Shanahan merits a special exception

Sporting News, The, June 14, 2004 by Dan Pompei

The criticism has become so common, it's almost a cliche: Mike Shanahan is nothing without John Elway.

Yes, and Emeril is nothing without butter. Willie Nelson is nothing without that old guitar. And Santa Claus is nothing without flying reindeer.

These are the facts: Since Elway's retirement five years ago, Shanahan has coached the Broncos to a 44-36 record; the team has had only one losing season--finishing fifth, second, third, second and second in the AFC West--and has made the playoffs twice, only to be knocked out in the first round both times.

Not bad. Not great. Certainly not great given the expectations in Denver, where the Broncos won back-to-back Super Bowls in Elway's last seasons.

But what did anyone expect? The Broncos not only lost Elway, they also essentially lost running back Terrell Davis, the former NFL most valuable player whose last 1,000-yard rushing season coincided with Elway's final season. Now you're taking away butter and sugar.

And Shanahan was left with a talented roster that was missing a difference-maker. The Broncos' subsequent performances have reflected that. That's not to say the Broncos have not been consistently well-prepared and well-coached. Even though Shanahan is a big-picture guy, he does pay attention to every detail. He's extremely organized and anticipates as well as any coach. He works like a bumblebee. If the Broncos would fire him tomorrow, there would be a line of teams willing to fire their coaches and hire him.

"Mike Shanahan is one of the best," Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren says. "Everyone knows it. Ask anybody about him, and they'll tell you he's outstanding. He's very disciplined, very thorough. He communicates well with his players. His teams play very hard, very hard."

Shanahan remains one of the NFL's premier offensive minds. "Mike does as good a job as anybody in the league in attacking defenses with his offensive personnel," Titans coach Jeff Fisher says. "Look at what he does on third down, and in critical situations, or how he runs the football. He does as nice of a job as anybody in the league from a game-planning standpoint."

At times, Shanahan's coaching has been brilliant. Remember the Broncos' 31-17 road victory over the Colts in a must-win game last December? At other times, his decisions have been questionable. His choice to rest a number of key players against the Packers in the regular-season finale looked regrettable one week later when the Broncos lost to those same Colts, 41-10.

Shanahan might not be getting as much help from his assistants as he once did. He has lost some coaches with pedigrees, including Mike Heimerdinger, now the Titans offensive coordinator; Karl Dorrell, now the head coach at UCLA; Ray Rhodes, now the defensive coordinator of the Seahawks, and, most regrettably, Alex Gibbs, now the offensive line coach of the Falcons.

Some of these veteran coaches--Gibbs in particular--might have felt more comfortable challenging Shanahan than some of the coaches currently on the Broncos' staff. Shanahan is something of an icon in Denver, and some assistant coaches might be too intimidated to stand up to him. Without an open exchange of opinions and ideas, however, Shanahan won't be as effective as he could be. Synergy almost always is a force in the best game plans.

In addition to making contributions to game plans, Gibbs was a lightning rod for the team. Shanahan isn't much of a motivator, and nobody else on the staff really has taken on that role.

The Broncos' coaching would not be scrutinized so closely if Shanahan had made better personnel decisions. His greatest failings have been in player investment. The Broncos' draft record is distorted by some high-profile whiffs. If receiver Ashley Lelie does not come on this year, the Broncos will have missed on four of five first-round picks from 1998 to 2002.

Like other head coaches with control over personnel, Shanahan minimized character and became infatuated with the talents of free agents such as Daryl Gardener, Dale Carter, Chester McGlockton and Leon Lett. He also identified Brian Griese as Elway's successor and signed him to a lucrative long-term deal.

It appears Shanahan has learned from his mistakes. Over the current offseason, the Broncos have acquired high-character players such as safety John Lynch, cornerback Champ Bailey, running back Garrison Hearst and defensive tackle Luther Elliss.

Some of the grumbling about Shanahan is inevitable because of how long he has been in Denver. The 10-year Rule states that no NFL head coach should stick around past 10 years because the environment becomes stale without change. And a little change indeed might invigorate the Broncos. They might be better served, for example, giving competent general manager Ted Sundquist more say over personnel matters and allowing Shanahan to focus more on coaching.

Shanahan is entering his 10th year with the Broncos. But he's special enough to be an exception to any rule.

SPEED READS

* Quarterback Vinny Testaverde was a nice pickup for the Cowboys, who have needed a veteran backup for more than a year. The only way he'll start is if Quincy Carter falls apart. No one expects that to happen. At this point in his career, Testaverde's main value will be to give the Cowboys a spark off the bench or to fill in for a game or two while the starter heals from an injury.