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Andy Reid Finally Speaks.....Without Coughing

B-Dub Written by B-Dub, Tuesday January 31 2012
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I listened to Philadelphia Eagles head coach Andy Reid's press conference today and I have to admit that he wasn't the same arrogant jerk he usually is when speaking to the media.

Oh sure, he gave plenty of "coach-speak" answers and non-answers, but he generally acknowledged each question without a snarl or a huff and at least said more than he usually does.  That was a pleasant departure from the norm, but the most amazing part is that he never coughed once.  Not once.  You can go back and check.  I'm not sure what that means since he coughs and clears his throat about a million times in every other news conference that he's ever held, but not a single one this time.  Very strange.

He did throw out a few "We've got to do a better job" lines, so at least we know he hasn't changed that much.

The last time Reid spoke was after the season-ending win over the Redskins.  He was at his snarling, arrogant best on that day.  His best quote was when he was asked about the offseason plans for the team.  He responded that he would "think about the offseason when he feels like thinking about the offseason."  Oh, that Andy.

But this press conference was different.  Maybe owner Jeffrey Lurie talked to Reid after his own press conference, where the media asked about Reid's arrogance.  Lurie said Reid was the least arrogant person he knew, but really, who would be an arrogant jerk to the guy who signs their paycheck, right?  Anyway, Reid seemed almost contrite this time.

"I appreciate your patience over the last few weeks for the summary of my feelings on the season," Reid said of the 30 day wait since his last press conference.  "I realize you guys are just doing your jobs, but I wanted to step back and analyze things before I presented it to all of you."

When he was asked about being rude to the media, Reid said that he was not trying to do anything but protect his players.  "I'm juggling a lot of different player personalities.  I want to talk to the players first [before talking to the media]," Reid said.  "I'm not trying to be mean or rude.  I'm trying to make sure we stay together as a football team."  Well, that's a lot better than his usual, "That's for me to know" answers.

While that is all well and good, the real news on this day was that Juan Castillo will be back as the defensive coordinator of the Eagles.  As a matter of fact, Reid said that it was never even a question as to whether or not Castillo would be back.  Reid said he was simply looking for a new secondary coach after he fired Johnnie Lynn after one year in the job with the team.

That brings us to the big name out there; Steve Spagnuolo.

Apparently I was right last week when I said that Reid didn't want Spagnuolo back.  Oh sure, Reid said he talks to Spagnuolo all the time and they are friends, but he didn't offer him a job as the Eagles defensive coordinator.  He only offered him a job as the secondary coach.

Obviously Spagnuolo was not going to accept a job as a secondary coach after being a head coach.  Reid knew that.  That's why he went to New Orleans as their defensive coordinator.  

Instead, Reid hired Todd Bowles as the new secondary coach and said he will work together with Castillo, but that Castillo is still in charge of the defense.  That's because firing Castillo would be admitting that he was wrong and if there is one thing we know about Reid, it is that he is way too stubborn to ever admit that he was wrong.

Reid said the reason he didn't speak before now is that he needed to look in the mirror first (Insert joke here about Reid needing a whole month to find a mirror that was wide enough) and didn't want to lie like he did last year, when he said Sean McDermott was still his defensive coordinator, only to fire him less than two weeks later.  Reid claims that he didn't even bother talking to Castillo about his job security since he never considered firing him.  I'm not sure if I believe that, but reading Castillo's quotes from the Senior Bowl last week sure gave me the impression that Reid should have said something to put his coordinator's mind at ease.

Reid said he should have done a better job with the changes in training camp and the lockout.  He admitted that it was his responsibility "to get all the new moving parts working together".  He said that you couldn't single out the offense, defense or special teams for the team's failures.  "It's everybody together as a team," Reid said in perfect "coach-speak".

He mentioned the blown fourth-quarter leads and all the bad turnovers on offense.  He mentioned all of those bad interceptions that Michael Vick threw.  He mentioned how "We've got to do a better job there."  He mentioned how he saw the defense get better, but that didn't excuse the hole the team dug for itself with the 1-4 start.  He was doing his best to not blame anybody in particular for the failure of missing the playoffs.

It was classic Reid, minus the normal attitude.

Now don't get me wrong.  I still don't like Andy Reid as a person or as the coach and talent-evaluator of my favorite football team.  I'm still going to rip him for every mistake and I still don't think he has what it takes to ever win a Super Bowl.  I just thought I would point out that, for once, Reid seemed to keep his over-sized ego in check.  

Actually, it's too bad that he did.  I was all ready to rip him and he forced me to say some unusually nice things about him.  Dammit.  Oh well.  I'm sure he'll do something stupid to tick the fans off soon enough and I'll be ready and waiting.    

Free agency and the draft are right around the corner, so I'm sure there will be plenty of negative things for me to cover in the future.  For now, we know that Reid is sticking with Juan Castillo as his defensive coordinator.  I figured as much, since I knew Reid wouldn't want to admit that he was so horribly wrong in making an offensive line coach his defensive coordinator.  He's still an arrogant jerk, even if he was nice this one time.  I'm sure this act won't last.

The hiring of Bowles means almost nothing since it was the only change for a team that so drastically underperformed last season.  A team that started with "Dream Team" and Super Bowl hype, ended with an 8-8 thud.  Heck, keeping Castillo doesn't even mean anything, since Reid is still the head coach.  As long as Reid is running the Eagles, they will never win anything.

Hey look.  I already found a way to rip Andy.  I feel better now.

*Cough Cough*  Time's yours.


Tags:  Andy Reid, Jeffrey Lurie, Juan Castillo, NFL, Philadelphia Eagles, Sean McDermott, Steve Sapgnuolo, Super Bowl, Todd Bowles, Washington Redskins



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