First, can you talk about how you got into coaching and what you enjoy about it?
Oh wow – this can be the whole interview!
I turned down so many coaching opportunities when I retired. A lot of my former NFL coaches wanted me to fast-track to a coaching or GM position – they waned me to jump right into it. But I had three young girls at the time – it wasn’t a lifestyle I waned for me and my family.
I got college coaching job offers later too. They kept coming up but I never, ever even bit on those. My wife and I talked though. I was made to coach – I knew that. Heck, the back-half of my career I was coaching a lot – and I was around youth sports with my daughters who were on sports scholarships. High school coaching felt like a nice landing spot.
I was in my mid-50’s. I retired from doing TV work – I wasn’t enjoying that. I was lacking purpose and direction. I wasn’t feeling fulfilled. It wasn’t a mid-life crisis and I was happy – I had my kids and wife. I just wanted to do more. It was a weird sequence of events but the opportunity came up to coach at the high school level and I took it. It’s been as rewarding as anything besides my marriage and raising my kids. And one of the biggest challenges as well.
What makes it so challenging?
Well, every family issue is the biggest issue they have and they want it addressed. So you have all of those family members, then all of the coaches to work with and the administration to work with. And all of everyone’s issues become your issues. So knowing which are urgent and which can be tabled is difficult but important. That balance is hard. And you are there to win games.
What coaching lessons have you adopted from other coaches you played for or worked with?
I’ve taken something from everybody but I’m my own guy. The biggest flaw I’ve seen in so many coaches is that they try to be someone else instead of themselves. They take the principles of other coaches instead of sticking to their own. That’s the hypocrisy in coaching – the lack of thought leadership in coaches today.
I’m me – authentically me, including every flaw! I’ve learned things from every coach – Dungy, Norv Turner, Sean McVay, Belichick, Shanahan…on and on. Chip Kelly…How they approached things or used certain schemes. But I make it a point to add those to my own coaching philosophy.
You came to the Steelers-Ravens rivalry via free agency, signing with the Ravens from Tampa Bay. Did the intensity of the rivalry surprise you?
I came from Tampa Bay, where we were the red-headed stepchild that tried to be the big guy on the block. I just started to sense what rivalries looked like when I signed with the Ravens.
But, what I imagined a rivalry was paled in comparison to what it was really like. The Steelers-Ravens rivalry – there was more transparent hatred between the teams and fanbases than I could have imagined. And remember – that was back in 2000 – you weren’t censored by the NFL then. You could talk crud to each other. They were both physical teams who depended on the run game, defense, and a lot of testosterone! And both were blue-collar communities, which I loved.
How did the Ravens approach those games strategically that gave you some success?
Well, I was one-and-one versus the Steelers. I think it’s so cliché, but it’s so true. It was defense, running the football, and opportunistic good third down and redzone quarterback play. The Ravens were really good in those situations. Me, Flacco, we had success there.
It was always the same. You’d prepare for the blitzing outside linebacker and the safety that would jump in and out of the box and disguise it well. Basically, we’d take notice of the big game wreckers they had and try to take advantage of their scheme when you could. But it was the most stressful week of preparation, preparing for a LeBeau defense. He and Jim Johnson, who was the defensive coordinator of the Eagles, they were the two most difficult guys to prepare for.
How did you take advantage of the scheme? I spoke to a few former Steelers rivals who wished they were more aggressive against the scheme?
You have to be judicious. Sometimes the personnel they schemed with would allow for mismatches. But we really played defensively against that defense – run, run, pass on third down and then punt to win the field position game.
And I understand the idea of playing more aggressively. But that’s easier said than done – to just say we’ll be more aggressive and drop back and throw downfield. But what they do is break down protection – they get one-on-one matchups with their best players against your worst ones. That’s what they are so good at doing.
So, what did you do then?
One of the best quotes I heard that I stole, was about Bill Belichick. That he made you eat soup left-handed. Meaning he took away what you did best and made you try to do things another way. But that all started with Dick LeBeau. Bill gets all of that credit, but Dick was doing that first. You couldn’t do what you wanted to do against his defense. You had to rely on your third best receiver. You add guys to your protection thinking they’d blitz, but he wouldn’t blitz. He was always one step ahead.
Tony Dungy may have had the best remedy for his defense. When I played against LeBeau when I was in Tampa Bay, he had us run a remedial offense – basically like a high school offense. He said that all of that stuff LeBeau threw at you, you had to simplify what you did and revert to the equivalent of fifth grade math. That LeBeau had all of the answers for calculous, but didn’t have them all for fifth grade math.
Any memories stand out most to you from those Steelers games?
The visceral reaction that first game in Pittsburgh, when I was a backup and walked off the field after the game. I couldn’t believe the ugliness – the swearing and yelling at us. And I’m not knocking it – I loved it. It just opened my eyes to the rivalry.
The first game I started against the Steelers. I just remember missing Qadry Ismail on a crossing route in the fourth quarter on a drive that would have won the game. I’ll never forget that
Any thoughts on the rivalry today?
I still love the old teams I played for. When it was Ben and me or Flacco or McNair….there was always something every game. They always seemed to be on Sunday, Thursday, or Monday nights – there was constantly something about every game.
What interests me most now is the familiarity between Tomlin and Harbaugh. They are two of the most senior coaches in the NFL now. What can they spring on each other now after all of these years facing each other.
I think in Pittsburgh the real glamour is Mike Tomlin. I’m really curious to see how he and Harbaugh matchup now, knowing each other as well as they do. That’s a story I’m interested in.
Read more by former Steelers via the book Steelers Takeaways: Player Memories Through the Decades. To order, just click on the book:
