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Todd Bowles gets a honeymoon, but it'll be shorter than most
2h
Rich Cimini, ESPN Staff Writer
With his first training camp as an NFL head coach fast approaching, Todd Bowles reached out Sunday to one of his mentors, Bill Parcells. The conversation wasn't football-centric, per se, but the Hall of Fame coach left Bowles with a piece of advice as he prepares to attack one of the sport's lightning-rod jobs -- HC of the New York Jets.
"The last thing I said to him was, 'Your job right now is to get the right 53 on your team,'" Parcells said Monday.
If it were only that simple.
Todd Bowles' style is a big change from Rex Ryan, but ultimately all that matters is the number in the win column. AP Photo/Julio Cortez
Unlike most first-year coaches, Bowles is stepping into a win-now project. This isn't a rebuilding situation, with a rookie quarterback, a green roster and modest expectations. The Jets have a veteran team and the highest cash payroll in the league ($165 million, according to ESPN Stats & Information), and you can bet owner Woody Johnson -- after four straight years out of the playoffs -- isn't dreaming of a .500 season.
Neither are the players. Stars such as Darrelle Revis and Brandon Marshall didn't come to the Jets to endure a season of growing pains from quarterback Geno Smith, as the two previous teams did. They're 30 and 31, respectively, so they understand that a better tomorrow isn't promised in the NFL. It creates an unusual dynamic for Bowles: a rookie coach leading a seasoned team.
"When you go into a season, you're trying to win a division and go to a Super Bowl, regardless of the pieces you have and don't have," Bowles said in a phone interview. "If you don't have that mindset coming in, as a player or coach, you don't need to be here.
"It's not 'win now,'" he added. "It's trying to win every year."
No one is predicting the Jets, coming off a 4-12 disaster, to win the AFC East -- but they're expected to be in the wild-card hunt. And they should be, considering the players they acquired in the offseason. There's no built-in alibis for Bowles in terms of the roster. He's not starting a rookie quarterback, as Rex Ryan did in 2009 with Mark Sanchez. He also isn't starting a surgically repaired quarterback, as Eric Mangini did with Chad Pennington in 2006. Bowles' two predecessors made the playoffs in their first season. Make that three, as Herm Edwards did it in 2001.
Can Bowles continue the trend?
"He's a pretty sharp guy. I don't think he'll get distracted," Parcells said. "He has a good player's mentality, meaning he has the ability to move on to the next play, so to speak. You can't get distracted in that job. That's one of the hardest things for inexperienced people to understand, but Todd is pretty focused and determined."
One of the encouraging signs about Bowles is that he seems immune to outside noise. He said he doesn't give a hoot about what people are saying and writing about his team, which leads you to believe he won't be affected by criticism. Some coaches say they operate in an impenetrable shell, but they're full of you-know-what because -- under stress -- they change and start acting as if they're listening to strange voices. In Bowles' case, you actually believe him.
An early concern, though, is whether he has the take-charge personality to command a room and lead a team. We've already established he's the anti-Rex, but that's hardly a strike against him. After all, how many championships has Ryan won with his bombastic style?
Nevertheless, Ryan was beloved by his players. The soft-spoken Bowles has to win them over with his own personality and approach. He's responsible for leading 53 men -- the right 53, as Parcells would say -- and making them into a cohesive, overachieving unit.
"Don't worry," said Parcells, who hired Bowles to his Dallas Cowboys coaching staff in 2005 and later brought him to the Miami Dolphins. "It may not be loud, but it will be to the point. He'll get his point across."
In his day, Parcells was loud and confrontational, traits he felt were necessary to do his job. Bowles is neither. He's a plain-talking coach who uses his words economically; he expects his players to listen the first time, regardless of the decibel level.
"I can't even come close to Bill or try to be Bill -- nor do I want to be," he said. "This is my first year, he's a legend. I'm trying to make my way, my own way in this league."
Defensively, the Jets will be just fine with Bowles; no need to worry about that. The greatest challenge will be on the offensive side of the ball -- specifically, navigating a potentially volatile quarterback controversy. Smith will open camp as the the first-team quarterback -- the first practice is Thursday -- but Ryan Fitzpatrick is lurking. The players are behind Smith, but they'll get impatient if his turnover issues resurface.
Handling a tense quarterback situation is one of the most important aspects of the job, especially in the New York market. It wasn't one of Ryan's strengths, and we saw what happened. No one knows if Bowles will be any better; this is uncharted territory. He will lean heavily on offensive coordinator Chan Gailey, 63, who returns to the NFL after a three-year hiatus.
"I really like Gailey, assuming he hasn't lost his fastball," a longtime personnel executive said. "He can coach around the quarterback. He won't let the quarterback lose games."
If the Jets can get past their quarterback issue -- OK, that's a big if -- they have January potential. If they're not at least 8-8, the season will be a disappointment, rookie coach and all. Yes, Bowles gets a honeymoon period. But, considering the circumstances, it's more like a half-moon.
2h
Rich Cimini, ESPN Staff Writer
With his first training camp as an NFL head coach fast approaching, Todd Bowles reached out Sunday to one of his mentors, Bill Parcells. The conversation wasn't football-centric, per se, but the Hall of Fame coach left Bowles with a piece of advice as he prepares to attack one of the sport's lightning-rod jobs -- HC of the New York Jets.
"The last thing I said to him was, 'Your job right now is to get the right 53 on your team,'" Parcells said Monday.
If it were only that simple.
Todd Bowles' style is a big change from Rex Ryan, but ultimately all that matters is the number in the win column. AP Photo/Julio Cortez
Unlike most first-year coaches, Bowles is stepping into a win-now project. This isn't a rebuilding situation, with a rookie quarterback, a green roster and modest expectations. The Jets have a veteran team and the highest cash payroll in the league ($165 million, according to ESPN Stats & Information), and you can bet owner Woody Johnson -- after four straight years out of the playoffs -- isn't dreaming of a .500 season.
Neither are the players. Stars such as Darrelle Revis and Brandon Marshall didn't come to the Jets to endure a season of growing pains from quarterback Geno Smith, as the two previous teams did. They're 30 and 31, respectively, so they understand that a better tomorrow isn't promised in the NFL. It creates an unusual dynamic for Bowles: a rookie coach leading a seasoned team.
"When you go into a season, you're trying to win a division and go to a Super Bowl, regardless of the pieces you have and don't have," Bowles said in a phone interview. "If you don't have that mindset coming in, as a player or coach, you don't need to be here.
"It's not 'win now,'" he added. "It's trying to win every year."
No one is predicting the Jets, coming off a 4-12 disaster, to win the AFC East -- but they're expected to be in the wild-card hunt. And they should be, considering the players they acquired in the offseason. There's no built-in alibis for Bowles in terms of the roster. He's not starting a rookie quarterback, as Rex Ryan did in 2009 with Mark Sanchez. He also isn't starting a surgically repaired quarterback, as Eric Mangini did with Chad Pennington in 2006. Bowles' two predecessors made the playoffs in their first season. Make that three, as Herm Edwards did it in 2001.
Can Bowles continue the trend?
"He's a pretty sharp guy. I don't think he'll get distracted," Parcells said. "He has a good player's mentality, meaning he has the ability to move on to the next play, so to speak. You can't get distracted in that job. That's one of the hardest things for inexperienced people to understand, but Todd is pretty focused and determined."
One of the encouraging signs about Bowles is that he seems immune to outside noise. He said he doesn't give a hoot about what people are saying and writing about his team, which leads you to believe he won't be affected by criticism. Some coaches say they operate in an impenetrable shell, but they're full of you-know-what because -- under stress -- they change and start acting as if they're listening to strange voices. In Bowles' case, you actually believe him.
An early concern, though, is whether he has the take-charge personality to command a room and lead a team. We've already established he's the anti-Rex, but that's hardly a strike against him. After all, how many championships has Ryan won with his bombastic style?
Nevertheless, Ryan was beloved by his players. The soft-spoken Bowles has to win them over with his own personality and approach. He's responsible for leading 53 men -- the right 53, as Parcells would say -- and making them into a cohesive, overachieving unit.
"Don't worry," said Parcells, who hired Bowles to his Dallas Cowboys coaching staff in 2005 and later brought him to the Miami Dolphins. "It may not be loud, but it will be to the point. He'll get his point across."
In his day, Parcells was loud and confrontational, traits he felt were necessary to do his job. Bowles is neither. He's a plain-talking coach who uses his words economically; he expects his players to listen the first time, regardless of the decibel level.
"I can't even come close to Bill or try to be Bill -- nor do I want to be," he said. "This is my first year, he's a legend. I'm trying to make my way, my own way in this league."
Defensively, the Jets will be just fine with Bowles; no need to worry about that. The greatest challenge will be on the offensive side of the ball -- specifically, navigating a potentially volatile quarterback controversy. Smith will open camp as the the first-team quarterback -- the first practice is Thursday -- but Ryan Fitzpatrick is lurking. The players are behind Smith, but they'll get impatient if his turnover issues resurface.
Handling a tense quarterback situation is one of the most important aspects of the job, especially in the New York market. It wasn't one of Ryan's strengths, and we saw what happened. No one knows if Bowles will be any better; this is uncharted territory. He will lean heavily on offensive coordinator Chan Gailey, 63, who returns to the NFL after a three-year hiatus.
"I really like Gailey, assuming he hasn't lost his fastball," a longtime personnel executive said. "He can coach around the quarterback. He won't let the quarterback lose games."
If the Jets can get past their quarterback issue -- OK, that's a big if -- they have January potential. If they're not at least 8-8, the season will be a disappointment, rookie coach and all. Yes, Bowles gets a honeymoon period. But, considering the circumstances, it's more like a half-moon.