Alabama head coach Nick Saban’s first run in the NFL with the Dolphins did not turn out well at all, but the time is perfect for one of college football’s greatest coaches ever to give the NFL a second try. His defensive coordinator Kirby Smart is reportedly taking a head coaching opportunity with rival Georgia, and he could bring Alabama offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin with him.
If Saban can get the Crimson Tide another national title this season, it makes sense for him to vacate his throne for a new challenge with his top lieutenants leaving him. If Saban can win the championship this year, it will be his fourth at Alabama since 2007, leaving him with nothing to prove. In the NFL, however, he has much to prove. The combination of open positions, and his recent success at the NCAA level give him the leverage to ask for the moon from an NFL franchise and get it.
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His weak run with the Dolphins won’t haunt him. Bill Belichick and Pete Carroll both had horrendous first stops as NFL coaches and have now combined to win four of the last 10 Super Bowls, facing one another in the most recent one. Saban would re-enter the NFL more accomplished than either Belichick or Carroll at the college level, and certainly more qualified than current Eagles czar Chip Kelly.
The biggest question is finding the right fit. The Dolphins are sure to be looking for a coach this offseason, but running back Saban will not be welcomed by frustrated fans. The Eagles may fire Kelly after the season ends, and they may have had their fill of successful college coaches running the whole show by themselves. That eliminates two obvious candidates.
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More intriguing options are the Colts, 49ers and Giants. The Colts remain the favorites to win the AFC South. If Chuck Pagano does that with Matt Hasselbeck, 40, starting more games than Andrew Luck, then it doesn’t matter how much his relationship with the front office has deteriorated because he’ll keep his job.
The 49ers make a lot of sense if they decide to move on from Jim Tomsula, although Saban may have issues with taking over a roster that’s relatively free of high-end talent beyond linebacker NaVorro Bowman. Also, 49ers executives clashes heavily with former coach Jim Harbaugh, and Saban is known to be prickly. The Giants are the most interesting fit, since they are likely to fire head coach Tom Coughlin if they miss the postseason. The question there is whether or not Saban would take a gig in which he doesn’t have complete personnel power, which belongs to general manager Jerry Reese.
But the likeliest move for Saban would be to coach in Tennessee, where they have a young stud quarterback in Marcus Mariota, one of the NFL’s youngest teams, and no big names in the front office that would preclude Saban from having total control.
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