HC Candidate Profle: Doug Marrone

DOUG MARRONE





Age: 51

Place of Birth: Bronx, New York

First coached in the NFL in 2002

NFL coaching tree: Herm Edwards, Sean Payton, Gus Bradley

NFL record: 15-17 (.469) with the Buffalo Bills

Summary - Marrone was hired as the Bill's Head Coach in 2013 after an impressive tenure as the head coach of Syracuse in the NCAA. His presence was quickly felt within the franchise, in his second season he led the Bills to their first winning record in over a decade. He surprisingly decided to enact his opt-out clause after his second season to leave the Bills. Many thought this decision was motivated by his annoyance with personnel decisions and alienation from the front office in general. Over his career Marrone has mainly focused on the offensive line and tight ends and, as such, he favours power football.

Pros - As mentioned above, Marrone has had moderate to good success in his head coaching career. He has been said to have a good rapport with veteran players throughout his career. Many analysts consider Marrone a top head coaching candidate; Charlie Casserly went as far to say "Doug deserves to be a head coach in the NFL and I'd hire him in a minute". Marrone's background with the offensive line is sure to intrigue the Titans who have had issues at the position for a number of seasons.

Cons - Has never been a coach of a 'top' team. Questions over whether he can build a consistent playoff contender. His exit from Buffalo will leave a sour taste in the mouth and should dissuade potential suitors. There are questions over his patience with young players. Marcell Dareus criticised Marrone when stating "Things were tense. He was always anal and cared about stupid little things, micro-managed us". His ability to separate himself from front office and head coach duties is questionable. The Titans are looking for a 'traditional' seperation of power, Marrone will have to control his emotions if the front office make personnel decisions he disagrees with. Has now left two teams without significant warning leaving them in poor positions to replace him. Former players and coaching colleagues have criticized Marrone. Doesn't seem like a media-friendly figure.

Conclusion - No thank you. Marrone is an interesting candidate. He's the type of strong personality that I think would be more of a fit in the New York or Philadelphia markets. But when it comes down to it there are just too many concerns listed in the 'Cons' bracket to be comfortable with the hire. The Titans are a young team and, while they need direction, they also need a coach that players can connect to and universally respect. I don't think Marrone is that guy.