Jobs filling while Fassel waits

Thursday, Jan. 15, 2004 | 11:30 a.m.

SUN WIRE REPORTS

Two of the final pieces of the NFL coaching puzzle fell into place Wednesday, with the Chicago Bears hiring Lovie Smith, the St. Louis Rams' defensive coordinator, and the Buffalo Bills settling on Mike Mularkey, the Pittsburgh Steelers' offensive coordinator.

Of the seven teams that let their head coach go after the season, only Oakland is left to select a new one.

Almost more notable than who was hired is who has been left out. The former Giants coach Jim Fassel found himself an odd man out despite varying degrees of interest from four teams, the Washington Redskins, the Arizona Cardinals, the Bills and the Bears.

Teams had also been lining up to interview New England's offensive and defensive coordinators, Charlie Weis and Romeo Crennel, but neither seems likely to get a head coaching job because Oakland has not expressed interest. Teams seemed unwilling to wait for Weis and Crennel, who could not field offers until the Patriots finished playing.

"I thought they would both end up somewhere," said John Mara, the Giants' executive vice president, who, with General Manager Ernie Accorsi, interviewed Crennel and Weis before hiring Tom Coughlin. "The wait that the system imposes is not advantageous for them. It is a major factor."

The Giants also interviewed Smith, who became the second African-American head coach hired this winter. Arizona hired former Minnesota Vikings coach Dennis Green, bringing the number of black head coaches in the league to five.

Fassel's trip from ousted coach to hot candidate to forced sabbatical has been one of the stranger stories on the coaching carousel.

Only a day after his final game, Fassel was asked to interview with the Cardinals. The Redskins' owner, Daniel Snyder, was so enthusiastic about him that he flew to San Francisco, where Fassel was watching his son's bowl game, to talk to him before Arizona could. Snyder's interest was serious until he found he could lure Joe Gibbs out of retirement.

Fassel was not involved in two openings -- with the Atlanta Falcons, who hired Jim Mora Jr., the San Francisco 49ers' defensive coordinator; and with the Raiders, who are still conducting interviews.

Fassel may end up in a television booth while waiting for another opportunity next year.