Linehan Hiring Friends: POINT/COUNTER-POINT

**AvengerRam** · #1 (**permalink**) -13-02-2007

Scott Linehan has hired assistants recently who have two things in common: (1) they don't have resumes that jump out at you, and (2) they are friends of Linehan.

POINT: Cronyism is a bad hiring practice.
When personal friendships are taken into account, it necessarily results in the underemphasis of more important hiring criteria, such as experience and track record. Linehan has never had the type of power he now has with the Rams, and he is abusing it to help out his buddies.

COUNTER-POINT: Teamwork requires a comfort level with teammates.
A coaching staff is a team, and one of the most important factors that helps a team succeed is its ability to work as a unit. Linehan is hiring people he knows and trusts, and this will help the unit work better.

POINT: If things go badly, its harder to fire a friend.
Personal loyalty should never become more important than the team's goals. When Mike Martz retained Larry Marmie despite the failings of the defense, it was likely due to his personal friendship. This is a business, not a club.

COUNTER-POINT: Assistants will be as loyal as the HC is to them.
The problem with good assistants is that they are always looking to advance. At least, if the assistants have a friendship with the HC, they will give their all when they are here, and give maximum notice when they look for a better job.

Which side are you on?

**laram0** · #2 (**permalink**) -13-02-2007

As long as Linehan has the nerve to reprimand or fire a person on his staff that is not performing up to the level he expects....umm....I don't have a problem with what he's doing? On the otherhand I question how important it is that his staff consists of familiar faces?

*keith m. klink* · #3 (**permalink**) -13-02-2007

i think that it's familiarity with a system and person that you work with, if you know this person is a guality individual and a good coach, just because you know them doesn't mean you shouldn't hire them. if you go hire some great couch and find that your philosify is not the same, this is a big distraction to the team , and then becomes a power battle. you bring in people who you know will coach the way you want your team to be coached and to follow the lead of the leader, and this is how good coaches become better, and better coaches become great.

**Nick** · #4 (**permalink**) -13-02-2007

I'm not very concerned about this, because I think when you take a close look around the league, it's pretty general practice that people hire those they are familiar with or have a background with. Just look at the Vikings. Brad Childress, former offensive coordinator of the Eagles, just hired Leslie Frazier to be his new defensive coordinator. Frasier and Childress both joined the Eagles staff together in 1999 and spent a couple of years there together.

*MauiRam* · #5 (**permalink**) -13-02-2007

Quote:

Originally Posted by AvengerRam

POINT: If things go badly, its harder to fire a friend.
Personal loyalty should never become more important than the team's goals. When Mike Martz retained Lovie Smith despite the failings of the defense, it was likely due to his personal friendship. This is a business, not a club.

Which side are you on?

Did you mean Larry Marmie ?? Doesn't bother me at all that he is hiring people he knows and trusts. This is common practice in today's NFL ...

**AvengerRam** · #6 (**permalink**) -13-02-2007

Quote:

Originally Posted by MauiRam

Did you mean Larry Marmie ?? Doesn't bother me at all that he is hiring people he knows and trusts. This is common practice in today's NFL ...

I did mean Marmie. Don't know why I typed Lovie Smith.

*RamsFan16* · #7 (**permalink**) -13-02-2007

As of now I won't gripe until I see results. If there bad I'll gripe and if there good I won't second guess Linehan in future hirings.

*Brain Daddy* · #8 (**permalink**) -14-02-2007

It depends on whether or not they're truly qualified and if he's willing to fire them if they aren't getting it done. Just because something is a common practice doesn't make it a good idea. Dennis Erickson had a habit of hiring his buddies and wouldn't get rid of them no matter what, and he had some stinkers.

I would be against it, but I'd also give the guy a chance and wait and see.

If I were a Rams fan, of course.

*ramsanddodgers* · #9 (**permalink**) -14-02-2007

I come in on the point that a coach needs to hire someone he feels can get the job done and he feels he can work with.

When friends and family are involved then it can become harder to see the forest for the trees. This can lead to the entire staff being out of a job, including the HC.

RnD

GO RAMS!!

*XXXIV* · #10 (**permalink**) -14-02-2007

I trust Linehan at this stage given his track record thus far. I feel good about most of what Linehan has done thus far, given difficulties he started with and the significant rebuilding task at hand. I support Linehan and these hirings since I believe he has his reasons for these decisions based on what he feels is in the team's best interest.

...don't think Haslet was a "friend", and probably a qualified "friend" of Linehan's was passed up to get Haslet--pure conjecture here, but goes to the point that Linehan's interests hopefully are strongly connected to the team here in my opinion (versus hiring friends for the wrong reasons, which I personally believe Mike Martz did with Marmie).

A decision based on the team and organization's best interest versus the coach's best interest is a key sticking point on this, in my opinion.

*BigGameMN* · #11 (**permalink**) -14-02-2007

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brain Daddy

It depends on whether or not they're truly qualified and if he's willing to fire them if they aren't getting it done. Just because something is a common practice doesn't make it a good idea. Dennis Erickson had a habit of hiring his buddies and wouldn't get rid of them no matter what, and he had some stinkers.

I would be against it, but I'd also give the guy a chance and wait and see.

If I were a Rams fan, of course.

And Dennis Erickson is Linehan's mentor, hmmmmmm.

Anyway I don't have a problem with hiring your friends as long as they are overly qualified. Unfair you say? Maybe, but when hiring friends there needs to be no doubt that your hiring them for their skills and not for any personal reasons.

**laram0** · #12 (**permalink**) -14-02-2007

Wow! the voting so far is 8-7-7......

*bigredman* · #13 (**permalink**) -16-02-2007

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nick

I'm not very concerned about this, because I think when you take a close look around the league, it's pretty general practice that people hire those they are familiar with or have a background with. Just look at the Vikings. Brad Childress, former offensive coordinator of the Eagles, just hired Leslie Frazier to be his new defensive coordinator. Frasier and Childress both joined the Eagles staff together in 1999 and spent a couple of years there together.

You are correct...oh most frustrated one...MOST teams operate this way, but the successful ones do not. Here's your first clue. When the head coach hires an offensive coordinator to essentially be a "talent evaluator", what does that tell you? Linehan will make or break his legacy as a head coach based on his decisions this year. He's on the cusp of putting together a really great team, if he has the cahonies to make the decisions that have to be made to put all the pieces in place. (left sufficiently vague to protect my reputation).