In a previous post, I summarized the basics of Wade Phillips’ career at Denver (1993-94) and Buffalo (1998-2000). Quite frankly, I looked too much at the numbers and not enough at specific reasons for his failures there.

The editorials from the Denver Post and Buffalo News from the Phillips’ eras with those teams sound awfully similar to the columns written daily by the Dallas Morning News and Fort Worth Star-Telegram. The general consensus on Phillips throughout his career: nice guy, overly optimistic, not enough attention to detail, not enough attention to special teams, and too loyal to assistant coaches.

The overall results at both stops were disappointing not because Phillips was a loser but rather because his teams were mired in mediocrity and failed to meet expectations. This was especially true in Denver, but the disappointment in Phillips’ performance was also obvious with the Bills.

See how many of these notes sound familiar in Dallas:

1. Phillips Was Hired in Denver Because He Wasn’t Like Dan Reeves

The players wanted Phillips rather than former offensive coordinator Mike Shanahan as the head coach of the Broncos in 1993. Several columnists referred to this as something of an experiment, noting that Phillips’ demeanor was quite different than most head coaches. He was not a disciplinarian and was certainly nothing like former coach Dan Reeves.

2. Expectations in Denver Were High, Even in Phillips’ First Season

Columnist Mark Kiszla noted in 1994, “Whoever replaced Dan Reeves would either become one of biggest winners in the league or be condemned as a disappointment on the sidelines.” Phillips only managed a 9-7 season in 1993 along with a first-round playoff exit. This was during a time when John Elway was running out of time to win a Super Bowl title.

3. Phillips Was Too Pollyannish for Denver Fans

Phillips was optimistic that the Broncos could be contenders in 1994, noting: “People’s expectations are for a Super Bowl champion. If we don’t do that, all those people are going to be disappointed.”

According to Kiszla, however, Phillips could not handle the heightened expectations.

The Denver coach . . . can draw a smiley face on any football problem. Listen closely as he responds to any criticism of the Broncos and you swear Phillips is humming, “Don’t Worry, Be Happy.”

It’s part of what makes Phillips such an endearing character. He doesn’t act like the stereotypical NFL head coach, a species frequently accused of having all the personality of mildew.

Anybody who meets Phillips wants him to succeed. In 20 games with the New Orleans Saints and the Broncos, however, he has proved to be nothing more than a mediocre head coach with a good sense of humor. And Denver doesn’t have much taste for football as comedy.

4. Denver Had Problems With Its Defensive Coordinator, Causing Phillips to Step In to Call Plays

Phillips had been the Broncos’ defensive coodinator for four seasons before being hired as Denver’s head coach. Phillips’ replacement was former Cowboy safety Charlie Waters, who bombed. At one point, Waters was stripped of his playcalling duties and sent to the press box.

5. Expectations in Denver Increased with Free Agent Signings in Phillips’ Second Season

In 1994, Denver signed free agents Anthony Miller, Ray Crockett, Mike Pritchard, Ben Smith and Leonard Russell. Another 9-7 season would have been unacceptable. According to Kiszla:

There’s no need to mince words or protect the man’s feelings. If the Broncos finish 1994 with anything fewer than 11 victories, coach Wade Phillips deserves to be fired. If his team fails to reach the AFC Championship game, Phillips receives full blame.

6. Denver’s Offense Struggled Under an Up-and-Coming Offensive Coordinator

Denver’s offensive coordinator during Phillips’ tenure was Jim Fassel, who would later become the head coach with the Giants. Although the Broncos ranked fairly high in several offensive categories, the Broncos struggled with turnovers, finishing with a turnover ratio of -5. This ranked 23rd in the league out of 28 teams. Denver was also poor in terms of sacks allowed, giving up 55 and ranking 27th in the league in that category.

7. Phillips’ Second Season in Denver Was an Utter Failure

Denver opened the 1994 season by going 0-4 and stood at 1-5 after an October 17 loss to Kansas City. The Broncos won six of their next seven to improve their record to a more acceptable 7-6 mark in early December, but three straight losses left the Broncos at 7-9.  Unsurprisingly, Pat Bowlen fired Phillips, and virtually everyone agreed:

Regardless of age, gender, race or sports orientation folks doing business on the 16th Street Mall yesterday overwhelmingly agreed with Denver Broncos owner Pat Bowlen’s decision to dump Wade in the waters of the unemployed – Wade Phillips that is.

Bowlen fired Phillips from his duties as Broncos head coach at a mid-afternoon press conference, and word spread quickly. Most people expressed little surprise at the firing and virtually no support for Phillips as a coach, though they were sympathetic, casting him as a “nice guy.”

8. Phillips Had Surprising Success Early in Buffalo

Few expected Phillips to experience much success when he replaced Marv Levy in Buffalo in 1998. However, a 10-6 record that season was pleasing to many Buffalo fans.

Then again:

A lot of people didn’t think the Phillips-for-Levy move was going to work. For starters, there was the image. Even when he isn’t wearing one of those NFL-licensed sweaters, Phillips resembles a cross between St. Thomas Aquinas and an oversized Kewpie doll.

This statement was written before the Bills suffered a playoff loss to Miami on January 2, 1999.

9. Special Teams Became a Big Problem in Buffalo

Bruce DeHaven, who later served as the Cowboys’ special teams coach, was with Buffalo for a number of years before the Bills fired him. The reason for the firing was the Music City Miracle against Tennesee in the wildcard round of the 1999 playoffs. The loss ruined the Bills’ 11-5 season, which was Phillips’ best up to that point.

Phillips hired friend Ronnie Jones to replace DeHaven, and the results in 2000 were a disaster. Phillips said he would take a more active role in the special teams after early season failures, but Phillips did not seem to make any difference and in fact might have made them worse.

The biggest problem with the Bills’ special teams in 2000? Kickoff coverage. And this was on a team that had quality veteran kicker in Steve Christie.

10. Phillips Fired for Refusing to Fire Assistant Coaches

After the Bills finished with an 8-8 record in 2000, Buffalo executives reportedly demanded that Wade Phillips fire some of his assistant coaches. When Phillips refused, it apparently cost him his job.

As it turns out, though, many thought that the stated reason was a nice way to hide the fact that folks were sick of Phillips’ incompetence. On January 8, 2001, columnist Jerry Sullivan wrote:

Wilson should have fired Phillips on his own merit. He didn’t have to hide behind the assistant coaches, or wait for the new GM to show up and do it. What more evidence did he require? You could have made a case for Phillips’ ouster on ANY ONE of four major blunders:

Scapegoating special teams coach Bruce DeHaven after last year’s playoff loss and replacing him with Ronnie Jones. Phillips took more responsibility for the special teams, then turned them into the worst in NFL history.

His mishandling of the quarterback situation. He divided the locker room by switching quarterbacks before the Tennessee game a year ago. He compounded it this season by failing to make it clear that Rob Johnson was his No. 1 guy (and failing to see that Doug Flutie was still the better QB.)

Telling a national audience before the Indianapolis game that both teams were “basically out of it.” The Colts, who were tied with the Bills going into that game, went on to make the playoffs. Talk about a death wish.

Hiring Joe Pendry as offensive coordinator and Carl Mauck as offensive line coach. Pendry and Mauck, failures in previous stops, were a disastrous combination. The offense never developed a cogent identity. Flutie’s improvisational skills only tended to obscure their shortcomings as coaches.

Epilogues in Denver and Buffalo

Denver famously had Super Bowl success under Phillips’ replacement, Mike Shanahan, and nobody in Denver suggests that Broncos’ fans would second-guess the decision to fire Phillips. But the success did not come immediately. The Broncos were only able to improve to 8-8 in 1995, and a few questioned Shanahan’s decision-making.

After a 42-33 loss to San Diego in November 1995, Kiszla wrote:

There is no need to study the film. Off every frame will jump the image the Broncos were outcoached, sloppy and not ready in a game the team openly admitted would define this Denver season.

And this wasn’t the first time Shanahan has been stumped this season.

The Broncos coach has been rudely schooled by old NFL hands such as Bobby Ross and Marty Schottenheimer. Worse, Shanahan has been outwitted by Ray Rhodes and Dennis Erickson, men who are also learning on the job.

Too often, the Broncos coach has failed to grasp the obvious on the field.

In at least five of Denver’s six defeats, Shanahan has been revealed as no better than the No. 2 strategist in the stadium. The Denver coach’s errors have been as costly as any player transgression.

The Broncos did not experience success in the 1990s when they signed high-priced free agents, but rather started winning when they developed an offensive system that played to the strengths of Terrell Davis’ running as well as the passing that Elway could still provide.

History has been a bit kinder on Phillips in Buffalo, which experienced a 3-13 season by the Bills the year after Phillips left.

Reporter Mark Gaughan in 2004 elevated Phillips to mediocre status in the team’s coaching history, taking into account the team’s 17-31 record under Phillips’ successor, Gregg Williams.

Strengths: Phillips took over a 6-10 team and went 10-6, 11-5 and 8-8. He has good instincts for who can play and who can’t. His defense was superb. His tactics are sound. He limited assignment errors. The team liked playing for Phillips and played hard for him. He wasn’t afraid to make some bold moves. He adjusted to injuries well. Wonderful guy.

Weaknesses: Phillips did not sweat the details enough, which becomes a problem against the best coaches in the big games. He didn’t keep the pulse of the locker room well enough. The Flutie-Johnson quarterback controversy might have been unmanageable for anyone, but he let it fester too much. And he did not put enough priority on special teams. His hiring of buddy Ronnie Jones, who was a disaster, cost him his job.

Lesson: Hire the best coaches available, not old friends.