Hiring Todd Haley
The decision to hire Scott Pioli as general manager likely meant that head coach Herman Edwards would not return for a fourth season as Chiefs head coach. The Kansas City Star reported that according to two coaches, Edwards and his staff could have been dismissed as soon as Wednesday, January 14, the day when Pioli was introduced in Kansas City. At his press conference, Pioli did not rule out Edwards being retained as the team's head coach. Hunt said publicly that he wanted Edwards to return in 2009, but Pioli would have "significant input" in the final decision.
Several candidates were mentioned as possible replacements for Edwards even before he had been fired. The most notable names mentioned were Todd Haley, the offensive coordinator of the 2008 NFC Champion Arizona Cardinals, New York Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo, and Mike Shanahan, the former head coach of the Chiefs' rival Raiders and Broncos franchises. Other possible candidates included Jon Gruden, Leslie Frazier, Winston Moss, Kirk Ferentz, Jason Garrett, and even Scott Pioli's father-in-law, Bill Parcells.
Edwards was fired on January 23, and ESPN's Chris Mortensen reported later that evening that the Chiefs were targeting Mike Shanahan to become the next head coach. Mortensen initially reported that the Chiefs were negotiating on a contract with Shanahan. The report was later denied by Shanahan himself.
After a long period in which Haley was considered the front-runner for the head coaching position, there was concern as to whether the Chiefs would violate the Rooney Rule by immediately hiring Haley. The Rooney Rule, named after Pittsburgh Steelers owner Dan Rooney, specifies that NFL teams must give fair interviews to minority candidates whenever a head coaching position comes open. Some minority coaches were reportedly turning down offers from the Chiefs since Haley was the presumed target for the coaching vacancy. The Chiefs negotiated with Haley following the Cardinals' loss in Super Bowl XLIII, and Haley accepted the coaching position on February 5. Haley was introduced as head coach the following day.
Defensive coordinator Gunther Cunningham was hired by the Detroit Lions for the same position. Cunningham had been the defensive coordinator for the Chiefs from 1995 to 1998 and 2004 to 2008. He also served as the team's head coach from 1999 to 2000. The Chiefs also lost secondary coach David Gibbs to the Houston Texans and Mike Priefer to the Denver Broncos. Once Todd Haley was hired, the Chiefs fired tight ends coach Jon Embree, defensive assistant/assistant linebacker coach Michael Ketchum, running backs coach Curtis Modkins, offensive assistant/quality control coach Kevin Patullo, and wide receivers coach Eric Price.
Read more about this topic: 2009 Kansas City Chiefs Season, Offseason, Coaching Changes
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