Opinion ESPN’s Bill Barnwell rates the Saints as least desirable job for HC candidates [mod edit] (2 Viewers)

[Big_L]

You’re right. He’s Nostradumbass.

He's not this dude either!

 

[SirLoinSaint64]

If you're in the coaching profession and not an NFL Head Coach and the Saints offer you the job, you take it. Anyone who doesn't take it is either an idiot or unworthy of the job.

 

[Saint KayBee]

On the other hand, Barnwell has ALWAYS hated the Saints.

I came here to point this out, he has pretty openly disliked this franchise for at least a decade now.

I have disliked Bill Barnwell for about the same about of time, not-so-coincidentally. Many of his football opinions are noxious and he handles even mild disagreement like a spoiled toddler.

 

[St. Widge]

Agreed

It was but now with NIL deals and now corporations looming in the wings to take over college football (oh, it's in the works - LSU brought to you by Amazon), professional money is now working its way to the college world. See Bill Belichick.

But there is still more money in the NFL and basically every college coach hates the NIL system as it is currently structured with the portal. College HCs have the kiss the arse of hundreds of rich Alumni in order to get the money to buy a good team. NFL coaches just have to kiss the arse of one billionaire to get the money to buy a good team. And at least NFL coaches have the draft where you don't have to recruit them or pay more than the set salary for their draft positions.

Hell, some coaches are even contributing their own money to fund NIL deals to calm down pissed off fans. See, Brian Kelly.

And Belichick took the N. Carolina job because his agent knew that he was not going to be a serious contender for any NFL HC jobs.

 

[St. Widge]

I came here to point this out, he has pretty openly disliked this franchise for at least a decade now.

I have disliked Bill Barnwell for about the same about of time, not-so-coincidentally. Many of his football opinions are noxious and he handles even mild disagreement like a spoiled toddler.

Yeah he's a former Bill Simmons/Grantland guy so it's not surprising he hates anything not in the North East and is an obnoxious spoiled toddler.

 

[Saint KayBee]

Fun fact: two recent permanent head coaches here (Payton and Haslett) surprisingly won a division title in their first year, defying expectations after the team had a 3-13 season the year before in each case. Winning the division is markedly easier now than it was in both of those cases. Wonder if it can happen a third time next season....

Haslett had the fortune of inheriting two well-built lines, the problem on those Ditka Saints teams was more to do with basically every player on the roster who weighed less than 230 pounds not named Sammy Knight. Haz rebuilt the secondary, added speed on offense, and hired a considerable bounty of assistant coaches who got poached after 1-2 seasons, and built what became the fringe playoff team that played 16 road games in a season that one time. That ‘05 team lost three games on walkoff field goals and in two other games threw INTs in the end zone while driving to tie the game. I like to believe a normal circumstances team wins at least a couple of those, and is more competitive in some of the other losses, thus getting closer to “fringe playoff team” than “on-field disaster.”

 

[MarylandWHODAT]

But there is still more money in the NFL and basically every college coach hates the NIL system as it is currently structured with the portal. College HCs have the kiss the arse of hundreds of rich Alumni in order to get the money to buy a good team. NFL coaches just have to kiss the arse of one billionaire to get the money to buy a good team. And at least NFL coaches have the draft where you don't have to recruit them or pay more than the set salary for their draft positions.

Hell, some coaches are even contributing their own money to fund NIL deals to calm down pissed off fans. See, Brian Kelly.

And Belichick took the N. Carolina job because his agent knew that he was not going to be a serious contender for any NFL HC jobs.

I'll agree that there is a bit more in the NFL but college is catching up. And quick. What they don't publicize in the deals are the quiet "hey, here's a mansion on the lake, a car or three and country club memberships" that total in the millions. And there is more control for a college head coach than in the pro's, which is a big ego stroke for these A type personalities.

And an arse is an arse is an arse and if they are wealthier than you and I, they want it kissed.

I would say that while the NFL is the darling of coaching jobs, college is right next to them and again, catching up very quickly.

 

[southdeltan]

While I haven’t bothered to read the comments, I’m sure somebody pointed out it’s way more desirable than the year we hired Payton and signed Drew.

 

[Saint Jack]

I'll agree that there is a bit more in the NFL but college is catching up. And quick. What they don't publicize in the deals are the quiet "hey, here's a mansion on the lake, a car or three and country club memberships" that total in the millions. And there is more control for a college head coach than in the pro's, which is a big ego stroke for these A type personalities.

And an arse is an arse is an arse and if they are wealthier than you and I, they want it kissed.

I would say that while the NFL is the darling of coaching jobs, college is right next to them and again, catching up very quickly.

I don’t wanna get into a college Vs pro debate, but there is a stigma to coaches that only succeed in college.
For all of Saban’s accomplishments in Bama; he is largely known as a failure in the pro circuit.

Even with the most successful head coaches in college; they become less known as you get further from the college towns and into metro cities that house pro teams.

 

[Saint Jack]

I'll agree that there is a bit more in the NFL but college is catching up. And quick. What they don't publicize in the deals are the quiet "hey, here's a mansion on the lake, a car or three and country club memberships" that total in the millions. And there is more control for a college head coach than in the pro's, which is a big ego stroke for these A type personalities.

And an arse is an arse is an arse and if they are wealthier than you and I, they want it kissed.

I would say that while the NFL is the darling of coaching jobs, college is right next to them and again, catching up very quickly.

Winning one Super Bowl is more valuable to a career post coaching than five nattys.

 

[Saintman2884]

And a side note, I think being in a weak division is more of an asset than they’re willing to admit.
No Mahomes, Allen, or Hurts in the South.

Yeah, in terms of "Star QB's" who are playing at a Pro Bowl level, while Penix may have some great untapped potential after Kirk Cousins got benched for some terrible cumulative playing after several weeks, Baker Mayfield is probably the best overall QB right now in the NFC South.

Derek Carr, at his very best with a good supporting cast a decent O-line is probably #2. He showed us that last season and somewhat this year too .

 

[Elvis]

He’s just pointing out what many of us have expressed before. This is going to be a tough place to succeed with an aging roster, bad contracts, dead money and a GM that is safe even when he fails. If I were an in demand coach, I’d be looking elsewhere too.

 

[St. Widge]

I'll agree that there is a bit more in the NFL but college is catching up. And quick. What they don't publicize in the deals are the quiet "hey, here's a mansion on the lake, a car or three and country club memberships" that total in the millions. And there is more control for a college head coach than in the pro's, which is a big ego stroke for these A type personalities.

And an arse is an arse is an arse and if they are wealthier than you and I, they want it kissed.

I would say that while the NFL is the darling of coaching jobs, college is right next to them and again, catching up very quickly.

No doubt college HC is a good job. I'm just saying there is less arse kissing as a NFL HC, you don't have to worry about spending a lot of time on the recruiting trial, you don't have to deal with the money stuff, and you are coaching players that are supposed to be professional so you don't have to deal with as much bullshirt.

Also, there are a limited number of college jobs that pay like NFL HC jobs. So even if you include college jobs, there are probably only 60 or so of these jobs available, and some guys, like Joe Brady, didn't really like coaching in college so they are only likely to take NFL jobs.

I'm sure there are some coaches that prefer to coach in college (Saban was one before NIL), but I suspect those are guys that are less likely to be good NFL head coaches anyway.

And in the end, I'm just saying that the vast majority of guys offered an NFL HC job, especially guys that are coordinators in the NFL, are going to take the job. That and even if you can't get your top choice or two, there are plenty of good coaches out there capable of being good NFL HCs.

 

[Saintman2884]

I don’t wanna get into a college Vs pro debate, but there is a stigma to coaches that only succeed in college.
For all of Saban’s accomplishments in Bama; he is largely known as a failure in the pro circuit.

Even with the most successful head coaches in college; they become less known as you get further from the college towns and into metro cities that house pro teams.

That's because unlike his tenure at Michigan State, LSU, or Alabama, in the NFL, Saban couldn't be the absolute control-freak dictator who's will is final and can tell 3-4 star recruits back in the day to sit for a few seasons until "their turns came around". For most of Saban's NCAAF tenure, he didn't have to worry about FA, NIL, the transfer portal where good players could transfer or leave at-will to a team or rival that will start them now or sooner. To succeed in the NFL, previously successful college HC's like Pete Carroll, Jimmy Johnson, John Robinson, even Bill Walsh had to alter or change their strategies, demeanors, attitudes and opinions towards how the entire business side of the NFL works.

Saban, for all his success and accomplishments, is just too hard-wired, opinionated and resolute in his personality to ever attempt to adapt to that reality to be a successful NFL HC. Great position coach, but that's all.