He was no Jerry Jones. Great short interview here after the Immaculate Reception
OT: The Chief
- Thread starter Fk_Pitt
- Start date
Beloved and loved Pittsburgh. Horrible owner in the competency sense. This franchise started making all then right moves when his son Dan took over.
Same Ed Conway as the “Ed Conway Award” I’m assuming?
Not to make his point for him but what did Papa's money do the previous 40 years?
And maybe a better point or question. Why the need to even make that point in this thread. People just love to dump on other people, even the poster that complains about such things all the time.
I am wondering if his grandson might be more like him than like Dan. The team has taken a noticeable dip in quality since Dan passed away.
That's the hope. Look, I am not playing the pile on Mike Tomlin things, but Tomlin has way way too much say. Not just in the draft but the makeup and size of the coaching staffs. If Dan Rooney can suggest coaching changes to Chuck Noll, Art Rooney should be able to do the same with Mike Tomlin.
You don’t think Art III pushed Haley and Bradley onto Tomlin purely out of their family connections to the team?
I thought fondly of the Chief like everyone but…just one anecdote …when the Chief hired Buddy Parker to coach in 1960, Parker told him flat out that he was going to trade all the team’s draft picks over the next several years, mainly for a bunch of his old veteran Detroit Lions players, many of whom were near or at the end of their careers. It sounded to most like the very bad idea it was, but the Chief didn’t contest it. And Parker did it! Until finally, spurred by Dan, the team turned Parker down when he wanted to trade their 64 top pick for some backup hack Eagles QB, and Parker immediately resigned.
This did yield one good season in 63 when they nearly won their division. But most of those old vet players hit bottom quickly and the team sank to horrid depths that went through the remainder of the decade…my dad followed the team then and he said that even the humorous clips one can find online now don’t do justice to how awful those late 60s teams really were. As bad as Pitt also was in those years, amazingly we were not the worst team playing in Pitt Stadium
That lasted until Dan finally had the reins by 69 and didn’t repeat the same mistakes like that that the Chief had repeatedly made, hiring Noll and Bill Nunn and allowing the team to build through the draft in the 70s.
The Chief was a colorful character but the team definitely reflected his dubious football acumen when he actively managed things.
This did yield one good season in 63 when they nearly won their division. But most of those old vet players hit bottom quickly and the team sank to horrid depths that went through the remainder of the decade…my dad followed the team then and he said that even the humorous clips one can find online now don’t do justice to how awful those late 60s teams really were. As bad as Pitt also was in those years, amazingly we were not the worst team playing in Pitt Stadium
That lasted until Dan finally had the reins by 69 and didn’t repeat the same mistakes like that that the Chief had repeatedly made, hiring Noll and Bill Nunn and allowing the team to build through the draft in the 70s.
The Chief was a colorful character but the team definitely reflected his dubious football acumen when he actively managed things.
Of course he has a say-
He’s writing the checks
It’s amusing how narratives get created
I don’t
I’d say the GM and owners has the most control of personnel , with of course input from Tomlin of what he needs
My evidence is Kevin Colbert’s own words
You’re in favor of the owner having say over who the head coach picks and hires for their staff?? I couldn’t disagree with that more. Tomlin may not be the best at picking a staff but he and other HCs should be picking their staff, not the owner.
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