Stop the Bill Cowher talk people, you don’t have the heart for it

I hate losing as bad as anyone, but I hate it more because I have to endure the Bill Cowher comments that are ALREADY starting on the message boards. If you honestly think Bill Cowher is the answer here in Tampa Bay, then please keep reading,  because your in for a rude awakening. 

Bill Cowher is a good coach, he was there with Tony Dungy in Kansas City. But Bill Cowher was promoted to head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1992, thats a long time ago! In all that time, he finally won a SuperBowl in 2005. 

But in the process, Bill Cowher LOST a lot of AFC Championship games. He has developed a reputation as a guy who cannot win the Big one. He lost one SuperBowl in 1995, then lost 4 AFC Championship games, AT HOME! Before the Superbowl run of 2005, Cowher was 8-9 in playoff games, thats before winning 4 playoff games in a row which gives him an over all 12-9 in the playoffs. Wheee.

After coaching from 1992 to 2006, Cowher is a whole whopping 59 games above .500. Thats it, 59. If you everage it out, that comes to 3.9 games over .500 each year, or 10-6, 9-7 all the time.

Bill Cowher went three straight years without making the playoffs, from 1998-2001, so how many Bucs fans who wont give Raheem Morris 11 games after a 10-6 season will give Cowher 3 years with losing records?

Finally, you say you are tired of the losing this year right? You want a quick fix obviously. So why pick a coach that is going to tear apart your entire team to rebuild it? Cowher runs a 3-4 defense, all of our defensive linemen, which includes our top 2 round draft picks over the last 2 years, would be useless. Your looking at 2015 before the Bucs can start winning again.

Meanwhile everyone in the NFL agrees this Bucs team is set to start winning in 2012 or 2013 when these young players start to reach the pinacle of their careers.

Your case against Raheem Morris is pitiful, and for most of you, its because he is Black, and speaks fast. Raheem Morris is no longer an inexperienced Head Coach, he is going into his 4th season next year, so dont call him inexperienced. If you listen to the players talk, you hear a whole lockerroom behind coach Morris 100%, and you cant put a price tag on that.

Fact is, this Bucs team has some holes in it, at outside linebacker, at running back, in the secondary. Talk is the Glazers will be spending money this Free Agency period, probably to shore up those areas. Thats what they did in 1996-2002. They went out and got the best Free Agents, but only AFTER they gave their draft classes time to develop.

Stop looking for the quick fix, you liked Morris last year when he was winning, he is more experienced now that he was back then. Changing a coach for a retread hardly ever works. Its a long shot. Look at the Bucs own history of retread coaches, and look at the success with new ones. Its not even close.

• John McKay-   Rookie NFL HC   – Playoffs 3 of 4 years, NFC Championship game appearance.
• LeeMan Bennet-  Retread, winningest coach in Falcons history-  Fired after 2 consecutive 2-14 seasons.
• Ray Perkins- Retread, Turned around NY Giants- Fired after 5 losing seasons
• Richard Williamson- Rookie NFL HC- Fired after one 3-13 season
• Sam Wyche- Retread-Went to SuperBowl in 1991- Fired after 4 losing seasons
• Tony Dungy- Rookie HC- Playoffs in 97,99-2001, NFC Championship appearance.
• Jon Gruden- lateral move- Was HC in Oakland, his first  job-  Took Bucs to SuperBowl first year, never won playoff game again. Fired after 4         game losing streak and 8-8 record.   

Bill Cower won a Super Bowl in 2005, because the Pittsburgh Steelers ownership does not believe in changing coaches like laundry. He was given 15 years as a head coach. Ask yourself, how many other coaches would have won a SuperBowl in their 14th year if given that long.

Wanting Bill Cowher to coach in Tampa Bay is silly when you think about it; any success he has is because of the longevity the Steelers orgainzation gave him. You want to fire a coach that turned a 3-13 team into a 10-6 team, thats only 11 games into a 4-7 season. You never would have given Bill Cowher the chance to succeed in the first place.