CLEVELAND (AP) -Eric Mangini was a ball boy and wide-eyed media relations intern for the Browns the last time they won four straight games. In 1994, one year before Cleveland’s unimaginable move as a franchise to Baltimore, Mangini’s future in the NFL seemed boundless.
Now, his time in Cleveland could be up: Mangini may not make it to his one-year anniversary as Browns coach.
Fired after the Jets completed their belly slide to the finish last season, Mangini was quickly snapped up by Browns owner Randy Lerner, who hired him on Jan. 8, 2009, hoping the coach once tabbed “Mangenius” by the New York tabloids could revive his lousy team.
Mangini has at least partially restored the Browns – just maybe too late to save himself.
he tiniest thread.
Mangini is hanging, too.
New Browns president Mike Holmgren will arrive Monday to begin an overhaul that could include Mangini’s immediate dismissal. Holmgren said on a conference call this week from his home in Arizona he has not yet decided the coach’s fate, but promised he wouldn’t need long to make up his mind.
By midweek, the Browns could be looking for their fifth coach in 11 years.
Holmgren said he would weigh Mangini’s entire tenure – from January to January – and not just its parts. The former Green Bay and Seattle coach was careful not to tip his hand on his plans, but the man nicknamed “The Show” made it clear he would be the one calling all the shots.
“I get the final say on everything, which is fun,” he said, chuckling.
Holmgren doesn’t believe the Browns need to be “blown up.” He credits Mangini and his coaching staff for preparing the Browns (4-11), who have their fair share of injuries, to play every week. Holmgren said their December uprising could be a sign that the players have bought into Mangini’s program.
From the outside, it appears to Holmgren the Browns are making progress.
to really identify areas where we need to get better and then figure out what the best way to handle that is.”
Like a politician making a last-minute push in the pre-election polls, Mangini seems to have gained support in Cleveland’s locker room.
Linebacker David Bowens, who played for Mangini in New York, said many of the Browns who were unsure of the new coach now understand him better. It has taken time, but they now see the benefits of running laps during practice to cut down on penalties, and the reason why he interspersed offensive and defensive players in every other locker-room stall to build better chemistry.
“We love Eric and I think everyone’s kind of gotten used to his method of teaching, his method of coaching and it’s kind of like guys jumped (on board) and accepted that,” he said. “The results are positive and we’re down a bunch of players we didn’t have at the beginning of this year. We’ve done well with what we have.”
The Jaguars, on the other hand, gave up what they worked to get.
After beating Houston on Dec. 6, Jacksonville was 7-5 and poised to make the playoffs. But consecutive four-point losses to Miami and Indianapolis, followed by a 35-7 shellacking by New England last week, has left the Jaguars wondering what happened.
For Jacksonville to qualify, the Jaguars need to win and then need help – by the truckload.
the Jets would all need to lose for the Jaguars to sneak into the tournament. Crazier things have happened, but the Jaguars aren’t concerned about anything other than playing their best.
“To tell you the truth we’re not worried about the playoffs,” said running back Maurice Jones-Drew. “The last couple weeks we’ve broken down fundamentally, that’s from focusing on the playoffs and not taking care of our business. What we want to do this week is be fundamentally sound and be tough and play our type of football.”
Jones-Drew, who needs one touchdown to tie Fred Taylor’s team mark of 17 in one season, said even with a loss that the youthful Jags – with 16 rookies on their roster – would not be disappointed with their season.
“Nobody thought we’d be where we are with a shot at the playoffs with 40 guys brand new to this team,” he said. “To us, it’s a disappointment just the last month. We haven’t played great ball. We’ve had opportunities with our destiny in our own hands and we kind of let ’em slip away, that’s really the most disappointing part.”
Disappointment in Cleveland, a familiar feeling this time of year, has given way to optimism since Holmgren’s hiring. Browns fans are desperate for a winner and believe Holmgren, who returned the Packers to championship level and made the Seahawks relevant, can do it again.
eriod when he said he made mistakes and learned valuable lessons. He said one of his biggest regrets was not putting his own people in place immediately.
“If I had to do it all over again, I would have made immediate changes and tried to get the ball rolling a little sooner,” he said.
Holmgren is getting another shot. Mangini’s second one could be over.
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