MSNBC: Marvin Lewis heads list of coaches on hot seat

[macro]

"Heads the list"?! I think this guy is overstating it quite a bit. The Bengals are once again being mentioned as one the favorites this season, so if they go another 8-8, a lot of people won't be happy (myself included). On the other hand, it speaks volumes about what he has done, that an 8-8 record would get people upset. It hasn't been too long since 8-8 would have been reason to celebrate.

Another .500 season and ten arrests might be enough to get him run out of town, but I don't see the arrest thing repeating. <joke>No one was arrested yesterday, and so far no one has been arrested today, so that's proof right there that things have turned around. </joke>

To say that he "heads the list of coaches on the hot seat" is going WAY too far. Yes, his leash may be getting shorter, but he's a long way from being fired. I think it would take 6-10 for that to happen. Marvin Lewis will raise a Lombardi Trophy into the air someday. I hope his cap has a little bengal tiger head logo on it when he does.

I'll say that for another coach on this guy's list, as well: Jeff Fisher. The Titans would be making a huge mistake to fire one of the very best coaches in the league. Just wait to see what will happen to the Titans if he's gone.

Anyway, here's the quote about Lewis...


It looked so promising for Lewis after the 2005 season. The Bengals had won the AFC North, tossing aside years of losing and jokes from talk-show hosts to become one of the most explosive teams in the league. But when Carson Palmer was lost with a severe knee injury in the Bengals’ wild-card playoff loss to the Steelers, the franchise went into reverse. Not only did the team struggle in 2006 with an 8-8 record, the Bengals became the poster boys for commissioner Roger Goodell’s zero-tolerance policy for criminal behavior. The Bengals have had 10 players run afoul of the law since Jan. 1, 2006, and Lewis will bear the responsibility for turning the situation around. Not only do the Bengals have to return to the playoffs, but they have to change their off-the-field behavior and show that they can become solid citizens. It might not be Lewis’s fault, but the head coach is the symbol of the franchise, and owner Mike Brown never has shown the inclination to take the pressure off of his top lieutenant.


...and here's the complete article...

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19562017/

[Red Leader]

I certainly don't think Lewis is at the top of the list when it comes to NFL coaches on the hot seat, but I can agree with the column that was written about Lewis. Right or wrong, a lot of the responsibility falls on the head coach. The off field problems in the past year or so have been outrageous. That has to change, no matter what Lewis has to do to change it.

I think the Bengals will have a very good season this year, anyway, and all this talk will go away, but I am still concerned about the off field stuff.

[jimbo]

I'll say that for another coach on this guy's list, as well: Jeff Fisher. The Titans would be making a huge mistake to fire one of the very best coaches in the league. Just wait to see what will happen to the Titans if he's gone.


Jeff Fisher is one of the top 3 head coaches in all of the NFL in my opinion. The Titans would be pretty stupid to let him go, but I sure wouldn't mind my favorite team picking him up.

The fact that Lewis is considered as being on the "hot seat" just goes to show the current mentality of professional sports today. Stability and long-term vision and goals just are not a part of the equation anymore. It's all about what have done for me today. Marvis Lewis was a great find for the Bengals and the length of his leash shouldn't even be in discussion at this point.

[Yachtzee]

I find no basis for such an assumption. To say Marvin Lewis is on the hot seat is to ignore the nature of relationships Mike Brown has to his coaches. Mike Brown has always been excessively loyal to his coaches, to the point of giving Dave Shula, Bruce Coslet, and Dick LeBeau an incredible amount of slack before firing them. Based on what Marvin Lewis has done with the team in the past, I expect it would take a serious slide in the standings to even put him on the hot seat with Mike Brown. As I see it, the only folks putting Marvin on the hot seat are those in the media, and we all know how much stock Mike Brown puts in the opinions of the media. Zero, zilch, nada. So until Brown says something himself about Lewis, I wouldn't put any stock in what is said by football writers.

[Cedric]

Marvin Lewis has more job security than every other head coach in the league. Mike Brown alone will do that for you.

[Caveat Emperor]

To say Marvin Lewis is on the hot seat is to ignore the nature of relationships Mike Brown has to his coaches.

Mike Brown has shown in the past that he's willing to tolerate mediocrity. I don't think another 8-8 season would do Lewis in, though -- I think another 2 or 3 high profile player arrests will.

If for no other reason than the commish putting the thumb down on him to get his proverbial house in order.

[durl]

I don't see Fisher getting the boot in Nashville (pardon the pun). Talk about him being on the hot seat is a stretch, in my opinion.