The Family Guy

[The_Philster]

This is the first of a four-part series
previewing Buffalo Bills training camp.
Dick Jauron is a bona fide legend in his hometown of Swampscott, Mass., a community of 14,000 just 17 miles north of Boston. The old-timers there still like to reminisce about Jauron leading the high school to state titles in football and basketball. Jauron was such a great prep star, he was picked as one of the top 10 high school athletes of the 20th century in the state of Massachusetts.
Yet tales of Jauron's exploits on the field are surpassed by stories of his character off it. more (http://www.buffalonews.com/editorial/20060723/1067806.asp)

[madness]

Thanks Philster, this is an excellent read. Jauron is one class act and we are lucky to have him as a head coach. Jauron had everything against him in Chicago and was still able to muster up some success. All the haters who are quick to bring up his record and his "soft" demeanor need to read this article over a couple hundred times. I have no doubt that Dick and Marv will be able to turn everything around very quickly. The pieces are coming together and there's no where to go but up. :cheers:

"Buy the Ticket, Take the Ride." - Dr. Hunter S. Thompson


Tom Coughlin then hired Jauron to be his defensive coordinator in Jacksonville. The Jaguars made the playoffs three of the next four years, and that success helped Jauron get his head-coaching shot in Chicago.



Jauron's big break in 1999 came amid less than ideal circumstances. He was the second choice of the Bears after they tried to hire Dave McGinnis, who turned them down at the last minute. As a result, he was the last of nine coaches hired that year, which meant he got the last choice of assistant coaches.


It seemed clear that Angelo wanted to hire his own man to be coach, which happens most of the time when a new GM takes over in the NFL. Meanwhile, the Bears' offense needed fixing. Crowton left, but it was hard for Jauron to hire a top-flight replacement - ex-Browns head coach Chris Palmer turned him down - since many in the league expected Jauron to last just one more year.




Jauron was named NFL Coach of the Year, but the seeds of conflict in the Bears front office already were planted. When Jauron was hired in '99, it was written into his contract that he had control of the 53-man roster and the hiring and firing of his staff. But when Angelo was hired in '01, he also had it put into his contract that he had control of the 53-man roster. The conflict eventually was resolved in Angelo's favor. "[Angelo] wanted to fire [Jauron] after the 2001 season, but it's hard to fire the Coach of the Year," Miller said.





In 2003, Angelo traded run-stuffing defensive tackle Ted Washington before the start of the season in a controversial move. "There were moves being made to hurt [Jauron]," Villarrial said. "It was almost like sabotage."... "Honestly, that comeback in 2003 was all to save our coach's job, because people loved him so much and we played so hard for him," Villarrial said.