Four months after saying his Chargers weren't as good as fans thought they would be, San Diego coach Norv Turner has won USA TODAY's NFL Coach of the Year award.
Turner led the Chargers back from a 2-3 start with 11 straight victories that earned his team a playoff bye. The Chargers, at 13-3, finished just one game behind the Colts for the best record in the NFL.
Turner has led the Chargers to the playoffs in all three of his seasons in San Diego, but said that this year has been his most rewarding.
"I'm not very good at comparing those things, but the biggest thing for me is the job the assistant coaches have done and the number of people we have that have contributed to this team," Turner said. "That part of it is impressive."
Turner received 23 of 66 points from the 11-member panel of USA TODAY football writers and editors. He earned five first-place votes, and edged out Cincinnati coach Marvin Lewis (who had four first-place votes) by three points.
The Chargers and Turner were a late arrival into the race for postseason awards. They started 2-3 and were 3½ games behind the Denver Broncos after a home loss to them on Oct. 19.
Many analysts suggested the Chargers were Super Bowl contenders in the preseason. But Turner sent a jolt to his team in December after a Week 2 loss to the Ravens, after a close-call win in the opener at Oakland.
"I don't think right now we're as good as you that cover us think or expect us to be; I don't think we're as good as what our fans want us to be," Turner said. "But I believe we can get there. We've got a lot of work to get there."
His premonition was tested with two losses in the next three games, but the Chargers wouldn't lose another game after their Week 6 defeat to Denver. The Broncos' tailspin eliminated first-half favorite Josh McDaniels from top coach honors. And the late-season slips by the Indianapolis Colts and New Orleans Saints (who combined to lose their last five games after each opening the season 14-0 and 13-0, respectively) helped distinguish the Chargers' surge.
Turner led his team to impressive fourth-quarter comeback victories on the road against the New York Giants and Dallas Cowboys and a Week 15 win against the Cincinnati Bengals that helped solidify a playoff bye.
Winning Coach of the Year honors does not guarantee Turner postseason success, however. Turner still has yet to reach the elite level of NFL coaches who have hoisted the Lombardi Trophy.
That remains an obstacle for him. He has a 4-3 record in postseason play and has never reached the Super Bowl. It's a threshold that the Chargers, who have been to the playoffs in five of the past six years, are hoping to cross.
Lewis' second-place finish is a testament to the turnaround he led in Cincinnati, where the Bengals clinched the AFC North with their first winning record in four years and just their second playoff berth since 1990. He coached the Bengals through the loss of Vikki Zimmer, the wife of defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer, and the death of receiver Chris Henry in December.
Caldwell, the third-place finisher, seemed to be cruising to the award when his Colts became just the third team to start a season 14-0. But the controversy surrounding the Colts lifting their starters in the two losses helped douse his candidacy.
Complete voting results:
Norv Turner, San Diego: 23 points (five first-place votes)
Marvin Lewis, Cincinnati: 20 points, (four first-place votes)
Jim Caldwell, Indianapolis: 11 points
Sean Payton, New Orleans: 6 points (one first-place vote)
Mike McCarthy, Green Bay: 3 points (one first-place vote)
Rex Ryan, New York Jets: 2 points
Josh McDaniels, Denver: 1 point
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Thursday, January 7, 2010
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