[bigboydan]

it's too late for him to think he can make an impact this season. so, why would he even wanna make a return this year is beyond me.

Rams coach wants to return

November 29, 2005
ST. LOUIS (AP) -- Rams coach Mike Martz wants to return to the field after missing the last six games with a heart ailment.

Martz said Tuesday he would ask his doctor for permission to return to his job. The Rams are 3-3 under interim coach Joe Vitt since Martz stepped down in October with endocarditis, a bacterial infection of the lining of the heart.

"This is the best I've felt," Martz told TV station KMOV. "And when you feel this good, you feel like you should be working."

Martz said he last saw his doctor a week ago, but hasn't set up an appointment that he hoped would clear him to return.

Martz has made several appearances at Rams Park since stepping down and said he felt much better in recent weeks. Still, the news caught team officials somewhat by surprise.

"Our response is until he is cleared medically, any type of conjecture is premature," team spokesman Duane Lewis said.

Martz is 56-37 in six seasons with the Rams, leading them to a Super Bowl in 2001 and serving as offensive coordinator for the franchise's only Super Bowl championship in 1999.

Martz has been in San Diego, where he has a home, but is expected back in St. Louis later this week.

[bigboydan]

looks like he's not comming back after all.

Rams president does not expect Martz back this season

By R.B. FALLSTROM, AP Sports Writer
November 30, 2005
ST. LOUIS (AP) -- St. Louis Rams president John Shaw says he would be shocked if Mike Martz got medical clearance to return to coaching this season.

Martz stepped down Oct. 24 on doctors' orders while suffering from endocarditis, a bacterial infection of the lining of the heart. Interim coach Joe Vitt has coached the team the last six games, going 3-3 heading into Sunday's game against the Washington Redskins, and Shaw expects Vitt to finish out the year.

"I would be totally shocked if Mike got cleared," Shaw told The Associated Press Wednesday. "At the time he left it was pretty clear to him that he couldn't come back. But he's a coach and you get anxious."


On Tuesday, Martz told TV station KMOV that "This is the best I've felt. And when you feel this good, you feel like you should be working."

Shaw said he's spoken several times to the infectious disease specialist in charge of Martz' case. That specialist told him he'd be feeling much better about this time of the year but that he'd face a risk making an early return.

Martz, who is at his second home in San Diego, told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that he probably wouldn't press the issue.

"I wouldn't feel very comfortable calling (the doctor) after all this," he said. "We'll just stay by the plan."

Beyond this season, Shaw said there's no decision regarding Martz' future with the team amid widespread speculation that he won't be back. Next season is the final year of his contract, and Shaw said lame-duck status was only one of the variables to consider.

Shaw would not rule out Martz, 58-39 in six seasons with the team, coaching the team next year. Martz coached the team to one Super Bowl in 2001 and was the offensive coordinator in 1999 for the franchise's lone Super Bowl championship.

"Would he change his staff, would he be able to hire new coaches in the last year of his contract?" Shaw said. "When you start weighing them, you start formulating in your head what type of commitment you need to make and which direction you want to take."

The biggest factor against Martz' returning is an adversarial relationship with director of football operations Jay Zygmunt. Martz said after stepping down that he didn't know if he and Zygmunt could co-exist professionally.

Shaw said a possible reorganization of the front office "will be on the table at some point."

"It usually starts and ends with the head coach, he's the main piece to the puzzle," Shaw said. "Once there's a head coach, depending on who you hire and what the person's wishes are, or if you keep Mike, you start to formulate the pieces around him."

Martz has made several visits to Rams Park since stepping down and every time proclaimed he felt much better. Shaw said when he last spoke to Martz about three weeks ago, the coach told him he'd feel strong for stretches before fatigue set in.

Shaw said he's been "pleasantly surprised" with the team's play under Vitt, the assistant head coach and linebackers coach.

"The team has played hard," Shaw said. "It's limited right now by injuries but the team plays with great energy and conviction and those are all positive things."

[onlooker]

He wouldnt make the team play any better. So he might aswell stay away and get healthly. Hell, he would probably make the team worse.

[bigboydan]

martz was scared to death that joe vitt would steal his job.... because martz and vitt have the same agent...and the agent reworked vitt's contract so it would give him a raise if he took over the head coaching duties of the rams....

[slacker00]

Martz seems like the T.O. of NFL coaches, a real headcase. If I was an NFL owner/GM I'd stay far far away from this guy.

Then again, the Rams are looking kinda like the Eagles front office. Something fishy going on behind the scenes of both of these teams. Why was Vermeil so eager to retire, then so eager to return to NFL coaching with another team?! I've noticed general player discontent in both organization. Something to keep an eye on.

[bigboydan]

Why was Vermeil so eager to retire, then so eager to return to NFL coaching with another team.

thats because he was basicly forced out in a nice way.


but your right, the rams front office is more bussiness savvy on how to handle some of this stuff. and, thats probly why the rams are hated by the NFL so much. because, georgia wont play ball, because john shaw is not that type of guy.

[Senator7]

With the possible exception of Mike Tice, Mike Martz is the worst coach in the NFL. He and Tice have done so little with so much talent.