Former NFL quarterback Joey Harrington has written a lengthy item for SI.com that’s interesting mostly for his very different perspectives on the many coaches he played for in the NFL.
In Harrington’s first stop, in Detroit, he writes that playing for Steve Mariucci “crushed me.” Harrington tells a story about how he asked Mariucci to let him throw the ball downfield more often, and Mariucci responded by getting up and brushing his teeth before telling Harrington he had to leave to give some interviews.
Harrington, who’s widely remembered as a draft bust in Detroit, says that his problems there stemmed from the coaches and players not having faith in him. Harrington does say, however, that he always had a good relationship with the man who drafted him, Matt Millen, and doesn’t blame Millen for the way things went south.
But Harrington has even harsher words for his coach in Atlanta, Bobby Petrino.
“That team had a head coach, Bobby Petrino, who was so ill-equipped to coach an NFL team, it was laughable,” Harrington writes. “If anybody challenged him, or suggested something different, the person was cast away. It was an unhealthy environment from the get-go, and it wouldn’t get any better.”
Petrino lasted less than one full season in Atlanta before quitting to become the head coach at Arkansas, where he was later fired for ethical misconduct.
The coach Harrington most respected was Nick Saban, who coached Harrington in Miami.
“As for Saban, he and I actually had a really good relationship,” Harrington said. “Many people think of him as a little dictator, but we got along really well. He could be honest with me, and I would listen. After four years of having something said to my face and different things said behind closed doors, all I wanted was a coach who told me where I stood. Nick gave that to me.”
Harrington says it doesn’t particularly bother him that he wasn’t a very good quarterback in the NFL, and when he looks back on his football career, his only regret is that he didn’t lead Oregon to the Rose Bowl.