Petrino to resign...

The point is that he's not actually bad enough to fire.



I listened to the Falcons press conference yesterday - good lord Blank sounded pissed off. I still think the guy's in the mob, it wouldn't surprised me if Petrino disappeared one day.

 

All Patrino had to do was agree to the job in principle with the understanding he had to ride out the season with Atlanta. I think there would have been some backlash and frustration with fans, but not nearly at the level that we are seeing. For him to preach long haul and family even as of Monday and then leave Tuesday is beyond what any other coach has done to my knowledge.

I thought Saban was a Douche for adamantly stating he wasnt taking the Bama job, but at least the season was over when he did it. Patrino has taken the meaning of the word Douche to a whole new level.

 

This is one of the most surreal things I've ever seen. This guy was coaching an NFL team the night before.



Petrino strikes me as the type of guy who will eventually put a bullet in his head. It's not going to end well for him.

 

Was that 49erpi? Sweet.

 

wish john fox would quit

 

Chadiha says Blank is to blame for all of Atlanta's problems

Blank created this mess in Atlanta, so now he needs to fix it
By Jeffri Chadiha
ESPN.com
(Archive)
Updated: December 12, 2007

There's an important lesson that Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank needs to learn now that his former head coach, Bobby Petrino, has abandoned him: Be more careful about the faith you have in your employees.

We can criticize Michael Vick's incredibly stupid judgment all we want. We can complain about Petrino's obviously questionable ethics as well. But let's not forget about Blank here. He believed in these men -- and that's partly why the Falcons are in such disarray today.

What this really comes down to is Blank doing a better job of handling his ownership. He bought the Falcons in 2002 and he should be applauded for his high-minded, community-oriented image. What he hasn't done, however, is put enough good people around him in key positions. And that needs to change if the Falcons are going to rebound from the missteps in the last eight months.

First, Blank never should've developed such a strong affection for Vick, who on Monday was sentenced to 23 months in a federal prison for his role in an illegal dogfighting ring. Blank clearly fell in love with Vick's potential to be a black superstar in a city with a strong black business community, and that relationship blinded Blank from Vick's issues, eventually burning the owner.

Blank has tried to defend the way he dealt with Vick's immaturity, but it's impossible to think the owner's coddling helped matters, especially after he gave Vick a 10-year, $130-million deal in 2004. The bottom line is that Blank was one of the many people who served as enablers for Vick's warped thinking.

Now we have the Petrino affair. Don't feel bad for Blank just because his coach abandoned him 13 games after signing a five-year, $24 million contract. Petrino wouldn't have succeeded even if he hadn't raced off to Arkansas in the middle of the night. It's too hard for college coaches to prosper in today's NFL because too many think they can manipulate grown men in the same way they bully college kids. It's not surprising that Petrino's tough-guy style irritated the Falcons veterans from the moment he arrived.

The point with these two examples is that Blank gambled -- and lost -- on filling two of the three most important positions in a pro football franchise (general manager being the third).

Not only did Vick and Petrino disappoint the owner, they also tried to play him for a fool. Vick lied about his level of involvement in that dogfighting ring way back in the spring. Petrino was just as devious when he reportedly denied rumors that he was talking to Arkansas about that job … just days before the news conference announcing that Petrino was replacing Houston Nutt in Fayetteville.

The bottom line is that: 1) Either those men didn't respect Blank enough to come clean with him, or 2) He's extremely gullible. Either way, he has to become tougher on his employees.

In fact, the first person Blank needs to evaluate is general manager Rich McKay. As likable and respected as McKay is, he has made some questionable moves over the years, including the trade that sent Matt Schaub to Houston when Vick still hadn't proven himself as a consistent quarterback. McKay obviously needs to deliver big in free agency and next year's draft.

As for the head-coaching situation, Blank should have plenty of candidates to consider. This may be the first year in a long time when there aren't a slew of vacancies around the league and that means more choices for Atlanta. There will be a variety of smart, young assistants to interview, such as Tennessee defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz, New England offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels and Dallas offensive coordinator Jason Garrett. Blank also liked 49ers assistant head coach Mike Singletary when the Hall of Fame linebacker interviewed for the job last year.

One thing is certain: Another big-name college coach isn't going to be an option.

What the Falcons sorely need are people they can believe in. Vick's problems destroyed whatever hope this team had in 2007. Petrino's approach killed whatever opportunity they had of unifying and moving forward. Now the Falcons appear to be back where they were when it became clear that Vick was heading to jail -- they seem to have no clue how to point themselves in a positive direction anymore.

This is what Blank must recognize today. He has projected a classy image since coming into the NFL and he has been willing to give his team whatever is necessary for them to win. In some places, that's enough to ensure success, but it will take more than that in Atlanta.

It will take a coach who can relate to today's players. It will take a quarterback with the good sense to focus on becoming the best leader he can be. And above all else, it will take an owner realizing that it's his job to stabilize a franchise that has been in tatters for most of this year.


Jeffri Chadiha is a senior writer for ESPN.com.

 

http://www.kansascity.com/sports/story/401382.html

Emmitt Thomas, come on down. Your the next interim coach of the Atlanta Falcons.

Thomas is a senior committee HOF candidate this year. If Blank is looking for a good story and Thomas aquits himself well, he's a possibility.

 

And Anderson didn't do it for five straight years. Petrino has gotten new contract after new contract, year after year. Hell, he tried to snake the Auburn job out of Tuberville a few years ago.

Anderson is right. If I'm a Fayetteville 5 star athlete and both Miles and Petrino are knocking, who am I going to believe?