Good morning! Can you guess what most of today's Kansas City Chiefs news is about? We have multiple points of view on yesterday's firing of Todd Haley. Interesting reads lie ahead. Enjoy.
The conclusion that had been so painfully obvious to Chiefs fans for weeks finally struck Clark Hunt and Scott Pioli on Sunday as they watched a lost season deteriorate further with a blowout defeat against the New York Jets.
Head coach Todd Haley had to go.
"This decision," Pioli said, "was going to be made at some point."
Chiefs Decide IT's Time To Fire Coach Haley from KC Star
Hunt and Pioli discussed Haley's future last week and again on Sunday night before reconvening Monday morning to make a final decision.
"As I've said many times before, our goal is to build a team that can consistently compete for championships and one that our fans can be proud of," Hunt said. "While there have been some bright spots throughout this season, it's clear to me that we were not making enough progress towards that goal."
Inconsistency At The Center Of Chiefs Coaching Change from The Mothership
NFL.com Video: Haley Out In Kansas City
NFL.com Video: Chiefs Executives Discuss Haley Firing
NFL.com Video: Reporters' View On Haley's Firing
NFL.com Video: Where Do Chiefs Go From Here?
NFL.com Video: Coaching Domino Effect
NFL.com Video: Billick Taking Calls?
The overarching point with Haley is, it's one thing to have constructive disagreement, it's another to have disharmony. If, at the end of a conversation, two people can't settle their differences and work together, the whole thing is going to fall apart. The fact that neither man could figure that out is damning to both.
But only one survives now and that's Pioli
Haley's Firing Reflects Poorly On Chiefs GM Pioli
from Yahoo! Sports
Sports talk radio and Internet chat boards have buzzed for months about the possible dismissal of Chiefs coach Todd Haley, but when the ax fell Monday, his players insisted the move came as a surprise.
"It was a little bit of a shocker," running back Jackie Battle said. "Todd is a very passionate coach and wants to win. It caught me off guard a little bit. We went to the playoffs last year and won the AFC West, but I guess the team's moving on."
Haley's Firing Surprises Players from KC Star
Q: Clark, what are you looking for in a head coach?
HUNT: "Scott and I had a brief conversation about that here in the last 24 hours, and in a lot of ways, I think some of the qualities that Todd brought to the job in terms of being a competitor, somebody who is passionate, somebody who is a good leader, somebody who is very smart, somebody who will work well with Scott, who has assured vision for the type of football players they're looking for. Those would be some of the things."
Chairman & CEO Clark Hunt/ General Manager Scott Pioli from The Mothership
Hours after Chiefs coach Todd Haley was fired Monday morning, the team's many fans set about dissecting the decision.
And while opinions varied - some thought the dismissal was overdue, others thought the coach got a raw deal - one thing was clear. If they weren't already mad about the team's 5-8 record, that 37-10 loss to the Jets on Sunday was the final straw.
Some Fan's Think Haley's Firing Overdue, Others Say Pioli To Blame from KC Star
Pioli had options among the other Chiefs assistant coaches for replacing Haley. Quarterbacks coach Jim Zorn once coached Washington. Secondary coach Emmitt Thomas was once the interim boss in Atlanta. Running backs coach Maurice Carthon also has the title of assistant head coach.
Pioli opted for Crennel for one simple reason.
"Romeo commands respect from the players in the locker room," Pioli said. "Watching how the players react and respond to Romeo had something to do with it."
Pioli Says Crennel Has Respect Of Players from KC Star
I would like to sincerely thank my coaches and my players for their commitment and loyalty throughout my time with the Chiefs.
"I would like to thank all of the great Chiefs fans. My wife, Chrissy, and I would also like to thank the city of Kansas City for welcoming us and our five children and making us feel at home.
Text Of Todd Haley's Statement from The Red Zone
Maybe the Kansas City Chiefs did me a big favor by refusing season credentials to The Examiner this season - after I had missed just five home games over the past 35 years.
It spared me the agonizing process of watching a team and its head coach implode right before our eyes.
While the fans will continue to suffer, the Chiefs put coach Todd Haley out of his misery early Monday morning by giving him his walking papers.
Haley's Exit Symbolic Of Messy Season from The Examiner
The Chiefs could go nowhere with both Pioli and Haley in the same building, so in that way, the GM essentially pulled rank.
That was the easy part. Now we get to see, once and perhaps for all, whether Pioli is the golden-boy personnel guru from his Super Bowl-winning days in New England or just one more poser taking credit and fame off the glow of Bill Belichick's star.
Because firing Haley is a meaningless delay tactic if Pioli doesn't accept and reflect on his part of the Chiefs' current mess.
Chiefs GM Pioli Due His Share Of Blame In Haley's Failures from KC Star
Surely most pro football fans have seen the footage of Lombardi, clearly agitated at some play or defensive assignment that was botched - and even years later, you can almost feel the heat he was generating in that instant.
Lombardi is waving his arms, and he screams: "What the hell's going on out here?"
That exact phrase has flitted across my mind for the past month or so, while watching the Chiefs attempt to set the NFL back to the Stone Age and wondering, well . . .
You know. What Vince said.
Does Haley Firing Really Make Chiefs Better? from FOX Sports
Todd Haley, who was fired Monday, seemed to leave the team in far better standing than he found it, and according to two top NFL minds, the leftover talent will make the job appealing for some of the league's top available names. Still, the team is one loss from clinching its fourth losing season in five years.
Despite This Year's Record, Chiefs Job Should Be Attractive from KC Star
I've been working in Kansas City and at FOX 4 for 26 years now, and am now getting ready to cover my 8th Kansas City Chiefs Head Coach. From Mackovic to Marty, from Gunther to Gansz...
...Seven head coaches in my more than a quarter century in Kansas City, and the Chiefs are still a franchise lost in the desert looking for the burning bush.
Al Wallace Blog On Firing Of Todd Haley from Fox4KC
If Bill Belichick and the Patriots were smart, they'd pounce on Romeo Crennel and welcome him back with open arms. They could offer Crennel his old role of defensive coordinator and add to that an assistant head coach title. Crennel would bring his obvious knowledge of the system and excellent defensive scheming/coaching ability to a defense really without a true leader.
Can The Patriots Woo Back Romeo Crennel To Fix The Defense from Musket Fire
San Diego ChargerscoachNorv Turnerremains on the hot seat - as does, depending on who you believe, general manager A.J. Smith.
Oakland Raidersowner Al Davis died this season.
And the Kansas City Chiefs, after their fifth loss this season by at least 27 points, fired coach Todd Haley on Monday.
Less than a year ago, the Broncos were the AFC West team in disarray. They were the team in the division without a rudder, without a top football executive and without a head coach. Now the Broncos have the most stability in the AFC West.
Denver Broncos Suddenly Are Team Stability In AFC West from The Denver Post
The Kansas City Chiefs did Todd Haley a disservice on Monday.
Not because they fired the head coach before the end of the season, but because neither the owner nor the general manager was willing to explain why.
OK, we probably didn't need reasons...
...But don't make us speculate. Come out and say why. Particularly now. With three games remaining in the season. A year removed from the AFC West championship, which the Chiefs captured two years after going 2-14.
Fans deserve answers, especially when it was Pioli who hired Haley in the first place. There's nothing to make fans believe the franchise can do any better when there is no explanation for the reasoning and timing on this move.
KC Brass Does Haley, Fans Disservice from The Topeka Capital-Journal
With few expectations, the Chiefs were one of the most creative and explosive teams last year when they had the top rushing attack in the league.
At this point in the season, every team has injuries. But even Bill Belichick would have struggled to win with this group.
Haley deserved another chance, which he should get somewhere else.
Chief Excuses Aren't Enough For Haley from The Washington Examiner
On Monday, Ferentz was dubbed a candidate for the KC vacancy by national media outlets like Sports Illustrated and the NFL Network. The Iowa Coach hadn't squashed the rumors as of early Monday evening and the talk was sure to continue unless he did.
I don't see it happening.
Sure, there's always a chance. Coaches move all of the time. Ferentz has too much going for him in Iowa City to bail on the Hawkeyes at this stage of his life and career, however.
Here are 10 reasons why he stay a Hawkeye:
10 Reasons Ferentz Stays from Hawkeye Insider
Haley is gone now and will soon be forgotten. But the Chiefs will trudge forward with a new coach. And from the reports I'm reading, it appears many of the experts believe Kansas City general manager Scott Pioli could turn to either Josh McDaniels or Kirk Ferentz as the next Chiefs coach.
Wow.
Haley's Replacement from The Wichita Eagle
Yet, in the end, last season's performance didn't buy Haley any time. According to ESPN Stats & Information, Haley joins former Minnesota coach Brad Childress and former Dallas coach Wade Phillips as coaches who were fired the season after they won their first division title.
In the end, Haley got into trouble for a few reasons. It started with the team's inability to stay in games. The blowouts got to management and to the fan base.
Plus, Haley has had a long history of having trouble getting along with people he worked with, even if they were temporary flare-ups. In addition to his reported issues with Pioli, Haley went through three offensive coordinators in Kansas City.
Haley Couldn't Keep Up 2010 Success from ESPN
The Kansas City Chiefs made the final decision to fire coach Todd Haley on Monday morning, but not with an eye toward 2012. The last-place Chiefs, at 5-8, believe there's still a chance to make the playoffs this season with interim coach Romeo Crennel at the helm.
"We're not looking to 2012," Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli told reporters Monday. "Mathematically, there's still an opportunity here."
Chiefs Eye Playoffs Under Crennel After Firing Haley As Coach from NFL.com
Over the next week or so there will be plenty of conversation and debate about Scott Pioli vs. Todd Haley. Blame will be placed on both men. We'll try to make as much sense of the situation as we can piecing together quotes and tweets and reports of secret conversations that happened four months ago between a reporter and the head coach or GM. Reporters will start releasing tidbits of information they've been sitting on for months before because they were sworn to secrecy.
Heck, it's already begun.
But what shouldn't be lost among the attention-grabbing "I knew this was going to happen all along" headlines that we will see in the next few days, is that regardless of what went down over the course of Todd Haley's tenure with the Chiefs, the axe needed to fall, and it needed to fall now.
Todd Haley Firing Was The Right Move At The Right Time from Arrowhead Addict
I pin this poor season on injuries that decimated this team. You can't expect to compete when youngsters Tony Moeaki, Eric Berry and Jamaal Charles were all lost for the season with knee injuries before October. Plus, quarterback Matt Cassel is out for the season.
So, the Chiefs have a chance to get better quickly when these players return. It's all on Pioli.
He has to ensure that the Chiefs rebound in 2012. If not, he could soon be on the hot seat.
Scott Pioli Has To Get This Hire Right from ESPN