Shaw tries to control fire at Rams Park

Shaw tries to control fire at Rams Park
By Bernie Miklasz
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Saturday, Sep. 17 2005

This week Rams coach Mike Martz was asked about coping with the extreme heat
his team will encounter in Arizona while playing the Cardinals in the sauna
known as Sun Devil Stadium.

Game-time temperatures might reach 100 degrees, but that's a summer breeze to
Martz when compared to the heat surrounding his team in St. Louis. If the Rams
lose to the Cardinals, Martz will return to an inferno. After the stumble in
the opener at San Francisco, the Rams already are locked into early-season
crisis mode.

The defeat in San Francisco prompted hysterical, hateful reactions on St. Louis
talk-radio shows and Internet boards. And if there's a subsequent loss to the
Cardinals, Bill Bidwill and Kurt Warner, we may see angry, torch-carrying mobs
of fans form under Martz's office window at Rams Park.

OK, probably not ... but an 0-2 start will cause Martz's approval rating to
plummet again.

The controversial Martz can deal with external pressure, which is normal for
him or any other NFL head coach. But Martz has been far more rattled by foes
inside the building. The enemies within usually cause more hurt, more damage,
with their betrayal. It's always more demoralizing when the people who are paid
to work with you instead work against you, and that's what has happened to
Martz. With so much turmoil around him, it's a wonder Martz can concentrate on
coaching.

The tension at Rams Park finally bubbled over, leading to an intervention by
team president John Shaw, who threatens to fire any team executive attempting
to undercut Martz.

"I've talked to everyone in our front office, and they've been warned," Shaw
said. "They'd better do everything they can to help our coach win. And if they
don't support our coach, then they're not going to be here. It's a simple
message. And they'd better get it, or they'll be gone."

Shaw wasn't finished.

"I have personally delivered that message to each and every one of them," he
said. "They'd better make the commitment to support Mike 100 percent, because
that's our mission. That's what our owners do. We're fully behind Mike. And I'm
not going to accept anything less from any of them."

And with Shaw in his corner, Martz has some heavyweight reinforcement in the
skirmish with those who ganged up on him.

The flashpoint occurred when Rams director of football administration Samir
Suleiman called a Post-Dispatch columnist to leave a threatening message in
response to a column that called for Rams executives to back the Rams coach
instead of back-stabbing him.

Suleiman's bizarre voice mail set off alarm bells, because he's closely aligned
with Jay Zygmunt, the team's president of football operations who feuds with
Martz.

The pro-Martz and anti-Martz factions agree on at least one thing: The friction
and infighting began with the rift between Martz and Zygmunt.

The deterioration of the relationship is stunning and sad to mutual friends who
fondly remember happier days, when Martz and Zygmunt were close and loyal.

In the hallways at Rams Park, it has been suggested that Zygmunt never forgave
Martz for losing the Super Bowl to the underdog New England Patriots at the end
of the 2001 season. (Shaw, for one, doesn't buy into that theory).

Others in the organization say Zygmunt has tried to erode Martz's authority
over football personnel, and has vetoed some of the coach's roster and
free-agency decisions. More recently, Martz's desire to set up a new player
personnel department, headed by an ally, was scuttled by Zygmunt - who in turn
sought to interview his own candidates for the job.

Zygmunt has become increasingly aggressive in player personnel matters, which
grates on the football people. Though Zygmunt has done a brilliant job of
managing the team's salary cap, he doesn't have a football background. Rams
insiders sympathetic to Zygmunt say Zygmunt asserted himself because Martz gets
too distracted from coaching when trying to oversee so many areas.

With the shattering of the Zygmunt-Martz alliance, others in the organization
sensed Martz's vulnerability and grew bolder in their sniping inside the
building. Because Shaw spends so much time in Los Angeles, he isn't always
around to protect Martz or settle petty arguments before they expand into major
blow-ups.

As I wrote recently, it's an open secret at Rams Park that Martz has taken hits
from the negative information leaked by Rams officials about him to national
football reporters.

And Martz was deeply hurt by this story making the rounds at Rams Park: One
Rams executive started an office pool, with employees able to predict the date
for Martz's dismissal. (The executive in question insists it never happened).

If you're wondering why the Rams hired St. Louis sports radio personality John
Hadley as a special assistant to Martz, it's simple: to give Martz an ally to
watch his back at Rams Park, so Martz can focus on coaching.

Shaw, who genuinely likes both men, has so far been unsuccessful in his
attempts to broker peace between Zygmunt and Martz.

In time, Shaw may be forced to choose between them, or it's possible that both
could leave. Zygmunt is working without a contract, and sources say Shaw
declined Martz's offseason request for a contract extension.

For now, Shaw is clamping down on other team officials. Shaw has told general
manager Charley Armey, executive vice president Bob Wallace and Suleiman that
they'd better get behind Martz - or else.

For now, Martz draws strength from the loyalty of his players and assistant
coaches. "I love this team," Martz said.

If Rams players truly care about Martz, this is a good time to rally around
him. The temperature is rising at Rams Park.

You know, Bernie's been trying to build this story since early last Spring. When it cooled off, he stoked the fire with the "backstabbing" comment, which prompted Suleiman's absurd reaction.

But, in all of this... where is the evidence that any of this infighting has impacted the team in a significant way?

The team signed several free agents it targeted, locked up Pace long term, and drafted several players who look like they will help the team in the long run.

If things are as bad as Bernie claims, the solution is simple. Fire Zygmunt. Mike Martz is, and will be for a while, the Rams head coach.

This whole thing is getting tiresome.

Agreed It Is Getting Tiresome.

This part of the article is particularly amusing, by the way:

Quote:

---

The flashpoint occurred when Rams director of football administration Samir
Suleiman called a Post-Dispatch columnist to leave a threatening message in
response to a column that called for Rams executives to back the Rams coach
instead of back-stabbing him.

---

So... now Bernie's referring to himself in the third person?

What's next?

"Bernie likes his chicken spicy!!!"

I also like this part:

Quote:

---

sources say Shaw
declined Martz's offseason request for a contract extension.

---

So, who are these "sources"? Are they among the group of people trying to undercut Martz? You would think that, given that Bernie apparently interviewed Shaw for this article, he could ask Shaw himself if the "sources" have the story right.

I guess Bernie just forgot to ask that question.

Football is suppose to be fun and not a Political battlefield.
I want the Coach,Players,and the Organization to be my heros like they were when I was a kid.Information like this is alot more than I want to hear.
It distracts me from what I love and thats

RAM FOOTBALL.

This is TEAM PRESIDENT JOHN SHAW trying to get everyone on the same page and behind Martz.

He wouldn't dignify the comments or try to rectify something that was not happening. I think he's trying to hold everything together there at Rams Park. Only a crazy person would address everyone in the ORGanization about something they did NOT believe was happening.

You think the Ram's aren't in trouble.... It's Philly 28-0 over SanFran early in the 2nd quarter. The Eagles first pass was a 68 yard bomb TD to Terrell Owens.

.

Av, why the obsession with Bernie?? Enough already. Get a hobby...

Quote:

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Originally Posted by SFCRamFan

Av, why the obsession with Bernie?? Enough already. Get a hobby...

---

Obsession? Um... no.

I just see through his nonsense, and I'm trying to show a different perspective.

Don't like it? Don't read my posts. Simple solution.

I won't even tell you that you need to get an alternate hobby.

Whether you like Martz, or hate Martz, the fact is that he is the head coach THIS season. Since this is the case, he deserves the support of the administrative staff within the organization.

The fans opinion of the head coach is solely geared to his ability to win. IF he is unable to better last years mark, the situation might take care of itself.

I, for one, have never been completely sold on his ability to be a head coach. However, if he brings us another championship, he's OK by me.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by psycho9985

Football is suppose to be fun and not a Political battlefield.
I want the Coach,Players,and the Organization to be my heros like they were when I was a kid.Information like this is alot more than I want to hear.
It distracts me from what I love and thats

RAM FOOTBALL.

---

I hear you Psycho. Unfortunately, football isn't the same as it was when we were kids. It's much more of a "business" now, with all the corporate politics that go along with that. Sad really.:sad:

What I think is hilarious is this:
This article was written BEFORE the game against the cardinals. Martz as a coach, WHAT COULD HE HAVE DONE TO invoke a threatening response like the one from Samir Suleiman? It's one game into the season, I think he's jealous, and is one more problem we don't need in our organization. I say fire Suleiman, Zygmunt and the rest. Mike Martz is a proven smart football coach, Zygmunt is a glorified accountant. I think Suleiman is a lonely depressed psycho path in need of the hooker he met in San Fran. Fire Suleiman first then expose him as a backstabber. Then fire Zygmunt Freud.

Avenger Ram says: When it cooled off, he stoked the fire with the "backstabbing" comment, which prompted Suleiman's absurd reaction.

I beleive your're wrong on this one. Suleiman called Bernie and left a phone message threatening Martz that "You and Mike and everyone will find out I'm not a backstabber, I'm a friggin throat slasher!". To me, the guy sounds dangerous and should buy me some Rams memoribilia or something. :D :angryram:

Why don't we blame Bernie for our coverage issues?

Again, while Samir's comment was wrong, there is no doubt that Bernie baited him (and others). Here's what he wrote on 8/28:

Quote:

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John Shaw, Jay Zygmunt, Charley Armey, Bob Wallace and Samir Suleiman work for the Rams, and their job is to do everything possible to help this organization win. Be it Martz or another man, I don't care who sits in the head coach's office at Rams Park. The head coach should be backed, not back-stabbed, by associates.

---

In our society, back-stabber is a common term that isn't considered physically threatening but throat slasher is. That's it, that's the meat of this whole scenario and at least Shaw knows that.

It amazes me how often I'm misquoted or misconstued on this topic.

I'll make my last comment on the subject a few lines from a song by Aimee Mann that my feelings perfectly:

I suppose I should be happy to be be misread
Better to be that than some of the other things
I have become

For nobody wants to hear this tale
The plot is cliche, the jokes are stale
And maybe we've all, heard it all before