Herm Speaks Finale
From the Truman Sports Complex
Herm Edwards met the media horde for the final time in the 2008 season. Like everyone else, he now waits for the hiring of a new general manager and a decision on whether he will remain as the team’s head coach.
Edwards won’t sit back and wait. He will approach the next several weeks in the only fashion he can: as head coach of the Chiefs. He’ll spend this week evaluating his players and coaches and he’ll then get prepared for the Senior Bowl and looking at college players in preparation for the 2009 NFL Draft.
As one might imagine, many of the questions to Edwards were about his situation. Here are the highlights.
ON WHETHER HE FEELS UNCOMFORTABLE ABOUT HIS SITUATION AS HE WAITS FOR A NEW GM.
“Well, I just think the new guy is going to have the same vision that we started with, this rebuilding vision that we’ve been trying to do as an organization. I think that’s going to be a key too. He’s going to have to come in and evaluate players and then he’s going to evaluate what we’ve done to try and do this. I think that will be the criteria in hiring a guy like that too.”
ON WHETHER HE CAN MAKE A CASE TO THE NEXT GM ON WHAT HE’S DONE.
“I’m the kind of guy, and maybe it’s just my upbringing, but I’m not one to try and build cases. I let my work speak for itself. That’s the bottom line. I’m not big on promoting Herman Edwards, never have been and I’m not going to start now. I’ve been in this business too long and I think I try to do things the right way and try to do things right for this organization and this football team. I know it was the right thing to do. That’s all you can do. You do the right things for the right reasons. You don’t do them personally; you do them for what you know and you feel is right. At this point in time we knew we were going to be in this situation. We all accepted it. I’ve got to accept it as a coach. That’s where it’s at.”
WILL YOU HAVE TO SELL HIMSELF TO THE NEW GM
“I’m pretty sure if it’s a new GM who gets hired he’s going to know who I am unless he’s not in America. I’ve been in this league 30 years; what do I have to do? He’s got to make a decision on what he wants to do. He’s got to look at it and say is this guy the right guy and if he’s not that’s okay. That’s his decision. I’m okay with that.”
Comment: Sometimes it’s hard for fans and the media to understand one of the facts of life when you are in the coaching profession. That is simply this: if a coach hasn’t been fired yet, more than likely he will be before the end of his career. Whether it’s called relieved of duties, not retained, no contract offered, released or fired is semantics. The reality is you are out of a job. Edwards experienced that once before with the Chiefs, when Marty Schottenheimer did not retain him as secondary coach after the 1994 season. There isn’t a coach on the Kansas City coaching staff that hasn’t been fired at least once.
Coaches learn quite early that the only thing they control is the job they do. Spending time speculation or worrying about matters out of their control does nothing but create ulcers and sleepless nights. Coaches on a team with a 2-14 record have enough sleepless nights because of what happens on the field, without making matters worse.
Love him or hate him, you’ve got to give Herm Edwards credit for one thing: he’s done it his way. If that doesn’t work out, he’s going to be able to live with that. There are a lot of coaches who don’t have that kind of fortitude.
ARE THEY ANY PUBLIC PERCEPTIONS THAT HE WOULD LIKE TO CHANGE?
“No, not at all. I’m not going to defend how I coach. I don’t need to do that. I think my tenure will tell you how I coach and it’s not on one year, one season or two seasons. It’s cumulative of what you’ve done and that speaks for itself.
“The greatest thing you can do as a coach is have other people speak about you, in this case the players in the locker room speak about you. It’s a bottom line business and your players do the best job of speaking for their head coach. As long as you coach the players to the best of your ability that’s all you can do.
“There are perceptions of every coach in the National Football League. You can’t get involved in that. You’ve got to know who you are as a man. I know who I am. I know what I stand for and what I believe in. That’s not going to change. Some people will be for me and some people will be against me. That’s fine. People have a right to have an opinion and that’s okay. But I don’t live my life that way, I really don’t. If you do you’re going to live up and down a lot and my life is pretty consistent. My values are my values and there certain things I believe in are what they are. It doesn’t change.”
Comment: One of the hardest things to understand about the 2008 Chiefs is that they did not follow the example set by their head coach. Edwards’ strength is his consistency. He gets up every day and it doesn’t matter what happened yesterday, or last week, or whether it’s cold outside, or hot outside, or whether it’s raining, or it’s Monday, or the food wasn’t right at lunch, or somebody wrote a bad article about him. If you put his emotional level on a graph, it would seldom vary. The line would trend upward at kickoff and whenever he gets to see his two daughters. Otherwise, there’s never any question about where his head is at. If his players had approached their jobs with that kind of consistency, this team would not have finished 2-14.
ARE THERE DECISIONS MADE OVER THE LAST THREE YEARS THAT HE WOULD LIKE TO CHANGE.
“The decisions you make are based on the information you have at that point in time. You know what I’ve learned about being in this position? It’s always easy for people to make suggestions. Everyone has suggestions. It’s always hard for the person who has to make the decision because once you make the decision that’s it, that’s the final thought. You get billed for it. I hear suggestions every day, ‘You should have done that. You should have done this.’ Everybody can make suggestions. Suggestions are easy to make. It’s the guy who has to make the decision that’s tough and the way you make decisions, in my opinion, is you gather all the information and at that point in time – at that point not a year later or two months later – it’s the right decision you make for the football team.”
Comment: I remember a story that Marty Schottenheimer used to tell about his father. His Dad told him once that he should never be afraid of making a decision, because if he makes a bad decision, he would quickly have a chance to make another decision. Coaches are decision makers and nobody knows better than them that sometimes decisions work out and sometimes they don’t. No coach has ever hit on every decision. Viewed in the smaller picture, at 2-14 and 6-26 over the last two seasons, there is ample evidence that Edwards has made a lot of decision that didn’t work out. Viewed through the larger window or the so-called big picture, it’s too early to tell. If the young talent this team acquired in ’08 becomes the foundation for success in the future, then Edwards’ success rate on decisions will increase dramatically. Whether a new GM wants to wait for the future to see if that should happen figures to be the first decision that man must make once he takes the job.
I think herm may have been under the influence. If you listened/watched his season wrap on kcchiefs.com he was way out there, talking how he doesnt make a case for his job and shouldnt have to for the new GM, yeah ok i can understand that, but to follow that statement up with he lets his performance do the talking, as if it has been good? It hasnt even been acceptable, (compared to most organizations) yet somehow hes still the HC. And then to go on later in the press conference when asked if he would ever consider a GM position, he said you never know. LMAO.
“YOU.PLAY.TO.WIN.THE.GAME….YOUPLAYDAWINTHAGAME!
Herm…..YOU.GET.PAYED.TO.WIN.GAMES…YOUGETPAYEDTOWINGAMES!
15-33 in 3 years doesnt cut it..you owe someone some money.
I have liked Herm and been on board thus far, at this point im not sure anymore.
Keep up the great work Coach Edwards. ALL of KC is behind you and we know that you will lead us back to glory very soon now.
AND NOW, Clark Hunt has RE-RE-affirmed – and so does Rin – Herm’s The Man!
Your correct about most everything you posted “Nick” except the record, I wouldn’t give Herm credit for the first wins & loses do to it was still Dick Vermils left over Chiefs then so Herm shouldn’t get the credit for them so in short it more along the lines of:
6-26
And he still has a Job?
Only in Kansas City.
That’s right Herm, let your record speak for itself. No more “nice guy” free passes for you.
Bob, why do you and others try to handcuff the young players to Herm? As if they won’t play unless Herm is here? Truth is, Herm could have gotten all the best young players in the world, but it still doesn’t make him the right coach on gameday, or practice, or the classroom, or the sideline, or…
MenInRed..thanks, your right…I gave him too much credit
I’m of the old school when players busted ass because they both feared and respected the head coach as opposed to those who ‘like’ him as it seems in Herm’s case. Sure, they like Herm, like having been comfortable losing and having an easy way out because their coach was taking the heat.
I say, bring in a tyrant to shake this 2-14 roster to its very foundation! Someone who will make it clear that accountability will be the order of the day and those not willing or able to toe the line can play on someone else’s team.
Could Parcells be lured in if he gets to walk about the Fish get sold? Probably not, but that’s the right course of action and NOT more of the same old/same old.
Men in Red, are you saying no coach should get credit for their first year on the job then, because every coach takes on the last coaches players. So Gruden didn’t win the superbowl in Tampa it was really Dungy. The first season Herm was here he got the team into the playoffs, didn’t he, with Vermiels backup QB… Remember Green was hurt the whole season practically and Herm still called all the games that season so he does deserve the credit for the wins and the playoffs that season. He also deserves all the credit for the NY Jets playoff seasons and there losing seasons, he called all the games there too.
The chiefs have a bunch of rookies starting this year, the team had to get younger, he couldn’t keep the Vermiel team any longer since they were all on Geriatric medicines.
I know we would all like to say herm is not much of a coach BUT clark likes him, so here he sits. I do not believe wins and losses have anything to do with it. IS CLARK COMFORTABLE WITH THE CURRENT STATUS OF THE KC CHIEF?? Until clark wants a change there will be none. Anyone but me remember Lamar’s comments on what he was proudest of with the chiefs? Paraphase – Since moving to KC the chiefs have always made a profit. Nothing about winning or even playing football, it is all about the bucks. And so is clark.
I could not disagree more. I will hold my final judgement on Herm until the end of next season. I hope they give him a chance to coach one more year and see if he can complete the puzzle. Vermiel, left a huge mess here in KC and without blowing a ton of money on free agnents that typically don’t work out. We would be having this same discussion no matter who the coach was.
The reality is that a coach who was a lesser man would have blew tons of cash and won 6 games this year and everyone could have been fooled into thinking we were competetive in an 8-8 division. Well that would have been even more disappointing and we still would not have built any foundation for the future…
As a fan and a season ticket holder, I am not concerned about one years record or even two. I want to build a consistant winner. Look at the Colts, they just finished their SIXTH 12 win season in a ROW!!! They did that through the draft! They also suffered some irresponsible coaching and had to suck for awhile to get there, and so do we…
Skrappy,
FYI: Vermeil left the team just as old as he inherited from Gunther/Marty.
FYI: Vermeil left the Chiefs as a playoff caliber team.
To say he left a “huge mess” is ridiculous. To blame him for not drafting OLinemen in 2006 and 2007 (after he was gone) is hilarious. Oh, did he bring in Law, D. Edwards, Turley, etc? Oops, that was under Herms watch. Did he let go of young players Mitchell, Allen, Wilkerson, etc? Oops, that was under Herm too.
Try to deflect blame all you want, but this is 100% Herm’s mess at this point.
Herm is delusional.
“I let my work speak for itself. That’s the bottom line.”
4 – 12 and 2 – 14 the last two years. That “speaks” alright…and it says, “YOU’RE FIRED!” That’s the bottom line, Herm.
“I’m not going to defend how I coach. I don’t need to do that.”
Um, when you’ve won six games in two years…then yeah, you DO need to defend how you coach. If you have a WINNING record, then maybe not so much.
I still don’t hate the guy or anything…but he’s a crappy Head Coach, in my opinion. The sooner he’s sent packing…the better. Or maybe keep him as the DB coach. That, he might be able to handle.
tm, I hope your wrong about jr, but the nut usually doesn’t fall far from the tree.
Tm1946 your negativity gets on my nerves. Just go be a Patriots fan for crying out loud. If Clark didn’t care about winning he wouldn’t have fired Peterson. And you know what winning equates to dollars. ITs one and the same. IF you put a winnning product on the field you’re going to make money. Fans going to pack stadiums, you’re going to raise ticket prices, you’re going to sale jerseys, hats, and other team products on the national market when you’re winnning.
Aside that foolishness. Whats is this crap about Vermeil. Lets get one thing straight Vermeil nor Peterson left this franchise in good shape. Nor did it leave Herm a playoff team that could consistently go to the playoffs year in and year out. If anyone on here is going to say Vermeil left Herm just as good of a team as Cowher left Mike Tomlin is a damn fool. Night and day the team left by Vermeil and Peterson was good for a 3 or 4 year window and about time Herm got here it had ran its course. And needed major overhauling. So this mess that is currently the Chiefs is not all on Herm. Vermeil was apart of it and so was King Carl Peterson. They all contributed to this garbage. I give Herm credit for having the balls to play young guys and get this thing going in the direction of drafting something that should have been going on the last 10 years. Lets be real about it people 10 years 3 playoff appearances and 0 wins in the playoffs. Thats not a good ran franchise. Thats inexcusable and horrible.
This team needs a real GM and head coach that is update with how to win in this league. And it ain’t about building through free agency. Its about getting a couple free agents and making smart draft selections to build a long term winner. At the end of the day hopefully Clark will hire a modern day Gm and allow him to bring in a head coach that knows how to win.
ED I agree with you, except for I think we have the coach that knows how to win. They didn’t win this year, but the team lacked experience because of the youth. I think they did what they had to do all season long, but when they got to the point where they were leading in games and blowing them it makes things look a whole lot worse. Thats where the progress is though, they got to the point where they had leads to blow. Next year they will win games…
Get the GM that knows how to evaluate players and can use the money efficiently to get the players he needs through FA. Free Agency can get a team stuck quick, and in 2-3 years the team wont be able to afford to pay the new players they need…
Three full years later and some of you still try to deflect blame to Vermeil. Priceless. How many layers of mental teflon did you have to coat Herm with for that?
I had the flu 10 years ago, think i could call into work?
With the exception of DJ, this entire defense is Herm’s. Oh, and they were the worst defense in the league. How is that Vermeil’s fault? How is getting rid of Mitchell, Allen, and Wilkerson (all of which are young and better than the current starters) Vermeil’s fault?
ED sorry to upset you after you ran your big mouth about sundays game. Here are a few facts as I see them:
1. Since the win in the SuperBowl, the KC chiefs have been satisfied to be the bottomfeeder of the NFL. This changed for a short period under Carl and Marty.
2. The team for WHATEVER REASON needed this rebuild. But it is all about herm’s ability not turning the team into a winning franchise. HERM IS A 4-12 HEAD COACH IN 2008, enough said stupid.
3. The hunt family have always been about the money and how to get more. Lamar came to KC for the bucks, made tons, and now his son looks like dad.
Do not like it, do not care. That is what it is so take you “go be a Patiots fan” and stick it.
Honestly, I am tired of the fans whining about this “get over it” and “play to win the game” quotes…Herm DOES want to win, who doesnt? There were obvious issues between Carl and Herm in terms of the direction they wanted to take, Im sure it divided much of the front office.
Herm is a good football coach, whether or not he stays or goes, has nothing to do with people on here picking apart what he says…Bob puts a positive spin at least, its frustrating to see negativity non stop…
I saw a lot of positives this year. Albert is an anchor on that line, Wade Smith/Herb Taylor have potential, Charles looks explosive, LJ will be GONE, Bowe/Bradley are a great duo, Thigpen showed some things, defensively Dorsey got better as time went on, he needs an offseason to condition. Page/Pollard/Flowers/Carr ALL Positives, same with Leggett, cant complain about Turk as a rotation guy, Kevin Robinson has ability…
The foundation is there, add a few LBs, a pass rusher, a center, and this is a potential playoff team…
Unfortunately next years schedule does Not help.
First of all I don’t understand what point you’re making. You make reference to the organization making money well the way to do that is put a winning product on the field. Next if Clark didn’t care about winning why is Peterson gone. He could have gave Peterson an extention or promoted his asst. Bill Kurich to GM. This coming from the same guy tm that thought Clark wouldn’t fire Peterson. Please
Anyway I am sick of your whinning the team is trying to make changes and you’re still finding away to be negative. I’m just sick of it if you don’t like whats going on then change teams no one is making you a Chiefs fan or are just looking for any little thing to cry about.
AS for blaming Vermeil he’s just as responsible as Herm because he didn’t leave this franchise with good enough talent long term to continue to compete. Him and Peterson plotted a short term Super Bowl and couldn’t even get out of the first round let alone make it to a Super Bowl. I’m not saying Herm is not to blame for allowing himself to put up with the incompetence of Peterson or his draft mistakes or putting too much faith in Brodie. But its not all his fault between Peterson,Vermeil, and Edwards they’re all to blame for this mess. As for Herm being a winning coach I think its possible but it just not going to be here. ITs time to turn the page the players are starting to accept losing and that is never a good sign. Its time for a fresh start. Starting with a new GM and head coach. I like Herm, but he has to do a better job in in-game decision making as well as getting better quality asst. coaches. And last he has to get more involved with his offensive and defensive coord.. You can’t allow Chan to call fly routes in the red zone on a 3 and 1. You have to be a little more offensive savvy than that to allow foolish plays that don’t make sense in certain situations to be called. Other than that he’s good at evaluating talent for the most part and a great motivator, but he still has alot of growing up to do to be a more well rounded head coach.
I need an answer to a question(s): Do we get to carry our $30 million under the cap money over to use in 2009? If not, is there a way to extend/redo existing players contracts (such as DJ) using this years money? Thanks in advance for the answer.
yes hank it carries over.
“I think my tenure will tell you how I coach and it’s not on one year, one season or two seasons. It’s cumulative of what you’ve done and that speaks for itself.”
Finally, Herm says something worth listenning to and accurate. 54-74 is his “cumulative” record. 15-33 is his record as Chief Coach. Either way, his record “speaks for itself” and says only one thing. Fire me, I’m incompetant with an old team, youg team, whatever kind of team you want. Hopefully Clark Hunt is listenning to what Herm’s record is speaking to him.
I blame Herm Edwards for mismanaging games and being routinely out-coached. I blame him for his lame excuses. Herm in a nutshell was that challenge on the first down at the one yard line. Trust me the biggest favor Clark can do for Herm and this team is let him go. If he came back it would be brutal.
Keep up the great work Coach Edwards. ALL of KC is behind you and we know that you will lead us back to glory very soon now.
AND NOW, Clark Hunt has RE-RE-affirmed Herm’s The Man!