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Tale of two coaches
Jauron, Mangini make contrasting impressions at Combine
By Matt Sohn
Feb. 21, 2008
INDIANAPOLIS — Two AFC East coaches addressed the media at the NFL Scouting Combine on Thursday morning, and their demeanors and the way they were received couldn’t have stood in starker contrast.
For Bills coach Dick Jauron, his physical presentation reflected the ease with which he talked. With a mop of free-flowing hair flopping over his forehead and wearing a casual blue fleece without any team logo to identify him as a team representative, he looked as if he were just as ready to take a stroll through the mall as he did ready to indulge the hoards of media members with all that’s been happening in Buffalo.
While Jauron couldn’t find his niche during his oft-criticized tenure in Chicago, he has embraced the social and football culture in western New York. There’s a discernable level of trust that has developed through the Bills’ clubhouse, a mutual respect between executives, coaches and players that befits their egalitarian decision-making process on personnel matters. When Buffalo icon Marv Levy recently stepped down after a two-year stint as general manager, the GM responsibilities were divided between college and pro personnel chiefs Tom Modrak and John Guy, respectively.
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Dick Jauron
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“When Marv was there, it was a special time for all of us. Certainly a special time for everybody in Buffalo,” Jauron said. “There’s not a lot of change, but we will miss Marv’s personality, the strength of his character.”
Despite Jauron’s calm, these are anything but stable times in Buffalo. The Bills forge ahead into 2008 with second-year players manning both their QB and RB spots, and just months ago Jauron took many by surprise by promoting QB coach Turk Schonert to offensive coordinator, despite Schonert having no prior experience calling plays.
“I have great faith in all three of those people,” Jauron said, speaking of Schonert, QB Trent Edwards and RB Marshawn Lynch. “We got Trent in the third round and we really thought he was a bargain. When we got into camp, he performed better than we thought. Same with Marshawn. He was a high pick, but he was even better than we thought he was. I have background with Turk. I just believe it is his time. He has worked hard to get a shot at this.”
Among other issues Jauron touched on:
 Jauron said that Pro Bowl OLT Jason Peters has been the only player he’s seen make a smooth transition from college to NFL left tackle since Anthony Munoz, who’s now in the Hall of Fame.
MLB Paul Posluszny, the team’s second-round selection last April who suffered a season-ending broken forearm, is fully recovered.
On the flip side, Jets coach Eric Mangini, outfitted more like a coach with a Jets-issued polo, navigated the onslaught of critical questions as deftly as he could, but he danced around the pressing personnel issues.
When asked about the ongoing contract stalemate between the team and WR Laveranues Coles — who is seeking a long-term extension with two years left on his current deal — Manigni simply responded by saying he and Coles have a good relationship and that they recently had a constructive phone conversation about his future with the franchise.
But moments later, when reminded that Coles called his coach a liar in a recent newspaper report, Mangini hardly sounded convincing when he reiterated his strong relationship with his disgruntled star.
He also sidestepped a question regarding the future of ILB Jonathan Vilma, whose future in New York has been speculated to be in jeopardy after a knee injury prematurely ended his season and opened the door for rookie revelation David Harris.
“It’s one of those things where you're going to have to evaluate it as we go and hope everything works out,” Mangini said. “But Jon’s a good player. He's a smart player. He's been very productive for us. And he's incredibly competitive.”
But for any discomfort Mangini felt addressing his team’s pitfalls on Thursday, he has reason to feel confident about his ability to make the most out of the Combine week. Perhaps no team had as much success with its first two draft picks in ’07 as the Jets, with CB Darrelle Revis and Harris emerging as two of the league’s best rookies.
Among other issues Mangini addressed:
Regarding Bill Callahan, who was recently hired as assistant head coach after getting dumped as Nebraska skipper, primarily to work with the Jets’ O-line: “I was really excited to get him,” Mangini said. “He’s a guy that has experience not just working with the offensive line, but he’s been a coordinator and a head coach in the NFL. He’s been a head coach in college football. (I) really like the things that he’s done offensively throughout his career.”
As GM Mike Tannebaum said at his season-ending press conference, Mangini stated that he fully intends for Chad Pennington to be a Jet in 2008, dismissing rumors that he’d be traded after relinquishing the starting QB job to Kellen Clemens last season.
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Summary of NFL Combine content
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