Mangini on a mission: Jets' rookie coach readies for takeoff From USA Today - HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. ? New York Jets rookie head coach Eric Mangini was 16 when life changed forever. His father, Carmine, was playing racquetball with older son Kyle in Cromwell, Conn., when he had a massive heart attack. Kyle performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation to no avail. "The world was turned upside down," Mangini, 35, says. His uncle Frank served as surrogate father, attending his football games and wrestling matches without fail and providing direction at a time when it was desperately needed. But the suddenness of his father's passing created an urgency to life that helps explain Mangini's standing as the NFL's youngest current head coach. "I've always thought you can't wait," Mangini says at the Jets' Hofstra University training complex. "You can't wait to say, 'Thank you.' You can't wait to say, 'I love you.' You can't wait to do the things you want to do in life. Now is the time to do it." That philosophy largely explains why Mangini jumped at the chance to leave decade-long mentor Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots to head a struggling AFC East rival that lacks a recent winning tradition and competes in one of the most demanding markets. CAST YOUR VOTE: How will Mangini and the Jets fare in 2006? Mangini succeeds Herman Edwards, who left to take the head coaching job at Kansas City after injuries decimated the Jets and New York finished with a 4-12 record. Edwards, who often struggled with clock management, nonetheless guided the Jets to the playoffs in three of his five seasons before leaving behind a myriad of problems. Quarterback Chad Pennington is recuperating from his second rotator cuff surgery in 15 months, and 33-year-old running back Curtis Martin is coming off December knee surgery. But Mangini lives too much in the moment to bide his time with the hope that a team with a less fragile roster might pursue him next offseason. "The only thing that's promised to you," Mangini says, "is what's happening now." Groomed in Belichick's mold His r?sum? points to a young man in a hurry who has done whatever necessary to succeed since an unlikely start in 1992 as head coach of the Kew Colts, an Australian semipro team with Kyle on the roster. Mangini's next stop was equally improbable, as a 23-year-old ballboy and then a public relations intern for the Cleveland Browns. "I knew that if I got into the NFL, it was going to be hard to get me out," says Mangini, who took the most basic of entry-level positions despite significant debt from student loans to attend Wesleyan University in Middletown, Conn., also Belichick's alma mater. His dedication was rewarded when the hard-driving Belichick, then Cleveland's head coach, noted Mangini's willingness to operate a massive copy machine, known as the Queen Mary, deep into the night. He hired him in 1995 as a coaching assistant. Teacher and student soon became inseparable. Mangini coached defensive backs for Belichick when the latter was Bill Parcells' defensive coordinator with the Jets from 1997-99. He remained at his side in the same capacity when Belichick took over in New England for the 2000 season and celebrated with him when he became the only head coach to rattle off three Super Bowl triumphs in a four-year span (2001-04). "It's been a steady climb," Belichick says of Mangini's career. "He's certainly a person who's pretty smart and he can do multitasks. He can keep a lot of balls in the air at the same time, and that's important in our business." In a rare display of emotion for a coach whose demeanor tends to be as gray as the hooded sweatshirts he favors, Belichick even hugged Mangini after Asante Samuel's 73-yard interception return for a touchdown during January's wild card playoff win against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Mangini describes Belichick's influence as "immeasurable." He adds, "We're obviously competitors now, but we'll always be friends." Owner Woody Johnson saw in Mangini someone who could Be Like Bill ? and something more. "You can follow the leader, but eventually you have to beat the leader," Johnson says. "You have to do something better." Nothing to be taken for granted When Mangini describes the kinds of players he and 37-year-old general manager Mike Tannenbaum covet ? smart, tough, hard-working, consistent, selfless ? it could easily be Belichick discussing his needs. Belichick prizes versatility, so it was hardly surprising during Jets minicamp in mid-June that Mangini had nose tackle Dewayne Robertson work at defensive end while defensive end Bryan Thomas drilled at linebacker. Mangini also followed Belichick's lead by inviting guest speakers to address his team, including former linebacker Roman Phifer, former quarterback Ray Lucas and decathlete Dan O'Brien. When New England visits Sept. 17, the Jets will attempt to break a six-game losing streak against their archrivals. They have not defeated the Patriots since a 30-17 road win Dec. 22, 2002. Johnson is encouraged by the performance of the Mangini-Tannenbaum tandem, who started together as Browns interns. He was impressed by their approach to interviewing prospects at the scouting combine in Indianapolis in February. Players would see themselves on tape, then be grilled by the new regime as to their responsibilities and those of their teammates during that sequence. The intensity of the interview stunned Johnson. "I was floored when I saw how they were handling stuff. I felt for the players," he says. "But they didn't do anything that a player won't face eventually." Various obstacles to overcome Much of Belichick's success in New England revolves around his commitment to stockpiling sound players at the expense of marquee value. The Jets followed suit when they rejected the heavy price New Orleans was asking to move up to second in the April draft and take Heisman Trophy-winning running back Reggie Bush. They took premier left tackle D'Brickashaw Ferguson fourth overall and added another potential building block in center Nick Mangold, who went 29th. "I would consider it infrastructure," Tannenbaum says. "These are two guys who will hopefully play here at a high level for a long period of time, and they are our type of guys." Quarterback Kellen Clemens, a second-round pick, ran the first-team offense to begin minicamp, underscoring Mangini's intention to open every position to competition once training camp begins July 28. Pennington, who is making strides in his second comeback from rotator cuff surgery, acknowledges the team faces uncertainty that stems from more than the precariousness of his condition. "We can't be concerned about the past. We don't know what the future holds," he says. "So you want to concentrate on the now because that is the only thing you can control." Linebacker Matt Chatham, who joined receiver Tim Dwight in being signed from New England as free agents, is confident the Jets will eventually take off under Mangini. He knows there is much to prove, though: "Credibility comes with winning."
I've taken the liberty of adding a "NY Jets Fan" Edit to the document below. My revisions are in CAPS...
KOZ, your version was great. I think you should submit an article to the KC Chiefs yearbook this year; it would be great.
:up: , I give him all the credit in the world. He truly worked his way from the bottom-up instead of others who are entitled to a position for one reason or another. I hope he learns his current position as fast as he's learned his previous one's, b/c that means will be a force in a few years Our team is going to have some rough times ahead, I hope he keeps his resolve and gets our team on the right path by the end of the season.
If the preparation before (and performance during) the first game of the year vs. Tennessee is light years different from last year's debacle vs. K.C., even if the end results are the same, I will take it as a good sign that the future is rosier than it appeared on Jan. 1, 2006. While one game will not set the direction for this franchise in the Mangini era, I think we'll find out pretty soon whether this new CS and FO get it or they don't. Losing because of a lack of talent is one thing; losing because we have no f'in clue what's going on around us is different.
ONE year as a db couch and then ONE year as a DC is not what i would call "woking his way up". There are guys that are coordinators for 15 years and dont get this opportunity. He is a potential guy, I hope he fufills it. As Chad "Noodle Arm" Pennington said, 'potential is another word for you havent done anything yet'
I am getting tired od hearing CHAD talk. It is time he either does it on the field over the course of a full season or quit!
I've been with the team a long time, I can tell you that. Now hand me my cane and my dentures, will you. And a sweater. The Air-Conditioning is set on 78 degrees, and it's freezing in here.
Everything you said about Herman was just great and it was all true and very funny too. I am not so sure about what you said about Chad. He was playing well until he hurt his shoulder and came back and played hard until he hurt it again. Having strong arm doesn't make you a good QB like Jeff George and others, just like having a weak arm doesn't make you a bad QB. It's what you do overall that counts. And having a HC and OC like Hackett adn Herman isn't going to help you either. The other teams figured out the Hackett/Herm offense after 2002 season and that would have hurt not just Chad but any other QB.
I'm sorry, as much as I dislike Herm, I cannot subscribe to this notion of 'backing into the playoffs'. NFL teams have to be competitive to reach the playoffs, and three times is no fluke. Herm is what Herm is. A motivator and a game-time manager of personnel. He led the Jets to the postseason three separate times, whether people want to admit that fact or not. However, that is all I think he will be capable of ever doing until he actually forms a plan to build a team instead of just letting other people take care of that while he smiles for the camera. My problems with Herm are his inflexibile hard-headed refusal to work on game management, his love of the media's attention, his casual approach to coaching a near-billion dollar operation, and the snake-like way he slithered out the back door to escape his mess and get a better job... or at least one that will mask his faults long enough to get him a few more tens of millions of dollars.
Sorry good chappie- but I must take issue here. You and I might be thinking along different lines as to what a game time manager of personnel is. To me, it's someone who goes into a game with a certain structure to his roster, but will tweak it as time goes on, so as to make up with the demands of the game. Substituting players, trying new schemes, playing the rookies who can only prove themselves with meaningful playing time, not time spent on the practice field. Herm did none of this. And I take issue with the motivator comment too. Herm was a bullshitter, and a preacher, but I did not see him motivating this team to do great things. What he did was motivate folks to take days off in pre-season, to skip mandatory workouts and walk into the pre-season in less than top form. Herm was a players coach, and his "speeches" sounded great at 11:30 AM on the day of a game (CBS 2)- but a true motivator would guide his teams to greatness due in large part to his players believing in him, the system and their future- this team doesn't yet have that identity. Sorry byz- I normally agree with most of your posts- I just have a real ax to grind with our recently-departed "coach," who should have never stepped foot in Weeb Ewbank Hall.
Johnson is encouraged by the performance of the Mangini-Tannenbaum tandem, who started together as Browns interns. He was impressed by their approach to interviewing prospects at the scouting combine in Indianapolis in February. Players would see themselves on tape, then be grilled by the new regime as to their responsibilities and those of their teammates during that sequence. The intensity of the interview stunned Johnson. "I was floored when I saw how they were handling stuff. I felt for the players," he says. "But they didn't do anything that a player won't face eventually." I think back in the day, Herm and Bradway would have done this much differently, Herm: "so Terry, what do you think of this guy?" Terry: "I dunno Herm, maybe we should check the ganggreen,com website, those guys scout these players all year round" Herm: "good idea Terry, lets do that" :breakdance:
KOZ, your posts about Herm are dripping with bias, not that I blame you. Herm is a weasel and a shameless showman, but his players came out with clutch ferocity many times in the face of badly-managed games (I never said he was good, only stated the only two duties I witnessed him actually perform on a consistent basis for better or worse) and overcame a lot of the time. Yes, many of the mistakes they overcame were Herm's, but they were playing for the guy. You disregard one of the most important aspects of being a HC: the trust of your players. Herm may have been a snake oil salesman, but he sold a hell of a lot of cases of that stuff to his guys, and the placebo worked. Well enough to overcome* bad personnel management, bad time management, and an overall sense of apathy concerning the long-term well-being of the team. Different kinds of motivation work different ways. The perception I've encountered recently that states the veterans were running the ward while the head orderly was out on an extended smoke break is another fallacy. We never would have won a game. Herm's brand of leadership, for lack of a better term, to me seems to be more that of a disenchanted CEO of a company with deep pockets. Kind of like the Kenneth Lay of football. He achieved his goal, although we didn't want that goal. And while I think it's a despicable way to run a team, he seems to achieve fantastic success at it. So much so that he has the the majority of the media wrapped around his finger. * I use that term loosely as it did not happen much in the playoffs
