BY DAN CAESAR
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
10/30/2005
Rams coach Mike Martz was a big topic of conversation on the NFL television pregame shows Sunday.
There wasn’t a lot of news that hasn’t already been reported locally regarding the health problems that have led him to stepping down for the rest of the season, and the squabbling inside the organization that strongly indicates that Martz is done as the team’s coach.
CBS aired an interview that Lesley Visser conducted with Martz on Friday at his home. Among the highlights:
“I’ve been coaching for 32 years now and I’ve never missed a practice in the offseason or during the season due to illness,” Martz said. “. . . I’m just a spectator, and that kills you.”
Visser asked him if he thought he was being set up by the front office.
“No, I don’t believe that, I don’t believe that at all,” Martz said. “I think (team president) John Shaw is truly concerned about my health, to be honest with you. I think he’s very concerned about my health, he’s told me that.”
He said he plans to be back with the team next year.
“I’m assuming I (will be),” he said. “So if that’s not going to be the case, I’m not aware of it.
“This is the job I’ve always wanted. This is home for us. This is something that we’ve always told our players and coaches, once you become a Ram you’ll always be part of this town for the rest of your life. So to even think about going someplace else, to ever entertain that thought, to me is heresy.”
The Rams soap opera provided plenty of fodder for the network analysts.
“No matter what Mike Martz says publicly, he knows he has coached his last game in St. Louis,” ESPN’s’ Chris Mortensen said. “. . . Martz even told me that in contract discussions in June, team president John Shaw explained that the Rams only needed to be a .500 team, occasionally go to the playoffs and suggested that going to the Super Bowl would cost the team money because of expenses incurred by that event.
“Whatever the context, Martz has one year left on his Rams contract — there will be a settlement, a buyout, whatever you want to call it. And Martz is hopeful that being 20 games above .500 as a coach will get him another gig. But he has to get healthy first. His agent, Bob LaMonte, told Martz this week that he’s never seen a dead man call a good play.”
CBS’ Boomer Esiason said Martz will be “the most sought-after head coach when he does comes back. Remember, he’s the architect of one of the greatest offenses we’ve ever seen in the NFL.”
Fox’s Terry Bradshaw said he thinks Houston is be a good spot for Martz.
“I would pick Houston simply because of his great offensive mind, and they do need some excitement down in Houston,” Bradshaw said. “ I think he’s got a good QB down there (David Carr) and Mike...
-10-30-2005, 05:02 PM
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