The revolving door to NFL head coaching positions has been spinning out of control since the end of last season with 11 head coaching changes occurring and several more being anticipated.Four teams started the NFL disposable coach act prior to the start of the season.

The Atlanta Falcons, Baltimore Ravens, Miami Dolphins and Washington Redskins all handed headsets to rookie head coaches Mike Smith, John Harbaugh, Tony Sparano and Jim Zorn.

Other teams reminded us how impatient owners can be in a 16 game NFL season when the axe was swung and three other head coaches were sent packing early. The St. Louis Rams’ Scott Linehan and Oakland Raiders’ Lane Kiffin got canned after just Week 4 and San Fran 49ers’ head coach Mike Nolan was asked to hand in his headset after Week 7.

While those three teams were setting up interviews at the
close of the season, several others were sharpening their axe. Detroit, Denver, Cleveland and the New York Jets barely got back into the office on the Monday following the regular season when they were filling out pink slips.

The Rod Marinelli (Lions 0-16) and Romeo Crennel (Browns 4-12) firings came as no surprise but seeing Eric Mangini (Jets 9-7) and Mike Shanahan (Broncos 8-8) get their walking papers was less expected.

Mangini turned the Jets into an AFC East contender with a 9-7 record this season. Getting upset by the visiting Miami Dolphins and losing a chance of winning the division title at home the final game of the season put his head on the chopping block.

The math is simple and when you do it, it reminds you how the NFL head coaching occupation comes with very little job security. There were 11 head coaching changes out of 32 teams in 2008 with speculation of other coaches like Jim Zorn (Redskins) and interims Jim Haslett (Rams) and Tom Cable (Raiders) being replaced before the 2009 season.

The 49ers did sign interim head coach Mike Singletary to a four-year $10 million contract after his team went 5-4 over the nine games he sidelined after Nolan was fired.

Singletary joined in the fray right away and fired his offensive coordinator Mike Martz. It must be contagious.

Copyright © 2009 – Sports Climax

Is Mike Singletary’s act of humiliation–dropping his pants to the floor in front of his entire team in the locker room–setting a trend?Probably not because the latest drawer-droppers don’t speak English and probably don’t follow American NFL football, but either way this act of child’s play needs to stop.

I’m talking about the recent futbol match between Catania and Torino on Catania’s home field on November 16, 2008. Three Catania players dropped their pants to block the view of the opposing goalie during a free kick. They actually scored on the play and won the game 3-2. Torino protested the move to no avail.

This move reminds me of NHL player Sean Avery waving his hands and blocking the view of New Jersey goaltender Martin Brodeur during a playoff game. It wasn’t officially against the rules but the NHL called an emergency meeting and made a rule against Avery’s unsportsmanlike, cheesy act the following day.

Let’s see how the European futbol league handles this one.

A Catania team spokesman said in a radio interview that the pants dropping, “is a strategy his coach practices . . .”

Can someone explain how answering the question, “Boxers or briefs” to 70,000 strangers on national television has to do with ‘strategy’ please?

Or why a Hall-of-Famer like Singletary could think exposing himself to a group of NFL players in the locker room is any kind of motivation.

Maybe Singletary’s performance was retaliation to his father who, according to answers.com, was “a strict Christian minister who preached against such sins as playing sports and wearing shorts” and a man who left Mike and his family hanging when he left them for another woman.

Hopefully this juvenile act goes away quick and doesn’t turn into a tacky trend that people find as a way to get ‘exposure’ . . . and please, T.O and Ocho Cinco, don’t even think about it during your next TD celebration on Monday Night Football.

Copyright © 2008 – Sports Climax

And I thought I’d have to wait until next week for another Mike Singletary sound bite.

Silly me.

I believe he could be the NFL’s equivalent of that quote machine named Hank Steinbrenner if this last five days is an example of what we all have to look forward to.

For some reason, the San Francisco 49ers decided to confirm a report on an Arizona radio station that Singletary dropped his pants in front of his players during halftime of that ugly loss to the Seattle Seahawks. I cringed when I heard it at first but then I read the Singletary quote.

“I used my pants to demonstrate that we were getting our tails whipped on Sunday and how humiliating that should feel for us.”

OK, then. With that backdrop (no pun intended) I now more fully appreciate the rant he ripped off at the post game press conference. If revealing the color of your boxer shorts isn’t enough of an incentive for your players to make the supreme effort I guess you’re entitled to say what you want.

What’s next, Samurai Mike and MJ doing Hanes ads?

Come to think of it…