Most NFL coaches don’t stay unemployed for long. The Associated Press reports former Kansas City Chiefs’ head coach Todd Haley, who was fired in mid-December, has interviewed for the offensive coordinator job with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The Steelers finished 12th in the NFL in yards and 21st in points scored. The Chiefs were even worse on offense. They were 31st in points scored and 27th in total yards.

The Arizona Republic reported in mid-January that a return to Haley’s old staff with the Arizona Cardinals seemed doubtful. Head coach Ken Whisenhunt is happy with his offensive coordinator and Haley would have to start lower on the totem pole in Phoenix. He was the offensive coordinator in Arizona until he was hired by the Chiefs as a head coach.

The Haley saga continues. He lasted less than three seasons in Kansas City as a head coach. All of the head coaching positions are filled. Now he seems to be going around to different teams seeking a job on the offensive side of the ball.

Teams’ unwillingness to hire Haley may stem from several reasons. First is that new head coaches need a few weeks to settle in. Then the hiring process takes time to whittle down candidates from applicants to interviewees to finalists. Another reason may just be that Haley’s last team on offense was one of the NFL’s worst. Kansas City scored just 13.3 points per game and traveled just 310.8 yards per game.

Yet Haley’s dynamic may change when he’s back at being an offensive coordinator. He only has to worry about one side of the ball and not two as a head coach. There is only one unit Haley needs to rely upon instead of three (including special teams). Some coaches do just fine as lifetime coordinators and never make it to the head coaching ranks.

In short, Haley seems to have been given a valuable life lesson about knowing his limitations. He may eventually work his way into another NFL head coaching job, but only after he spends a few more years soul searching as an offensive coordinator.

There’s nothing wrong with that.

William Browning is a fan of the Kansas City Chiefs after latching on to the team during the lean years of St. Louis football. Born in the gateway city, he is also a lifelong St. Louis Cardinals fan. He currently resides in Branson, Mo.

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January 31, 2012

The Pittsburgh Steelers have interviewed former Kansas City Chiefs coach Todd Haley for the team’s vacant offensive coordinator position.

Haley, fired by the Chiefs in December, met with Pittsburgh
coach Mike Tomlin on Tuesday.

The Steelers need to replace Bruce Arians, who was not retained.
Arians was hired to the same position by the Indianapolis Colts on
Monday. Pittsburgh finished 12th in the NFL in yards in 2011 but
just 21st in points scored.

The 45-year-old Haley went 19-26 in two-plus seasons with the
Chiefs, leading them to the 2010 AFC West title.

Haley spent 10 seasons as an assistant before being hired by
Kansas City. He was offensive coordinator for Arizona in 2007-08,
helping lead the Cardinals to their only Super Bowl appearance.

The calendar year of 2011 wasn’t too kind to the Kansas City Chiefs. Things didn’t start well and then they ended just as abruptly at the end of the 2011 regular season. Here’s a review of what the Kansas City Chiefs did in 2011 from January to December.

Playoff Loss

The Baltimore Ravens came into Arrowhead Stadium and defeated the Chiefs 30-7 back on Jan. 9. The first AFC West title in years was short-lived. The Chiefs were actually ahead 7-3 after a 41-yard touchdown run by Jamaal Charles. Then the Ravens scored 27 unanswered points to leave the home fans wishing for next year.

First Draft Pick

Jonathan Baldwin out of Pittsburgh was the first round draft choice of the Chiefs in April. He is seen as another big-play receiver to give some help to Dwayne Bowe downfield. ESPN reported in mid-August that Baldwin hurt his fist in a locker room fight with running back Thomas Jones. Baldwin would sit out a month while his fist healed. Kansas City got nine draft picks overall. Outside linebacker Justin Houston came around later in the season to have an impact on defense.

Clocks Cleaned

The Chiefs got their clocks cleaned on opening day at Arrowhead Stadium. The Buffalo Bills defeated Kansas City by a score of 41-7. The Chiefs didn’t score until the first half was almost over. The Bills had a 20-7 lead at halftime.

Todd Haley Fired

Head coach Todd Haley was fired Dec. 12 after a disappointing 5-8 start to the season. The Chiefs started out 0-3 and then improved to 4-3 before enduring a four-game losing streak. The inconsistency in the season was enough for general manager Scott Pioli to fire Haley and promote defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel to interim head coach.

Spoiled Perfection

A week after Haley’s last game against the Jets, Crennel’s squad defeated the Green Bay Packers. The win ended the Packers’ 19-game winning streak dating back to last season. The 19-14 win gave fans hope that the Chiefs’ slim playoff hopes would come to pass. The next week, a 16-13 loss to the Oakland Raiders meant Kansas City would miss the playoffs just a year after being crowned the champions of the AFC West.

William Browning is a fan of the Kansas City Chiefs after latching on to the team during the lean years of St. Louis football. Born in the gateway city, he is also a lifelong St. Louis Cardinals fan. He currently resides in Branson, Mo.

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By Chip Rouse

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Dec 14, 2011 – Romeo Crennel has been awarded the additional title “interim head coach” to his defensive coordinator responsibilities to finish out the 2011 season for the Kansas City Chiefs. All that came about following the expected but still somewhat surprising firing of Todd Haley on Monday.

It wasn’t the dismissal itself that was surprising. Everyone who follows the Chiefs or professional football pretty much saw this coming. What caught most of us as a bit strange was the timing of the action, with only three games remaining in the regular season.

No sooner had the Haley firing become public than the speculation started about who general manager Scott Pioli and the Chiefs’ management would go after to be the team’s 13th head coach. Many fans, for sure, would prefer a big name, someone with proven NFL experience and the leadership skills to get Kansas City’s listing ship righted on the field and back on course legitimately contending for divisional, conference and, ultimately, NFL championships.

Former Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Bill Cowher, who once coached in Kansas City under Marty Schottenheimer and is now an NFL analyst for CBS Sports, Jon Gruden, former coach at Oakland and Tampa Bay, and Jeff Fisher, who was let go after last season after many years on the sidelines with the Tennessee Titans franchise, are names that quickly came up. Also St. Louis offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels and college coach Kirk Ferentz of the Iowa Hawkeyes, both of whom have past ties with Pioli. Besides, the bigger names are going to naturally want more control of the football operations, which is not something Pioli is likely to want to relinquish.

Some or all of the aforementioned list of potential candidates may be talked to by Pioli; however, public opinion seems to be leaning more favorably toward someone like McDaniels or Ferentz at this early stage in the search process.

In putting together a wish list of prospective coaching candidates, it’s easy and natural to think big. Despite the Chiefs’ mostly horrendous showing over the past decade, the head coaching job in Kansas City is still a very attractive one. The franchise has long been considered one of the better ones to work for in the league, with a popular and active owner, a tremendous fan base and a great football facility in the renovated New Arrowhead Stadium.

In considering who the next Chiefs’ head coach might be, we may be overlooking the obvious. The 66-year-old Crennel is an NFL veteran and a logical choice to assume the reins for the remainder of the season. Crennel has spent 30 years in the league, including time with both New York teams (the Giants and the Jets), the New England Patriots, with whom he won three Super Bowl rings and was the overseer and behind-the-scenes taskmaster  of Bill Belicheck’s revered defense, and the Cleveland Browns, where he spent four seasons (2005-08) as head coach.

Crennel, whose style is the polar opposite of Haley’s, was 24-40 in leading the Browns. Much like Haley’s second year with the Chiefs, Crennel guided the Browns to a 10-6 finish a year after going 4-12, but the Browns were unable to sustain their winning ways the following season, falling to 4-12, which led to Crennel’s firing.

Skeptics will argue that Crennel is not the long-term solution to the Chiefs’ coaching leadership issues, that his past performance in the lead on-the-field position portends that he is better suited in a coordinator role. I would proceed with caution if this is where your mind set, as a fan, is right now.

It’s true that the Chiefs didn’t have to think twice about putting Crennel in charge of the team following Haley’s firing. It also gave Pioli & Company good reason to make the move now until waiting till season’s end. Crennel has a good chance in these last three games to solidify his chances for top consideration as the team’s next “permanent” head coach. What Hunt, Pioli and, frankly, the rest of us would like to see isn’t necessarily wins, although that would be nice, but competitive, spirited performances, especially in the two games at Arrowhead.

The Chiefs were on life-support most of this season under Haley. Pioli wants to see how the team will respond under Crennel’s direction and alternative leadership style. Three games does not a season make, but you can be assured, if we witness a different, more positive performance out of this struggling, injury-crippled team in these final games under the interim head coach, there is an excellent chance the “interim” tag will be dropped early in the New Year.

Crennel is an NFL guy, but more important, he is Pioli’s guy. The Kansas City general manager will maintain an opened mind and surely will put out some feelers and soft soundings for the head-coach opening to keep his options open. But make more mistake, Pioli would delight in nothing more this season of giving than to be able to award Crennel the job.

“I would like to be head coach and show that I can get it done,” Crennel said in an interview with Kansas City Star sports reporter writer Kent Babb. “I know how to get it done, and I think the experience from the first time (as head coach of the Browns) will make me better the next time around.”

The decision is the Chiefs’ to make, but one thing is fairly certain, or should be. It is Crennel’s job to lose.

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The Kansas City Chiefs website unobtrusively announced Dec. 12 that head coach Todd Haley was “relieved of duties.” General manager Scott Pioli cited a “lack of meaningful progress” when dismissing the third-year coach. Then a press conference was held later in the day.

A lack of consistency in the season was also a factor in the firing. Injuries are a huge reason why the Chiefs haven’t played well. However, it was how Haley handled the preseason and lack of training camp that also may have been a reason for his firing.

Haley’s “plan” was to work on strength and conditioning during drills and preseason practice. Instead of having normal football practices like other teams, Haley went easier on his players. It showed up on the field later in the season.

Kansas City is 5-8 on the year despite the major injuries to key players like Eric Berry, Jamaal Charles and Matt Cassel later in the season. Haley may or may not have deserved to be fired mid-season. Clearly there is plenty of frustration to go around in 2011. When it comes to the general manager’s job or the head coach, the GM is the boss. He’s going to save his butt first.

If the next head coach doesn’t pan out, then Pioli’s own job may be on the line. Yet his firing may have more to do with a personality conflict than anything else. Take the counter example of the Indianapolis Colts. They haven’t won a game yet this year and head coach Jim Caldwell is the still head coach. ESPN reported Nov. 29 that Caldwell fired his defensive coordinator just days before facing the New England Patriots.

USA Today reports defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel will take over the team for the next three weeks.

Haley’s dismissal came at a perfect time, if there is such a thing for an NFL head coach’s mid-season dismissal. The Chiefs are all but out of the playoff hunt. They are about to play the undefeated Green Bay Packers on Dec. 18. If Crennel can pull off a miracle and win three games, there just might be a case for him to be hired as the head coach.

I feel bad for Haley in a way. He had some brilliant move and yet was never truly a good enough head coach. More often than not, his plan would backfire whether he had a game plan with too many passing plays or tried inexplicable trick plays to get ahead.

William Browning is a fan of the Kansas City Chiefs after latching on to the team during the lean years of St. Louis football. Born in the gateway city, he is also a lifelong St. Louis Cardinals fan. He currently resides in Branson, Mo.

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