I also think ASUChris' posts are often on the money.

More for the record: DT Marcus Bell has more talent than any nose tackle on our current roster. Wendell Bryant has talent, but he's not a nose tackle. IMO, he's better suited for the under tackle role, if he could ever start exerting his quickness. And Russell Davis...man...continues to show little strength at the point of attack. Teams are going to exploit him at will.

Do I really think there's even a remote chance that DG will be fired? Especially this soon into his tenure? No. But, one has to wonder what the mood is in the front office right now. I'd be willing to bet 10 cases of Budweiser that the Bidwills and Rod Graves are second guessing the DG hiring.
Things for them are already spiraling out of control. Imagine the backlash on RG and the organization, if, for instance, DG cuts Calvin Pace.

For those of you who would so quickly say that Calvin Pace sucks...you are flat-out wrong. Calvin Pace will develop into a quality NFL player. He needs coaching and time. He already does one thing well...he defends the run. Now, he's working on putting together a repertoire of pass rushing moves...which doesn't happen overnight. Look at what coaching and patience has done for a player like Darwin Walker.

I also object to those who say 4-12 last year deserves a major roster overhaul. Let me remind you that the team, playing shorthanded and more with the youngsters, was very competitive down the stretch against three quality playoff caliber teams in Carolina (NFC Champs), Seattle and Minnesota.
...despite predictable schemes from the coaching staff. With the right coaching and the addition of a quality nose tackle, a veteran WR and safety (in case DJ remains injured)...this team has the talent to win...right now. Shifting Shelton to guard or RT would upgrade the offensive line. And if Josh McCown settles down...BJ and LF return healthy to stem the tide until AB gets back...I like the Cardinals' chances.

 

[clif]

Tangodnzr,

Man with all due respect I feel that you are jumping the gun. You can make comparisons between DG and Buddy, but one thing is for sure different. The CARDS have been opening the checkbook over the past year or so. That is way different from when Buddy was here. With that in mind, if the Bidwills were so burned by Buddy why in the world would they let it happen again? DG is not the GM. Every person that gets cuts has to be signed off on by Graves and Michael. Those are 2 other things that are different from what Buddy had. I dont like Buddy so people please dont imply that I do.

As for Graves, I think he has done a great job in the sense he at least tried to keep a nucleus here. We may not agree of who or what that nucleus is, but I think he has put the team in a better cap situation which I think was his strong point.

 

[Mulli]

Walter, still disagree with some of your posts, but I take back any posts that went overboard or personal. I just read your profile and saw that you were involved with the Madden games. That deserves major props!!! Madden football is great. But were you the one behind making it so addictive?

 

[Tangodnzr]

I've always wondered if there really was that much of a change in philosophy and system between Tobin and McGinnis. I think the Cards culture with the exception of the "Ryan" years has basically been the same ever since Coryell left. We're nice guys who do things our old fashioned way regardless of whether that produces a competitive product. They were the local hardware store founded by Grandpa in 1920 trying to compete with Home Depot and WalMart.

Finally we are starting to see indications that the Culture is changing to one where the Cardinals are intent on building their own National Chain.

It's going to be interesting to watch.

I think you bring up some interesting points.

I don't think it's much of stretch to assume that essentially the change from Tobin to Mac wasn't all that great in regard to the changing of "systems".
Mac and Tobin are and have been close freinds and coworkers for many years, and obviously , at least defensively, shared many common beliefs.

But Tobin and Mac were two entirely different "nice guys". Tobin was quet, business like, organized, stable.
Few people have the charisma Mac had.

I don't think it was the fact that they were "nice guys" that limited their accomplishments so much. Tobin never really had much power granted to him by the Bidwills (I say as backdraft from the Buddy fiasco). Once he finally actually tried to get some, he didn't get the vote of confidence he sought.
Same with Bugel. Many (and I was one of them) thought his firing was very premature, that he really did have things going in the right direction.

Neither do I think Mac's failures were primarily because he was a "nice guy".

His downfall was not being much of an offensive guy himself, and never getting someone to run it, that was able to be effective. (looking back, as much as I often criticised many of the things he did, I think probably Rich Olson actually came the closest to doing it).
His game management was terrible. And again, I think part of that could maybe stem from him over-delegating. Too many times last year, I saw once one of those infuriating, "needless" timeouts were called, Mac seeming to not know WTF was going on....and Geep Chryst talking to the player that walked to the sideline...a mile a minute.

Once again, I do not buy, at all, that the team "quit" on Mac. Were they not always as prepared as they should have been, especially for road games? kinda looks like it, now.

Did mac show too much loyalty to some incompetant assistant coaches? Yeah, again it looks like it. Course people have often derided people like Tony Dungy for exactly the same thing.

 

[clif]

I dont care who they cut or dont cut. I will always be optimistic because it is football and I love it.

Walter,

I watched that preseason game again and again and I say that russell davis got some good penetration. I like the scheme where they are asked to just penetrate. Now he may not have all the strength like alot of guys in the league, but if you go back and watch that game again you will see him get in the backfield more than once. I really dont put much stock into sacks per say at this point, but more of pressure. I saw a minnesota team that used quick hitting plays to get the ball out of dauntes hand and into his playmakers hand so not much time to sack him. Of course there were times that the cards got stone walled, but I am encouraged. I also like how Gerald Hayes was flying to the ball. What can you say about Ron Mckinnon. He just makes plays. I saw some good things and I saw some correctible things as far as missed assignments.

Our first priority should be improvement. I personally have no problem with DG stating that we will go 10-6 and go to the playoffs.. I mean what should he have said?.... 'we are going to suck'? All I want (right now) is to not get blown out week to week like so many years before. Forget the record right now be competitive.

 

[ajcardfan]

Russ: I think you have one of the best grasps on DG's double standards. I still think, however, that if he was in high demand after he stepped aside in Minnesota, teams would have been willing to pay him top dollar...many more times than what he was making at ESPN.

The money he made at ESPN was chicken feed compared to the money he got from the Vikings. He had the richest coaching contract in the NFL at that time. Had he taken another coaching job, he would've forfeited that money.

 

[JeffGollin]

But boy..does he seem to be pushing the envelope in that respect. And it the Cards team in the long run that could suffer the most. That's what worries me, and I think Walter too. (among others).
I agree with that.

I just feel that rushing to judgment at this stage of the game would be a mistake.

I also have to admit that, other than during the Tobin era, I've tended to feel that virtually every move made by the Cardinal organization since before Buddy "seemed to make logical sense at the time each decison was made." (I'd go. "Yeah. Seems like a reasonable move to make.")

But then things invariably didn't turn out the way they should have. Which makes me feel humble; very humble. And it makes me more inclined to believe that I might also be wrong about the seemingly weird things Dennis is doing - he may be right; and maybe he can teach us something about what it takes to win.

At least, that's what I'm hoping.

 

[Russ Smith]

The money he made at ESPN was chicken feed compared to the money he got from the Vikings. He had the richest coaching contract in the NFL at that time. Had he taken another coaching job, he would've forfeited that money.

Bingo. He had a contract through 2004, they bought it out, and negotiated a settlement that lopped off the last year.Win win, they got rid of Green which they desperately wanted to do, he got 2 years pay and got to hang with his family.

You can easily see why he would have been content to not look for another coaching job right away.