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There's plenty of buzz around Dirk Koetter potentially leaving for the head coaching gig at Boise State, and Alex Welch present a nice list of potential replacement candidates here. There's much less hay being made with Mike Nolan.
D. Orlando Ledbetter decided to ask Nolan about his future yesterday, and the answer he got was understandably vague.
“That’s the team’s decision, not mine. So that’s a question for later,” Nolan said.
The future isn't real certain for anyone on this coaching staff. While I believe Mike Smith and Mike Nolan will stick around, I can't say that I'm 100% confident both will have their jobs in 2014. Nolan can't be certain either, hence the non-answer.
The argument for Nolan boils down to this: He's successfully broken in some young players, he's coaxed about the same level of pass rushing production out of a unit that should have been worse and he lost one of his favorite players (Kroy Biermann) and worked without another one (Sean Weatherspoon) for most of the season. The argument against Nolan boils down to this: Still no truly quality pass rush, some guys have regressed and he hasn't been able to adjust to our satisfaction to some of the adversity facing him.
It's a tough call. I remain convinced that the likeliest outcome is Smith and Nolan returning while the line coaches and a few others receive the axe, but Nolan's uncertainty reflects the uncertainty surrounding the team.
What do you think?
