Cleveland Browns reach contract terms with Eric Mangini
Posted: Wed Jan 07, 2009 9:01 pm
by Tony Grossi and Mary Kay Cabot/Plain Dealer Reporters
A former ball boy with the Browns who has stated he still has emotional ties to Cleveland, Eric Mangini will become the franchise's 12th full-time head coach following a press conference on Thursday.CLEVELAND --- The 12th full-time Browns coach is a former team ball boy whose second job with the franchise was fetching food for the media at lunchtime.
Only time will tell if he has critics eating out of his hand again with wins on the field.
The Browns will announce Eric Mangini as Romeo Crennel's successor at a news conference Thursday morning.
Amid growing reports that Mangini already was formulating his coaching staff, the club confirmed that an agreement was reached with the fired New York Jets coach on Wednesday.
Mangini, who turns 38 on Jan. 19, was the first of four candidates interviewed by owner Randy Lerner to replace Crennel. He was fired on Dec. 29, the day after the Jets lost their final game and were eliminated from the AFC playoffs.
They were in first place at 8-3 after defeating division superpower and arch rival New England on Nov. 13, then lost five of their last six to fall to third. The Jets were 23-26 in Mangini's three years as coach, twice finishing with a winning record.
Lerner was informed of Mangini's firing during a sit-down with Cleveland reporters. His eyes lit up at the news and he almost immediately made arrangements to meet with Mangini the next day. Lerner was so impressed that he never wavered from Mangini as his first choice.
In fact, Lerner effectively chose Mangini to head his football reorganization ahead of GM candidate Scott Pioli of the New England Patriots.
Once close friends and former roommates, Pioli and Mangini became estranged when Mangini left the Patriots as defensive coordinator to coach the Jets. When Lerner surmised that the relationship between Mangini and Pioli might be unworkable, Lerner proceeded with plans to make Mangini the coach.
Pioli was interviewed for the GM job, but he may no longer be a candidate. The top candidate is Mangini's long-time friend George Kokinis, pro personnel director of the Baltimore Ravens. Kokinis will be interviewed on Sunday. The Browns also received permission to interview Tom Heckert, Eagles GM.
Mangini's hiring increases the possibility of Crennel staying with the Browns, perhaps as defensive coordinator.
Mangini and Crennel worked five years together on Bill Belichick's New England staff, sharing three Super Bowl championships. When Crennel was named Browns coach in 2005, Mangini was his first choice for defensive coordinator, but Mangini opted to stay in New England as Crennel's replacement in charge of the Patriots' defense. Mangini stayed one year with New England before moving to the Jets, creating a deep rift with Belichick, who was responsible for moving Mangini into coaching on the old Browns' staff in 1995.
Mangini's first job with the Browns in 1991 was as a ballboy at training camp. He then served an internship with the public relations staff. One of his duties included delivering food, usually pizza, to the media room.
When Mangini was preparing for his first game against the Browns as Jets coach in 2006, he surprised Cleveland media by ordering them a catered lunch during the week.
"I thought I should keep the tradition alive," Mangini said then, flashing a sense of humor and humility rarely seen from his mentor, Belichick.
Mangini was the youngest coach in the league, at 35, when he was named Jets coach in 2006. In an interview with the New York Daily News in 2006, he reminisced about his humble beginnings in Cleveland.
"When I was a ball boy I'd go into the coaches' locker room and see their names on the lockers," Mangini said. "I thought, 'My name is going to be on there some day.' It seemed so far away. It was hard to envision, but that was the goal."
Mangini's firing in New York was a shocker to most in the NFL but not so much to those close to the situation.
Jets owner Woody Johnson talked of giving Mangini a contract extension when the team was 8-3. But after four losses in their last five games, Johnson pulled the plug on the coach who had acquired the nickname "Mangenius" for going 10-6 in his first season as coach. The Jets were 0-2 against the Browns under Mangini, losing, 20-13, in Cleveland in 2006, and 24-18, in the Meadowlands in 2007.
After the 2007 season, the Jets invested more than $160 million in contracts for veteran players to push the team over the hump. The spending spree included a decision late in training camp to trade for disgruntled Green Bay quarterback Brett Favre, whose acquisition led to the release of popular Jets veteran quarterback Chad Pennington.
Division rival Miami quickly signed Pennington, and he led the Dolphins to the AFC East title with a win over the Jets in the final game. Pennington was named the NFL's comeback player of the year.
Mangini, who was against the pickup of Favre, never felt comfortable with the future Hall of Famer, New York sources said. Favre threw nine interceptions in the last five games, precipitating the team's free-fall. Johnson wanted Favre to return in 2009 and felt the chances were greater of that with a change of coaches.
In a telephone conversation on Wednesday prior to news of Mangini's hiring, Floyd Reese, former Tennessee general manager, gave him a strong endorsement.
"If I was a GM right now, I think he would be the top of my list," Reese said. "I think he got a real bad deal with the Jets. Even the press conference was strange. The owner said something about it not being a knee-jerk reaction. But, I mean, the guy was 8-3."
"And here.....we....go." The Joker in The Dark Knight.
A former ball boy with the Browns who has stated he still has emotional ties to Cleveland, Eric Mangini will become the franchise's 12th full-time head coach following a press conference on Thursday.CLEVELAND --- The 12th full-time Browns coach is a former team ball boy whose second job with the franchise was fetching food for the media at lunchtime.
Only time will tell if he has critics eating out of his hand again with wins on the field.
The Browns will announce Eric Mangini as Romeo Crennel's successor at a news conference Thursday morning.
Amid growing reports that Mangini already was formulating his coaching staff, the club confirmed that an agreement was reached with the fired New York Jets coach on Wednesday.
Mangini, who turns 38 on Jan. 19, was the first of four candidates interviewed by owner Randy Lerner to replace Crennel. He was fired on Dec. 29, the day after the Jets lost their final game and were eliminated from the AFC playoffs.
They were in first place at 8-3 after defeating division superpower and arch rival New England on Nov. 13, then lost five of their last six to fall to third. The Jets were 23-26 in Mangini's three years as coach, twice finishing with a winning record.
Lerner was informed of Mangini's firing during a sit-down with Cleveland reporters. His eyes lit up at the news and he almost immediately made arrangements to meet with Mangini the next day. Lerner was so impressed that he never wavered from Mangini as his first choice.
In fact, Lerner effectively chose Mangini to head his football reorganization ahead of GM candidate Scott Pioli of the New England Patriots.
Once close friends and former roommates, Pioli and Mangini became estranged when Mangini left the Patriots as defensive coordinator to coach the Jets. When Lerner surmised that the relationship between Mangini and Pioli might be unworkable, Lerner proceeded with plans to make Mangini the coach.
Pioli was interviewed for the GM job, but he may no longer be a candidate. The top candidate is Mangini's long-time friend George Kokinis, pro personnel director of the Baltimore Ravens. Kokinis will be interviewed on Sunday. The Browns also received permission to interview Tom Heckert, Eagles GM.
Mangini's hiring increases the possibility of Crennel staying with the Browns, perhaps as defensive coordinator.
Mangini and Crennel worked five years together on Bill Belichick's New England staff, sharing three Super Bowl championships. When Crennel was named Browns coach in 2005, Mangini was his first choice for defensive coordinator, but Mangini opted to stay in New England as Crennel's replacement in charge of the Patriots' defense. Mangini stayed one year with New England before moving to the Jets, creating a deep rift with Belichick, who was responsible for moving Mangini into coaching on the old Browns' staff in 1995.
Mangini's first job with the Browns in 1991 was as a ballboy at training camp. He then served an internship with the public relations staff. One of his duties included delivering food, usually pizza, to the media room.
When Mangini was preparing for his first game against the Browns as Jets coach in 2006, he surprised Cleveland media by ordering them a catered lunch during the week.
"I thought I should keep the tradition alive," Mangini said then, flashing a sense of humor and humility rarely seen from his mentor, Belichick.
Mangini was the youngest coach in the league, at 35, when he was named Jets coach in 2006. In an interview with the New York Daily News in 2006, he reminisced about his humble beginnings in Cleveland.
"When I was a ball boy I'd go into the coaches' locker room and see their names on the lockers," Mangini said. "I thought, 'My name is going to be on there some day.' It seemed so far away. It was hard to envision, but that was the goal."
Mangini's firing in New York was a shocker to most in the NFL but not so much to those close to the situation.
Jets owner Woody Johnson talked of giving Mangini a contract extension when the team was 8-3. But after four losses in their last five games, Johnson pulled the plug on the coach who had acquired the nickname "Mangenius" for going 10-6 in his first season as coach. The Jets were 0-2 against the Browns under Mangini, losing, 20-13, in Cleveland in 2006, and 24-18, in the Meadowlands in 2007.
After the 2007 season, the Jets invested more than $160 million in contracts for veteran players to push the team over the hump. The spending spree included a decision late in training camp to trade for disgruntled Green Bay quarterback Brett Favre, whose acquisition led to the release of popular Jets veteran quarterback Chad Pennington.
Division rival Miami quickly signed Pennington, and he led the Dolphins to the AFC East title with a win over the Jets in the final game. Pennington was named the NFL's comeback player of the year.
Mangini, who was against the pickup of Favre, never felt comfortable with the future Hall of Famer, New York sources said. Favre threw nine interceptions in the last five games, precipitating the team's free-fall. Johnson wanted Favre to return in 2009 and felt the chances were greater of that with a change of coaches.
In a telephone conversation on Wednesday prior to news of Mangini's hiring, Floyd Reese, former Tennessee general manager, gave him a strong endorsement.
"If I was a GM right now, I think he would be the top of my list," Reese said. "I think he got a real bad deal with the Jets. Even the press conference was strange. The owner said something about it not being a knee-jerk reaction. But, I mean, the guy was 8-3."
"And here.....we....go." The Joker in The Dark Knight.
