It's much easier to fall in love with charismatic than productive. It's how we decide on our class presidents, real presidents, and company presidents. Let's be honest - Bill Belichick could never win an election. He's not magnetic enough. We've barely ever seen him smile. That's why he embraced the ultimate meritocracy: The NFL. On game day, the best man wins.
In the offseason, not so much. February through August are when the cool kids thrive, and the nerds catch up on their homework. Belichick and Andy Reid often gripe about falling behind on offseason endeavors due to time missed during deep playoff runs. Nerds. The cool kids spend that time talking about lighting up the NFL next season, why they should've been better last season, and why their shiny new top-10 draft pick will make the future bright. They feed the NFL media's hype machine, and thank god for them. Without Rex Ryan, Odell Beckham Jr. and Kliff Kingsbury, what would we all talk about?
But, too often we misconstrue public relations for production. The latest odds for the 2020 NFL Coach of the Year award illustrate that. According to BetMGM, Belichick has the best odds (+1000), followed by Vrabel (+1400), followed by McCarthy (+1400) , followed by... um... who now? Kliff Kingsbury (+1600). That's right. Kliff Kingsbury - with two winning seasons out of his seven coaching college and pro football - is tied for the fourth best odds to win NFL Coach of the Year.
Quarantine's making oddsmakers crazy too, huh?
In a world of grumpy, overweight, tobacco-chewing slobs, Kliff Kingsbury looks and feels like 007, and it's clouding our judgement.
Think about the men that this league has chewed up and spit out. Bill Belichick didn't achieve a winning season until four years into his NFL coaching career. He was fired two years later. Nick Saban fled the league after two years, with a 15-17 record. Chip Kelly, who, you know, won at the college level, was quickly humbled by a 44% NFL winning percentage, and promptly discarded.
It's one thing to hope Kingsbury will get his act together now, after years of mediocrity coaching in the Big-12. It's another for Cardinals fans to know so adamantly he's a sure thing, and for Vegas to set odds accordingly. What inspires that confidence? Is it the fact that with Baker Mayfield and Patrick Mahomes as his starting quarterbacks at Texas Tech, Kingsbury amassed a 24-26 record? Is it that he brought the Cardinals two more wins than they compiled with one-and-done Steve Wilks? Keep in mind, Wilks got Rosen, Kingsbury got Kyler. Is it a room-owning ability Kingsbury's been saving for year two?
Or is it that Kingsbury owned Twitter for a night? Is it that he's good-looking, his name has some sweet alliteration, and he fits into the "offensive guru" mold the way Nicolas Cage fits the mold of a treasure hunter who knows something that the fate of the world depends on?
Who am I kidding? Of course Kliff Kingsbury's going to win coach of the year! The Cardinals are gonna be FIRE, bro! UN-stoppable! NFC West champs! History is for LOSERS. L-O-S-E-R-S.