Top 25 worst NFL coaching hires this century (1 Viewer)

[Ministry of Pain]

Top 25 worst NFL coaching hires this century: From Bobby Petrino to Nick Saban to Urban Meyer and more

Which big-name gambles did not pay off?

www.cbssports.com

The cynic in me just loved this article and I wanted to share it in the SP and maybe spark a discussion and also a walk down memory lane for many going back all the way to Cheatsheets and Old Yellow
Denver gets 2 of the top 5, Miami gets one fo the top 3 all-time worst hires and the Detroit Lions have 3 of the Top 10 on this list

 

[JohnnyU]

#1 Frank Kush Colts. #2 Urban Meyer Jags, #3 Rich Kotite Jets , #4 Marty Morningwig Lions, #5 Lou Holtz Jets

 

[Zeppelin]

#1. Matt Patricia.

Everyone else.

 

[fatness]

Spurrier and Zorn.
Some of the horrors we Washington fans have lived through.

 

[JohnnyU]

#1. Matt Patricia.

Everyone else.

Good one. It's the pencil behind his ear that is his problem.

 

[Jppaul]

yes! We won! My Broncos got TWO in the TOP 5 !!

You know when you're a bad HC when the fans "help" you with the play clock

*1B. Bill Belichick (Jets) ... didn't Josh McDaniel also do this? Indy?

 

[travdogg]

I feel like they are being WAY too harsh on Josh McDaniels. I mean, he had a .500 season, that alone makes him much better than most of the guys on the list. Also being WAY too nice to Hue Jackson.

In my eyes the 10 worst would be:

1. Cam Cameron
2. Urban Meyer
3. Marty Mornhinweg
4. Hue Jackson
5. Rob Marinelli
6. Steve Spagnuolo
7. Gus Bradley
8. Bobby Petrino
9. Jerod Mayo
10. David Culley

ETA: I'd call Cameron the 3rd worst of all-time. Rod Rust the 2nd worst, and the worst being Bill Peterson, who went 1-18 with the Oilers in the 70s, despite having multiple HOFers on the team. Luckily, they hired Bum Phillips a year later.

 

[wgoldsph]

I feel like they are being WAY too harsh on Josh McDaniels. I mean, he had a .500 season, that alone makes him much better than most of the guys on the list. Also being WAY too nice to Hue Jackson.

In my eyes the 10 worst would be:

1. Cam Cameron
2. Urban Meyer
3. Marty Mornhinweg
4. Hue Jackson
5. Rob Marinelli
6. Steve Spagnuolo
7. Gus Bradley
8. Bobby Petrino
9. Jerod Mayo
10. David Culley

ETA: I'd call Cameron the 3rd worst of all-time. Rod Rust the 2nd worst, and the worst being Bill Peterson, who went 1-18 with the Oilers in the 70s, despite having multiple HOFers on the team. Luckily, they hired Bum Phillips a year later.

Explain Mayo. Guy was given a bad team and he coached poorly. But does he deserve to be anywhere near Urban Meyer?

 

[travdogg]

I feel like they are being WAY too harsh on Josh McDaniels. I mean, he had a .500 season, that alone makes him much better than most of the guys on the list. Also being WAY too nice to Hue Jackson.

In my eyes the 10 worst would be:

1. Cam Cameron
2. Urban Meyer
3. Marty Mornhinweg
4. Hue Jackson
5. Rob Marinelli
6. Steve Spagnuolo
7. Gus Bradley
8. Bobby Petrino
9. Jerod Mayo
10. David Culley

ETA: I'd call Cameron the 3rd worst of all-time. Rod Rust the 2nd worst, and the worst being Bill Peterson, who went 1-18 with the Oilers in the 70s, despite having multiple HOFers on the team. Luckily, they hired Bum Phillips a year later.

Explain Mayo. Guy was given a bad team and he coached poorly. But does he deserve to be anywhere near Urban Meyer?

Had the #1 pick locked up, just had to not beat Buffalo in week 18. Also was in drastically over his head, with seemingly no idea what he was doing, as he was grossly underqualified in the first place having never been more than a LB coach.

 

[pinkstapler]

Urban Meyer very justified at #1 and no one even close IMO. Heck, running down the next few in the list, half of them had legitimate excuses. Not excuses for everything, but at least something else to point a finger at. Most people knew Urban wasn't going to work out before he even started. And he probably had the worst attitude and professionalism of anyone else named in the article. His ego got in his way even in college, had to know he wouldn't be able to handle having to work with grown men who weren't dependent on him for the money to get an education/degree. He was well known for treating his college players like free labor, and worse.

I always found some irony in the "he's an even better human being than a *insert sport here* player" statement that always gets thrown around about players. But I think Urban is the epitome of the inverse. Despite being overwhelmingly acknowledged as the worst NFL coach of all time, he might be an even worse human being than NFL coach. Constantly throwing his staff under the bus publicly, burned every bridge he ever crossed, caught cheating on his wife (ironically the night of a game he just bombed in a brand new job he was absolutely sucking at), knowingly covering up his asst coaches committing DV, hired coaches who were previously fired for being racist, and while a lot of schools and coaches have a bad track record with covering for problematic athletes Urbans is longer than a drug store receipt and has items a lot heavier than speeding/poor grades/DUI on it. Most namely Aaron Hernandez.

Quick run down of how much Urban was able to bungle in such a short amount of time for those who don't remember

 

[Desert_Power]

Saban doesn't belong here. The error wasn't in hiring him, it was in letting him get away. He would have had success if he stayed.

 

[JohnnyU]

You people just don’t realize how bad of a coach Frank Kush was. His players hated him. He was a tyrant. On top of that he couldn’t coach at all. Plus he cost them John Elway.

The Indianapolis Colts have had some incredible coaches... and also, some truly horrid coaches in their history, especially during their last decade in Baltimore. However, none of them can even hold a candle to the most destructive force in franchise history. Frank Kush stands the test of time as the worst coach in Colts history.

When Kush was brought in, the Colts were fresh off a 2-14 season under Mike McCormack in what was the last, fleeting gasps of Bert Jones' career. Kush was brought in to install discipline and turn this team around after a very successful college career in charge of Arizona State.

What happened was not only so bad that his win-loss record forever consigns him to the great Colts graveyard, but his aura was so negative and poisonous that he was the driving reason behind the most infamous decision in franchise history. Looking back on the Kush era makes him look worse.

Two of his more infamous drills stood out. The "Bull in the Ring" drill involved one player standing in a circle with every other teammate around him. Kush would call a uniform number, and the two players would charge at one another at full speed. Whoever was "dogging it" would stay in the middle of the circle.

Kush would also make the offense run plays without an offensive line, save the center, to get players used to the punishment they would take during games. Kush makes Bill Belichick look like Mother Teresa in comparison.

Verbal and physical abuse from Kush, who was hired as coach a half-decade after a stint in the US Army, was accepted as a given. Injured players were not allowed to be assisted from the field, practices were often conducted in the 100-degree Arizona heat, and water was seldom allowed.

What ultimately got him fired was an altercation with punter Kevin Rutledge. Rutledge sued the school for $1 million, claiming Kush punched him in the mouth following a bad punt. Kush was ultimately fired for trying to interfere with the investigation.
The Colts were willing to overlook all of those neon-red flags, as Kush's 176-54 record with what was a poorly funded program at the time was deemed more important. Kush, who had coached one year with the CFL's Hamilton Tiger-Cats, was hired as head coach in 1982, and things immediately took a turn for the ghoulish.

Kush brought the same daunting style of coaching from his college days to the professional ranks, which led to several long-time veterans disliking the amount of contact he mandated in practice. When paired with a terrible roster, things got worse very quickly.

The Colts had two of the first four picks in the draft, which were used on extremely average linebacker Johnie Cooks and quarterback Art Schlichter.Schlichter's infamous story is worthy of a full-length Hollywood movie, as he threw just three career touchdown passes and was arrested scores of times for various gambling, drug, and financial-related crimes.

Kush also drafted his old ASU quarterback, Mike Pagel, in the fourth round. Pagel, who would play for 11 seasons as a backup and spot-starter, was named the starting quarterback, and it was a disaster.

In a strike-shortened season that limited Baltimore to nine games, the Colts went winless at 0-8-1, becoming one of just four post-merger teams not to win a game all year long. While the 26th-ranked defense was bad, Kush's 28th-ranked offense averaged just over 12 points per game.

Colts quarterbacks (Pagel started all nine games) threw just six touchdowns all season long. As a team, Baltimore found the end zone just 10 times on offense in nine games. The pot of gold at the end of this drab rainbow was the promise of landing John Elway in the 1983 NFL Draft.

Elway remains one of the greatest NFL Draft prospects in history, and he parlayed that hype into a no-doubt Hall of Fame career. Elway's supreme athletic ability and rocket arm would have given the Colts a franchise savior, but he refused to play for them. Elway was more willing to play baseball in the New York Yankees' minor league system than play for Kush.

How the Colts' worst coach ever cost them their shot at John Elway

The Indianapolis Colts have had some truly horrid coaches in their history, especially during their last decade in Baltimore. However, none of them can even hol

horseshoeheroes.com

 

[warpig33]

I still want to punch Urban Meyer in the face. Such a d1ck.

 

[Saint]

You people just don’t realize how bad of a coach Frank Kush was. His players hated him. He was a tyrant. On top of that he couldn’t coach at all. Plus he cost them John Elway.

The Indianapolis Colts have had some incredible coaches... and also, some truly horrid coaches in their history, especially during their last decade in Baltimore. However, none of them can even hold a candle to the most destructive force in franchise history. Frank Kush stands the test of time as the worst coach in Colts history.

When Kush was brought in, the Colts were fresh off a 2-14 season under Mike McCormack in what was the last, fleeting gasps of Bert Jones' career. Kush was brought in to install discipline and turn this team around after a very successful college career in charge of Arizona State.

What happened was not only so bad that his win-loss record forever consigns him to the great Colts graveyard, but his aura was so negative and poisonous that he was the driving reason behind the most infamous decision in franchise history. Looking back on the Kush era makes him look worse.

Two of his more infamous drills stood out. The "Bull in the Ring" drill involved one player standing in a circle with every other teammate around him. Kush would call a uniform number, and the two players would charge at one another at full speed. Whoever was "dogging it" would stay in the middle of the circle.

Kush would also make the offense run plays without an offensive line, save the center, to get players used to the punishment they would take during games. Kush makes Bill Belichick look like Mother Teresa in comparison.

Verbal and physical abuse from Kush, who was hired as coach a half-decade after a stint in the US Army, was accepted as a given. Injured players were not allowed to be assisted from the field, practices were often conducted in the 100-degree Arizona heat, and water was seldom allowed.

What ultimately got him fired was an altercation with punter Kevin Rutledge. Rutledge sued the school for $1 million, claiming Kush punched him in the mouth following a bad punt. Kush was ultimately fired for trying to interfere with the investigation.
The Colts were willing to overlook all of those neon-red flags, as Kush's 176-54 record with what was a poorly funded program at the time was deemed more important. Kush, who had coached one year with the CFL's Hamilton Tiger-Cats, was hired as head coach in 1982, and things immediately took a turn for the ghoulish.

Kush brought the same daunting style of coaching from his college days to the professional ranks, which led to several long-time veterans disliking the amount of contact he mandated in practice. When paired with a terrible roster, things got worse very quickly.

The Colts had two of the first four picks in the draft, which were used on extremely average linebacker Johnie Cooks and quarterback Art Schlichter.Schlichter's infamous story is worthy of a full-length Hollywood movie, as he threw just three career touchdown passes and was arrested scores of times for various gambling, drug, and financial-related crimes.

Kush also drafted his old ASU quarterback, Mike Pagel, in the fourth round. Pagel, who would play for 11 seasons as a backup and spot-starter, was named the starting quarterback, and it was a disaster.

In a strike-shortened season that limited Baltimore to nine games, the Colts went winless at 0-8-1, becoming one of just four post-merger teams not to win a game all year long. While the 26th-ranked defense was bad, Kush's 28th-ranked offense averaged just over 12 points per game.

Colts quarterbacks (Pagel started all nine games) threw just six touchdowns all season long. As a team, Baltimore found the end zone just 10 times on offense in nine games. The pot of gold at the end of this drab rainbow was the promise of landing John Elway in the 1983 NFL Draft.

Elway remains one of the greatest NFL Draft prospects in history, and he parlayed that hype into a no-doubt Hall of Fame career. Elway's supreme athletic ability and rocket arm would have given the Colts a franchise savior, but he refused to play for them. Elway was more willing to play baseball in the New York Yankees' minor league system than play for Kush.

How the Colts' worst coach ever cost them their shot at John Elway

The Indianapolis Colts have had some truly horrid coaches in their history, especially during their last decade in Baltimore. However, none of them can even hol

horseshoeheroes.com

That's all true, but I mean, did he kick his players?

Former Jaguars K Josh Lambo says head coach Urban Meyer kicked him before preseason practice

 

[Lansdowne]

You people just don’t realize how bad of a coach Frank Kush was. His players hated him. He was a tyrant. On top of that he couldn’t coach at all. Plus he cost them John Elway.

The Indianapolis Colts have had some incredible coaches... and also, some truly horrid coaches in their history, especially during their last decade in Baltimore. However, none of them can even hold a candle to the most destructive force in franchise history. Frank Kush stands the test of time as the worst coach in Colts history.

When Kush was brought in, the Colts were fresh off a 2-14 season under Mike McCormack in what was the last, fleeting gasps of Bert Jones' career. Kush was brought in to install discipline and turn this team around after a very successful college career in charge of Arizona State.

What happened was not only so bad that his win-loss record forever consigns him to the great Colts graveyard, but his aura was so negative and poisonous that he was the driving reason behind the most infamous decision in franchise history. Looking back on the Kush era makes him look worse.

Two of his more infamous drills stood out. The "Bull in the Ring" drill involved one player standing in a circle with every other teammate around him. Kush would call a uniform number, and the two players would charge at one another at full speed. Whoever was "dogging it" would stay in the middle of the circle.

Kush would also make the offense run plays without an offensive line, save the center, to get players used to the punishment they would take during games. Kush makes Bill Belichick look like Mother Teresa in comparison.

Verbal and physical abuse from Kush, who was hired as coach a half-decade after a stint in the US Army, was accepted as a given. Injured players were not allowed to be assisted from the field, practices were often conducted in the 100-degree Arizona heat, and water was seldom allowed.

What ultimately got him fired was an altercation with punter Kevin Rutledge. Rutledge sued the school for $1 million, claiming Kush punched him in the mouth following a bad punt. Kush was ultimately fired for trying to interfere with the investigation.
The Colts were willing to overlook all of those neon-red flags, as Kush's 176-54 record with what was a poorly funded program at the time was deemed more important. Kush, who had coached one year with the CFL's Hamilton Tiger-Cats, was hired as head coach in 1982, and things immediately took a turn for the ghoulish.

Kush brought the same daunting style of coaching from his college days to the professional ranks, which led to several long-time veterans disliking the amount of contact he mandated in practice. When paired with a terrible roster, things got worse very quickly.

The Colts had two of the first four picks in the draft, which were used on extremely average linebacker Johnie Cooks and quarterback Art Schlichter.Schlichter's infamous story is worthy of a full-length Hollywood movie, as he threw just three career touchdown passes and was arrested scores of times for various gambling, drug, and financial-related crimes.

Kush also drafted his old ASU quarterback, Mike Pagel, in the fourth round. Pagel, who would play for 11 seasons as a backup and spot-starter, was named the starting quarterback, and it was a disaster.

In a strike-shortened season that limited Baltimore to nine games, the Colts went winless at 0-8-1, becoming one of just four post-merger teams not to win a game all year long. While the 26th-ranked defense was bad, Kush's 28th-ranked offense averaged just over 12 points per game.

Colts quarterbacks (Pagel started all nine games) threw just six touchdowns all season long. As a team, Baltimore found the end zone just 10 times on offense in nine games. The pot of gold at the end of this drab rainbow was the promise of landing John Elway in the 1983 NFL Draft.

Elway remains one of the greatest NFL Draft prospects in history, and he parlayed that hype into a no-doubt Hall of Fame career. Elway's supreme athletic ability and rocket arm would have given the Colts a franchise savior, but he refused to play for them. Elway was more willing to play baseball in the New York Yankees' minor league system than play for Kush.

How the Colts' worst coach ever cost them their shot at John Elway

The Indianapolis Colts have had some truly horrid coaches in their history, especially during their last decade in Baltimore. However, none of them can even hol

horseshoeheroes.com

That's all true, but I mean, did he kick his players?

Former Jaguars K Josh Lambo says head coach Urban Meyer kicked him before preseason practice

Also the article only accounts for coaching hires from this century (2001-today).

 

[JohnnyU]

You people just don’t realize how bad of a coach Frank Kush was. His players hated him. He was a tyrant. On top of that he couldn’t coach at all. Plus he cost them John Elway.

The Indianapolis Colts have had some incredible coaches... and also, some truly horrid coaches in their history, especially during their last decade in Baltimore. However, none of them can even hold a candle to the most destructive force in franchise history. Frank Kush stands the test of time as the worst coach in Colts history.

When Kush was brought in, the Colts were fresh off a 2-14 season under Mike McCormack in what was the last, fleeting gasps of Bert Jones' career. Kush was brought in to install discipline and turn this team around after a very successful college career in charge of Arizona State.

What happened was not only so bad that his win-loss record forever consigns him to the great Colts graveyard, but his aura was so negative and poisonous that he was the driving reason behind the most infamous decision in franchise history. Looking back on the Kush era makes him look worse.

Two of his more infamous drills stood out. The "Bull in the Ring" drill involved one player standing in a circle with every other teammate around him. Kush would call a uniform number, and the two players would charge at one another at full speed. Whoever was "dogging it" would stay in the middle of the circle.

Kush would also make the offense run plays without an offensive line, save the center, to get players used to the punishment they would take during games. Kush makes Bill Belichick look like Mother Teresa in comparison.

Verbal and physical abuse from Kush, who was hired as coach a half-decade after a stint in the US Army, was accepted as a given. Injured players were not allowed to be assisted from the field, practices were often conducted in the 100-degree Arizona heat, and water was seldom allowed.

What ultimately got him fired was an altercation with punter Kevin Rutledge. Rutledge sued the school for $1 million, claiming Kush punched him in the mouth following a bad punt. Kush was ultimately fired for trying to interfere with the investigation.
The Colts were willing to overlook all of those neon-red flags, as Kush's 176-54 record with what was a poorly funded program at the time was deemed more important. Kush, who had coached one year with the CFL's Hamilton Tiger-Cats, was hired as head coach in 1982, and things immediately took a turn for the ghoulish.

Kush brought the same daunting style of coaching from his college days to the professional ranks, which led to several long-time veterans disliking the amount of contact he mandated in practice. When paired with a terrible roster, things got worse very quickly.

The Colts had two of the first four picks in the draft, which were used on extremely average linebacker Johnie Cooks and quarterback Art Schlichter.Schlichter's infamous story is worthy of a full-length Hollywood movie, as he threw just three career touchdown passes and was arrested scores of times for various gambling, drug, and financial-related crimes.

Kush also drafted his old ASU quarterback, Mike Pagel, in the fourth round. Pagel, who would play for 11 seasons as a backup and spot-starter, was named the starting quarterback, and it was a disaster.

In a strike-shortened season that limited Baltimore to nine games, the Colts went winless at 0-8-1, becoming one of just four post-merger teams not to win a game all year long. While the 26th-ranked defense was bad, Kush's 28th-ranked offense averaged just over 12 points per game.

Colts quarterbacks (Pagel started all nine games) threw just six touchdowns all season long. As a team, Baltimore found the end zone just 10 times on offense in nine games. The pot of gold at the end of this drab rainbow was the promise of landing John Elway in the 1983 NFL Draft.

Elway remains one of the greatest NFL Draft prospects in history, and he parlayed that hype into a no-doubt Hall of Fame career. Elway's supreme athletic ability and rocket arm would have given the Colts a franchise savior, but he refused to play for them. Elway was more willing to play baseball in the New York Yankees' minor league system than play for Kush.

How the Colts' worst coach ever cost them their shot at John Elway

The Indianapolis Colts have had some truly horrid coaches in their history, especially during their last decade in Baltimore. However, none of them can even hol

horseshoeheroes.com

That's all true, but I mean, did he kick his players?

Former Jaguars K Josh Lambo says head coach Urban Meyer kicked him before preseason practice

He not only was horrible to players, but worse, he screwed us Colts fans out of John Elway.

 

[Buckna]

Eh, Culley and Lovey don't really count, the Texans completely gutted what was left of their roster and entered full rebuild mode for multiple years because BOB traded away all their draft picks and their franchise QB got accused of multiple sexual assaults. Despite the PR spin that was put out when they were hired or BS quotes from the owners, neither of those guys were really expected to be the future leadership of the team. They did exactly what they were supposed to do for the Texans, hold a clipboard for some terrible teams and not win too many games.

Even Lovey almost managed to screw that up by purposely winning week 18 and bumping the Texans from #1 to #2. Thankfully it actually worked out as Stroud looks to be the better pick (so far at least.)

 

[Grahamburn]

You people just don’t realize how bad of a coach Frank Kush was. His players hated him. He was a tyrant. On top of that he couldn’t coach at all. Plus he cost them John Elway.

The Indianapolis Colts have had some incredible coaches... and also, some truly horrid coaches in their history, especially during their last decade in Baltimore. However, none of them can even hold a candle to the most destructive force in franchise history. Frank Kush stands the test of time as the worst coach in Colts history.

When Kush was brought in, the Colts were fresh off a 2-14 season under Mike McCormack in what was the last, fleeting gasps of Bert Jones' career. Kush was brought in to install discipline and turn this team around after a very successful college career in charge of Arizona State.

What happened was not only so bad that his win-loss record forever consigns him to the great Colts graveyard, but his aura was so negative and poisonous that he was the driving reason behind the most infamous decision in franchise history. Looking back on the Kush era makes him look worse.

Two of his more infamous drills stood out. The "Bull in the Ring" drill involved one player standing in a circle with every other teammate around him. Kush would call a uniform number, and the two players would charge at one another at full speed. Whoever was "dogging it" would stay in the middle of the circle.

Kush would also make the offense run plays without an offensive line, save the center, to get players used to the punishment they would take during games. Kush makes Bill Belichick look like Mother Teresa in comparison.

Verbal and physical abuse from Kush, who was hired as coach a half-decade after a stint in the US Army, was accepted as a given. Injured players were not allowed to be assisted from the field, practices were often conducted in the 100-degree Arizona heat, and water was seldom allowed.

What ultimately got him fired was an altercation with punter Kevin Rutledge. Rutledge sued the school for $1 million, claiming Kush punched him in the mouth following a bad punt. Kush was ultimately fired for trying to interfere with the investigation.
The Colts were willing to overlook all of those neon-red flags, as Kush's 176-54 record with what was a poorly funded program at the time was deemed more important. Kush, who had coached one year with the CFL's Hamilton Tiger-Cats, was hired as head coach in 1982, and things immediately took a turn for the ghoulish.

Kush brought the same daunting style of coaching from his college days to the professional ranks, which led to several long-time veterans disliking the amount of contact he mandated in practice. When paired with a terrible roster, things got worse very quickly.

The Colts had two of the first four picks in the draft, which were used on extremely average linebacker Johnie Cooks and quarterback Art Schlichter.Schlichter's infamous story is worthy of a full-length Hollywood movie, as he threw just three career touchdown passes and was arrested scores of times for various gambling, drug, and financial-related crimes.

Kush also drafted his old ASU quarterback, Mike Pagel, in the fourth round. Pagel, who would play for 11 seasons as a backup and spot-starter, was named the starting quarterback, and it was a disaster.

In a strike-shortened season that limited Baltimore to nine games, the Colts went winless at 0-8-1, becoming one of just four post-merger teams not to win a game all year long. While the 26th-ranked defense was bad, Kush's 28th-ranked offense averaged just over 12 points per game.

Colts quarterbacks (Pagel started all nine games) threw just six touchdowns all season long. As a team, Baltimore found the end zone just 10 times on offense in nine games. The pot of gold at the end of this drab rainbow was the promise of landing John Elway in the 1983 NFL Draft.

Elway remains one of the greatest NFL Draft prospects in history, and he parlayed that hype into a no-doubt Hall of Fame career. Elway's supreme athletic ability and rocket arm would have given the Colts a franchise savior, but he refused to play for them. Elway was more willing to play baseball in the New York Yankees' minor league system than play for Kush.

How the Colts' worst coach ever cost them their shot at John Elway

The Indianapolis Colts have had some truly horrid coaches in their history, especially during their last decade in Baltimore. However, none of them can even hol

horseshoeheroes.com

That's all true, but I mean, did he kick his players?

Former Jaguars K Josh Lambo says head coach Urban Meyer kicked him before preseason practice

He not only was horrible to players, but worse, he screwed us Colts fans out of John Elway.

You've had plenty of Luck finding other franchise QBs. I don't think anyone is going to pity the Colts.

 

[Chaka]

*1B. Bill Belichick (Jets) ... didn't Josh McDaniel also do this? Indy?

Sure, but it's pretty easy to suggest McDaniels did Indy a favor. Can't really say the same for the Jets.

 

[JohnnyU]

You people just don’t realize how bad of a coach Frank Kush was. His players hated him. He was a tyrant. On top of that he couldn’t coach at all. Plus he cost them John Elway.

The Indianapolis Colts have had some incredible coaches... and also, some truly horrid coaches in their history, especially during their last decade in Baltimore. However, none of them can even hold a candle to the most destructive force in franchise history. Frank Kush stands the test of time as the worst coach in Colts history.

When Kush was brought in, the Colts were fresh off a 2-14 season under Mike McCormack in what was the last, fleeting gasps of Bert Jones' career. Kush was brought in to install discipline and turn this team around after a very successful college career in charge of Arizona State.

What happened was not only so bad that his win-loss record forever consigns him to the great Colts graveyard, but his aura was so negative and poisonous that he was the driving reason behind the most infamous decision in franchise history. Looking back on the Kush era makes him look worse.

Two of his more infamous drills stood out. The "Bull in the Ring" drill involved one player standing in a circle with every other teammate around him. Kush would call a uniform number, and the two players would charge at one another at full speed. Whoever was "dogging it" would stay in the middle of the circle.

Kush would also make the offense run plays without an offensive line, save the center, to get players used to the punishment they would take during games. Kush makes Bill Belichick look like Mother Teresa in comparison.

Verbal and physical abuse from Kush, who was hired as coach a half-decade after a stint in the US Army, was accepted as a given. Injured players were not allowed to be assisted from the field, practices were often conducted in the 100-degree Arizona heat, and water was seldom allowed.

What ultimately got him fired was an altercation with punter Kevin Rutledge. Rutledge sued the school for $1 million, claiming Kush punched him in the mouth following a bad punt. Kush was ultimately fired for trying to interfere with the investigation.
The Colts were willing to overlook all of those neon-red flags, as Kush's 176-54 record with what was a poorly funded program at the time was deemed more important. Kush, who had coached one year with the CFL's Hamilton Tiger-Cats, was hired as head coach in 1982, and things immediately took a turn for the ghoulish.

Kush brought the same daunting style of coaching from his college days to the professional ranks, which led to several long-time veterans disliking the amount of contact he mandated in practice. When paired with a terrible roster, things got worse very quickly.

The Colts had two of the first four picks in the draft, which were used on extremely average linebacker Johnie Cooks and quarterback Art Schlichter.Schlichter's infamous story is worthy of a full-length Hollywood movie, as he threw just three career touchdown passes and was arrested scores of times for various gambling, drug, and financial-related crimes.

Kush also drafted his old ASU quarterback, Mike Pagel, in the fourth round. Pagel, who would play for 11 seasons as a backup and spot-starter, was named the starting quarterback, and it was a disaster.

In a strike-shortened season that limited Baltimore to nine games, the Colts went winless at 0-8-1, becoming one of just four post-merger teams not to win a game all year long. While the 26th-ranked defense was bad, Kush's 28th-ranked offense averaged just over 12 points per game.

Colts quarterbacks (Pagel started all nine games) threw just six touchdowns all season long. As a team, Baltimore found the end zone just 10 times on offense in nine games. The pot of gold at the end of this drab rainbow was the promise of landing John Elway in the 1983 NFL Draft.

Elway remains one of the greatest NFL Draft prospects in history, and he parlayed that hype into a no-doubt Hall of Fame career. Elway's supreme athletic ability and rocket arm would have given the Colts a franchise savior, but he refused to play for them. Elway was more willing to play baseball in the New York Yankees' minor league system than play for Kush.

How the Colts' worst coach ever cost them their shot at John Elway

The Indianapolis Colts have had some truly horrid coaches in their history, especially during their last decade in Baltimore. However, none of them can even hol

horseshoeheroes.com

That's all true, but I mean, did he kick his players?

Former Jaguars K Josh Lambo says head coach Urban Meyer kicked him before preseason practice

He not only was horrible to players, but worse, he screwed us Colts fans out of John Elway.

You've had plenty of Luck finding other franchise QBs. I don't think anyone is going to pity the Colts.

True, but, but, but John Elway and Luck didn't last.

 

[Bri]

One of my fave points is that many of these "name" coaches that were good hires that stunk, they really had especially good staffs.

I wonder how they would have done with some random dude as head coach (with almost no decision making "power") and kept the staff intact.

Those GMs stunk too. Very much like my current Titans- roster turnover of 60+% year after year and yet a nice guy personable GM. Usually, ironically, they speak of continuity too

 

[wgoldsph]

Explain Mayo. Guy was given a bad team and he coached poorly. But does he deserve to be anywhere near Urban Meyer?

Had the #1 pick locked up, just had to not beat Buffalo in week 18. Also was in drastically over his head, with seemingly no idea what he was doing, as he was grossly underqualified in the first place having never been more than a LB coach.

I don't disagree with all those sentiments, but does that make him in particular one of the worst. I feel like every year there's a team that wins itself out of the first overall pick, tons of teams that have no idea what they're doing, and tons of guys over promoted.

What makes him uniquely bad in a "top ten" kind of way when there have been so many... interesting choices.

 

[travdogg]

I think this may be a little mistitled. Coaching hires, to me also means if it was a just a head coach that failed, or a bad head coach, or someone who had no business being in that position in the first place. The latter factored into me including David Culley and Jerod Mayo. Those were obvious bad hires at the time.

For Titans fans sake, I hope I'm wrong, but I'm kind of expecting Brian Callahan to be a name that could be added to this list soon. Didn't really see anything from the Titans to suggest he did anything other than ride Joe Burrow's coattails in Cincinnati.

 

[wgoldsph]

I think this may be a little mistitled. Coaching hires, to me also means if it was a just a head coach that failed, or a bad head coach, or someone who had no business being in that position in the first place. The latter factored into me including David Culley and Jerod Mayo. Those were obvious bad hires at the time.

For Titans fans sake, I hope I'm wrong, but I'm kind of expecting Brian Callahan to be a name that could be added to that list soon. Didn't really see anything from the Titans to suggest he did anything other than ride Joe Burrow's coattails in Cincinnati.

Jerod Mayo was a terrible hire and performed as expected. Ironically that makes me think more highly of him than a coach that came in with high expectations.

He's not one of the worst head coaches because he never should have been a head coach anyway. Jeff Saturday isn't on that list and he's by far the worst head coach choice ever.

 

[wgoldsph]

With that said....

Jeff Saturday is the only correct answer.

@JohnnyU I'm disappointed in you for not getting this one first

 

[JohnnyU]

With that said....

Jeff Saturday is the only correct answer.

@JohnnyU I'm disappointed in you for not getting this one first

Lol, he doesn’t count obviously

 

[Bri]

I think this may be a little mistitled. Coaching hires, to me also means if it was a just a head coach that failed, or a bad head coach, or someone who had no business being in that position in the first place. The latter factored into me including David Culley and Jerod Mayo. Those were obvious bad hires at the time.

For Titans fans sake, I hope I'm wrong, but I'm kind of expecting Brian Callahan to be a name that could be added to this list soon. Didn't really see anything from the Titans to suggest he did anything other than ride Joe Burrow's coattails in Cincinnati.

He's in a terrible position to retain his job.

Patience and continuity would dictate that ya stick with him almost no matter what. A year of he tutoring Ward and his dad coaching the OL and the simple fact that they'll be fortunate to be in the playoffs in 2026 regardless of coach.

The NFL is not patient and only one of their odd GM triumvirate (really four) actually hired him. Not to mention that their DC is young and highly regarded.

If Ward struggles at all (or Pollard!) then Callahan could conceivably have one of the worst records ever.

For me though it comes back to the GM. Who thinks the Titans are good on offense? Burks/AJB and the OL picks and letting Henry walk has been absolutely brutal. The GM(s) have been highly involved in the destruction while the coach just has to make the best of it.

Their rookie WRs are well rounded and Oliver too. He's spent a year saying how the positions are fluid at WR but they've more or less lined up predictabiy.
(I see Lockett as a wonderful soul in the way here and a shame because I'm a big fan and he wanted to be a Titan his whole life)
If Callahan can move his WRs around often and show a clever offense of developing young players, that could go a long way towards "keep him another year."

People keep overstating their additions though. They're fourth round or later! Would you say a GM was helping him with picks at those slots in any other context?

The PR (it ain't hype ) has done a masterful job but ....fourth round or later.

The Browns teams mentioned were not that different with bad young QBs and bad OL picks and WRs that didn't pan out

 

[JohnnyU]

Sorry I deviated from this century. I thought tou meant the last 100 years

 

[Chaka]

One of my fave points is that many of these "name" coaches that were good hires that stunk, they really had especially good staffs.

I wonder how they would have done with some random dude as head coach (with almost no decision making "power") and kept the staff intact.

Those GMs stunk too. Very much like my current Titans- roster turnover of 60+% year after year and yet a nice guy personable GM. Usually, ironically, they speak of continuity too

I think that is a critical point here. The article did call that out in the first blurb on the Browns. Otherwise that point was largely ignored. I think, ultimately it throws unnecessary shade at the coaches when, more than a few of them were either backed up by an incompetent F.O./Ownership or were intentionally set up to fail. To that latter point Lovie Smith and Dave Culley don't belong on the list. Those Texan teams were absolutely and blatantly tanking.

 

[Zeppelin]

After seeing all the coaches mentioned, the only one that might be worse than Matt Patricia is Urban Meyer.

 

[travdogg]

Sorry I deviated from this century. I thought tou meant the last 100 years

Herb Dell and his 0-8 record with the 1922 Colombus Panhandles where they were outscored 174-24 is off the hook.

 

[travdogg]

Its still blowing my mind, that Hue Jackson won 1 game in 2 years and somehow isn't considered among the 10 worst. Like, I know Matt Patricia and Josh McDaniels were huge disappointments for teams hoping for Belichick clones or whatever, but they at least won more than 10% of their games. Plus, after Jackson was fired, he claimed racism as a reason, as if he hadn't only won 3 games out of 40.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

After seeing all the coaches mentioned, the only one that might be worse than Matt Patricia is Urban Meyer.

I sent this list to my Lions-fan friend and he said none of these people, even Meyer, deserve to be “ahead” of the three Lions.

 

[CalBear]

You people just don’t realize how bad of a coach Frank Kush was. His players hated him. He was a tyrant. On top of that he couldn’t coach at all. Plus he cost them John Elway.

Elway has always been a whiny, entitled puke. His remaining supporters blame the coach he ditched the Colts for (Dan Reeves) for Elway's decade of crappy stats and Super Bowl failures. Lucking into Terrell Davis at the end of his career is the only reason some people view Elway as better than Jim Kelly.

 

[joey]

No McDaniels Raider’s tenure? Blech

 

[Harry Frogfish]

I feel like they are being WAY too harsh on Josh McDaniels. I mean, he had a .500 season, that alone makes him much better than most of the guys on the list. Also being WAY too nice to Hue Jackson.

In my eyes the 10 worst would be:

1. Cam Cameron
2. Urban Meyer
3. Marty Mornhinweg
4. Hue Jackson
5. Rob Marinelli
6. Steve Spagnuolo
7. Gus Bradley
8. Bobby Petrino
9. Jerod Mayo
10. David Culley

ETA: I'd call Cameron the 3rd worst of all-time. Rod Rust the 2nd worst, and the worst being Bill Peterson, who went 1-18 with the Oilers in the 70s, despite having multiple HOFers on the team. Luckily, they hired Bum Phillips a year later.

Reminder: Vance Joseph would continually look up at the clock and have no clue what do about it. The game that is.

And that would be after reminding himself what quarter it was.

 

[rockaction]

Saleh and Hackett were just excoriated back in June by Mark Schlereth regarding the Jets' running game schemes, which should be fairly rudimentary to a competent offensive mind. This was Schlereth talking about how he was talking to Rodgers about the Jets.

"I started the conversation. I was, like, watching the Jets last year. It was the worst schematic run game I've ever watched in the NFL. I kept watching plays . . . There's a difference between having guys that can't block people and having your players do things that make zero sense. Why in the world would you block this play this way? This had zero chance of being successful. Why in the world would you guys do it that way? This is just dumb . . . so I asked Aaron about it and he went on this diatribe about this dysfunction with what they're trying to accomplish . . ."

Hackett was godawful and unqualified. Terrible.

Here's the link to the YouTube videocast. Starts at 4:50 in. https://youtu.be/UuttZBHWw1c?t=290

 

[Nameath]

Saban doesn't belong here. The error wasn't in hiring him, it was in letting him get away. He would have had success if he stayed.

As an OC?

 

[Brunell4MVP]

Any list without Jim Zorn in the top 3 is a list that can be deleted. Forget the records. It's about dysfunction to me. They hired Zorn to be an assistant, which he wasn't even qualified for, and next thing you know he is the HC because nobody else wanted to work for Snyder. He single handedly derailed the careers of Satana Moss and Clinton Portis. The finished last in the division both years. They finished outside the top 25 in both offense and defense both years. They also ran the dumbest trick play in history (twice .. cause I think NYG called a TO when they saw it the first time) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-tqLG__Al4

 

[Ministry of Pain]

No McDaniels Raider’s tenure? Blech

Wasn't McDaniels also hired by the Colts very briefly before he did a Belichick-Jets move on them or am I not remembering that right?

 

[Ministry of Pain]

What teams have had the least amount of coaching hires this century?

-The Steelers had Cowher already and hired Mike Tomlin so they only have had to do this 1 time
-The Ravens Ii believe may also only have one hire with Harbaugh after Billick '99 was let go
-Since 2003 the Cincinnati Bengals have only seen Marvin Lewis and Zac Taylor

 

[rockaction]

No McDaniels Raider’s tenure? Blech

Wasn't McDaniels also hired by the Colts very briefly before he did a Belichick-Jets move on them or am I not remembering that right?

Close, yeah. I don't think he backed out while being introduced, but he balked at what he'd agreed to do for the Colts (be their head coach). He's awful also.

 

[rockaction]

Elway has always been a whiny, entitled puke. His remaining supporters blame the coach he ditched the Colts for (Dan Reeves) for Elway's decade of crappy stats and Super Bowl failures. Lucking into Terrell Davis at the end of his career is the only reason some people view Elway as better than Jim Kelly.

I laughed because I thought you might be kidding but then saw the college football helmet and it gave me pause. Wouldn't be the Cal/Stanford thing, would it? Elway had very little around him in his Super Bowl failures. He was dragging those Broncos teams on his back to get there. When he won it was justice, and I did not care for him that much. But I liked Kelly and the K-Gun and that whole Buffalo no-huddle nonsense even less than those Broncos teams.

 

[CalBear]

Elway has always been a whiny, entitled puke. His remaining supporters blame the coach he ditched the Colts for (Dan Reeves) for Elway's decade of crappy stats and Super Bowl failures. Lucking into Terrell Davis at the end of his career is the only reason some people view Elway as better than Jim Kelly.

I laughed because I thought you might be kidding but then saw the college football helmet and it gave me pause. Wouldn't be the Cal/Stanford thing, would it? Elway had very little around him in his Super Bowl failures. He was dragging those Broncos teams on his back to get there. When he won it was justice, and I did not care for him that much. But I liked Kelly and the K-Gun and that whole Buffalo no-huddle nonsense even less than those Broncos teams.

Elway only had one year from 1983-1992 with a passer rating above 80. (83.4 in strike-shortened 1987). The most rushing yardage he ever had in that time frame was 304 yards (also 1987). He finished in the top 10 in passing TDs only 3 times in those years, never in the top 5. And his playoff stats are worse than his regular season stats.

If he was dragging those teams on his back maybe he should have tried being better at throwing the ball.

 

[Uruk-Hai]

Elway has always been a whiny, entitled puke. His remaining supporters blame the coach he ditched the Colts for (Dan Reeves) for Elway's decade of crappy stats and Super Bowl failures. Lucking into Terrell Davis at the end of his career is the only reason some people view Elway as better than Jim Kelly.

I laughed because I thought you might be kidding but then saw the college football helmet and it gave me pause. Wouldn't be the Cal/Stanford thing, would it? Elway had very little around him in his Super Bowl failures. He was dragging those Broncos teams on his back to get there. When he won it was justice, and I did not care for him that much. But I liked Kelly and the K-Gun and that whole Buffalo no-huddle nonsense even less than those Broncos teams.

Cleveland was a better AFC team than Denver in those years until Buffalo ramped up in the early '90s. I don't think the Browns would've beaten the teams Denver lost to in the SB, either, but they may have been better games.

Probably recency bias on my part, but Urban Meyer was a disaster on so many fronts he'd have to be my choice.

 

[rockaction]

Urban Meyer was a disaster on so many fronts he'd have to be my choice.

Agreed. Urban Meyer was the special blend of a bad work ethic, a superiority complex, a tendency to abuse his authority or manipulate his employees and staff in various ways, lousy with Xs and Os, and had no respect from his own players. The guy was the worst of it all, IMO.

 

[Ilov80s]

Urban is the clear 1.01 but Hackett and Gase were extraordinairly bad and the classic easy to identify mistake of hiring the OC who was coaching a Hall of Fame QB. We both know Rodgers and Manning were the ones actually in charge of the Green Bay and Denver offenses. These guys made millions off of riding those QBs coattails. They didn't develop them, they just showed up and got the benefit of elite MVP QB play.

 

[SeniorVBDStudent]

I still want to punch Urban Meyer in the face. Such a d1ck.

the best part was him trolling for skank in some ohio bar...what a buffoon.

 

[travdogg]

Any list without Jim Zorn in the top 3 is a list that can be deleted. Forget the records. It's about dysfunction to me. They hired Zorn to be an assistant, which he wasn't even qualified for, and next thing you know he is the HC because nobody else wanted to work for Snyder. He single handedly derailed the careers of Satana Moss and Clinton Portis. The finished last in the division both years. They finished outside the top 25 in both offense and defense both years. They also ran the dumbest trick play in history (twice .. cause I think NYG called a TO when they saw it the first time) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-tqLG__Al4

I don't think Zorn derailed the career of Portis at all. Portis was a 28-year-old RB with bad knees (and concussion issues) His end was coming quick no matter what. He was arguably better under Zorn than he was under Gibbs. Zorn's biggest issue was being a QB guru who couldn't develop QBs. He rode Mike Holmgren's coattails with Seattle/Hasselbeck.

ETA: I'd honestly argue Zorn was probably a better HC than Spurrier was for Washington.

 

[travdogg]

Urban is the clear 1.01 but Hackett and Gase were extraordinairly bad and the classic easy to identify mistake of hiring the OC who was coaching a Hall of Fame QB. We both know Rodgers and Manning were the ones actually in charge of the Green Bay and Denver offenses. These guys made millions off of riding those QBs coattails. They didn't develop them, they just showed up and got the benefit of elite MVP QB play.

I'd agree on Hackett, but I think Gase at least showed some competency. He got a playoff season out of a pretty middling Miami team in 2016, was starting their backup QB for a long stretch. Not saying Gase was good, and Manning certainly got him jobs, I fully agree there, but I don't think he's in the conversation for worst.

ETA: It had fallen apart by his last NYJ season, but up until then I think he was more below average than historically bad.