Coaches Go to School

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http://www.sportsline.com/nfl/story/7330294

Coaches go to school with futures in mind

May 14, 2004

By Jay Glazer

SportsLine.com Senior Writer

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Monday morning, a gathering of 100 or so men converged on Orlando to share information, talk shop and help one another prepare for the evolution of their business in the next couple of years. At first sight, one would probably brush it aside as a run-of-the-mill business convention.

But there were no tradeshow booths or bonuses for a big sales year. One wouldn't find awards handed out for salesman of the year or the latest gadgets in a particular field. A closer look at the faces in the conference center would immediately reveal that this was hardly an ordinary convention.

Marvin Lewis gave the lowdown on what to expect in a head coaching interview. (Getty Images)

Welcome to the National Football League's Coaches Symposium 2004, or everything you ever wanted to know about being an NFL coach but were afraid to ask.

"When you are in this field, you really don't have a clue about a lot of things until you are presented with them face to face or have to deal with them directly," said Panthers coach John Fox, one of the speakers. "This symposium gives you some insight to do your job better and at the same time it prepares coaches for the next step in their careers."

John Beake, former Denver Broncos general manager and soon-to-be-retired NFL vice president of football development and operations, spearheaded the four-day event. The convention brought together owners, team presidents, GMs, head coaches and assistants. Also highlighting the week was an all-star cast that included a military commander, salary cap experts, media experts, speaking coaches and even a headhunter. Topics ranged from the cap to medical issues, officiating to diversity issues, player issues to being a team spokesman.

Basically, it was four days of educating coaches on the intricacies of the other side of the profession -- the side that isn't seen by the public. The idea was to help coaches evolve with the times and educate them for what lies ahead.

"We tried to give everyone a plan for them to think about as they move ahead for the future," said Beake. "This gave them a plan for them to think about as they move ahead for the future. Being an assistant coach, his little group is his universe. Each time you grow, that picture becomes bigger and bigger and bigger. That universe can grow awfully fast and a lot of guys said to me, 'My goodness, I have a lot I need to be prepared for, things I was not aware of.'

"For a lot these guys, they heard things discussed for their first time as coaches."

With the help of commissioner Paul Tagliabue -- who actually showed up to field questions -- league counsel Jeff Pash and other league executives, Beake put together a program for the NFL's coaches to learn the complete ins and outs of being a coach.

"Too often as coaches, you have an opinion about something but you don't have enough information to talk about it legitimately," said Ravens defensive coordinator Mike Nolan. "They covered many issues here that you normally may not be exposed to until it's too late. Everything they covered helps you learn something to be a better coach. They were extremely thorough."

Thorough is an understatement. Day 1, which was a half day, included an hour speech by Ravens coach Brian Billick titled "Teaching, Motivating and Counseling NFL Players," followed by an informative Q&A session.

Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie followed Billick with a speech designed to give the coaches an idea of what ownership is looking for in the hiring and development of coaches. Bullet points included: ownership perspective of the hiring process, what owners look for in a coaching candidate, owner expectations as to a coach's role, owner/coach relationship, leadership and performance.

"You get to hear these guys talk and see how they go about their business," said Saints linebackers coach and former player Winston Moss. "Being a player, I've dealt with injuries, player issues, coaches. But to hear them talk about what their principles are and to deliver their ideas in such a way was invaluable. It not only improves us in the jobs we already have but it helps prepare us for the next step, too."

The assembled coaches were schooled for an entire morning by medical professionals who educated them on everything from shoulder instability to a better definition of a high ankle sprain to research on concussions.

That was followed up by one of the most valuable lessons of the week -- the ins and outs of the salary cap.

"The cap is such a big part of the game now, you have to learn about it as much as you can," said Nolan. "There is an effect every time you sign and let go of a guy. As a coach, we hear or see that we have a certain dollar figure remaining under the cap but often don't understand the effect a signing or release really has on that figure. Learning about the cause and effect of the cap, the values, accelerations and the intricacies was extremely helpful.

"It also improves our communication with the front office because now we can have somewhat of a better understanding of what their thought process is in dealing with certain transactions. You can never learn too much about the cap, and this gives us a great lesson that we probably couldn't get somewhere else aside from on-the-job issues."

The last day and half sported a stellar cast of speakers designed to prepare position coaches for their next step to coordinator and coordinators for their next step to head coach.

Beake presented a Who's Who of the NFL, with such names as former 49ers coach Bill Walsh, Steelers coach Bill Cowher, Chiefs president Carl Peterson, Steelers owner Dan Rooney, Ravens GM Ozzie Newsome, Falcons president Rich McKay, Jaguars coach Jack Del Rio, Bengals coach Marvin Lewis, the Panthers' Fox and Bengals offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski. Each delivered a different yet valuable look at how to go about the job.

"As an assistant coach it helped a great deal in learning the criteria it takes to become a coordinator or a head coach," said Redskins defensive backs coach DeWayne Walker. "This helps you to keep improving yourself in certain areas. If I try to prepare myself for a coordinator's position, that will help me as a position coach.

"No matter how much you think you've prepared yourself there will always be things that pop up that only experience will get you through. We as coaches always talk about preparation, but it was great to hear the guys' honest approach with how much you'll still have to learn on the fly.

Added Moss: "I got the most out of listening to Rich McKay, Carl Peterson and Bill Walsh speak. Being able to listen to guys who have had success talk to us as peers and relate some of their experiences is extremely valuable. I have some knowledge to draw upon now if I have an idea about something. They were able to confirm and validate certain ideas some of us may already have had."

Del Rio and Lewis talked about the pitfalls of their first year as head coaches. Fox also talked about some of the unknowns of the job.

"Del Rio's speech talked about the highs and lows of a first-year head coach," said Walker. "Marvin's session was great because he basically took us all through an interview for a head coaching job. That's something I never would have been able to see unless I actually had a head coaching interview."

Perhaps the most impressive aspect of the seminar was the fact that Tagliabue showed up to be part of the program.

"Where else would we be able to get such a personal chance to talk to the commissioner?" said Walker. "We had a chance to ask him about a variety of subjects. He told us that 75 percent of the assistant coaches in the league are non-players, and he even answered some of our questions about where the league and certain areas of the league are headed."

"They couldn't believe that suddenly, there was the commissioner talking to them, eating lunch with them," said Beake. "It was invaluable. It put the final link that this symposium is extremely important and helpful for our coaches.

"The more information you get, the more you can be prepared, the more it helps you and your team," said Fox after the final speech concluded the symposium. "Really, when I got this job there were so many things that I was hit with that you have no way to be prepared for. As a head coach, every single thing comes across your desk. You have to deal with everything, even something as minor as a traffic incident with a relative of someone of the team.

"As a coordinator it was the same thing. When you go from position coach you can't possibly know all the little hidden aspects of the coordinator's job until you actually get into it. Hearing these experiences helps prepare you for some of it and at least opens up guys' eyes to what they might expect."

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Spurrier could have used this kind of seminar before he joined the skins.