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By Bryan Burwell
Of the Post-Dispatch
For five years, Mike Martz has stood there firmly at his perch as the Rams unappreciated genius head coach, an unswerving example of pride and genius, arrogance and attitude, boldness and bravado. Even with his Super Bowl pedigree, he was forever the unloved interloper who could never do quite enough to erase the unpardonable sin of not being Dick Vermeil.
There was always something about him that they just couldn't love, refused to embrace and loved to scorn. Yet through it all, Martz stood there defiantly defying convention, always doing it his way. It is what always intrigued me about Martz, always fascinated me with him. He was a man who spit at convention, railed against the status quo and broke convention with the zeal of a mad genius.
Yet now, it seems that his greatest strengths have conspired against him. His defiance has become his biggest weakness. In these reeling times with his football team teetering on the edge of playoff extinction, Mike Martz is sounding a lot like a man who exposed himself fully to all his detractors.
I admire his creative spirit and combative attitude. I did not believe this before, but I am wondering now how Martz can survive as the Rams head coach. If team president John Shaw was not thinking about firing him before, after listening to this odd performance at his Monday afternoon news conference, the thought has to be creeping into his mind.
Martz used a 15-minute session with reporters to darned near condemn himself with his own words. In one odd stream of consciousness, he tried to explain why he chose to play quarterback Chris Chandler and didn't play rookie running back Steven Jackson. In doing so, his words spoke shocking volumes.
Martz essentially admitted two things: He lost his poise and he has no idea what is happening in the game unless it is written down in front of him on his game-plan placard.
First of all, he admitted he lost his poise after Chandler went into another meltdown in the first quarter. "I got very upset with (Chandler) in the game. ... I regret being that upset with him," Martz said. "I got unsettled, quite frankly, with the quarterback situation and it took me a while to get going. I could have handled that situation much better."
Even if it was true, how could you admit that? How can the man in charge tell the whole world that he lost his poise, lost his direction and purpose, even for a brief moment? It's alarming to hear the head coach of a professional football team say that he flaked out in the heat of battle. Isn't that was he essentially what he eviscerated Chandler for doing against the Panthers and Cardinals?
But then he went further. Much, much further. When someone asked him why the powerful first-round draft pick never got off the bench, particularly against a team that defends the run as poorly as Arizona, Martz said some of the most inexplicable and damning words of the day.
"(The Cardinals) started out the game defensively with a great deal of pressure and we did not handle the pressure very well," he said, referring to Steven Jackson. "Marshall (Faulk) stayed in the game for protection purposes. All the things they were doing, I'm not sure Steven would have been able to deal with them, in fact I know he would not have been able to do the things we needed him to do ... it was fairly complex what they were doing from a pressure standpoint."
However, a few minutes later, he criticized himself for not being able to adjust to the Cardinal defense for an entirely different reason.
"I didn't do a good job of calling a game," Martz said. "I just did a bad job. With the pressure that was really simplistic in what they were doing, it was something that you should be able to deal with."
Okay, so now I'm confused. Was Arizona's defense too "complex," or was it "really simplistic"?
When pressed about Jackson not being in the game, Martz responded: "I wasn't aware of Steven not being in the game ... it was (running back coach Wilbert Montgomery's) judgement from a blitz pickup standpoint that Marshall was clued into it and Steven wasn't. ... Why Steven Jackson is an issue, it surprises me, and takes me back a bit."
Again, he was asked if he felt it was unusual for a man who has so much control over his offense to be unaware of the personnel on the field, Martz seemed perplexed.
"But I don't know," he said. "I don't know. How can I know? How can I call plays and do all that stuff and watch the defense? I just don't concern myself with that."
And why the heck not? Isn't he the head coach? Isn't he supposed to know what is going on in all aspects of the team? If Martz wants to just concentrate on the offensive play calling, then he should demote himself to offensive coordinator. Otherwise, the head coach's job is to be CEO. He is supposed to have his finger in everything. This is his team. If he doesn't concern himself with all aspects of the game during the game, who exactly has that responsibility?
That's precisely why special teams coaches can call squib kicks without the head coach's knowledge. Wow, when you hear some of the things coming out of his mouth, I'm not sure whether I'm supposed to scratch my head or pull my hair.
He is fighting for his coaching life now and he knows it. The rumors are swirling that he has already contemplated resigning if the Rams do not turn this season around. But when asked about that Monday, Martz, as always, reverted to his old, prideful ways. "No, I would never resign," he said. "I love this job. I would never leave this job. ... No way, Jose."
Ultimately, that may not be his decision.
Of the Post-Dispatch
For five years, Mike Martz has stood there firmly at his perch as the Rams unappreciated genius head coach, an unswerving example of pride and genius, arrogance and attitude, boldness and bravado. Even with his Super Bowl pedigree, he was forever the unloved interloper who could never do quite enough to erase the unpardonable sin of not being Dick Vermeil.
There was always something about him that they just couldn't love, refused to embrace and loved to scorn. Yet through it all, Martz stood there defiantly defying convention, always doing it his way. It is what always intrigued me about Martz, always fascinated me with him. He was a man who spit at convention, railed against the status quo and broke convention with the zeal of a mad genius.
Yet now, it seems that his greatest strengths have conspired against him. His defiance has become his biggest weakness. In these reeling times with his football team teetering on the edge of playoff extinction, Mike Martz is sounding a lot like a man who exposed himself fully to all his detractors.
I admire his creative spirit and combative attitude. I did not believe this before, but I am wondering now how Martz can survive as the Rams head coach. If team president John Shaw was not thinking about firing him before, after listening to this odd performance at his Monday afternoon news conference, the thought has to be creeping into his mind.
Martz used a 15-minute session with reporters to darned near condemn himself with his own words. In one odd stream of consciousness, he tried to explain why he chose to play quarterback Chris Chandler and didn't play rookie running back Steven Jackson. In doing so, his words spoke shocking volumes.
Martz essentially admitted two things: He lost his poise and he has no idea what is happening in the game unless it is written down in front of him on his game-plan placard.
First of all, he admitted he lost his poise after Chandler went into another meltdown in the first quarter. "I got very upset with (Chandler) in the game. ... I regret being that upset with him," Martz said. "I got unsettled, quite frankly, with the quarterback situation and it took me a while to get going. I could have handled that situation much better."
Even if it was true, how could you admit that? How can the man in charge tell the whole world that he lost his poise, lost his direction and purpose, even for a brief moment? It's alarming to hear the head coach of a professional football team say that he flaked out in the heat of battle. Isn't that was he essentially what he eviscerated Chandler for doing against the Panthers and Cardinals?
But then he went further. Much, much further. When someone asked him why the powerful first-round draft pick never got off the bench, particularly against a team that defends the run as poorly as Arizona, Martz said some of the most inexplicable and damning words of the day.
"(The Cardinals) started out the game defensively with a great deal of pressure and we did not handle the pressure very well," he said, referring to Steven Jackson. "Marshall (Faulk) stayed in the game for protection purposes. All the things they were doing, I'm not sure Steven would have been able to deal with them, in fact I know he would not have been able to do the things we needed him to do ... it was fairly complex what they were doing from a pressure standpoint."
However, a few minutes later, he criticized himself for not being able to adjust to the Cardinal defense for an entirely different reason.
"I didn't do a good job of calling a game," Martz said. "I just did a bad job. With the pressure that was really simplistic in what they were doing, it was something that you should be able to deal with."
Okay, so now I'm confused. Was Arizona's defense too "complex," or was it "really simplistic"?
When pressed about Jackson not being in the game, Martz responded: "I wasn't aware of Steven not being in the game ... it was (running back coach Wilbert Montgomery's) judgement from a blitz pickup standpoint that Marshall was clued into it and Steven wasn't. ... Why Steven Jackson is an issue, it surprises me, and takes me back a bit."
Again, he was asked if he felt it was unusual for a man who has so much control over his offense to be unaware of the personnel on the field, Martz seemed perplexed.
"But I don't know," he said. "I don't know. How can I know? How can I call plays and do all that stuff and watch the defense? I just don't concern myself with that."
And why the heck not? Isn't he the head coach? Isn't he supposed to know what is going on in all aspects of the team? If Martz wants to just concentrate on the offensive play calling, then he should demote himself to offensive coordinator. Otherwise, the head coach's job is to be CEO. He is supposed to have his finger in everything. This is his team. If he doesn't concern himself with all aspects of the game during the game, who exactly has that responsibility?
That's precisely why special teams coaches can call squib kicks without the head coach's knowledge. Wow, when you hear some of the things coming out of his mouth, I'm not sure whether I'm supposed to scratch my head or pull my hair.
He is fighting for his coaching life now and he knows it. The rumors are swirling that he has already contemplated resigning if the Rams do not turn this season around. But when asked about that Monday, Martz, as always, reverted to his old, prideful ways. "No, I would never resign," he said. "I love this job. I would never leave this job. ... No way, Jose."
Ultimately, that may not be his decision.
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