Tuesday, September 26, 2000
Coslet had 37 reasons to quit
The best time to talk to Bruce Coslet was when the game was over and his guard was down. After the camera crews had fled, and the crowd in his office had dwindled to familiar faces, he'd light another cigarette, lean a little further back in his chair, and for a few minutes the only smoke he'd blow would be tobacco.
This was when he'd give it to you straight, when the head coach of the Cincinnati Bengals would discard the soft euphe misms in favor of the hard truths. You'd ask him why he wouldn't walk away from this gridiron gulag and he'd swear he would never quit because of the financial impact on his family.
Mr. Coslet resigned Monday morning. Whatev er he was being paid, it was no longer worth it.
Maybe he did it because the stress was too hard on his health. Maybe he did it because his pride was taking too much of a pounding. Maybe he watched Sunday's 37-0 loss to Baltimore and concluded that his team was beyond hope or had stopped hearing. Maybe he did it just to beat Mike Brown to the punch.
Any of these reasons would be perfectly valid. All of them probably played some part in Monday's move. No coach worth his whistle gives up three games into a season unless he is highly motivated to move on.
“He felt that coaching was harder on him than it was meant to be,” Bengals president Mike Brown said. “He wasn't sure that he could do for the team what needed to be done.”
Which begs the question: Can anyone?
With all due respect for Dick LeBeau, the Civil War buff tapped to replace Coslet, this Bengal team has about as much chance as Pickett's Charge. It blocks badly, tackles terribly, is prone to dumb penalties and careless fumbles, and risks ruining a promising young quarterback through concussions and shell shock.
Bengals radio analyst Dave Lapham has reported — and the Bengals have declined to deny — that the job was first offered to linebackers coach Mark Duff ner, who has been a college head coach at Holy Cross and Maryland. Mr. Duffner, Mr. Lapham said, declined the offer in deference to Mr. LeBeau's seniority.
If so, it seems a noble gesture. Bad as the Bengals are, have been and are likely to be, there are only 31 NFL head coaching positions, and Mr. Duffner may never be offered another one. Conversely, anyone burdened by the balance of the 2000 Bengals' won-lost record may kill his chances of ever landing a better job.
Dick LeBeau, at 63, may not have the luxury of waiting for a more promising position. He took the job, he said, without hesitation.
“We think we can win and win on a regular basis with these people,” Mr. LeBeau said. “We think we have a good, talented young football team. We have to look at all the reasons we're not getting it done right now.”
Some of the most important reasons are beyond the control of the coaching staff. Coaching the Bengals means accepting conditions some coaches — Paul Brown included — would find intolerable.
It means limited authority over the selection of assistant coaches, decisions on draft choices and the choice of which guys get cut.
During Mike Ditka's temporary insanity, when the former New Orleans coach was resolved to get Ricky Williams at any cost, Mr. Coslet was among those inclined to take advantage.
Mike Brown insisted on drafting Akili Smith, however, allowing the Washington Redskins to grab New Orleans' eight draft choices and fortify their future.
Ultimately, making the deal cost Mr. Ditka his job. Not making it may have hastened Mr. Coslet's departure. He was, at least in part, a victim of circumstance. Bengal coaches always are.
Enquirer columnist Tim Sullivan welcomes your email at tsullivan@enquirer.com
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SULLIVAN: Coslet had 37 reasons to quit
