Chiefs make a hire: Todd Haley

Spoken like a Patriots fan.

Any team trading for Cassell right now should be counseled by the league so they can stay competitive with the big kids.

 

So does that mean Herm Edwards was an impressive hire years ago?

 

I stood in front of Haley for about 40 minutes on media day last week for a profile piece. I was impressed with his passion and intelligence, but I really didn't like how he went out of his way to underscore how happy he was in Arizona, how he hadn't really gotten into this with the goal of becoming a head coach (yeah, right) and how he just couldn't conceive of leaving. Then, when some of us prodded him, he acknowledged he'd like to be a head coach.
What an awkward, silly dance. When you're a coordinator for a Super Bowl team, who might get interviewed for a better job when the game is over, just say "I really can't afford to be thinking about that now. My only focus is helping the blankety-blanks win the Super Bowl."
Spare us the tortured rhetoric about how much your wife and kids love living in blankety-blank, etc.

 

true dat, oz. geez, the two guys in the supe on sunday had zero h.c. experience, much like many other hires of the last two years. todd has been groomed by parcells, jauron and whisenhunt. he knows how to do it.

does that mean he'll be good at it? who the eff knows? but if he fails, it won't be because of the lack of experience card. you think gailey -- whom mort was trumpeting as a viable option -- would have been wiser? sheesh.

i really don't get what's happened to mort. seems like he buys anything anyone whispers in his ear these days without thinking it through. pioli NEVER EVER would have kicked off his regime by hiring a two-time loser like gailey.

 

Haley and Cassell would be fantastic together. Nothing like gambling your next five years on two guys who managed to not totally suck when surrounded by tremendous talent.

 

At this point, I'd like to see them give Thigpen another year. If he sucks, you'll have a ton of good QBs to go after in next year's draft. They can add someone via free agency like Peppers or Dansby (or both) to upgrade the D. They could draft the linebacker out of Wake or take one of the good tackles in the draft.

Really, they could go a ton of different directions because they're a little more than $37 million under the cap now. Plus, they'd be pushing $42 in free money once they cut Surtain ($3.8 mil freed up) and Donnie Edwards. If LJ goes, that's some more right there.

This is an ideal situation for someone wanting to shape a team.

 

Correct me if I am wrong on any of this...

The Patriots are holding a $14.65 million dollar bill if every other owner in the NFL can keep their hands off of Cassell.

If another team signs Cassell, they are out two firsts.

If another team trades for Cassell, they eat his $14.65 million for this season and if they do not use their franchise on him in 2010, he will become a free agent in 2010. So the team would only have Cassell for one season.

Cassell's $14.65 million cap hit is the second highest in the league? Who would be higher?

 

I'd imagine if a team were to trade for Cassell, they'd work out a long-term deal to avoid such an albatross contract.

 

Exactly. I have no more faith in Cassel than I do in Thigpen at this point. Obviously, Pioli is in a better position to see Cassel for what he is than the rest of us.

 

He's not Bill Cowher, but a solid hire.

Not sure on getting Cassell, but he would be better than any draft pick out there at QB.

They have a ton of salary cap room. Can't wait to see what Pioli is planning.

 

Peppers would be an excellent addition for Kansas City. They really missed Jared Allen.

If Matt Schaub is worth two second-rounders and a two-spot first-round swing (10 to 8), Cassel is worth a first and a second. Period.

 

No, he isn't. Luckily for the Chiefs, Pioli had a good enough look at Cassel to know that. Period.