So Long, and Thanks for All the . . . Beatdowns?

Cowher resigns to spend more time with family
Associated Press

PITTSBURGH -- His was the best known jaw in the NFL, a jutting block of granite that perfectly reflected his toughness and passion for winning.
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Cowher resigned Friday after 15 seasons as the Steelers' coach, a job he probably could have held for life -- or, at least, for as long as the 23 years predecessor Chuck Noll held it. The Steelers immediately began searching for a new coach for only the second time since 1969, a span when other NFL teams have had as many as 15 coaches.

Cowher was one hell of a competitor and I remember being totally bummed when Pittsburg hired him back in the day.

The Brown's needed a head coach as well at the time (actually the year before) and, even though dude was from the Burg, he had both played and coached for Cleveland. Browns' fans knew him. We loved his sideline to sideline energy and in-your-face but on-your-side bulldog style and most people were completely stumped by the hiring of Bill Belichick to replace has-been but great guy - and former Pittsburg Defensive coordinator - Bud Carson. Not a few folks 'round these parts think a Cowher hire may have helped prevent He Who Shall Not Be Named* moving the team to Baltimore. I ain't one of them, but it's all part of the Lore of Woe and Lamentation** which has become part and parcel of being a Brown's fan nigh these past 40+ years.

Ahhh, well. That's all I've really got to say on the topic, other than to wish the Chin a pleasant retirement and to thank the Rooney family for their dedication to rational salary expenditures and loyalty to people who exemplefy what is good and honorable in the world of professional sports. Cowher's reign o'er the Black and Gold has been the longest of any head coach in the last several decades. That's something incredibly unusual during my lifetime, and his record surely indicates that such has been a Good Thing for both the city of Pittsburg and the NFL as a whole, IMO.

Salute! And don't let the door hit ya in the ass on yer way out, ya bum!

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* Art Modell, in case you're wondering. I just like to play with the silly religious emotionalism inherent to Fandom. I really can't be holding grudges, especially when the old man had a least one sound and rational point in making the BAD BAD BAD BAD Move. {sighhh}

* Thanks for putting "lament" in m' noggin, AIF. {-;