That is the idea that Mike Nolan is somehow going to be a competent head coach. Nolan's tenure as head coach in the NFL is somewhere below that of Wannstadt & Saban and somewhere just this side of Cam Cameron. Nolan had his pick of QB's in 2005 and chose Alex Smith over Aaron Rodgers. The highlight of his career was a 7-9 record, something that Sparano has equaled twice and after which people thought Sparano should be fired. He followed that up with a 5-11 record but still managed to keep his job. Not to be outdone, he made a decision to start the 2008 season that I still have to pinch myself to believe it actually happened. Nolan resigned Shaun Hill, who had been the only bright spot of Nolan's disastrous 2007 season by providing competent QB play and bringing a couple wins in, and even retained Alex Smith for the heck of it. But he and OC Mike Martz actually concocted a scheme to give journeyman J.T. O'Sullivan the starting QB job by making up stories about Shaun Hill having a tired arm and being unable to compete, a move I can't decide if its more classless or more stupid. With his apparently handpicked QB, the 49ers struggled to a 2-5 record and Nolan was fired. His interim coach, Mike Singletary, ended up having a winning record the rest of the season, finishing 5-4.
Mike Nolan's head coaching record was 18-37, and its even more pathetic that his interim coach bested anything he ever did. And I would like to point out, in Nolan's only stop between here and then, he was also essentially fired by Denver after 2009.
I'm not posting this to say Sparano deserves to stay, but it bears reminding just how bad Mike Nolan really was as a HC.
Mike Nolan's head coaching record was 18-37, and its even more pathetic that his interim coach bested anything he ever did. And I would like to point out, in Nolan's only stop between here and then, he was also essentially fired by Denver after 2009.
I'm not posting this to say Sparano deserves to stay, but it bears reminding just how bad Mike Nolan really was as a HC.
