Jan 29, 2013, New Orleans, LA, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers former coach Bill Cowher at CBS sports Super Bowl XLVII press conference at the New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

A long time ago I went to Cleveland Browns games. It was the dawn of the Bernie Kosar era with Marty Shottenheimer as head coach and Lindy Infante as offensive coordinator. Despite all of that goodness happening on offense, we noticed this nut of a special teams coach the Browns had. Whenever there was a kickoff or punt, he would sprint down the sidelines as if he was in the play. Every great tackle was celebrated with wild enthusiasm. Every missed tackle led to a sideline discussion. It was infectious and exciting to watch. We liked watching special teams just to see this guy get fired up.

That special teams coach followed Marty to Kansas City and then later interviewed for the Browns Head Coaching position. He was beat out by Bill Belichick, but was quickly hired by the Steelers to replace Chuck Knoll. I remember thinking Bill Cowher was the better selection and the Steelers landed a great guy. It was obvious he was going to be good.

The point I am making is the enthusiasm Bill Cowher brought to football even as a special teams coach was overpowering. You just knew he would lead the team to success. After listening to Gus Bradley today, I feel exactly the same way now as I did then watching Bill Cowher. Gus talked about how excited he got watching Justin Blackmon catch the football. I can’t imagine how excited Justin felt hearing that. He talked about Cecil Shorts and Jerry Sullivan with such vigor that I felt good for those guys. It was fun to hear.

I know it is only one day, but I don’t think I would be any happier with Bill Cowher as head coach than I am with Gus Bradley. It just feels so similar and so right.

- Terry O’Brien

Dejected Del Rio

Welp, the inevitable has happened. Ol’ Jack of the river has been fired, which should have been expected after the debacle that was the past Texans game. Mel Tucker has been named as the interim head coach, but most likely won’t hold the position of head coach next year. So we must ask ourselves, who will GM Gene find to replace Jack Del Rio? Check after the jump to find a list of candidates.

*BREAKING NEWS* — Wayne Weaver is selling the team, this could drastically alter the landscape of the coaching search…

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Taking on the world! Source: nflnewsworld.com

Note: I know it isn’t the end of the season, but Hof’s latest Book It is making me feel an irresistible urge to look to the future.

With the 2011 season rapidly becoming a nearly hopeless situation for the Jaguars, I take comfort in knowing that whatever happens this offseason will be a restart, much like shaking an Etch-a-Sketch.  The main components will still be there, Blaine Gabbert, Maurice Jones-Drew, Gene Smith (if he accepts his contract extension), TnT, a pair of solid safeties, solid corners, and developing linebackers; but there will be a new direction, a new approach, and new gains made.

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