In big win, Chiefs find a leader in Romeo Crennel

[Hammock Parties]

This is dangerous. Chiefs players are lobbying openly for Crennel to get the job.

64-year old interim head coaches don't win shit in this league.

http://www.kansascity.com/2011/12/18...-a-leader.html

Rookie linebacker Justin Houston grabbed an orange bucket of blue Gatorade and followed a pack of co-conspirators to drench the Chiefs’ new head coach. Romeo Crennel took it, smiled and clapped.

Running back Le’Ron McClain strutted toward Arrowhead Stadium’s west end zone, dropped his helmet around the 25-yard line, and joined five or six teammates in high-fiving and hugging delirious fans.

Crennel missed it. By this time, he was making his way off the field, wiping away tears.

The Chiefs stunned the football world by beating the previously undefeated Packers 19-14 on Sunday, the most shocking outcome in the NFL this season and in Kansas City for longer than that, one that we all might look back on in a few years as the day the franchise’s direction changed.

Three critical developments, in ascending order of importance, emerged from Sunday’s improbable upset: The Chiefs maintained a sliver of playoff hope, reminded a city that football can be fun and almost certainly found their new head coach.

“We treated this as our Super Bowl,” running back Dexter McCluster said. “This was our Super Bowl. You could feel that positive energy.”

What the Chiefs accomplished on Sunday is now the talk of the league. The Packers are still the prohibitive Super Bowl favorites, owners of the second-longest winning streak in NFL history, the model franchise for 31 others trying to build sustainable and long-term success. They’d won 19 straight and came in averaging nearly 36 points per game.

Juxtapose that with an organization in disarray. The Chiefs hadn’t scored more than 10 points since October and have lost five times by 27 points or more — one away from the most since the NFL and AFL merged in 1970.

This last week started with head coach Todd Haley being fired. Kyle Orton, cut by the Broncos a month ago, became the Chiefs’ third starting quarterback of the season. Injuries continue to expose an inexcusable lack of depth.

Nobody wondered whether the Packers would beat the Chiefs as much as they wondered just how badly the Packers would beat the Chiefs.

Then a funny, fun and completely unpredictable thing happened: The Chiefs led for all but 4 minutes, held the Packers to their fewest points and yards since last season, shut down Super Bowl MVP Aaron Rodgers and beat the defending world champions.

It can’t be as simple as Tyler Palko sitting, and the plainly capable Orton playing, can it?

Because even before this, Crennel figured to drop the “interim” from his new title as head coach after Haley’s firing.

But now, after the team’s most inspired effort of the season, the Chiefs almost surely have their man. The locker room is rooting for Crennel to get the permanent job — actually, some Chiefs players are openly lobbying for it.

“Everything was different,” McClain said of the past week. “More meeting time. More football time. Learning your opponent better, understanding your opponent. I know I watched more film this week than I watched all year. Everything was different, man. Good different.”

Especially after Haley openly admitted the Jets were better prepared than the Chiefs last weekend. What you hear from players now is both an indictment of the past and endorsement of the future with Crennel.

McCluster: “I know everybody in this locker room will fight for him.”

Receiver Terrance Copper: “He doesn’t give us a reason not to play hard for him.”

Running back Thomas Jones: “He’d be a great choice for us.”

Receiver Steve Breaston, a noted Haley supporter, even referred to Crennel’s nickname after the game on Twitter: “Yeah by the way … Rac City!!!!”

The descriptions of Crennel are a general sketch of what owner Clark Hunt and general manager Scott Pioli say they want in a head coach.

Crennel treats everyone with respect. He is obsessed with details, with fundamentals, with the kind of preparation that means the Chiefs know their opponents better than the other way around.

Crennel makes his own decisions (Orton found out he was starting Sunday’s game before Pioli did) without being insubordinate. He gives credit to his players first, his assistants second and himself never.

“I was just standing on the sideline,” he said. “That’s all I did today. They got it done.”

The parallels are too many to ignore. Crennel is consistent. He is dedicated. You will never see him take the kind of unsportsmanlike-conduct penalty that Haley drew in his last game.

Crennel went 24-40 over four seasons in Cleveland, but you know that Bill Belichick was also fired by the Browns before taking over the Patriots.

Pioli believes in guys he’s worked with, guys who’ve been in his system before. He believes that smart and motivated people get better with experience and can learn from mistakes.

In other words, Crennel fits.

The immediate impact of the Chiefs winning his first game in charge is kind of fun and mostly obvious. Green Bay’s perfect season is over. The Chiefs can still claim a mathematical shot at the playoffs.

A fan base is truly encouraged for the first time since that Monday night win over the Chargers, when the Chiefs improved to 4-3 and receiver Dwayne Bowe spray-painted his shoes and a dozen or so teammates put on “Scream” masks to celebrate on Halloween.

But it’s the other stuff that is more important, the other stuff that the players seem to know gives this a chance to be more than a temporary reprieve like their win in Chicago two weeks ago.

The feeling is entirely different this time. Some of that is Orton, who ran the offense well enough to knock off an opponent that hadn’t lost in more than a year.

The bigger part is Crennel, and a genuine vibe in the locker room that this team has found the right coach to make a still-promising future become reality.

[The Franchise]

If he gets hired....then he better bring in a capable OC and a young DC to learn from him. And I don't ****ing mean Josh McDaniels either.

[htismaqe]

Originally Posted by ct

Very solid points!!

The Haley hire was a mistake, done very late in the game, so to speak. If he really turned out to hate him, but then couldn't fire him cause of our mirage of an AFC West Title season, then yet again he's put himself in a no-win situation, dicatated FOR him. I think at this point, he's gotta be prayin Romeo get this team to perform as well these last 2 weeks to justify hiring him, or an epic fail to justify not. Anything in between, and he may be writing his own farewell legacy.

I think there's at least some validity to the idea that Crennel was brought here in case this type of scenario were to occur. In other words, he was going to be the HC at some point, regardless.

[BigRichard]

Originally Posted by htismaqe

Herm said this morning that he thinks Romeo already has the job sewn up.

The Chiefs need to re-sign Bowe - what if Bowe really wants Romeo?

It's a horrible situation to be in. All the more reason to not make hasty changes in the middle of a lost season. Now you might be stuck with a guy that's not your first choice.

I would probably agree with Herm here. The reason I say this is because if you look how Romeo was talking about the QB change to Orton and how if Orton continues to play good it could be permanent. He is talking like he will be the one making the call next year. If it isn't the case it seems like he is acting very much like it will be.

[Sofa King]

Originally Posted by Pestilence

If he gets hired....then he better bring in a capable OC and a young DC to learn from him. And I don't ****ing mean Josh McDaniels either.

This. Very much this.

Although you forgot to mention QB, but i think that's a given.

[The Franchise]

Originally Posted by htismaqe

I think there's at least some validity to the idea that Crennel was brought here in case this type of scenario were to occur. In other words, he was going to be the HC at some point, regardless.

Crennel probably told Pioli that when he was brought in. He wasn't going to accept the DC job unless he would get a shot at the HC job down the line.

[Red Brooklyn]

Originally Posted by Pestilence

If he gets hired....then he better bring in a capable OC and a young DC to learn from him. And I don't ****ing mean Josh McDaniels either.

Sweet Chocolate Jesus, this! One hundred times this.

[Baby Lee]

Originally Posted by 'Hamas' Jenkins

I don't know why you'd put any in either.

degrees of credence =! dispositive.

You know, for a guy who seems to constantly decry 'binary thinking' you offer very little regarding building a successful franchise beyond 'suck as hard as you can for a year and grab the best college QB in the draft, rinse and repeat until it sticks.'

It may be contrary to Chiefs history, giving you a patina of indie cred, but it's as simplistic as any other autodidact on here.

[The Franchise]

And I'm not lobbying for Crennel to get the job either. I'd rather have someone from outside the tree. But after this week....it's almost a foregone conclusion that RAC gets the job. There are a few things (which I've stated above) that will need to happen.

1. Hire a capable OC (not McDaniels)
2. Hire a young up and coming DC.
3. Draft a QB in the 1st round next year.
4. Cut Matt Cassel.
5. Re-sign Orton. (optional)

[Hammock Parties]

Originally Posted by Phobia

You told me to find old SuperBowl winning coaches. I gave you three. .

No, I didn't.

Here is what I said:

Find me a 64-year old interim head coach who went on to win a SB.

Doesn't exist.

You can find a few guys who were already on staff and promoted to HC after the previous HC left (John Madden, George Seifert), but they were ALL under 50.

There's 0 reason to believe Crennel could win a Super Bowl here as HC.

And we haven't even discussed the worst part of hiring Crennel - we'll need a NEW head coach in four, maybe five years MAX when he retires.

Bad ****ing idea.

[Fritz88]

In Romeo's first conference, he says that a new HC has to be able to hire his own coaches.

If RAC gets the job and Pioli forces McDainles on him, we have a problem.

[durtyrute]

KEEP ROMEO

Originally Posted by Omega

There's 0 reason to believe Crennel could win a Super Bowl here as HC.

There's zero reason to believe anybody but Hank Stram will win a superbowl in KC because that's what 50 years of NFL history has taught us. Somebody get to work raising that man from the dead.

[LOCOChief]

Originally Posted by Omega

And we haven't even discussed the worst part of hiring Crennel - we'll need a NEW head coach in four, maybe five years MAX when he retires.

Bad ****ing idea.

unless there are no attractive candidates this year to choose from, I don't see any worth going against the grain of the team at the moment.

Someone will develope / surface of the course of the next couple of years if not within this organization. You know Pioli / Clark would concern themselves with the same issue.

This young team has seen considerable change, maybe Romeo is stability if just for the time being.

[htismaqe]

Originally Posted by Omega

And we haven't even discussed the worst part of hiring Crennel - we'll need a NEW head coach in four, maybe five years MAX when he retires.

If they bring Cassel back and don't get a real QB, we'll need a new HC AND a new GM in TWO.

[Hammock Parties]

Originally Posted by htismaqe

If they bring Cassel back and don't get a real QB, we'll need a new HC AND a new GM in TWO.

Yep.

If Crennel is hired and we don't bring in a young QB we're just waiting for these clowns to get fired.

Waste of time.