This just in, Mike Shanahan is the greatest coach to ever coach an NFL team. Well, if you watched the NFL Network or ESPN or read Sports Illustrated that is what you would think. I haven’t seen this much hype for an unemployed NFL head coach since Jimmy Johnson’s free agent years between Dallas and Miami. I just have to ask if we are all talking about the same Mike Shanahan here because quite honestly I just don’t get it.

Since when did this guy turn into Vince Lombardi? The Shanahan hype machine has gotten so out of control, that reports had him in the mix for the Florida job not less than an hour after the ink was dry on Urban Meyer’s resignation letter. Not only has this gotten way out of control, it is beyond ridiculous at this point. Is the NFL that hungry for a coaching story that its analysts and reporters in the media are willing to put facts aside to create a story? If we are talking about the same Mike Shanahan I have watched over the years than I can’t understand what everyone is getting all excited about.

Let’s take an objective look at Coach Mike’s NFL career, specifically in Denver. Coach Mike won two Super Bowls…with John Elway! Now I understand that it is still a heck of an accomplishment, but he had all of the tools in place when he came to Denver. Any competent NFL head coach could have driven that team to the Super Bowl. His first Super Bowl win was very impressive over the Green Bay Packers. Yet his second Super Bowl win came over an overachieving Atlanta Falcons that barring a Gary Anderson missed field goal had no business being anywhere near the championship game.

Then there was life after John. I am sorry, but I am not that impressed with Shanahan’s record from 1999-2008. He had six seasons under 10 wins. Over that entire period he only won the AFC West once. Once! It gets better. His post-season record after Elway is another story in itself. He lost all three of his AFC Wild-Card games. The year he did win the AFC West, he lost in the AFC championship game to the Pittsburgh Steelers. All in all in 10 seasons he won one playoff game. Can someone please and I am begging you, explain to me why in the world this guy is in the mix for any NFL head coaching job right now?

I think it is funny that lost in a great story are the facts. Do you know how many head coaches have won a Super Bowl with more than one team? Zero! The numbers don’t lie. In 43 Super Bowls, not one head coach has ever been able to win with one team and rebuild another program with another. I don’t think it is coincidence. I think for a lot of these Super Bowl winners, it is time and place. I think for others it is ego. You have a guy who wins a Super Bowl in one city with a G.M., who is given all of the responsibility somewhere else, and while he may be a good head coach, he is a terrible General Manager. For others, I think it is a situation where you have a stubborn head coach who is unwilling to adapt to the changes of offenses and defenses in the NFL. To think that all of the sudden the great Mike Shanahan is going to buck this trend is ridiculous. Yet, nobody ever drops this nugget of information while hyping the great coaching hope.

The betting line is that the God of NFL coaching will be going to Washington. So let me ask you this Washington Redskins fans, does this sound like Joe Gibbs all over again? I think Shanahan would do well in a situation similar like his first years in Denver, coming to a ready-made team with a proven veteran quarterback. His record shows that he is no better than an average NFL head coach at best in any other situation. NFL teams are better off giving a young coordinator or assistant coach a shot before committing millions of dollars and bad decisions to a guy that hasn’t won a big game in over a decade.

Mike Shanahan has reportedly said he is not interested in the Buffalo, Houston, or Chicago jobs. Merry Christmas Bills, Texans, and Bears fans.

Thanks to wiki for the stats.

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Eric G. Eric is the owner and editor-in-chief of the Camel Clutch Blog. Eric has worked in the pro wrestling industry since 1995 as a ring announcer in ECW and a commentator/host on television, PPV, and home video. Eric also hosted Pro Wrestling Radio on terrestrial radio from 1998-2009. Check out some of Eric's work on his IMDB bio and Wikipedia. Eric has an MBA from Temple University's Fox School of Business. More Posts - Website Follow Me:

