Chris Mortensen reports Martz is fired

***Chi-Town Ram*** · -01-02-2006

Just heard on Mkie and Mike on ESPN....Mort said its done, and Martz got the last year of his contract at 3.3 mill...news conference at 12:30 pm

**RamsFanSam** · -01-02-2006

St. Louis Rams coach Mike Martz, away from the job since early October as he received treatment for a bacterial infection of a heart valve, was dismissed Monday, ESPN's Chris Mortensen reported.

Still to be determined is whether Martz's termination will take the form of a contract settlement or an outright firing, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported.

Martz, 54, is under contract through the 2006 season with a salary of $3.25 million. An expeditious resolution of the contract would permit Martz -- who led the Rams to four playoff berths, two division titles and a Super Bowl XXXVI appearance in his first five seasons as head coach -- to pursue a new position from among the several anticipated openings in the league.

Sources close to both parties have told ESPN.com several times in recent weeks that a negotiated settlement would be the best approach for Martz and the team.

Through the October loss to Seattle, Martz compiled a record of 56-36, including a 2-3 mark this season. The Rams are 3-5 under interim coach Joe Vitt.

When he was originally stricken with endocarditis, Martz felt he would miss only a few weeks. But he then announced on Oct. 24 that, because he needed time to recuperate, he would sit out the balance of the season and return in 2006. Late last month, however, Martz angered Rams officials by suggesting that he hoped to come back to the team for the final few weeks of the 2005 campaign.

At the time, Shaw, who seemed intent on having Martz not return, said: "After speaking to Mike and his doctor several weeks ago, we were led to believe there is no way that he could come back full-time before the end of the season. I would be surprised if he is medically cleared. I'm not going to speculate as to what we would do at that point. But we're all concerned about him getting the sufficient amount of rest he needs to fully recover from this illness."

Information from senior NFL writer Len Pasquarelli was used in this report.

***jkramsfan*** · -01-02-2006

he said it on cold pizza also,its to bad,i hope it works out for us.

**Nick** · -01-02-2006

I hope that press conference is nationally televised. Or can we watch it via a link on the Rams' official site?

***jkramsfan*** · -01-02-2006

nick,i bet espn news will carry it.

**RamsFanSam** · -01-02-2006

I just got this from the official website:

[view archive]

Martz Out as Rams Coach
Monday, January 2, 2006

The Rams announced this morning that head coach Mike Martz has been terminated. Details to follow within the next few hours.

The team has scheduled a press conference for 12:30 today.

**Nick** · -01-02-2006

Originally Posted by jkramsfan

nick,i bet espn news will carry it.

Bah, don't have it here in the hotel.

**RamsFanSam** · -01-02-2006

If I am not mistaken the "official" website will carry at least the audio...
BTW, why isn't THIS website official? It's a hella lot better than what the other one is...