Mind-boggling quote from Norval

[Seabee1973]

And likewise, Norv should have known what he was getting into, with a guy like Al Davis

There are only 2 guys that would hire him as head coach Davis and Jones.

[Mark The Homer]

Norv reached his limit as OC. He tried his hand at HC and it didn't work out. Anybody can see it. His teams lack discipline and unity and focus, and always have a host of inexplicable problems regarding falsestarts, offsides, fumbles, dropped balls, defensive players that refuse to huddle with the rest of the defense, and on and on and on. His teams always lose the must-win games. His teams will always have a long snapper that rolls the ball to the holder on the final play of the divisional playoff game. And it's never HIS fault, is it?

But it is his fault. He is not, and never will be, a champion calibre head coach. The problem is, HE doesn't see it. He is in absolute denial regarding his own abilities.

Any owner that hires him as HC deserves him.

[ozskin]

Norv Turner, after being fired from the Raiders :

"The No. 1 thing I've learned in this league, and what everyone's looking for, is the quick fix," Turner said. "I'm not sure there's such a thing."

You #$%*&@!

You were given 7 long, miserable years in DC, longer than ANYONE would have given you, and that was supposed to be a quick fix ?

If anyone was given more than enough time to succeed, it was your sorry arse.

Also, note in this article the incredible Norv-like stat, that he was virtually winless in his division, (ONLY ONE DIVISION WIN) during his 3 years with the Raiders

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/F/FBN_RAIDERS_TURNER_FIRED?SITE=FLTAM&SECTION=SPORTS

Couldn't have said it better myself. Norv is a tool.

[Johnny Punani2]

Norval is no leader of men. I'll leave it at that...

[fuji869]

Scary stat for the Redskins. When Norv Turner was our head coach we had the worst record in NFC East Games during his tunure (1994-2000). That was when the NFC East had the Red Headed Step Child Arizona Cardinals.

[SkinsFTW]

Norv, like Wannstedt, is just proof that that 90's Dallas team had way way too much talent. It made average coaches look like geniuses and average players (Irvin for example) look like All-Pro's.

That trade with Minnesota didn't just hurt Minnesota in the end. It screwed Redskins fans for most of a decade, as well and Bears, Dolphins and now Raiders fans.

Of course, you had to be an idiot to think Norv was worth keeping around after 1996. Any team that starts 7-1 and finished 9-7 while losing games to perennial bottom feeders Arizona (twice) and Tampa needs a new coach. It's just basic mathematics.

[Russthebuss]

They gave Norv Turner 7 years but didn't give Marty any time at all. He turned a 0-5 team to a 8-8 team and they let him go! Marty would have been a great coach for us. But I like Gibbs more!

[misery]

I think he is not going to be a head coach again. probably go back to O coordinator

[disneyskin]

"What we do works"

[zoony]

Like anyone who agrees to coach the raiders, Norv must have understood that he would be the fall guy for the failed ideas of Al Davis. My understanding of how the Raiders operate is that the weekly game plan has to be reviewed by Davis and must be revised to incorporate his changes on matters he doesn't like. If things don't go well, as they didn't for the past two years in Oakland, the head coach will take a hundred percent of the blame even when some of it (and when you take into account Davis' influence on personnel, a significant portion) is actually attributable to the owner's decisions. Not that I really care one way or the other, but IMO Davis should just own up to it and coach again instead of micromanaging puppet leaders and sticking them for the organization's failures. This could have been an interesting question for buges during his earlier chat.

That said, even if Norv had full run of the house, the record might have been just the same or worse...

If true, that is unbelievable.

I've always that Al Davis was a clown. The raider fans think he walks on water, though, and that he basically invented football.

[zoony]

Norv, like Wannstedt, is just proof that that 90's Dallas team had way way too much talent. It made average coaches look like geniuses and average players (Irvin for example) look like All-Pro's.

.

Jimmy Johnson is the most over-rated coach in the history of the NFL. Sure he could coah an un-capped team with a bottomless pocketbook with a HOF'er at pretty much every position on the field... but we saw his true colors in Miami.

He knows it too. That is why he sits in the booth on sunday, not on the sidelines. :2cents:

[Kounter Trey]

Well, it's obviously a dumb thing for him to say. Quick fixes do happen: the Patriots did go from 5-11 to 11-5 and the Super Bowl; this year the Bucs went from 5-11 to 11-5 and a loss in the upcoming wild-card game.

I don't hate Norv but I can't respect his comments here. For respect, look to a guy like Brunell, who never as far as I know made any excuses for last year, just turned in a very good year in '05 and let his performance do the talking.

[Spear]

They gave Norv Turner 7 years but didn't give Marty any time at all. He turned a 0-5 team to a 8-8 team and they let him go! Marty would have been a great coach for us. But I like Gibbs more!

Bah, Marty stinks. He took Gardner over Moss in that draft. His staff was a nepotist's wet dream. And his inability to manage the cap meant that we had to bottom-feed in free agency that year.

[WilberMarshall]

I LOVE NORV...

[Doctor ToughLove]

He almost pulled it off here.

Turner was Washington's head coach from 1994-00 and directed the Redskins to four winning campaigns, including two in a row (1999 and 2000). His 1999 Redskins claimed their first NFC Eastern Division title since 1991. They defeated Detroit in an NFC first round playoff game, before dropping a one-point decision at Tampa Bay in the Divisional

round.

http://www.raiders.com/team/coachbio.jsp?id=10441

Not buying that Norv almost pulled it off here. In almost 7 years he had one playoff appearance, 2 seasons with more than 8 wins, and a 49-53 record. The one playoff appearance/division title he got was spaced between the the Cowboys dynasty's collapse & the Eagles emergence (Giants were starting new QB Kerry Collins). The near 7 years was marked by bumbled away games in embarassing fashions including his one playoff run.

[PleaseBlitz]

There is such a thing as a quick fix, and it starts with firing Norv Turner.

[G-Prime]

Head coaching wise he's proven time and time again he doesn't have it.. I've met Norv on several occations and I expected him to be Al Gore-ish, but he was pretty whitty, he's an extremely nice guy. If even his harshes critics spent 10 minutes with him, it would be near impossible for you to hate him. Great guy, I feel bad that his head coaching success never came. Wish him the best in whatever he does, just as long as it's not against us or with us =)

[moondog]

Still can't believe we lost to this clown. :doh:

Then again, if we were in the same division as his Raiders, we probably would have beaten the crap out of him, just like every other division rival of his.

I'm not really sure if you can say the raiders have a division rival right now. The other teams in that division are all playoff worthy and respectable teams at home or on the road. When they play the raiders, i dont think its about rivalry, it's more about being able to keep focused in a game against a weak opponent :doh:

[Doctor ToughLove]

Bah, Marty stinks. He took Gardner over Moss in that draft. His staff was a nepotist's wet dream. And his inability to manage the cap meant that we had to bottom-feed in free agency that year.

:applause: I'll second that. Marty is 5-12 in the playoffs. He is the coach who benched Darrell Green even though Darrell Green clearly won the job (GreggW take note). He made veiled "winey veteran" comments to the press. He put together the worst QB combo in my football watching life of Tony Banks & Jeff George. Kicked Larry Center to the curb who went on to probowl on another team. After the ugliest 5 game span in my football watching life & a player mutiny, Fred Smoot was injured and Darrell Green helped save his season despite Marty trying to re-teach him how to play the position (GreggW take note again). The guy went 8-4 in San Diego and missed the playoffs (losing 4 straight).

[Doctor ToughLove]

If true, that is unbelievable.

I've always that Al Davis was a clown. The raider fans think he walks on water, though, and that he basically invented football.

The best is that when Norv got this head coaching gig, he made veiled remarks about how great it was to work with an owner who actually knew football. I've been waiting for this day for a long time knowing it was coming. Enjoy Norv enjoy.

[moondog]

Head coaching wise he's proven time and time again he doesn't have it.. I've met Norv on several occations and I expected him to be Al Gore-ish, but he was pretty whitty, he's an extremely nice guy. If even his harshes critics spent 10 minutes with him, it would be near impossible for you to hate him. Great guy, I feel bad that his head coaching success never came. Wish him the best in whatever he does, just as long as it's not against us or with us =)

It is hard to hate the guy if that is all true but he just is not a head coach and i think you probably agree with that. The guy at best is a good O.C. and he should stick to that. Hopefully he can find a team and succeed if he deserves it because he's a good guy/coach as a few of you have said but I think that's about all he deserves/can wish for.

[Henry]

Scary stat for the Redskins. When Norv Turner was our head coach we had the worst record in NFC East Games during his tunure (1994-2000). That was when the NFC East had the Red Headed Step Child Arizona Cardinals.

During Norv's tenure here we had a losing record against every single division opponent including the Cardinals.

Seven years and a losing record against the Cardinals.

The Cardinals.

A losing record.

The CARDINALS.

...

Absolutely pathetic.

[The Sisko]

Like anyone who agrees to coach the raiders, Norv must have understood that he would be the fall guy for the failed ideas of Al Davis. My understanding of how the Raiders operate is that the weekly game plan has to be reviewed by Davis and must be revised to incorporate his changes on matters he doesn't like. If things don't go well, as they didn't for the past two years in Oakland, the head coach will take a hundred percent of the blame even when some of it (and when you take into account Davis' influence on personnel, a significant portion) is actually attributable to the owner's decisions. Not that I really care one way or the other, but IMO Davis should just own up to it and coach again instead of micromanaging puppet leaders and sticking them for the organization's failures. This could have been an interesting question for buges during his earlier chat.

That said, even if Norv had full run of the house, the record might have been just the same or worse...

Where did you read/hear this JF? I'm as big an Al Davis hater as anybody but this is hard to believe...even for Davis. However I do hope it's true as it means the Raiders will never win anything again as long as he's alive:)

Oh, I almost forgot :raidersuc

[The extremist]

I hate Norv Turner.

That is all.

+1

[SkinsFTW]

December 13, 2000

Norv Need Not Apply

by Dave Sabo

HoustonProFootball.com

The record books will say that it was Terry Robiskie's head coaching debut, but make no mistake about it, the farce that played out in the Stadium at Irving on Sunday was redolent with the stench of Norv Turner.

While the utter collapse of Li'l Danny Snyder's $100 million fantasy team is the result of the combined incompetence and ignorance of a multitude of know-nothings, I am focusing on Turner's role in this shambles. And I do this only because I've heard people suggest that, despite Turner's role in Washington's firing of current Texans GM, Charley Casserly; Bob McNair might want to add Turner's name to his list of head coaching candidates. God help us all.

In case you missed it, Norv Turner was axed last Monday after nearly seven years as head coach of the Redskins. He should have considered himself lucky to last that long. Compiling a 49-59-1 record, the Turner-led 'Skins made only a single playoff appearance during his tenure. He was fired after a disappointing home loss to division rival New York and at 7-6, he was the only head coach in NFL history to be fired mid-season with a winning record and a chance at a playoff berth.

While blame for the Redskins ineptitude can be placed at the feet of any number of scapegoats, Turner must shoulder his share. In the aftermath of his firing, many around the NFL said he got a raw deal. They blamed injuries, Li'l Danny's meddling and the ridiculous expectations and the resultant pressure to win a Super Bowl THIS YEAR on the 'Skins collapse. What they fail to realize, however, is that none of that can change the fact that Norv Turner was a sorry head coach.

Let's start with Turner's supposed strong suit, his ability to develop young quarterbacks. Actually, that should be young quarterback. Singular. Like so many other "geniuses", Norv Turner established his rep with the "Cryboys That Minnesota Built". He's been credited with molding a young Troy Aikman into a future Hall of Famer. Once again, it looks more like a case of people completely ignoring the work of arguably the greatest offensive line ever in order to pump up an overrated Cryboy skill player. Conversations about Aikman no longer involve the Hall of Fame, but rather, what he plans on doing in the wake of his most recent concussion. Norv was supposed to be the guy who turned Heath Shuler into the next young stud. Unfortunately, that Dallas O-line didn't make the trip to the District with him. After a rookie preseason holdout, Norv threw him to the wolves, never giving the youngster a chance to gain any confidence. According to the numerous billboards I saw on my Thanksgiving drive through Tennessee, Shuler's now selling real estate in Nashville.

Gus Frerotte took over under center and had a string of respectable outings. We can only assume that this was because Norv was too busy screwing Shuler up to ruin Frerotte, too. But, once he had a chance to work with him, Norv turned Gus into a wreck that he shipped out of town in favor of Trent Green. Gus recently turned up in Denver where, under the tutelage of Gary Kubiak, led the Broncos to a couple of wins.

Trent Green, luckily, was in the final year of his contract when he took over as 'Skins' QB. He put up some respectable numbers and, before Norv could torpedo his career, bailed out for a sweet deal in St. Louis. While a knee injury opened the door for Kurt Warner, Green should wind up starting for somebody next year. I hear Dallas may be looking for a new quarterback.

Once Green hit the bricks, the 'Skins brought in Brad Johnson who had success in Minnesota though he was injury prone. Under the watchful eye of Norv Turner, Johnson has regressed to the point that he's been benched in favor of Jeff George, the Rich Kotite/Bruce Coslet of NFL quarterbacks. No matter how bad he sucks, somebody always gives him a job.

So, with the Texans looking at possibly starting a young, unproven quarterback, the last person I want to see mentoring him is Norv Turner. Unless, of course, said quarterback is being protected by that early to mid 90's Dallas line and throwing to somebody that can get away with pushing off as much as Michael Irvin (Randy Moss anybody?).

Norv's inability to mold winners wasn't limited to quarterbacks. No, he was an equal opportunity failure, leading some of the most undisciplined and unmotivated teams in franchise history. His inability to get highly touted draft picks such as Desmond Howard, Michael Westbrook, Champ Bailey and LaVar Arrington to produce on a consistent basis combined with his knack for getting the least out of free agent veterans like Dana Stubblefield and Dan Wilkinson leads me to wonder how this guy kept the same job for seven years. At one point, his offense was so out of sync and undisciplined that merely snapping the ball without anybody moving became a challenge.

When players weren't beating the hell out of each other on the sidelines at practice, they were sleep walking through must win games and continually snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. And then Tuner would mumble his way through the post game press conference. If you've ever heard the guy speak, you know what I'm talking about. Anything he said after a loss always sounded like one huge apology. He sounded like, for want of a better word, a wussy. The man couldn't motivate me to attend a free all-you-can-eat BBQ.

In addition to his failure at his supposed strong suit and his inability to control or motivate his players, Norv was roundly criticized in Washington for his play calling. With Stephen Davis at running back, Turner would constantly abandon the running game. No matter what the situation, like clockwork, he would take to the air late in the third quarter or early in the fourth. Never was this more apparent than during last season's playoff loss in Tampa Bay. Leading by 13 in the second half, the 'Skins all but gave up on Davis and the running game, allowing the Bucs to squeeze out a 14–13 win. How he survived the off-season, I'll never know.

So, what we have here is a career-squashing, confidence-killing, milquetoast with a losing record and the inability to motivate high-draft picks and former Pro-Bowl veterans alike. If anybody can give me a single reason why Bob McNair should even take this man's phone calls, I'd be interested to hear it. For the life of me, I can't come up with a single thing that Norv Turner does well as a head football coach. The best I can say about him is that he never tried to shift blame or duck responsibility for the Redskins' failures. That and he seemed like a genuinely nice guy. Something tells me that Bob and Charley are looking for something a bit more for our Texans.

I'll leave you with this. Even Ol' Yella Teeth up in Dallas has said he has no plans to talk to Norv about the Cryboys looming head coaching vacancy. What more do you need to know?

http://www.houstonprofootball.com/chair/arm10.html