Eric Mangini Is Sacrificing the Cleveland Browns' Future to Save His Own Job

Cleveland Browns head coach Eric Mangini has been on the hot seat for the greater part of the 2009 season, but now with the Browns' season clearly over, everyone, including Mangini, is playing for their job in 2010.

Mangini is easily one of the most hated people in Cleveland right now, and the hate for him might even compete with the hatred of former owner Art Modell at this point.

So what is Mangini to do to save his own butt?

He has gone on an interview campaign to try to save face nationally and clean up his own name in lieu of a possible firing at the end of the season. By doing this, he feels he can still have a future in the NFL.

His future as a coach in the NFL may not be possible if he does indeed get fired, but the college level might be a better opportunity, and there is a vacancy at Notre Dame (joke).

The reality of what is happening with the Browns is that Mangini is trying to save his job for next year, since the new "football czar" will most likely want his own choice of head coach.

So Mangini is trying to save his own job, but to what extent?

To the extent of sacrificing the potential talent of young players for the Browns' future.

Mangini is not playing younger players due to his own selfishness, but who can blame him?

Anyone in a position of getting fired will do anything possible to save his or her own butt at the expense of something else.

Playing more veterans (former Jets players, specifically Hank Poteat) instead of rookies, who are more prone to making mistakes while they are learning on the job, makes the losses a little less of a debacle.

But come on now...the "football czar" will hopefully be able to see through this failure of a move of rookie sacrifice to make a final decision on Mangini's future with the Browns.

It should be in Mangini's best interest to help save himself by playing the rookies more in the last five games to show that he indeed did choose wisely in the 2009 NFL Draft with his picks and evaluation of those players.

When you look at the 2009 season as a whole, it doesn't look like Mangini can do enough to save himself, but why punish the young guys by keeping them on the bench?

Those same young guys may be able to help Mangini save his job because they might be playmakers who may break out in the next few games.

If the current trend holds, then don't count on seeing any more younger players than have already played, and that's just bad coaching.

Keep digging your own grave, Mangini, because the inevitable will occur at this rate of overall team ineptness.

(Article also posted on Dawg Scooper)