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Thoughts on Bill Cowher

Discussion in 'Steelers Talk' started by Steelers89, Jan 26, 2023.

  1. Steelers89

    Steelers89 Well-Known Member

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    This isn't a B.C. vs M.T. debate. Each have strengths and weaknesses.

    Overall, what was your thoughts on the Cowher tenure? Personally, I thought he almost did as good as expected with the QB's he was saddled with.

    I say almost because there are two games that hurt the most. 94 at home against SD & 01 vs NE. Steelers had the better players. Top ranked D. ST's & Kordell killed them against NE. SD was tough. The best team did not win those games.

    I don't blame him one bit for the Denver loss. Even though they were at home, Denver was simply a better team. They had the better QB and offensive weapons.

    I do not blame him for 04 against NE. The Patriots, record be damned, were simply a juggernaut during those years. Whether the game would have been played in NE, Pittsburgh, or Mars, I do not think Pittsburgh was winning that game. Brady was an elite QB at that time. And BB was a raw rookie.

    SB 30 isn't on him. That could have been a huge upset had the QB not thrown it straight to a Dallas CB...twice.

    Overall, what is your stance on Cowher?

    I do not think he was ever at the top elite of coaches. I do think he was generally top five. He did win a SB against some great teams along the way too.
     
  2. strummerfan

    strummerfan Well-Known Member

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    I thought he was a damn good coach,but infuriatingly conservative.
     
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  3. Busman

    Busman

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    Other then Cowher played not to lose I did like him as a coach.
     
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  4. shaner82

    shaner82 Well-Known Member

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    I was younger and didn't understand football the same way I do now. To me, there were only 3 plays, a pass, a run and a kick. Play design, aggressive vs conservative, time management, personnel decisions, etc. weren't things I noticed. So I really have no way to judge him other than his success, which as we all know isn't an entirely accurate way to judge someone.

    I only started truly understanding football in his last couple years.
    He's never coming back to coaching, but I do wonder what kind of success he would have in an offence first, pass happy league. Would he adapt or would he try to build the Tennessee Titans and likely result in an average team every year.
     
  5. TuRnDoWnForWaTT

    TuRnDoWnForWaTT Well-Known Member

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    I think Cowher was one of the best to ever do it. If a couple of those AFCC games had gone differently he would be remembered amongst the greatest coaches of all time.

    94 Steelers choked. Cowher deserves his share of blame.

    95 Cowher coached an awesome game. NOD blew the game.

    97 Chan Gailey deserves the most blame. Bettis was dominate, and Gailey put a young Kordell in a position to fail. The Norm Johnson missed FG early didn't help either. Cowher deserves some blame simply for not insisting Gailey give the ball to Bettis inside the 10.

    01 Everything went wrong. Cowher deserves his fair share of blame. Keeping Miller and Brown on the roster was a mistake. Brown sucked and Miller was a knucklehead.

    04 Cowher deserves his share of blame but the Steelers were just outclassed. I knew it was coming, so I wasn't shocked when it did.

    05 Cowher finally gets his Chip.
     
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  6. GoalLine

    GoalLine

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    Cowher was a great motivator but he did miss some opportunities a few years.
     
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  7. mytake

    mytake Well-Known Member

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    94 - Chargers did the Steelers a favor. The 49ers would have beat the Steelers just as bad in the Super Bowl, maybe not 40 points, but probably close to 30.

    95 - I agree.

    97 - I agree.

    01 - That is when the Patriots cheating began, so I give the 01 team a pass.

    04 - Belichick was always good at taking away the best player, who was Roethlisberger.

    05 - Cowher coached aggressively in the playoffs. If he had coached the same way as the 1994 season, they would have lost to the Bengals even with the Palmer injury.

    As Cowher grew to become a more aggressive coach, Tomlin has regressed from were he was earlier in his career.
     
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  8. HeinzMustard

    HeinzMustard Well-Known Member

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    To this day, the worst playoff loss in Steelers history was the '94 season AFCCG vs. Chargers. No other loss comes close.... not SBXXX, not SBXLV.... not the loss to the Tebow Broncos.

    And Cowher bares some responsibility for that epic choke job.

    With that said.... Cowher built some great teams and defenses in the 90's and 00's. Cowher had better coaching staff's than Tomlin.
     
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  9. RockyBleier

    RockyBleier Well-Known Member

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    Any of the teams that have truly competed for the Super Bowl regularly have their share of "what ifs," but man, we aren't that far away from having 9 or 10 Lombardi's with a couple breaks. It really seems like Cowher should have ended up with at least two. But that is the nature of the NFL. Dan Marino being exhibit A.
     
    Last edited: Jan 28, 2023
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  10. RockyBleier

    RockyBleier Well-Known Member

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    Wow! I actually agree with a post by the Nattering Nabob of Negativism!
     
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  11. RockyBleier

    RockyBleier Well-Known Member

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    Huge stretch on the prediction a Steeler vs 49er Super Bowl blowout in 94. SMH.
     
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  12. mytake

    mytake Well-Known Member

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    I stand by my statement. NOD and Stan Humphries were basically the same QB. I will say if the Steelers had made it and lost in 94, I think they beat the Cowboys in 95, because they don't have the early jitters against the Cowboys.
     
  13. Blast Furnace

    Blast Furnace Staff Member Mod Team

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    Agreed. Steelers were such a better team than the Chargers, they got caught looking past them thats all that happened that game.

    Steelers/49ers would have been a much better SB. Don’t know who would have won but call bs on they get blown out narrative. Their defense was great.
     
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  14. Formerscribe

    Formerscribe Well-Known Member

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    The defense was great, but that 49ers offense was unstoppable. I don't think it would have been nearly as bad as the beating they put on the Chargers, but I can't see how the Steelers would have won that game. That's my only consolation for what was the worst playoff loss under Cowher. They had absolutely no business losing to the Chargers.

    In hindsight, 2001 against the Patriots feels worse because the Steelers had a real shot at winning the Super Bowl if they could have gotten there.
     
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  15. Formerscribe

    Formerscribe Well-Known Member

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    I don't think it was jitters early in Super Bowl XXX. The Cowboys were the far better team. The Steelers had the far superior coaching staff and they made adjustments that helped them slow the Cowboys down enough to make it a game.
     
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  16. RockyBleier

    RockyBleier Well-Known Member

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    I don't see that D giving up 40. Maybe like - 34-24.
     
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  17. troybellringer55

    troybellringer55 Well-Known Member

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    I think Cowher was a big motivator. He coached like he was playing. Totally dominate when we got a 11 point plus lead on a team. A lot of that was due to Jerome Bettis... Bettis was like Mariano Rivera the ultimate closer. It wouldn't work so much in today's NFL. Often it doesn't even feel safe with a 20 point lead on a team. Of course if your ahead 20 in the 4th you shouldn't lose. But you see big leads blown a lot in today's NFL.

    Cowher had quite a few let downs. 94 AFC Championship game. 95 AFC Championship game was almost lost as well ( Aaron Bailey almost caught the hail mary) Lost Super Bowl XXX, 97 AFC Championship, had a really bad run of teams 1998 to 2000. Lost 2001 AFC Championship. Beat the Browns in Wildcard in 2002 with Tommy Maddox with an epic comeback. Got really screwed the following week against the Titans. Dewayne Washington did not rough the kicker in that divisional round game. He could of made that AFC Championship. Had really bad year in 2003 but it led them to getting Big Ben in 04 draft. Lost 04 AFC championship.

    Finally got the Super Bowl in Epic fashion in 2005 as a 6th seed.

    Cowher had a stigma of being like Marty S.

    He had some great defenses, but lacked that great QB that it takes to win a Super Bowl. The Blitzburgh defenses of the 90s were fun to watch.

    But I can remember many fans wanting rid of Bill Cowher many thought he would never win the big one. It happened a lot more than people admit now days.

    On a personal note I met Bill Cowher as a 12 year old at Steelers training camp the year following the Super Bowl XXX loss. Neil left to go to the JETS via free agency.. but after that Super Bowl loss... no Steelers fan wanted him back any how.
    It was a QB race between Jim Miller, Mike Tomczak and a lesser extend that training camp Kordell Stewart.
    He signed my Steelers hat, and I still have it my basement to this day in my with my Steelers stuff. I never wore it again after that day.
    Very friendly guy and as a kid it was lot easier to get his autograph than all the players where you fighting 8 million other kids to get. I just walked up to Bill and he was very friendly. His daughter Megan and I are similar age so I think he was nice to kids at that point because he had 3 daughters himself. I remember asking him as a 12 year old if he had any upper teeth and he showed me that he did. He chuckled pretty well. My mother about died when I asked him that. We had a running feud in the family that Bill had no upper teeth because, his chin ad lower teeth were always out when he was yelling, you never saw the guy's upper teeth.
    Bill was a good coach and HOF.
    Read his book "Heart of Steel" its a good read for any Steelers fan, good insight on his career and a lot of good insight on life in general.
     
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  18. S.T.D

    S.T.D Well-Known Member

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    I think what @mytake isn't taking into consideration is.....the Steelers D was more set up for what 49ers O was running. I'm not saying We win(nobody can say either way), but styles make the fights, and our D was better suited for 49ers than Chargers D was.
    Today example. Burrow, and the Bengals have never lost to KC.....yet Burrow, and Bengals have never beat Baker Mayfield Browns. .....or another....Belichick hasn't ever beat Lamar Jackson, or Cam Newton, but We've beat both....We never lost to Cam Newton, and only lost once to Lamar (in overtime with a field goal).
    Styles make the fights(games)
     
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  19. DoinThatRag

    DoinThatRag Active Member

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    I'm shocked he never got back into coaching. I though he would take a year or two off then come back.
     
  20. Formerscribe

    Formerscribe Well-Known Member

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    When he got out, he was dealing with his wife's illness, then her death. I think he simply realized that he enjoyed the broadcasting and he was able to relax now that he wasn't coaching. Cowher was never one of those obsessive coaches who feels the need to eat, drink, and breathe football 24/7. He had a Hall of Fame career. He had a Super Bowl ring. Once he stepped away, I think he realized he just didn't need the stress.
     
  21. AtlSteel

    AtlSteel Well-Known Member

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    Loved him but towards the end I got tired of how the team seemd to have to get all spittled up with emotion to win a game.
     
  22. Karl

    Karl Well-Known Member

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    I like Bill Cowher.
    He will never challenge Vince Lombardi or Bill Belichick but he's a good one.

    Taking the cheerleaders Pom-Poms was nothing shy of spectacular. You know, a lot of people thought that was true.

    Jokes aside, I like Bill cause if you muffed up your assignment, no matter how small or large it was, you DID NOT try to sneak off the sidelines at the 10 and slither
    to behind the benches out of sight.
    Bill was right there waiting for you. He didn't miss squat either.
    Bill built a team that was his personality. They should have won that Super Bowl over Dallas and probably would have had not Neil make a hero out of some DB.

    Bill had some fierce players too.
    Avoid Lloyd, Greene, Kirkland (a friggin 240-250lb LB that could run pretty fast.. )
    Woodson....

    So much more.
     
    Last edited: Jan 27, 2023
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  23. jeh1856

    jeh1856 Beer is good

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    Common sense and a knowledge of football
     
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  24. JackAttack 5958

    JackAttack 5958 Well-Known Member

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    Cowher was a very good coach. Tomlin is a very good coach. Noll was a great coach. The thing that differentiates Noll from the other two is that Noll took advantage of open windows by winning four Super Bowls in six years. He built the Steelers dynasty from the ground up. I think both Cowher’s and Tomlin’s careers have been plagued by missed opportunities. In the Steelers hierarchy after Noll, Cowher would be 2 and Tomlin would be 2(a) at this point simply because Cowher built their most recent Super Bowl winning teams and Tomlin’s missed opportunities came during the prime years of a HOF quarterback. My two cents…
     
    Last edited: Jan 26, 2023
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  25. Formerscribe

    Formerscribe Well-Known Member

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    That really was a fantastic defense. Don't forget Carnell Lake, a college linebacker who converted to strong safety and even filled in at cornerback the year they lost Woodson.

    Kirkland was a monster. His listed weight was 270 pounds. He might have been heavier, but he could still run.
     
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