Who Called the Shot on Firiing Marinelli?

Burning Questions | by Mike O'Hara | 12.29.2008/3:37PM

Burning questions on the firing of Lions head coach Rod Marinelli and other front-office moves:

Q. What was the most important question left to be answered from Monday’s announcements by Owner William Clay Ford?
A. “Who fired Rod Marinelli? That’s the biggest questions. Was it Ford? Or was it the front-office tandem of general manager Martin Mayhew and president Tom Lewan?”
Q. At his press conference Monday, Marinelli said he got the news from Mayhew on Monday morning and was told that Ford would call him later in the day. What did you make of that?
A. “On the surface, it seemed strange that Ford did not do it in person. But in recent years, Ford has had his chief executive – that was Matt Millen, before Ford fired him on Sept. 24 – do the firing.
“Millen fired Gary Moeller, Marty Mornhinweg, Steve Mariucci and Dick Jauron. At his press conference, Marinelli said he was told by Mayhew, not Ford, and was told that Ford would call him later on Monday.”
Q. What question does that leave unanswered?
A. “The question is whether the decision was Ford’s, a combination of Mayhew and Lewand, or a joint decision by the owner and his front-office executives.”
Q. Ford also announced two promotions – Lewand to president, and Mayhew to general manager. What does that mean?
A. “It means that there is no chance Ford will bring in an outsider to run the franchise. The way Ford has the jobs structured, it looks like Mayhew will be in charge of football operations, and Lewand will be in charge of business. But the title of president appears to put Lewand over Mayhew. It needs to be clarified whether Mayhew has full authority over football operations and reports only to the owner.”
Q. How do you expect fans to react to the front-office announcement?
A. “With skepticism, and rightfully so. The Lions are in a “prove-it” mode. They’ve had two winning seasons in the last 13. Fanss shouldn’t take it on blind faith that the new lineup will be a success.
There are some good coaching candidates available, but there are no guarantees that anyone will win anywhere.”
Q. The Lions also announced that most of the assistants have been retained. Does that mean the new coach has to keep them?
A. “No. It’s common for teams to keep assistants under contract. It helps a new head coach build a staff if he doesn’t want to hire 15-18 new assistants. Most of the assistants are likely to be replaced, but having them under contract is the right move.”
Q. Defensive coordinator Joe Barry was one of a handful of coaches who will not be back. Is that a surprise?
A. “That was expected. The defense ranked at the bottom for two straight years. Nothing he did turned it around.”
Q. Jim Colletto was demoted from offensive coordinator to coaching the offensive line. Was that a surprise?
A. “No. Keeping him as offensive-line coach isn’t a bad idea. The line improved. The running game got better, and sacks were reduced. And the linemen and running back Kevin Smith got used to the zone-blocking scheme. Colletto might return for a new head coach.”
Q. Marinelli was generally upbeat at his press conference. What do you make of his attitude and his future?
A. “That’s his nature. He’s not a phony. He loves coaching and said he wants to continue. He’ll have a job somewhere in the NFL next season. There was a report out of Chicago Monday that Bears head coach Lovie Smith might hire him. The two men are close friends and have worked together. However, the Chicago connection is pure speculation.”