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The Secret for Turning Around an NFL Franchise

rayzor

By rayzor,
in Carolina Panthers

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rayzor Grand Master

rayzor

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Someone on another forum I go to fairly regularly posted this article that i thought fit the situation here to see what is happening and is still needed..

It's a really good read and the principles in it easily transfer to any industry. If you're interested in leadership and growth or just like reading examples form those who have done it in the NFL it's really worth the read.

How Noll and other NFL coaches and executives who built reputations as turnaround specialists reversed the culture of losing can provide a road map for the Browns. Names such as Marv Levy with Kansas City and Buffalo; Marty Schottenheimer with the Browns, Kansas City and San Diego; Gil Brandt with Dallas; Dan Reeves in Denver, New York and Atlanta; and Ron Wolf in Green Bayall offered ideas from their own experiences.

The formula, it seems, is some combination of leadership, stability, buy-in across the board, talent (especially at quarterback) and tough love.

Soon after landing the job, Noll, who played for the Browns under coachPaul Brown and prepped at Benedictine, called Russell to his office. The linebacker expected praise for making his first Pro Bowl.

"As I walked into his office, he was doing some paperwork," said Russell, who retired after the 1976 season. "He pointed at me and said, 'Russell, I've been watching game films since I took the job, and I don't like the way you play. You're too aggressive, you're too impatient, you're out of control, you're trying to be the hero, and that's an unacceptable way to play. Your techniques are flawed, so I'm going to have to change the way you play.'"

Noll's first speech to the team wasn't much kinder.

"'I've watched the games, and I can tell you why you're losing,'" Russell recalled his new coach saying as the room went silent. "'The reason you've been losing is you're not any good. You can't run fast enough, can't jump high enough, you're not quick enough, and I'm going to have to get rid of most of you.'"

Five guys in the room that day survived to be part of the Steelers' first Super Bowl victory.

"And I was one of the lucky ones," Russell said.

That took four years. The Steelers slipped to 1-13 in 1969, Noll's first year. Then they went 5-9 and 6-8 before finally busting through the dark cloud over Pittsburgh, going 11-3 in 1972.

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The Browns are on their sixth head coach in 13 years. Holmgren has made it clear his hand-picked first-year coach, Pat Shurmur, isn't going anywhere. While such support may not sit well with some frustrated fans, it sends an important message.

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"That makes everybody know that this is the man, he's the boss, the owner has confidence in him," Reeves said. "You know he's going to be there, and you're going to have to answer to him."

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Reeves said the owner must hire the right people and give them a chance to get the job done.

"I'm old school, but [owners] need to be there. They need to know what's going on, but they don't need to be out front. The main thing is you've got to be on the same page with the people you've hired."

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The Steelers, being so awful, had relatively high draft positions each year, but too often swung and missed. But Noll's drafting was brilliant, especially his selection of defensive tackle "Mean" Joe Greene, who absolutely hated losing -- an attitude that spilled over.

"Maybe some of us older guys started accepting the losses, thinking, 'Well, that's just us, we're not that good,'" Russell said. "But Joe Greene went crazy."

Noll and his personnel staff valued a player's intelligence, not just size, speed and strength. Levy and his general manager, Bill Polian, architect of the Buffalo turnaround, sought players with solid character.

"Ability without character will lose," Levy said. "When things go wrong, and they will, the guy without character is going to quit or blame others or be more concerned with himself than the team or be disruptive with a drug bust or something like that."

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Former coaches and team executives say a winning culture is built on being prepared, organized and making everyone -- from players, coaches and the executive team to the support staff -- feel like an important part of the team.

"That's the only way you can get things turned around," Reeves said.

The other important ingredient, Levy said, is that ego steps aside.

"Bill's first words to me were, 'It's amazing what we can accomplish if no one cares who gets the credit," Levy said of Polian. "'Let's get to work.'"

Former Browns coach Marty Schottenheimer directed turnarounds in Cleveland, Kansas City and San Diego. The Chiefs had one winning season in seven years, and back-to-back 4-11 seasons, when he took over.

Schottenheimer's team went 8-7-1 the first year, and he led them to six double-digit winning seasons in eight years.

He took the Chargers from no winning seasons in six years to a record of 8-8 the first year, 4-12 the second, and then 12-4, 9-7 and 14-2.

"There can be progress without winning, absolutely," he said. "But at some point in time, there's a moment of decision where: 'Hey, this isn't going to go on forever. We've got to show some positive results or that negative reaction will result in failure.'"

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rayzor Grand Master

rayzor

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from the sidebar of the article

Turning around a franchise

  • What does it take to reverse a team’s losing culture?
  • Take some time to let your philosophy develop; you don’t just come in and turn around a 2-14 team.
  • Understand that the strength of your team relies on personnel sources from everywhere, not just the first round of the draft. (Seven-time Pro Bowl wide receiver) Andre Reed was a fourth-rounder.
  • Pick people with high character.

—
Marv Levy, Hall of Fame coach in Kansas City and Buffalo.

  • You have to have the commitment to the philosophy that you’re going to adopt.
  • You have to have a competent person running the football end of your operation.
  • And the most important thing is you have to have a quarterback.

—
Ron Wolf, retired Green Bay general manager.

  • You have to have people who are open to listening and understanding what you’re trying to achieve and place value in that.
  • You have to replace individuals that don’t buy in — usually identified by kind of an attitude of disinterest and an unwillingness to take the extra steps it takes to get there.
  • You have to have good people, because there’s always going to be adversity.

—
Marty Schottenheimer

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Clicheking Mentor

Clicheking

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The Steelers, being so awful, had relatively high draft positions each year, but too often swung and missed. But Noll's drafting was brilliant, especially his selection of defensive tackle "Mean" Joe Greene, who absolutely hated losing -- an attitude that spilled over.

"Maybe some of us older guys started accepting the losses, thinking, 'Well, that's just us, we're not that good,'" Russell said. "But Joe Greene went crazy."

Sound familiar?

Very good article, thanks for the link. Fwiw the above quote is why I love guys like Cam, and Smitty and value guys like Still, and Markelle Martin in the draft.

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Clicheking Mentor

Clicheking

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"'I've watched the games, and I can tell you why you're losing,'" Russell recalled his new coach(Noll) saying as the room went silent. "'The reason you've been losing is you're not any good. You can't run fast enough, can't jump high enough, you're not quick enough, and I'm going to have to get rid of most of you.'"

Five guys in the room that day survived to be part of the Steelers' first Super Bowl victory.

Brown was a second round pick by the Panthers in 2009. Before his release Coach Ron Rivera explained that Norwood passed Brown because he's been "more physical."

The first is a excerpt from the article. I except a lot of players to be fighting for their jobs come training camp. Get better or get gone.

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pstall Newbie

pstall

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I think there are also tons of intangibles and flat out good luck as well that you just can't foresee.

Look at Brees and the Saints. The Chargers give up on him, he fails a physical for the Dolphins who have been only looking for Marino's replacement still and BOOM, he goes to the Saints.

Right place and right time can make many a man look like a genius. Just look at my wedding photos.

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