Chargers head coach Schottenheimer fired
ESPN.com news services
SAN DIEGO -- Chargers coach Marty Schottenheimer was fired Monday night in a shocking move by team president Dean Spanos, who cited a "dysfunctional situation" between the coach and general manager A.J. Smith.
The move was first reported by ESPN's Chris Mortensen.
Less than a month after San Diego's NFL-best 14-2 season was wrecked in a playoff loss to New England, Spanos cited the exodus of both coordinators and other assistants in firing Schottenheimer, who had a year left on his contact.
"This decision was so hard because Marty has been both a friend and valued coach of our team," Spanos said in a statement. "But my first obligation is always to do what is in the best interest of our fans and the entire Charger organization. I must take whatever steps are necessary to deliver a Super Bowl trophy to San Diego. Events of the last month have now convinced me that it is not possible for our organization to function at a championship level under the current structure. On the contrary, and in the plainest possible language, we have a dysfunctional situation here. Today I am resolving that situation once and for all."
Mortensen reported that Spanos told Schottenheimer on Monday that it wasn't going to work between him and Smith.
Spanos indicated in the statement that the Chargers will pay Schottenheimer for the last year of his contract.
Three days after the Chargers' playoff meltdown Spanos decided that bringing Schottenheimer back for the final year of his contract gave San Diego its best chance to win.
"Our fans deserve to know what changed for me over the last month," Spanos said in the statement. "When I decided to move ahead with Marty Schottenheimer in mid-January, I did so with the expectation that the core of his fine coaching staff would remain intact. Unfortunately, that did not prove to be the case, and the process of dealing with these coaching changes convinced me that we simply could not move forward with such dysfunction between our head coach and general manager. In short, this entire process over the last month convinced me beyond any doubt that I had to act to change this untenable situation and create an environment where everyone at Charger Park would be pulling in the same direction and working at a championship level."
When the Chargers decided to bring him back, Schottenheimer raised eyebrows by declining the team's offer of a one-year extension for 2008 worth $4.5 million, with a $1 million buyout.
"Right now, I wasn't comfortable accepting it," Schottenheimer told The Associated Press shortly after the season. He would have earned more than $3 million in 2007.
With a regular-season record of 200-126-1 with Cleveland, Kansas City, Washington and San Diego, Schottenheimer is the most successful coach never to have reached the Super Bowl.
ESPN.com news services
SAN DIEGO -- Chargers coach Marty Schottenheimer was fired Monday night in a shocking move by team president Dean Spanos, who cited a "dysfunctional situation" between the coach and general manager A.J. Smith.
The move was first reported by ESPN's Chris Mortensen.
Less than a month after San Diego's NFL-best 14-2 season was wrecked in a playoff loss to New England, Spanos cited the exodus of both coordinators and other assistants in firing Schottenheimer, who had a year left on his contact.
"This decision was so hard because Marty has been both a friend and valued coach of our team," Spanos said in a statement. "But my first obligation is always to do what is in the best interest of our fans and the entire Charger organization. I must take whatever steps are necessary to deliver a Super Bowl trophy to San Diego. Events of the last month have now convinced me that it is not possible for our organization to function at a championship level under the current structure. On the contrary, and in the plainest possible language, we have a dysfunctional situation here. Today I am resolving that situation once and for all."
Mortensen reported that Spanos told Schottenheimer on Monday that it wasn't going to work between him and Smith.
Spanos indicated in the statement that the Chargers will pay Schottenheimer for the last year of his contract.
Three days after the Chargers' playoff meltdown Spanos decided that bringing Schottenheimer back for the final year of his contract gave San Diego its best chance to win.
"Our fans deserve to know what changed for me over the last month," Spanos said in the statement. "When I decided to move ahead with Marty Schottenheimer in mid-January, I did so with the expectation that the core of his fine coaching staff would remain intact. Unfortunately, that did not prove to be the case, and the process of dealing with these coaching changes convinced me that we simply could not move forward with such dysfunction between our head coach and general manager. In short, this entire process over the last month convinced me beyond any doubt that I had to act to change this untenable situation and create an environment where everyone at Charger Park would be pulling in the same direction and working at a championship level."
When the Chargers decided to bring him back, Schottenheimer raised eyebrows by declining the team's offer of a one-year extension for 2008 worth $4.5 million, with a $1 million buyout.
"Right now, I wasn't comfortable accepting it," Schottenheimer told The Associated Press shortly after the season. He would have earned more than $3 million in 2007.
With a regular-season record of 200-126-1 with Cleveland, Kansas City, Washington and San Diego, Schottenheimer is the most successful coach never to have reached the Super Bowl.
