The Real Problem In Sports: Coaches Losing Their Jobs

Alex Rodriguez recently admitted to taking steroids, further proving the game of baseball has been tainted in the past decade-plus. But I ask you, how much do steroids really affect an athlete's abilities in their given sport?

Sure, the athlete becomes a bit stronger, and perhaps a little bit better conditioned. But upon gaining new muscle mass, he also risks losing some key athletic abilities such as flexibility, quickness, and change of direction ability. Plus, he puts himself at tremendous risk for long-term health issues. I'm not trying to say that steroids in sports are not an issue, just that they have run their course; they are boring, and by and large, the issue has been addressed adequately.

There is a more serious issue which has been gaining some steam in recent weeks, and one that ultimately makes a larger impact on a large group of people, and families. This is head coaches (and top-level assistants) losing their jobs after a very short run in their given post. Most notable is Terry Porter being fired by the Phoenix Suns after only four months on the job. The poor guy was given NO chance to succeed.

How can someone possibly be expected to install his system and make adjustments to it, based on the players he has, in four months? I would say it is nearly impossible. And really I'm not just talking about Porter, but any head coach.

The problem is really bad in the NBA and NHL, where coaches are often fired in the middle of the season. Baseball is not great, but not as bad the other two. In all these sports, new hires are generally retreads from other teams, who have proven not to be great coaches. This means coaches' families are moving just about every other year, even though most head coaches would like to succeed with the team they are with, and generally don't have a desire to go somewhere else (Larry Brown is a rare exception).

Thankfully, the NFL (with the exception of Al Davis) seems to have a pretty firm three-year rule. But it is going in the direction of the other sports, and that is a scary direction to me, especially as someone who sees himself as a future NFL head coach.

So, what can we do about it as fans? First, we can nip the urge to flock to "firecoachx.com" in the bud. We can support our team's head coach no matter how bad the team may look in his first year. And we can raise our awareness of just how difficult a job these men have and appreciate that they work as hard as anyone in America, and invest as much into their jobs mentally, emotionally, and sometimes spiritually, as anyone. We can give them a break.

But, perhaps more important than all those steps on our part, we can ask Congress to get involved in something more meaningful than steroids police. How about we propose a law that any head coach hired needs to be given three full years on the job before he can be fired? Here are some obvious benefits of such a system:

1. Coaches families will be secure and won't have to pack up and move once a year and can live a semi-normal life.

2. Teams will be forced to really do their homework when hiring a new coach and can no longer make excuses for their hire. In other words, owners and general managers become more accountable for their actions.

3. Coaches are given adequate time to install their systems and philosophies and make any needed adjustments to them. If the team is not showing progress after three years then it is totally fair to let the head guy go.

4. Continuity and loyalty is re-established in sports, which is one of its biggest issues now.

5. The "recycling coaches program" will end, meaning the quality of coaching will improve, therefore the quality of the game will improve.

The only circumstance a coach could be fired for would be for a legal incident, on or off the court (field, rink, etc.).

The one real negative to this is that it likely requires an institution with the power of Congress to make this happen, which I am normally not in favor of. But I think it would be a noble cause and would do more to help unemployment and the economy than many of the measures they are currently passing.