(born
April 27 ,
1954 ) is the
American Football Head Coach of the
National Football League 's
Kansas City Chiefs . Previously a
Journeyman player in the NFL, he played the position of
Cornerback for eight seasons (
1979 -
1986 ) with the
Philadelphia Eagles ,
Los Angeles Rams and
Atlanta Falcons . Before being hired with the Chiefs, Edwards was the head coach of the
New York Jets from
2001 -
2005 . He is famous for the quote and sound bite, "You play to win the game!", a message that Edwards gave during a New York Jets press conference. It also became the title of his book, a collection of "leadership lessons" for the reader to use as personal motivation.
Edwards is sometimes called (with various degrees of affection) "the Preacher".
Prior to his coaching career, Edwards was known best as the player who recovered a fumble by
Giants quarterback
Joe Pisarcik on a play that has been dubbed by some as
The Miracle At The Meadowlands .
The son of an
African American World War II veteran and his
German war bride, Edwards played
College Football at the
University Of California in
1972 and
1974 , at Monterey Peninsula Junior College in
1973 , and at
San Diego State in his senior year,
1975 . He graduated from the latter with a degree in criminal justice.
In the
NFL , Edwards played nine seasons with the
Philadelphia Eagles from 1977 to 1986, making a championship appearance with the team in
Super Bowl XV . His 33 career interceptions is just one short of the franchise record. Remarkably he never missed a game in 9 seasons with the Eagles, remaining active with the team for 135 consecutive regular-season games until being cut by then-incoming Head Coach
Buddy Ryan in 1986. Edwards went on to play briefly for the
Los Angeles Rams and
Atlanta Falcons in
1986 before announcing his retirement.
The highlight of Edwards' playing career occurred on
November 19 ,
1978 , in the final seconds of a game against the
New York Giants at the
Meadowlands . The Giants led 17-12 and the Eagles had no time-outs remaining; but instead of simply taking the snap from center and falling on the ball, Giants quarterback
Joe Pisarcik attempted to hand the ball off to running back
Larry Csonka . However, the ball came loose, and Edwards picked it up and returned it for a touchdown, enabling the Eagles to win 19-17. This play became known in
Philadelphia as
The Miracle At The Meadowlands and in
New York as simply "The Fumble."
After his days as a player ended, Edwards became a defensive assistant at
San Jose State University (
1987 -
1989 ), then was an NFL scout and defensive backs coach with the
Kansas City Chiefs (
1990 -
1995 ), for former
Browns ,
Chiefs ,
Redskins , and
Chargers Head Coach
Marty Schottenheimer . With the
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (
1996 -
2000 ), he was a defensive backs / assistant head coach under
Tony Dungy . On
January 28 ,
2001 , despite never having previously held a head coaching or coordinator position, Edwards hired as head coach of the
New York Jets .
In his five years as Jets coach, Edwards had a 39-41 record, including a 2-3 record in the playoffs and a 5-15 stretch during his final 20 regular season games with the club. With a strong veteran team in place following
Bill Parcells tenure in the organization, the Jets had mild success in Edwards first two seasons, reaching the playoffs in both. The Jets were the 6th seed in 2001, losing on the road in the first round to the
Oakland Raiders by the score of 38-24. In 2002, the Jets squeaked into the playoffs with a 9-7 record, due to winning the tie-breakers in a three-way tie for the AFC East Division lead with the
New England Patriots and the
Miami Dolphins . The Jets advanced to through the Wildcard round this time, which lead to a return trip to Oakland. Once again, Edwards and the Jets came up short, losing 30-10 to the Raiders. Following a disappointing 6-10 season in 2003, the Jets reached the divisional round of the AFC playoffs once more in 2004, where they lost to the
Pittsburgh Steelers by a score of 20-17. In 2005, a year marred by injuries, inconsistent play, lack of player development, and rumors swirling about Edwards possibly leaving the organization, Edwards led the Jets to a woeful 4-12 record. Following the end of the season, the Jets traded away the rights to Edwards to the Kansas City Chiefs for a fourth round draft pick in the 2006 NFL Draft, and replaced him with
Eric Mangini as their head coach.
Following the 2005 season, Chiefs' General Manager
Carl Peterson heavily leaked stories to the press about Edwards in a pattern of behaviors that could have been considered
Tampering . At the time, Edwards had two years remaining on his contract with the Jets. However, this was the coach that Peterson wanted to be the successor to
Dick Vermeil , who had just retired. As the rumors started swirling, a war of words between the two teams began to start up in the media. In the midst of all the speculation, Edwards tried to use what leverage he had with the Jets to get a contract extension with a hefty pay raise from the Jets, which only served to further anger the club's owner. Eventually, the two teams worked out a deal, when the Chiefs supplied the
Jets their 4th round pick (
Leon Washington , RB,
Florida State ) in
2006 NFL Draft as compensation. Some observers felt that the Jets management received too little in compensation from
Kansas City . Other observers noted that Edwards had worn out his welcome with
Jets Owner
Woody Johnson , and that Johnson welcomed the opportunity to go in another direction.
On
September 10 ,
2006 , Edwards made his regular season coaching debut with the Chiefs. In a lackluster performance, the Chiefs lost at home, to the
Cincinnati Bengals , by the score of 23-10. Edwards first win with the Chiefs came on
October 1 ,
2006 with a defeat of the
San Francisco 49ers 41-0 in the third game of the season.
The
2006 Kansas City Chiefs season would see many highs and lows. Starting
Quarterback Trent Green suffered a serious
Concussion in the first game of the season. Despite Green's injury, the Chiefs continued to stay in contention, largely thanks to backup quarterback
Damon Huard and
Pro Bowl running back
Larry Johnson . In a move some considered controversial, Edwards chose to sit Huard and start Green, when he returned from injury
Huard shines again ''Kansas City Star, 1 January 2007.''
Don’t swap while team clicking ''Kansas City Star, 8 November 2006.''. At the time, Huard's performance at quarterback was one of the best in the league, having thrown 11 touchdowns against only 1 interception, averaging 7.7 yards per pass attempt, and posting a ). Additionally, the Chiefs were 5-3 in games started by Huard in 2006. Upon his return, Green struggled and failed to perform at the level of play that he had achieved in previous seasons, throwing 7 touchdowns (against 9 interceptions) and going 4-4 as a starter.[http://scores.espn.go.com/nfl/players/profile?statsId=2547] Green's poor play led to Edwards placing more of the offensive burden on the shoulders of Larry Johnson, who ultimately ended up setting a record for rushing attempts in a season.
The Chiefs finished the 2006 season with a 9-7 record, edging out the
Denver Broncos (who lost in
OT to the
San Francisco 49ers in the final game of the season) by divisional tiebreaker for second place in the
AFC West , and making the playoffs as the 6th seed in the AFC. This was their first playoff appearance in the last 3 seasons, despite the 2005 Chiefs having had a better record at 10-6 the previous year.
On
January 6 ,
2007 , the Edwards-led Chiefs were soundly defeated by the
Indianapolis Colts , by a score of 23-8. In the first half, the Chiefs offense failed to produce a single first down. This was the first time in the modern NFL era (post
AFL-NFL Merger ), and the first time since 1960, that any team had been held without a first down in the first half of a playoff game
{Link without Title} .
Herman Edwards' performance as a coach has drawn a variety of criticisms.
- Teams coached by Edwards have typically started most seasons with poor performances, leading to speculation that Edwards does a poor job of preparation in the preseason. {Link without Title} With the exception of the 2004 season with the New York Jets , no team coached by Edwards has had a winning record after 6 games played.
- For a player who made his name in the NFL on a time management gaffe, Edwards has committed a variety of time management decisions that vary from perplexing to embarrassing. The New York Jets working to improve their offense's clock management ''NFL.com May 3, 2004'' These gaffes have been quite frustrating to the fans of the teams coached by Edwards. Clock gives Edwards fits again in loss ''www.topix.net'' Diamond In The Rough ''DiamondVues.com, 15 January 2005'' What I'm Thinkin' About (Besides Swimming Pools) ''Slack LaLane, 16 November 2004''
- Herm's game plans have often been criticized as too conservative with little or no imagination. Chiefs More Predictable Than "Gigli," Says LJ ''Chiefs NFL Fanhouse, 22 December 2006'' A prime example of Edwards' game plans, the lone Chiefs 2007 playoff game was one of the worst offensive performances in recent history. Blame debacle on Herm ''Kansas City Star, 7 January 2007.'' Offense needed a Plan B ''Kansas City Star, 7 January 2007.'' Chiefs end Herm Edwards' first year with embarrassing loss ''Sporting News, 7 January 2007.
Edwards is known for his motivational speeches and soundbites given at press conferences. Edwards' popularity among motivational speaking has even led to the publication of his own book of quotes.
- "This is what's great about sports. This is what the greatest thing about sports is. You play to win the game. Hello? You play to win the game. You don't play it to just play it. That's the great thing about sports: you play to win, and I don't care if you don't have any wins. You go play to win. When you start tellin' me it doesn't matter, then retire. Get out! 'Cause it matters." - ''Following a reporter's question on the team's ability to win, on October 30 , 2002 after a Week 8 loss to the Cleveland Browns left them at 2-5.''
- "I did a lot of preaching this week. I had my sermons ready. The good part is the congregation was listening. I wish I had passed the collection plate. I would’ve made a lot of money. But I did it for free." — ''Edwards, following a win against the Chargers in 2006 ''.Schraeger, Peter. Get ready to meet Herm ''FOXSports.com'', 13 June 2007.
- "When you're a head coach, you don't know where to stand," Edwards said. "You're screwed up. You go on the field, no one's talking to you. `Somebody's gonna talk to me.' You don't know what to do. So you go over and talk to the other head coach, and kind of shake his hand, then you go, `Where do I stand?'" -- In an interview with South Florida Sun-Sentinel Reporter Ethan J. Skolnick.
- "Don't get things twisted." — ''Edwards, following questions from the media concerning the Chiefs' entry to the Playoffs In 2006-07 , Whitlock, Jason "Herm covering Carl's goof," ''Kansas City Star'', 2 January 2007 as well as answering questions of the status of Trent Green for the 2007 Season ''. Herm refutes Green's assertion that quarterback competition stacked against him ''Kansas City Star'', 23 May 2007.
- ""Let's not get this thing twisted and think we backed into this deal. We didn't lose, we won. Every team that played this weekend played at home and had an opportunity to get into the playoffs just like us. We just happened to win. What's wrong with that? So, let's not get it twisted and say, 'Well, they're lucky.' " — ''Edwards defending the Chiefs' 9-7 record and entry to the Playoffs In 2006-07 . Whitlock, Jason "Herm covering Carl's goof," ''Kansas City Star'', 2 January 2007Wilbur, Eric. Natural Selection ''Boston.com'', 3 January 2007.
- Edwards is a descendant of " Tony Dungy's Coaching Tree ," and is also connected to " Marty Schottenheimer's Tree " as well.
- Edwards has a 'tradition' of not watching the and Lovie Smith participate in Super Bowl XLI . Dungy had a tradition much like what Edwards does, that is, with the exceptions of Dungy's victories in both Super Bowl s XIII and XLI .
- Edwards' career regular season head coaching record is 48-48 (.500) in six NFL seasons.
- Edwards is sometimes confused with close friend and fellow coach Tony Dungy. In public, fans occasionally have referred to both respective coaches as their near-similar counterparts.
- Edwards has only 2 playoff victories while a coach, and both have been against coaches he formerly worked for.
- Edwards was signed by current Chiefs General Manager Carl Peterson as a Rookie Free Agent with the Philadelphia Eagles in 1977. Peterson served as the Eagles Director of Player Personnel at the time; twenty-nine years later, Peterson signed Edwards as the Chiefs' tenth head coach in 2006. Herman Edwards biography ''KCChiefs.com'', accessed 6 February 2007.
- Edwards has a strict workout regimen that has him in the gym at 4:30 in the morning six days a week.
- Instead of wearing athletic sneakers with his coaching attire, Edwards wears dress shoes. Before every game, Edwards polishes the shoes himself.
- Known widely for enthusiasm and faith-based personality, Edwards was born and raised Southern Baptist , but converted with his family and is now a practicing Roman Catholic .
- Edwards went to Monterey High School in Monterey, CA
- Edwards is known to be very fond of Fig Newtons , and usually has a package of them close by. What you don't know about Herm ''KCChiefs.com'', 25 September 2006.
- Edwards' favorite movie is '' The Ten Commandments ''.
- At a press conference on October 31 , 2006 , Herm Edwards’ weekly news conference was running late when Larry Johnson emerged wearing Edwards’ trademark garb of NFL Sweatshirt , Shorts and red cap pulled over his eyes. He flailed his arms, pounded the table and went into a “play to win the game” rant. Johnson amused the reporters with his impersonation. In response, Edwards said “I’m glad Halloween is only one time a year." Edwards finished the press conference himself and referenced to the bond he had made with Johnson in the offseason. The lighter side of LJ ''Kansas City Star, 1 November 2006.''
Edwards was born in
Fort Monmouth, New Jersey and raised in
Seaside, California . Edwards is the son of Herman, Sr., the late Master Sergeant, and Martha.
1 Herman Sr. met Martha while he was stationed in Germany with the U.S. Army.
Edwards graduated from
San Diego State University with a degree in Criminal Justice. Edwards and his wife Lia have two daughters Gabrielle and Vivian. Edwards has a son Marcus from a previous relationship.Karen Crouse (
2005-08-11 ), Pro Football; Edwards keeps cool with baby on way, ''The New York Times
