Just a Hunch

Before I went to sleep, I wrote that I thought the next Steelers head coach will come from outside the organization, meaning that it would not be offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt or assistant head coach Russ Grimm. I wrote that I had no inside information; I just had a feeling that Bill Cowher’s replacement would not be Whisenhunt or Grimm, even though everyone thinks that it will be. My prediction: Chicago Bears defensive coordinator Ron Rivera (even though he runs a 4-3 defense), University of Iowa coach (and Upper St. Clair native) Kirk Ferentz or someone who has not been identified as a potential candidate as of now, which I guess could be anyone (that’s my way of hedging my prediction). My plan was to post this paragraph this morning. Well, I am posting this now, but I just read in the Post-Gazette that Louisville coach Bobby Petrino agreed to become the coach of the Atlanta Falcons. I figured that Whisenhunt would get either this job or the Arizona Cardinals head coaching position. I now have some doubts with my hunch.

Could Bill Cowher be the head coach of the Cleveland Browns in 2008? I think so and apparently the Post-Gazette also thinks it could happen. First, does anyone see Cleveland contending for a playoff spot in 2007? Exactly. This means that Romeo Crennel could be out of job at the end of next season. Not only does Cowher have experience working for the Browns but Cleveland really wants a winning football team and would do anything for this to happen. Therefore, I can definitely see the Lerner family paying millions and millions of dollars to get Cowher.