Totally Uncoordinated

While the title of this blog post could certainly refer to the current mood in Congress or a description of me when I get dressed in the dark... or ski... or ski in the dark, it's actually a nod to the fact that my beloved New England Patriots have announced they will enter the 2010 NFL season without an offensive or defensive coordinator. In terms of the NFL groupthink, this is akin a car manufacturer debuting a new car that doesn't have power steering or anti-lock brakes. 

On most teams, while the head coach sets the tone   for the entire roster and game plan, these coordinators quite literally lead their respective units, calling the plays they run and deciding which players are utilized, and how. So why on Earth would football czar Bill Belichick possibly choose this course of team management, especially when this past year the team played with no offensive coordinator on his staff, resulting in one of the most disappointing and uneven seasons in recent Patriot history? Most media outlets are focusing on one likely answer, but I'll admit, I see several other potential reasons, and can't help wondering if one or more of those couldn't be in play. So here they are, from popular opinion to the farthest fetched hypotheticals in roughly descending order. You decide which you think apply.

EGO UNCHECKED

At best, Bill Belichick has earned the reputation as an unapologetic autocrat, and at worst, he's football's answer to Tony Montana, sitting alone with a pile of field chalk on his desk and a shotgun offense in his lap, taking aim at friends and foes alike if he's not given perfect loyalty and devotion. The most immediate public reaction to the Patriots' decision to go "coordinator commando" is that much like his now infamous "4th and 2" call, Bill is out to show the world he doesn't need to do things their way. He can win all by himself. If this commonly-held view of the situation is correct, it's almost certain that the Patriots' fall from grace is about to accelerate.

DON'T SPARE THE ROD

Coach Belichick was clearly unimpressed with almost every phase of his team's preparation, attitude and execution during the 2009 NFL season. He punished Adalius Thomas, Randy Moss and two other players for being late. He benched Shawn Springs for weeks despite being healthy enough to play. As far as we can tell, he made it clear to former defensive coordinator Dean Pees that he should resign "for his health." So it's not unreasonable that he's punishing all of his various assistants by making it clear that none of them are moving up after the season they had. The message? "You want to be big time coordinators? Earn it. Help me turn this team back around and we'll talk."

BILLY HAD A LITTLE LAMB

It's possible that Bill Belichick doesn't think his top assistants are ready for the pressure and responsibility that comes with being named as the OC/DC of the Patriots, and he also knows he doesn't want to crush one of their careers by giving them the title and then having to strip them of their playcalling duties if they can't handle it. By keeping them out of the spotlight and freeing them up to do their jobs behind the scenes without having to deal with the media or increased fan scrutiny, he can protect them, nurture them another year, and create a more incremental path to their careers. Of course, this assumes he gives a rat's ass about any of them.

DECISION DEFERRED

The Patriots didn't have an offensive coordinator in 2009, although quarterbacks coach Bill O'Brien was reportedly the man calling the plays into Tom Brady. But when Belichick let Dean Peas walk, he had two likely successors on his staff. On one side was Pepper Johnson, the team's defensive line coach and a man who played 13 years in the league, wining two Super Bowl rings. By all accounts, he's a guy with a ton of credibility with the players. Then there's linebackers' coach Matt Patricia, who went right into coaching after playing college ball at non-powerhouse R.P.I.. Rumor has it he's a future defensive coordinator, and probably, an eventual head coach. Choosing between the two would likely have cost Belichick the other one at some point soon, but because of his previous decision to have no coordinator on the offensive side of the ball, the precedent was set for him to eschew a DC this year, thus keeping both men in the fold with the potential for advancement next year. It prevented him from having to make Sophie's Choice... metaphorically. Not the actual movie.

DOLLARS MAKE SENSE

In the NFL, head coaches make a lot more than coordinators, and assistants make even less. With an uncapped year coming and the very real potential of a work stoppage in 2011, the team might see value in not paying several-hundred-thousand real world bucks on coordinators when they have in-house options who can pick up the duties, thus freeing up some cash for being even more aggressive once free agents hit the market. Or, conversely, the team may already be going into "rainy day" mode and trying to save money to weather the coming economic storm.

ABANDONMENT ISSUES

Here's the parade order: Charlie Weis. Romeo Crennel. Eric Mangini. Josh McDaniel. Thomas Dimitroff. Scott Pioli. Every time Belichick builds a successful team with a true "right-hand man", either on the coaching staff or in the front office, he loses that person to another team willing to make them into "the man" somewhere else. Some have succeeded and some have failed. But regardless of what happens post-Pats, Belichick has had to replace them and start over. Is it possible he's just tired of that cycle and figures that if he refuses to name a right-hand man, no one will come and try to take them away? Maybe it is a tenuous theory at best... but really, who knows why he does what he does.

I don't pretend to know which of these explanations is right. Maybe none, maybe a combo platter of several options. But the truth is the Patriots are going to be coordinator-free in 2010. If it works, Bill Belichick adds another laurel to his "football genius" rep. And if it doesn't go well, the team will fall down... because that's what happens when you're uncoordinated.