Mora Quits Saints; Bengals Fire Shula In Game Of Numbers, Numbers Add Up Against 2 Nfl Coaches
In 1986, Jim Mora was 50 years old and had just finished coaching the Philadelphia-Baltimore Stars to two of the USFL’s three titles after a 26-year coaching career that included a stint as New England’s defensive coordinator in the NFL.
Dave Shula was 27 and his experience consisted of three-plus seasons as an assistant under his father with the Miami Dolphins.
Yet both were being considered for the Philadelphia Eagles’ coaching job that eventually went to Buddy Ryan. That illustrates as much as anything the difference between the two who lost their NFL jobs Monday.
Mora, who quit the Saints, was a professional coach. His 11-plus seasons in New Orleans was the longest tenure of any active coach.
Shula, fired by the Bengals, was a “son of.”
That doesn’t mean Mora was a good coach - though he was - or that Shula was a bad one. It simply means Shula, who became coach of the Bengals at 33, could never command the respect a coach is due because he was perceived as having gotten the job by virtue of his name.
In a sense, that was unfair - Shula grew up at the Orange Bowl, watching as his father, Don, coached one of the NFL’s greatest teams, the 1972 Dolphins who went 17-0. He probably assimilated more knowledge as a 13-year-old than many assistants get at 35 or 40.
But in the end, the numbers got him - they always do.
His career record (albeit with a bad organization) was 19-52. He reached 50 losses faster than any coach in NFL history and was 1-6 this year after 7-9 in a 1995 season that seemed to provide hope.
In a way, the numbers got Mora, too. While his record with the Saints was 93-78, he lost all four of his playoff games. And he was 24-32 since a 12-4 season in 1992, including 2-6 this year.
Moreover, it was clear he was becoming frustrated with New Orleans’ fans and media and the Saints’ organization, perhaps the kind of “burnout” that prompted his mentor, Dick Vermeil, to quit the Eagles after the 1982 season.
Sunday, after a 19-7 loss in Carolina, he carried on a profanity-laced tirade in which he said (in much stronger language) he, his players and his coaches all stunk.
That may be a sign that he stayed too long in one place the shelf life for good NFL coaches is probably between seven and 10 years. That’s something many of Mora’s contemporaries learned or are learning - Joe Gibbs, Mike Ditka, Dan Reeves and Bill Parcells to name four.
But after a half-season off, Mora will become a candidate for any or all of the vacancies that will crop up. If not, he can always head for television (as long as he watches his language).
Shula?
He’ll always be saddled with “son of.”
xxxx Longest current coaching tenures by league with coach, team and first year with club: A.L. - Tom Kelly (Minnesota Twins), 1986. N.L. - Bobby Cox (Atlanta Braves), 1990. NBA Jerry Sloan (Utah Jazz), 1988-89. NFL Marv Levy (Buffalo Bills), 1986. NHL Terry Crisp (Tampa Bay Lightning), 1992-93.