John Lynch was in Honolulu for the Pro Bowl in February 2001 when he received an urgent phone message from Tampa Bay defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin. Lynch put his family vacation on hold and immediately returned his coach’s call.
“Monte told me he had good news and bad news,” Lynch said, laughing at the nearly 7-year-old memory. “He said, ‘The good news is, I found you a coach, but the bad news is, he’s a year younger than you.”‘
The precocious coach Kiffin spoke of was Mike Tomlin, who would replace Herman Edwards because Edwards was leaving Tampa to become head coach of the New York Jets. Tomlin turned 29 two months after Kiffin chose him from a pool of 30 candidates.
Lynch was undaunted that he was a 30-year-old safety being directed by a man in his 20s. Tomlin was Lynch’s position coach during his three final years in Tampa before Lynch signed with Denver in 2004.
“You just knew that this guy had a real future in the NFL and that he would someday be a head coach,” Lynch said of Tomlin, now coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Sunday night, Lynch will be a 36-year-old NFL safety looking across Invesco Field at Mile High to see the 35-year-old head coach.
“Mike just took control of the room when he was with his players,” Lynch said. “He’s young and he looks young, but he has a real presence about him.”
Tomlin has been one of the top stories of the young NFL season. The Steelers, who won eight games last season, are 4-1 under Tomlin, who was Minnesota’s defensive coordinator last season. Tomlin’s hiring – he was chosen over longtime Pittsburgh assistants Ken Whisenhunt and Russ Grimm – raised eyebrows in Pittsburgh and the league.
This is a team Chuck Noll and Bill Cowher had ruled since 1969. And it was bringing in a 35-year-old kid with no head-coaching experience? Lynch knew that patience would be fruitful for the Steelers faithful.
Lynch recalls Tampa Bay coach Jon Gruden asking Tomlin and some of the other assistants to talk to the team for a quarter of the season about a variety of topics during their Super Bowl run in 2002.
“Mike was one of the coaches he picked,” Lynch said. “He got in front of the entire team, and he was very commanding and very passionate. I had offensive linemen come up to me and say, ‘Wow, that guy is special.’ Mike was really destined to be a head coach.”
Petrino struggles in NFL
There is speculation Bobby Petrino could pull a Nick Saban and bolt back to the college game after a short pro stint.
Things have been extremely difficult for Petrino in his first NFL season with Atlanta. There is the Michael Vick fiasco, a 1-5 record and plenty of infighting.
It could get to the point where Petrino, who was the king of Louisville, could decide he is best suited for the college game. Earlier this year, Saban left the Miami Dolphins after two seasons to go to Alabama. He left Louisiana State to go to Miami.
If the Texas A&M job opens as expected, Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville could bolt for that job. Petrino nearly replaced Tuberville at Auburn a couple of years ago. Nebraska also is expected to open, and Petrino could be courted there as well. Petrino may want to give the NFL more than a one-year try, but if not, he’ll have options.
From soaring to sore
This time last year, Eric Mangini was considered one of the great young minds in the NFL. Not so now.
The Jets are 1-5 after going 10-6 last season and making the playoffs in Mangini’s first season.
Their season is all but lost, and there are grumblings. It would be unlikely Mangini would be given the gate one year after leading the team to the playoffs, but life is much more difficult for Mangini in year two.
They try harder
We’ve seen fledging pro football leagues come and go over the years, so there is no reason to think the planned All American Football League is going to be anything other than an open-and-shut case.
But you have to give the league credit. It has launched a grassroots campaign, sending mass e-mails to media members. The latest letter came via former Heisman Trophy winner Eric Crouch, who is pledging to play in the league.
This league, which doesn’t have much chance of survival, is showing some spunk. The league has touted former Broncos receivers Travis McGriff and David Kircus as players who will compete.
Around the league
Denver is poised to have an incredible sports night Oct. 29 when the Broncos host Green Bay on “Monday Night Football” and the Rockies will host Game 5 of the World Series if neither team has swept. The baseball game is set to start at 6 p.m., followed by football a half hour later. Boston sports fans recently had a similar situation on Sept. 16 when the Patriots hosted San Diego while the Yankees played at Boston at the same time, offering a pitching matchup of Roger Clemens and Curt Schilling. … How dominant has Patriots quarterback Tom Brady been against NFC opponents? He is 24-4, including three Super Bowl victories and eight consecutive wins. … Many scouts believe second-year Oakland linebacker Thomas Howard is on the verge of being a star. Howard has interceptions in his past four games. … Denver-based agent Peter Schaffer will continue a tradition started by former University of Colorado linebacker Chad Brown everytime he visited town while playing for other NFL teams. Because client Aaron Smith, the former University of Northern Colorado star, is on the Steelers, Schaffer will deliver 100 chicken Parmesan dinners from Carmine’s on Penn to the Steelers’ locker room after Sunday night’s game. Brown and Schaffer have performed the ritual through the years with Seattle, Pittsburgh and New England … Many in the league believe
commissioner Roger Goodell was blowing smoke when he said this week the Super Bowl could someday be played in London. There is just no way owners are going to allow the game’s showcase to be played overseas.
Coach on the rise
Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin is just 35 years old as he tries to continue the success of Bill Cowher and Chuck Noll, who coached the Steelers for 38 years before Tomlin took over. The following is a look at Tomlin’s fast rise up the coaching ranks.
Season Team Position
2007 Pittsburgh Head coach
2006 Minnesota Defensive coordinator
2001-05 Tampa Bay Defensive backs
1999-2000 University of Cincinnati Defensive backs
1998 Arkansas State Defensive backs
1997 Arkansas State Wide receivers
1996 University of Memphis Graduate assistant
1995 Virginia Military Institute Wide receivers
