Sources: Chargers head coach Schottenheimer fired

[body88]

I agree.  They just lost both coordinators too.  I think I read this is the first time in NFL history that a coach who won at least 14 games was fired.   

You have to take into account the amount of talent Marty has had on his teams. With a 5 - 13 playoff record it ain't the players. I also would be willing to bet the Chargers did not want Marty running the ship without his offensive/defensive coordinators. Hell even there in house, would be, replacment defensive coordinator was lost to another team. I believe he was the linebackers coach?

Some of that 14 win credit needs to be attributed to the raw talent of the players on the team, and the offensive and defensive coordinators. I understand marty is a good coach. However, I do think with the amount of talent on that team, only a guy like Herm Edwards could have a 500 record.


I think this is a good move for the future of the franchise. Might struggle out off the gate, but next time they are in the playoffs they might be happy they have a different coach. I wish em luck, they have some awesome players.

[Dos Equis]

You have to take into account the amount of talent Marty has had on his teams. With a 5 - 13 playoff record it ain't the players. I also would be willing to bet the Chargers did not want Marty running the ship without his offensive/defensive coordinators. Hell even there in house, would be, replacment defensive coordinator was lost to another team. I believe he was the linebackers coach?

Some of that 14 win credit needs to be attributed to the raw talent of the players on the team, and the offensive and defensive coordinators. I understand marty is a good coach. However, I do think with the amount of talent on that team, only a guy like Herm Edwards could have a 500 record.


I think this is a good move for the future of the franchise. Might struggle out off the gate, but next time they are in the playoffs they might be happy they have a different coach. I wish em luck, they have some awesome players.

You cannot ignore the record, but I think there is too much emphasis on what happened 10 or 20 years ago.  I watched the Chargers/Pats game and I wouldn't hang that on Marty at all.  They had the no. 1 offense in the NFL one of the better defenses in the NFL.  That was a well coached team.  They made some dumb mistakes, but they were coached well enough to win.  They fell victim to Brady's brilliance IMO.   

[MidniteRambo]

You cannot ignore the record, but I think there is too much emphasis on what happened 10 or 20 years ago.  I watched the Chargers/Pats game and I wouldn't hang that on Marty at all.  They had the no. 1 offense in the NFL one of the better defenses in the NFL.  That was a well coached team.  They made some dumb mistakes, but they were coached well enough to win.  They fell victim to Brady's brilliance IMO.   

Regardless, you cannot in a responsible fashion fire the coach of a loaded franchise after the premier candiates have been hired, based on a personality conflict which existed before the playoffs.

[Dos Equis]

Regardless, you cannot in a responsible fashion fire the coach of a loaded franchise after the premier candiates have been hired, based on a personality conflict which existed before the playoffs.

I agree.

[ATHEIST]

Schottenheimer is a chokster in the playoffs. This move was overdue. Not to mention the chargers lost both there offensive and defensive coordinators.

People act like this is the first time Marty has screwed  up with an extremely talented team. The guy is 5 - 13 in the postseason. Marty has had talent up the wazu on his teams. The chargers dont need a great regular season record. They need someone who can take them to the next level. Marty have proven he is not that guy. He is a great coach, but his failures in the "big games"  (aka playoffs)  are quite evident.

I for one am crushed. As an AFC contender, we where all in love with the Idea of Marty coaching the chargers, with both his coordinators gone. I think the rest of the AFC felt the same.

  Bod -  Marty's firing had nothing to due to his past record. his past record was the same when they hired him in the first place. he already had that reputation.
 the reason Marty was fired was because he was allowing his assistants to interview for other jobs. as a head coach you can prevent assistants from interviewing. i believe he lost five assistants along with both coordinators. offensive and defensive. the GM was upset Marty didnt prevent the assistants from interviewing. and without the assistants and coordinators there was no bridge of communication between the two of them. Marty was only going to be there for one more year, so why should he prevent his assistants from getting long term contracts from someone else while moving up? many of the assistants they lost are now coordinators.
 also i wouldnt put the playoff loss to your Pats on the shoulders of Marty. the personal fouls and dropped balls had nothing to do with him. watching the game objectively.

[body88]

What I meant was, with Marty's previous playoff record ,and current playoff record it is pretty evident he folds when he has to coach with it all on the line.

I am not putting the chargers loss on Marty's shoulders. The pats exploited the chargers mistakes. They made plays when they had to. The pats made mistakes themselves. They could have easily put 14 more points on that score. Brady was awesome when it was all on the line, but he did have the worst game of his playoff career that day. I know the loss was not all on the coach, but he did make several bonehead moves that put the chargers in a worse position. You just cannot ignore 5 - 13 with the talent he has had.

[Tre]

I was just about to post this....

Holy Crap, wow... Is this the dumbest mistake you've seen from a team?  Their best season ever... Fire the coatch... LOL....

After the playoff loss, I was one of those saying he SHOULD be fired, because the guy just is not a good in-game coach, which is what you need to win in the playoffs.  I couldn't believe the Chargers came out earlier and said he would NOT be fired. 

[Tre]

It wasn't a trade.  They let Brees walk.  I'll find the link to the story, but I specifically recall reading about the power struggle between Marty and A.J. Smith, including the decision to let Brees walk. 

It was a money decision.  They weren't willing to pay $20 million/year for the QB position. 

[Tre]

brees injured his shoulder at the end of last season and was thought to be damaged goods so I don't consider it to be a terrible move letting him go, especially since they invested alot in rivers

Right.  The shoulder injury made it a no-brainer. 

And even though Brees left, they were STILL the best team in football.

[ATHEIST]

Bod I really dont think Marty himself folds necessarily. Ernest Byner fumbles on the 1 yard line, and his teams were losing to John Elway and the Bills who went to four straight SB's. just my opinion though. He will be coaching again though and he will do well.

[Tre]

You cannot ignore the record, but I think there is too much emphasis on what happened 10 or 20 years ago.  I watched the Chargers/Pats game and I wouldn't hang that on Marty at all.  They had the no. 1 offense in the NFL one of the better defenses in the NFL.  That was a well coached team.  They made some dumb mistakes, but they were coached well enough to win.  They fell victim to Brady's brilliance IMO.   

Absolutely not.

There's no way they should've lost that game.  They were out-coached.

[Tre]

Bod I really dont think Marty himself folds necessarily. Ernest Byner fumbles on the 1 yard line, and his teams were losing to John Elway and the Bills who went to four straight SB's. just my opinion though. He will be coaching again though and he will do well.

He should be with the Raiders.

[body88]

Bod I really dont think Marty himself folds necessarily. Ernest Byner fumbles on the 1 yard line, and his teams were losing to John Elway and the Bills who went to four straight SB's. just my opinion though. He will be coaching again though and he will do well.

Thats cool, I understand your position. You have a point with some off his losses.

[Fury]

Chargers are going to win the Super Bowl next year without Marty ruining it in the playoffs for them.

[ATHEIST]

Thats cool, I understand your position. You have a point with some off his losses.

  i hate that cocky picture of Bill you have. so smug







   
  go Dolphins!!!

[body88]

  i hate that cocky picture of Bill you have. so smug







   
  go Dolphins!!!

He is not cocky or smug at all. The photographer asked him to pose with his rings, so he did. Since you are a dolphins fan, I can understand your feelings tho.


How did you feel about the Saben ordeal? How do you feel about the future? What do Miami fans feel about the whole situation?

[pumpster]

I agree.  They just lost both coordinators too.  I think I read this is the first time in NFL history that a coach who won at least 14 games was fired.   

Doesn't matter, it had to be done sooner than later. Would've happened again; no escaping the need to rid themselves of this guy. Can NOT lose the first playoff home game at 14-2, giving up 10 points in the last minutes. That collapse *is* on the coach whether obvious or not.

Even if they don't play well next season it was necessary; they were not winning anything with marty ball.

[MidniteRambo]

Even if they don't play well next season it was necessary; they were not winning anything with marty ball.

Maybe so, but you do it the day after the loss, not after missing out on the prime candidates (who is left, Dennis Green?).  From what I'm hearing, the firing had more to do with a dispute between GM and coach than the playoff loss itself.

[ATHEIST]

He is not cocky or smug at all. The photographer asked him to pose with his rings, so he did. Since you are a dolphins fan, I can understand your feelings tho.


How did you feel about the Saben ordeal? How do you feel about the future? What do Miami fans feel about the whole situation?

   I have been a Dol-fan since i was 6 or 7. im 27 now. Saban was never going to get the team to the level everyone expected him to. his drafts have been very less than decent. we are still winning with the player that took us to the playoffs when we had Marino. that explains why we dont win. i thought Saban would at least help us in the drafts. instead he hired more assistants than any other NFL team, made huge demands, wanted complete control and wanted Culpepper and Harrington. Ronnie Brown IMO will never be a game breaking back. Culpepper i believe is done, he was a flash in the pan for a brief peroid of time. i was wanting Brees the whole time.
 there are so many holes on our team. our defense is old, offensive line is very sub-par, no QB, slow at the wide reciever position. there almost isnt a bright side.
 Cam Cameron is our new leader but he is a rookie head coach who is unproven. his only head coaching experience was in Indiana. im not saying he will fail, i have no idea but he wasnt my first or second choice. i would gladly take Marty.
  every team in our division is getting better, Jets,Bills and of course you guys. watch out for the Bills though, with Marv Levy back helping the orginization they will steadily improve. and the Jets have a great coach in the making.

[ATHEIST]

Maybe so, but you do it the day after the loss, not after missing out on the prime candidates (who is left, Dennis Green?).  From what I'm hearing, the firing had more to do with a dispute between GM and coach than the playoff loss itself.

 
  correct

[pumpster]

Maybe so, but you do it the day after the loss, not after missing out on the prime candidates (who is left, Dennis Green?).  From what I'm hearing, the firing had more to do with a dispute between GM and coach than the playoff loss itself.

There are other good candidates under the radar. They shouldn't have waited but the delay isn't make or break.

[Fury]

The Chargers can go out and get whoever they want pretty much. No one is going to pass up coaching that team, they're going to be the most loaded team in the NFL for 3-4 years at least.

[ATHEIST]

The Chargers can go out and get whoever they want pretty much. No one is going to pass up coaching that team, they're going to be the most loaded team in the NFL for 3-4 years at least.

  who then can they get to coach? they cant get whoever they want all the good candidates have been taking. they will end up with a lame-duck coach like Turner,Green, Fossil or an unproven coordinator and use them until they have more coaches availible in the next few years.

[MidniteRambo]

There are other good candidates under the radar. They shouldn't have waited but the delay isn't make or break.

Who were you thinking of?  I don't think Pete Caroll will leave USC.  Jimmy Johnson is enjoying retirement.  Ron Rivera is not bad, but the last memory we have of him is his defense underperforming.  Bill Cowher is reportedly friends with Marty and in any event is at least a year from un-retiring.

[pumpster]

There are plenty of good coaches in the NFL or college that aren't hyped as brand-names & are worthwhile, including one mentioned at the end of the following article. They're still there because so many NFL GMs and owners think inside the box, such as Jerry Jones seriously considering Norv Turner for the Cowboys.