Stop everything!

The Jets list of head coaching candidates may have increased by one after the Tampa Bay Buccaneers fired head coach Jon Gruden Friday night.  The Bucs also jettisoned their general manager Bruce Allen.

The Star-Ledger's Dave Hutchinson has reported that the Green and White are not interested in Gruden and seem content with waiting for Rex Ryan to become available.

I'm still not sold on any of the top choices for the job (Ryan, Steve Spagnuolo, Brian Schottenheimer, Russ Grimm) and thought the team may be better served with a man with some experience.

And Gruden definitely has that.

Gruden's first head coaching gig came with the Oakland Raiders, where he led the Silver and Black to back-to-back AFC West crowns in 2000 and 2001.  But Gruden couldn't get along with owner Al Davis (shocker) and was traded (yes, traded) to the Bucs for two first-round picks, two second-round picks and $8 million in 2002.  The move paid instant dividends as the Bucs defeated Gruden's former Raiders team the next season in Super Bowl XXXVII for their first-ever championship.

It was all downhill from there.

Well, not all downhill, but the Bucs didn't reach the promised land again with Gruden.  Tampa captured two more NFC South crowns under his command (2005 and 2007), but dropped those two first-round playoff games at home.

And then there was the Bucs' collapse this season.

Tampa was sitting pretty at 9-3, but lost their final four (including a gut-churning loss to the Raiders at home to end the season) and missed the playoffs.

Hey, I know what it's like.

Still, Gruden's resume is solid:

• 95-81 (.540) record in 11 seasons
• Five playoff appearances
• Super Bowl win
• Only three losing seasons

A case can be made.  A case can also be made that Gruden won with Tony Dungy's guys and has made a career of chewing up and spitting out quarterbacks.

Speaking of QBs, Gruden also has a history with Brett Favre, serving as an assistant under Mike Holmgren in Green Bay.  That prior relationship was played up this past summer during the Brett Favre sweepstakes.  You all remember that, right?  It was almost a lock that No. 4 was going to be shipped to Tampa Bay before Mike Tannenbaum and the Jets swooped in and pulled the trigger for Favre.

But the Jets aren't interested in Gruden.  Or so they say.

And maybe that's a good thing. Leave a comment

Also on the Network: √ Doing It The Hard Way [C70 At The Bat] √ Bobby Jenks Saves Sox's Win Over Seattle [Tremendous Upside Potential] √ Deadline moves [Feeling Dodger Blue] √ Manny's impact [Feeling Dodger Blue] √ Shea Stadium Plays Citi Field [Loge 13] √ Frustration Revisted [C70 At The Bat] √ Not So Fast, T-Mac [Tremendous Upside Potential] √ Payroll breakdown [Feeling Dodger Blue]

2 Comments