MVN - Most Valuable Network

Four more years for Jeff Fisher

The Titans have reportedly agreed to a four-year extension with coach Jeff Fisher. An official announcement is expected later today.

Fisher is working this year under an option which was exercised by owner K.S. “Bud” Adams, Jr. The extension will keep Fisher under contract through the 2011 season.

I’m glad to see Adams finally agree to Fisher’s demands, whatever they may have been. It probably wasn’t a monetary issue, since his new contract will reportedly pay him only $5.5 to 6 million per year, a little low compared to Mike Holmgren’s $8M.

I’m sure the contract gives Fisher more control over various team issues, although I’d only be speculating on what those issues might be. In a previous contract negotiation, Fisher was given hiring and firing control over his assistant coaches, something previously controlled by former GM Floyd Reese.

Fisher held all the cards in this protracted contract negotiation. He could have walked at the end of the season and been able to write his own ticket with the team of his choice next year. It’s good to know Fisher will be back for four more years.

Named the Houston Oilers’ interim head coach when Jack Pardee was fired during the 2-14 1994 season, Fisher became the head coach in 1995. His 13 consecutive years as head coach of the same franchise is tops among NFL coaches.

Fisher’s coaching career began with the 1985 Chicago Bears championship team. It was Fisher’s final year as a player and when he was lost for the season with a broken ankle, he became a sort of unofficial coach, assisting Bears defensive coordinator Buddy Ryan with the secondary.

When Ryan became the Eagles head coach the following year, he persuaded Fisher to retire as a player and join him as the secondary coach. Fisher went on to become Ryan’s defensive coordinator before going to the Los Angeles Rams to work for his college coach, John Robinson. When Robinson and the entire staff were fired, Fisher joined the 49ers. He joined the Oilers in 1994 and was promoted to interim head coach later that year.

This entry was posted on Monday, September 17th, 2007 at 10:26 am and is filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.