Chargers Fire Schottenheimer

http://espn.go.com/ ^ | 02/12/07

[Troublemaker]

Chargers Fire Schottenheimer

The Chargers fired Marty Schottenheimer on Monday, reports ESPN's Chris Mortensen. Schottenheimer led San Diego to a 14-2 regular-season record, only to lose in the AFC divisional playoffs.

[Troublemaker]

This is breaking news so there is only a headline/breaking news blurb on ESPN.com. I wonder how long until the Chargers call Pete Carroll.

[Dog]

What the hell is wrong with the Chargers..

[onyx]

Damn A.J. Smith and Alex Spanos for going along with Smith.

[somemoreequalthanothers]

Marty is a good coach. He'll have another job soon enough if he wants it.

[traditional1]

I hope Marty goes back to the Cleveland Browns...they liked him there, and Lord knows they need him......

[Viking2002]

Marty's only real knock is that he hasn't closed the deal on The Big Dance. He'll get snapped up pretty quick, though. I'll be accused of heresy and asked to turn in my monogrammed burgundy-and-gold undershorts for this, but Six Flags Snyder ought to give him another shot in Washington. Given that Gibbs II is imploding faster than a rusty Russian submarine, I'm willing to cast aside 40-plus years of loyalty and get someone in there with a more steady track record.

[SmithL]

Schottenheimer fired by Chargers president

By BERNIE WILSON, AP Sports Writer

Monday, February 12, 2007

(02-12) 18:57 PST SAN DIEGO, (AP) --

Chargers coach Marty Schottenheimer was fired Monday night in a shocking move by team president Dean Spanos, who cited a "dysfunctional situation" between the coach and general manager A.J. Smith.

Less than a month after San Diego's NFL-best 14-2 season was wrecked in a home playoff loss to New England, Spanos cited the exodus of both coordinators and other assistants in firing Schottenheimer. The coach had a year left on his contract and will be owed more than $3 million.

"When I decided to move ahead with Marty Schottenheimer in mid-January, I did so with the expectation that the core of his fine coaching staff would remain intact," Spanos said in a statement. "Unfortunately, that did not prove to be the case, and the process of dealing with these coaching changes convinced me that we simply could not move forward with such dysfunction between our head coach and general manager.

"In short, this entire process over the last month convinced me beyond any doubt that I had to act to change this untenable situation and create an environment."

The firing was first reported by ESPN.

Schottenheimer didn't immediately return messages left on his office and cell phones.

Defensive coordinator Wade Phillips was hired as head coach of the Dallas Cowboys on Thursday, following offensive coordinator Cam Cameron and two other assistants out of town for better jobs. . . .

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/n/a/2007/02/12/sports/s183032S83.DTL&type=printable

[NCC-1701]

"...What the hell is wrong with the Chargers..."

My first thought, A LOT.

[Rummyfan]

I doubt if Marty would want to work for The Danny again. The Deadskins ain't going anywhere with Snyder as owner. Now that the Gibbs return has not worked I don't know what the 'Skins are going to do. Vince Lombardi is not available!

[Viking2002]

Agreed. They could prop Lombardi's carcass up on the sidelines and he'd still outcoach anyone Snyder's hired in the past ten years. Man, I am despondent. *hangs head in disbelief and shame* *SOB*

[Rummyfan]

Read John Feinstein's Next Man Up last year. He spent a season with the Ravens... Mike Nolan was the D coordinator of the Ravens that year, after leaving the Redskins and before taking the Niners head job.

Per the book, Danny left a gallon of vanilla ice cream on Nolan's desk after one game, saying the defense was too vanilla and he didn't like that. Nolan took it as a joke. A couple of games later and the same thing happened, with a note from Danny that he really didn't like vanilla. Nolan left at the end of the season.....

[Hildy]

ouch

[onyx]

This sucks.