Head Coaching Candidate: Lovie Smith

[jpdex12]

I at first was not up for the thought of Lovie Smith being the next HC of the Bills but after researching his history, I actually would welcome him as the next HC of the Bills. His track record isn't as bad as you think and the potential he carries is promising.

2004
First year with the team. Bears go 5-11. Injury to starting QB Grossman hampers team. Bears defense improves from 22nd in the league to 13th.

2005
Bears record 11-5 and lost Grossman to injury. Bears' defense allowed the least points in the league. Bears lost thier divisional game after a 1st round bye.

2006
Bears go 13-3 and lose in the Superbowl. Bears held the 2nd ranked scoring offense in the league and 5th ranked defense.

2007
Record was 7-9. Inconsistant QB play, no run game with Benson and a lot of Oline injuries hurt their record.

2008
Finished with a record of 9-7 with two of those 7 losses coming in OT. FA QBs battled for the starting job as did the RB position. Weak line hurts team.

2009
Record of 7-9. Traded for Cutler this year and lacked any threat at WR. Oline still ailing.

2010
11-5 record and lost in the NFC Championship game.

2011
finished 8-8 after starting 7-3. Lost starting QB Cutler to injury.

2012
Started 7-1 and finished 10-6. Just missed a wild card game.

Jairus Byrd's father, Gil Byrd, was Smith's DB coach. Rusty Jones is the Strength and Conditioning Coordinator at Chicago and he came from the Bill's organization after 20 years. Under Jones was strength and conditioning coach, Jim Arthur, who got his start with the Bills the year Jones left.

Smith ran the Tampa 2 4-3 defense. We run a 4-3 defense now. He had solid defensive players on that team and we have some of those key defensive elements that Lovie had with Chicago. We have a strong O line and running backs.

Smith had an 84-66 overall record with 3 divisional champ seasons and two appearances in teh NFC Championship with one with and a Superbowl appearance.

If you go back and look at the Bears' drafts, they sucked. You probably can't pin that all on Lovie but we have a decent draft evaluator in Nix and Whaley. Nix was a major reason the Chargers turned around from a losing football team to a rebuilt, winning team. In 2004, three players Nix drafted were selected to the 2005 Pro Bowl (http://www.billszone.com/wiki/2005_Pro_Bowl). In 2005, six players Nix drafted were selected to the 2006 Pro Bowl (http://www.billszone.com/wiki/2006_Pro_Bowl). In 2006, eleven players Nix drafted were selected to the 2007 Pro Bowl (http://www.billszone.com/wiki/2007_Pro_Bowl). In 2007, eight players Nix drafted were selected to the 2008 Pro Bowl (http://www.billszone.com/wiki/2008_Pro_Bowl).

I think we all know Lovie was fired because they just wanted a change in Chicago. Based on his records, I don't feel he deserved to be fired. He deserved to have beter tools to use. Angelo did nothing to help that team bolster their O line a number of years. Their draft department failed in putting talent on the team. At times Angelo seemed to only covet FAs.

Lovie is only 54 years old and he wants to be in Buffal ofrom what we have heard.

After being against this hire, I am all for it with some more thought on the choice as long as we hire a good offensive coach. Maybe Jim Caldwell for O coordinator. He coached with Lovie under Dungy and coached as the QB coach for the Colts from 2002-2009 with Manning. Their offense ranked 3rd, 2nd, 3rd, 3rd, 5th, 15th and 9th from 2002-2009 with Caldwell at QB coach. Caldwell HCed the Colts for two years when Dungy retired and he's now the OC of the Ravens.

I'd go for this!

[Novacane]

I'm warming to the thought of Lovie too. Not sure about Caldwell. Anyone can look smart when Peytons your QB

[Slim]

I liked the idea of Lovie at first, but I continue to sour on him the more I look into his coaching history.

http://www.salsports.com/SalSports/Buffalo_Bills_Now_Podcasts/Buffalo_Bills_Now_Podcasts.html

Listen to today's broadcast. Sal talks to a Bears fan about Lovie. He repeated what I've heard elsewhere. The interview starts at about the 24:30 mark. You can listen on Itunes as well.

[X-Era]

16164

Bio:

<tbody>
Date of birth
May 8, 1958 (age 54)


Place of birth
Gladewater, Texas (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gladewater,_Texas)

</tbody>

Coaching Experience:

<tbody>
1980

Big Sandy High School








1981–1982
Cascia Hall Prep




(assistant coach DB/WR)


1983–1986
Tulsa




(linebackers coach)


1987
Wisconsin




(linebackers coach)


1988–1991
Arizona State




(linebackers coach)


1992
Kentucky




(linebackers coach)


1993–1994
Tennessee




(defensive backs coach)


1995
Ohio State




(defensive backs coach)


1996–2000
Tampa Bay Buccaneers




(linebackers coach)


2001–2003
St. Louis Rams




(defensive coordinator)


2004–2012
Chicago Bears




(head coach)

</tbody>

NFL Results:

<tbody>
Team

Year
Regular Season
Post Season


Won
Lost
Ties
Win %
Finish
Won
Lost
Win %
Result


CHI (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2004_Chicago_Bears_season)
2004 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2004_NFL_season)
5
11
0
.313
4th in NFC North
–
–
–
–


CHI (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2005_Chicago_Bears_season)
2005 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2005_NFL_season)
11
5
0
.688
1st in NFC North
0
1
.000
<small>Lost to Carolina Panthers (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carolina_Panthers) in NFC Divisional Game (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NFL_playoffs,_2005-06).</small>


CHI (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006_Chicago_Bears_season)
2006 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006_NFL_season)
13
3
0
.813
1st in NFC North
2
1
.667
<small>Lost to Indianapolis Colts (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indianapolis_Colts) in Super Bowl XLI (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Bowl_XLI).</small>


CHI (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007_Chicago_Bears_season)
2007 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007_NFL_season)
7
9
0
.438
4th in NFC North
–
–
–
–


CHI (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2008_Chicago_Bears_season)
2008 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2008_NFL_season)
9
7
0
.563
2nd in NFC North
–
–
–
–


CHI (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2009_Chicago_Bears_season)
2009 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2009_NFL_season)
7
9
0
.438
3rd in NFC North
–
–
–
–


CHI (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2010_Chicago_Bears_season)
2010 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2010_NFL_season)
11
5
0
.688
1st in NFC North
1
1
.500
<small>Lost to Green Bay Packers (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Bay_Packers) in NFC Championship Game (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NFC_Championship_Game).</small>


CHI (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2011_Chicago_Bears_season)
2011 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2011_NFL_season)
8
8
0
.500
3rd in NFC North
–
–
–
–


CHI (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2012_Chicago_Bears_season)
2012 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2012_NFL_season)
10
6
0
.600
3rd in NFC North
–
–
–
–


CHI Total
81
63
0
.563


3
3
.500




Total
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lovie_Smith#cite_note-31)
81
63
0
.563


3
3
.500
–

</tbody>

Interesting Comments:

Ruben Brown:
“Awesome guy, a very spiritual man, a very fair man.” Brown continued, “Buffalo and Chicago are cousins, if not brothers, it’s the same town, in three days we all have the same weather, the wind blows more in Chicago and Buffalo gets more snow, but they’re the same, it would be a very easy transition.”


http://www.wivb.com/dpp/sports/bills_and_nfl/ruben-brown-speaks-about-lovie-smith

Brian Urlacher:
"I know there are a lot of experts in the media, a bunch of smart guys out there who know exactly what they're talking about all the time," Urlacher said. "They don't know what they're talking about. Lovie is the head coach of this football team and hopefully will be for a long time."

"He's not going to call a player out in front of the people, he'll do it privately, which is the way it should be handled," Urlacher said. "He's not one of those coaches who's going to go out there and yell and scream at you. That's just not his style and we appreciate that. We know when it's time to play, we just haven't played well. It's not his fault we haven't played well. He can't get out there and do it for us, we have to do it ourselves."
http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/blog/nfl-rapidreports/21414043/brian-urlacher-rips-bears-fans-media-for-criticizing-lovie-smith

Mike Ditka:
"If Minnesota would have lost last night and the Bears were in the playoffs this wouldn't have happened. That's a fact. So how stupid is it then? It really is stupid ... the organization doesn't need turning around like a lot of the other ones. If they want to get back to the Super Bowl, you're going to have to have the right players. Don't ask me how you get through the season without key injuries. No one hits anybody anymore, then they go out on Sunday and get hurt. What the hell do you expect?"
http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nfl-shutdown-corner/lovie-smith-fired-chicago-bears-head-coach-155256776--nfl.html

Brandon Marshall:
"Where I'm at in my career, and what I'm comfortable with, that would be a great thing to be able to be with those three guys (Cutler, Bates and Smith) for the rest of my career," Marshall said. "Hopefully it works out that way. Guys are willing to run through a brick wall for (Smith), and when you have a guy like that, it's hard to find."
http://espn.go.com/chicago/nfl/story/_/id/8794864/brandon-marshall-brian-urlacher-chicago-bears-want-lovie-smith-back-coach

"I've never had a coach come up to me and tell me what he was thinking, and be honest about that on and off the field," Marshall said. "Off the field, they expect me to communicate, and be a pro and a leader in the community. On the field, it was shocking when he walked to me and told me, 'Hey, you're one of the pieces to get us to the Super Bowl.' That says a lot. That says what they think of you, how they think of you, how he thinks of you. For him to come up to me, it made it real simple for me."
http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap2000000046612/article/brandon-marshall-entranced-by-lovie-smiths-chicago-bears

Roberto Garza:
"Coach Lovie expects you to be accountable for what you do and to do your job as any man would," said eighth-year Bear Roberto Garza (http://www.nfl.com/player/robertogarza/2504538/profile). "He treats you like a man, and you go out there knowing you're accountable for your actions."
http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap2000000046612/article/brandon-marshall-entranced-by-lovie-smiths-chicago-bears

Kevin Seifert:
"He is a hands-off disciplinarian who gathered self-motivated players and gave them space. That makes for a pleasant working environment, but as the Bears' recent history has shown, it didn't translate consistently on the field. Smith got a fair time period to take a championship step with the Bears, but in the end he could never replicate the magic of 2006. It was time to shake up the too-cozy environment a long-tenured coach tends to create."
http://espn.go.com/blog/chicago/bears/post/_/id/4681682/bears-gave-lovie-smith-a-fair-opportunity

Lovie Smith to Brandon Marshall:
"Be a man, do what's right. It's kind of as simple as that," Smith said. "There's nothing magical. Everyone knows what's right. If you make mistakes, you're gonna be punished for it. But we expect everyone here to be a man. When you're a teammate, everybody has to do their job or we're all going to fail. Guys take on that responsibility."
http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap2000000046612/article/brandon-marshall-entranced-by-lovie-smiths-chicago-bears

BB.com Interview Link:
http://www.buffalobills.com/news/art...0-e5cc98e230b0 (http://www.buffalobills.com/news/article-2/Lovie-Smith-interviews-with-Buffalo-Bills/9eca8c8a-d7bb-4665-b340-e5cc98e230b0)

Links:
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1467685-lovie-smith-former-bears-coach-would-be-perfect-fit-with-buffalo-bills
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lovie_Smith
http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2013/01/03/demand-should-be-higher-for-lovie-smith/
(http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2013/01/03/demand-should-be-higher-for-lovie-smith/)http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap2000000046612/article/brandon-marshall-entranced-by-lovie-smiths-chicago-bears
http://espn.go.com/chicago/nfl/story/_/id/8795815/chicago-bears-fire-lovie-smith-missing-playoffs

[JoeMama]

I'd take Lovie Smith over Ken Whisenhunt.

The Bears D was a perennial monster for most of his tenure.

Plus, Lovie got to the SB with Rex freaking Grossman as his QB.

Whisenhunt lucked out by virtue of having Kurt Warner and playing in the most pathetic division in NFL history.

[Slim]

I'd take Lovie Smith over Ken Whisenhunt.

The Bears D was a perennial monster for almost his entire tenure.

Plus, Lovie got to the SB with Rex freaking Grossman as his QB.

Whisenhunt lucked out by virtue of having Kurt Warner and playing in the most pathetic division in the NFL's history.

That's fantastic. Except you need to play offense too. I think I read earlier that only once in the last nine years has the Chicago Bears finished in the top 15 in offense.

[SquishDaFish]

Nice writeup bro. I def want Lovie if we cant get Chip/Cowher/Gruden

[JoeMama]

That's fantastic. Except you need to play offense too. I think I read earlier that only once in the last nine years has the Chicago Bears finished in the top 15 in offense.

Oh yes, please tell me again, how awesome was Ken Whisenhunt's ****ty offense when Kurt Warner took his ball and went home???

Lovie got to the big game with Rex Grossman and to the NFC Championship with Diabetes Boy.

Pair Lovie Smith up with Cam Cameron and relegate offensive duties to him.

Whisenhunt :donotwant:

[Slim]

Oh yes, please tell me again, how awesome was Ken Whisenhunt's ****ty offense when Kurt Warner took his ball and went home???

Lovie got to the big game with Rex Grossman and to the NFC Championship with Diabetes Boy.

Pair Lovie Smith up with Cam Cameron and relegate offensive duties to him.

Whisenhunt :donotwant:

If he want's to hire a Norv Turner/Hue Jackson OC then I like the hire a lot more. But history suggests he typically like to hire coaches he worked with previously.

So in 9 years he could never develop a QB, so instead the franchise traded its left arm for Cutler. And even since then they haven't cracked a top 15 offense.

Don't get me wrong KW is far from perfect. But you could argue he revived Kurt Warner's career (albeit he wanted to start Leinart over Warner). Don't forger that Warner was a big disappointment for the Giants.

One thing I really like about KW is that in the last few years, he had three coordinators get a chance at a HC gig elsewhere(Grimm, Haley got the job in KC and right now Horton is getting interest). So, he can put a good staff under him, which is a huge deal.

[jpdex12]

That's fantastic. Except you need to play offense too. I think I read earlier that only once in the last nine years has the Chicago Bears finished in the top 15 in offense. from 2004-2012 their offense ranked 32,26,2,18,14,19,21,17 and 16.

[Mr Bills]

Of course Lovie has flaws in his coaching. If he didn't, he wouldn't be available now. But its not like there are great options out there, I would take Lovie over that trailer trash pathetic excuse for a coach Wisenhunt any day of the week.

[Raptor]

Lovie had a very good QB, elite RB, elite WR, HOF LB, HOF DE, very good LB very good CBs, and a very good DT and he missed playoffs for the second straight year. On top of it it was due to an epic collapse after a 7-1 start

This is the guy everyone is drooling over?

[Slim]

Lovie had a very good QB, elite RB, elite WR, HOF LB, HOF DE, very good LB very good CBs, and a very good DT and he missed playoffs for the second straight year. On top of it it was due to an epic collapse after a 7-1 start

This is the guy everyone is drooling over?

To be fair, typically 10-6 gets you in the playoffs.

[RedEyE]

Lovie had a very good QB, elite RB, elite WR, HOF LB, HOF DE, very good LB very good CBs, and a very good DT and he missed playoffs for the second straight year. On top of it it was due to an epic collapse after a 7-1 start

This is the guy everyone is drooling over?
He's probably the best option willing to coach the Bills. Look at the candidates. Who would you recommend?

[JoeMama]

Lovie had a very good QB, elite RB, elite WR, HOF LB, HOF DE, very good LB very good CBs, and a very good DT and he missed playoffs for the second straight year. On top of it it was due to an epic collapse after a 7-1 start

This is the guy everyone is drooling over?

Very good QB?

More like a sulking diabetic quitter with a chronically poor disposition.

Jay Cutler http://i138.photobucket.com/albums/q263/JoeMama025/imagesqtbnANd9GcRI70H4SmMNSPwgYamRd-nF8BNxY9PqVGNa_tmcW9DHK4T3B1_riQt1.jpg

Lovie fielded competitive teams that advanced in the playoffs without the boon of being able to ride the coattails of a future HOFer at QB.

He's not my first second or even third choice for coach. But he's light years ahead of a retread bum like Whisenhunt.

[Raptor]

Very good QB?

More like a sulking diabetic quitter with a chronically poor disposition.

Jay Cutler http://i138.photobucket.com/albums/q263/JoeMama025/imagesqtbnANd9GcRI70H4SmMNSPwgYamRd-nF8BNxY9PqVGNa_tmcW9DHK4T3B1_riQt1.jpg

Lovie fielded competitive teams that advanced in the playoffs without the boon of being able to ride the coattails of a future HOFer at QB.

He's not my first second or even third choice for coach. But he's light years ahead of a retread bum like Whisenhunt.

When Cutler is on he's one of the best in the league

Lovie 3 playoff appearances in 9 years (1 for every 3 years) with a team and city players actually want to go too

Whisenhunt 2 playoff appearances in 6 seasons (1 for every 3 years) coaching a team that has been considered a black hole in the NFL forever and a horrible owner with a ****ty GM

The way this fan base is drastically overrating Smith over Whisnehunt is pretty hysterical

[Raptor]

He's probably the best option willing to coach the Bills. Look at the candidates. Who would you recommend?

Mike Zimmer, Hue Jackson, or Doug Marrone

[imbondz]

I like Lovie Smith. I'm more confident in his ability to win consistently than Whisenhunt. Have we ever had a black coach that we hired?

[TrEd FTW]

The way this fan base is drastically overrating Smith over Whisnehunt is pretty hysterical

The way you're drastically overrating Cutler is pretty hysterical.

[kishoph]

Smith has shown that he can lead a team to win, plus he's really never had an above average QB (the key to winning in this league). I'd be a little concerned about the late season collapses, but some of them may have been due to injuries. I think he could turn this defense into a top ten defense in a short time. As far as never having developed a QB, how much of that do you attribute that to the head coach anyway ? Every time you see a successful QB, there's 2-3 coaches that people try tying their name to him, ex. Chan Gailey and Dick Jauron with Kordell Stewart. Skill and experience are what a QB needs to develop.


I liked the idea of Lovie at first, but I continue to sour on him the more I look into his coaching history.

http://www.salsports.com/SalSports/Buffalo_Bills_Now_Podcasts/Buffalo_Bills_Now_Podcasts.html

Listen to today's broadcast. Sal talks to a Bears fan about Lovie. He repeated what I've heard elsewhere. The interview starts at about the 24:30 mark. You can listen on Itunes as well.

I don't think I would put a lot of stock into what any teams fan has to say about evaluating a coach.

[Raptor]

The way you're drastically overrating Cutler is pretty hysterical.

Right, lets knock Cutler down as far we can to make us feel better about how GREAT Lovie Smith is....good plan

[Raptor]

Mike Zimmer, Hue Jackson, or Doug Marrone


BOOM! Thank you Russ, Nix, and Whaley for not going down the same old retread route