HOUSTON -- Romeo Crennel, the best defensive coordinator in the NFL, enjoys reading James Patterson's mystery novels. Unfortunately for the Patriots assistant, he now can offer the author material for a new whodunit:
Six bad teams -- teams that will be saying, "Pass the salsa," on Super Bowl Sunday -- all passed up the chance to hire the top man in their business. Patterson wrote a book called "Four Blind Mice." If he adds two more mice, he'll have the title for a sequel.
There were seven head-coaching vacancies at the end of this regular season, and just one team made a selection that cannot be questioned. Washington brought back Joe Gibbs, a man who is as familiar as Pennsylvania Avenue to D.C. Gibbs is an elite NASCAR owner and a Hall of Fame coach. When he's available, you try to get him. At almost any price.
The same can't be said for the other six. The Group of Six has two proven head coaches, a guy who looks like a career coordinator (Norv Turner), and three upside types who haven't achieved as much in their careers as Crennel has in the past three seasons.
How did this happen?
Anyone who has talked with Crennel knows how smart and competent he is. During the window when job candidates from playoff teams were permitted to speak with potential employers, Crennel spoke with five teams for 3-4 hours at a time. No matter what questions they asked -- personal or professional -- they should have learned a lot.
The oldest of Joseph and Mary Crennel's five children is a natural leader. He can thank his parents for that because he has both of their strongest qualities. Joseph is an Army man with a love of discipline and literature. The literature can be found in his oldest son's name: Joseph was stationed overseas in the late 1940s, saw the romantic city of Paris, and soon fathered a son named Romeo.
The discipline always could be found in the family house. Romeo learned that his chores weren't complete until Joseph gave them military inspections. Joseph had a vision for what he wanted and how he wanted it done.
Mary, who died two years ago, was known for her patience. Her children -- two girls and three boys -- knew their mother was a good listener with a gift for remaining calm. Romeo adopted those qualities, mixed in the perfectionist traits of his father, and grew into one of the most discussed coaches in pro football.
But this is where we talk about mysteries again. There are people who compliment Crennel all the time without knowing it. It's the equivalent of raving about a building's architecture and not realizing that the architect is sitting next to you.
