I'd Miss Marty, But ...
I'm seeing all kinds of speculation erupting from the fact that Eagles offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg is scheduled to interview for the Oakland Raiders' head coaching position this weekend, and might be in the Indianapolis picture as well.
First, for the hard-core Andy Reid haters who want to spin that Andy's assistants are fleeing because he's in such a dire spot -- no. Marty came here in 2003 after being fired from the head coaching spot in Detroit. He has always wanted to get another chance, to change history's judgment of him as the guy who kicked off to start overtime. Andy has tried to help Marty in that effort, to the extent that he really pushed Mike Holmgren and Tom Heckert to interview Marty last year for the job that went to Pat Shurmur, and was ticked when they didn't.
Second, I've said in the past that I don't necessarily see Marty as a head coach, a face-and-voice-of-the-franchise guy. Marty tends to wander off on tangents, as a public speaker. What results from that can be a fun and informative journey, but sound bites are not his specialty. In Oakland, though, it sure seems new GM Reggie McKenzie is going to be the face and voice of the franchise. Because the 49ers dominate the market, I'm not sure the Raiders' coach is really that high profile. And heaven knows, the Raiders have had their share of eccentric coaching personalities in recent years. (Tom Cable?)
Would I hire Marty as my head coach? If my main objective was to develop a young quarterback, yeah, I very well might. He really knows an awful lot about that stuff, and is good at teaching it. Not sure how that fits in with Carson Palmer in Oakland, but who knows what McKenzie is planning? Maybe the Raiders will deal up and draft a QB.
Marty would be perfect to develop Andrew Luck in Indianapolis. Maybe there, Jim Irsay is going to be the face and voice of the franchise. Sure looking that way.
Third, some Eagles fans seem to think having Marty leave would be a good thing for the franchise. I don't think it would necessarily derail the offense or anything, but in general, Marty does a good job. Mike Vick would miss him. Yes, Marty and Andy together are not exactly the quick, decisive thinkers club on the sideline with the clock running. But Marty has good ideas. His offense this past season would have been an all-time work of art, dominant throwing and running, if it could have cut down on the turnovers. And I don't think Marty had much to do with those; in fact, late in the season, he seemed literally to be in pain discussing them.
If Andy, say, brought back Brad Childress in the event of Marty's departure, the Eagles would be OK. I would worry about promoting a less-accomplished assistant, a Doug Pederson or David Culley, who might not stand up to Andy's impulse to throw every down.
What about making Howard Mudd offensive coordinator? Promoting an offensive line coach is not exactly breaking new ground down at NovaCare. This time, it might actually make sense.
I would be in favor of this just for the weekly coordinator press conferences.
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In Eagles developments, the team worked out former Bills QB Trent Edwards, but didn't sign him. Sounded like a tire-kick. And middle linebacker Jamar Chaney, it turned out, needed disk surgery on his neck, which was performed Tuesday. In the season finale against the Redskins, Chaney left with an injury the Eagles said was a concussion and Chaney said was a stinger. No reason why he shouldn't be fine for training camp.
The Eagles apparently are not going to hold Andy Reid's season wrapup until potential defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo checks out the New Orleans Saints and decides what he wants to do. Reportedly, Spagnuolo is in New Orleans today. At this pace, Andy might want to think about reviewing 2011 and previewing 2012's training camp in the same presser.