Rivera got advice from John Madden last offseason

[Cary Kollins]

Sorry if already posted, this is from last week.

 

Cool story about Rivera seeking advice from John Madden.  Got to love how Rivera isn't ashamed to ask for guidance from some NFL greats.  This along with the other story this week about how Rivera would pick the mind of the reporter when he was in college.  Keep Pouding Ron, and KEEP LEARNING.

 

 

 

The Carolina Panthers coach was on a trip visiting his parents on the West Coast when he decided to give legendary coach John Madden a call and let him know he was in the neighborhood.

Rivera was thinking he could get a few minutes of Madden's insight into the direction his team was headed over a cup of coffee.

"Coach Madden took it a step further,'' Rivera recalled on Wednesday. "He evaluated us and looked at some things. He was very gracious and very critical of certain things.''

When Rivera says Madden evaluated, he doesn't mean the Hall of Fame coach shared his thoughts from what he'd seen of the Panthers on television. Madden actually broke down film before Rivera arrived.

 

 

One thing stood out more than anything during the critique.

"He was a little bit concerned about us giving the ball a little bit too much to the quarterback,'' Rivera said. "I took every word he said.''

 

"One of the things [Cowher] told me was, 'Ron, with the way you finished [2012 with four straight wins], stick with it. It's going to turn. Trust me. Don't change who you are in terms of your principles and what you believe,''' Rivera said.

"The insight that you learn from these people is tremendous. They all came around to say one thing: be true to who you are. So I've tried to do that. I am a better coach.

 

http://espn.go.com/blog/carolina-panthers/post/_/id/1886/give-rivera-credit-for-seeking-out-madden

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[hepcat]

John Madden really loves football.  Retired at 77 and he's still breaking down game film.  

[lightsout]

Love it.

[SCP]

It's cool to see that Rivera takes improving as a coach seriously.

[Huell]

Sign madden as a director of football operations

[Zaximus]

Between this and the story from yesterday about Ron asking that reporter his own questions, you really get a sense that he's very smart.   I'll admit I was on the fence with Rivera earlier this season, but I'm starting to really like the guy, and I'm impressed that he's willing to take in info and admit mistakes.  It really should trickle down to his team also, to admit mistakes and make the changes that are needed.  The players apparently love him because he has been in their shoes before.

[Pejorative Miscreant]

It's cool to see that Rivera takes improving as a coach seriously.

 

I saw a thread yesterday talking about Rivera being in college and getting advice from columnists about being a better communicator.  I think this coupled with the Madden thread is establshing a pattern about how this guy is wired.  He seems to be a cerebral person that simply wants to be better.  Kinda like Yoda, constantly seeking knowledge he is.

[wine-o and cheese-doodle]

Being true to Ron's self means smash mouth football for the Panthers. That's what he played.

[ed bell]

I always felt that Ron was taking too much heat for being a bit too conservative on fourth down and making errors with clock management. Not that he didn't deserve the criticism, just that folks were willing to draw conclusions from those occurrences that branded him as a lousy HC. To me, clock management is a correctable skill and learning to take more risks comes with getting comfortable in your skin as an HC. Coupling his mistakes and bad player execution resulted in some heartbreaking losses, but now we are seeing the results of patience. If Rivera has proven anything, it's that he is committed to getting better and I think that is hard wired in him. That could be something that ends up being his strongest attribute as an HC.

[Kramerica]

 

"One of the things [Cowher] told me was, 'Ron, with the way you finished [2012 with four straight wins], stick with it. It's going to turn. Trust me. Don't change who you are in terms of your principles and what you believe,''' Rivera said.

 

Except Ron did kind of change his principles after the Buffalo game, which was part of the springboard into this five game winning streak.

 

I like how Ron's not just looking to have his ego stroked and prove to everyone he's God's gift to football (cough SCHIANO cough). He just wants to learn how to win and then do it. It's working pretty well these past few weeks.

[Jackofalltrades]

I know he sought help from Madden, Cowher and Ditka, I was impressed that he took those steps. His transformation is only slight less impressive than Cam's.

[frash.exe]

I imagine every third word of this lecture was "Favre"

[TheRumGone]

Between this and the story from yesterday about Ron asking that reporter his own questions, you really get a sense that he's very smart.

 

I don't think anyone has doubted how smart Rivera is. He is one of the top defensive minds in football.

 

He is also apparently a pretty damn good listener.

[cptx]

I saw a thread yesterday talking about Rivera being in college and getting advice from columnists about being a better communicator.  I think this coupled with the Madden thread is establshing a pattern about how this guy is wired.  He seems to be a cerebral person that simply wants to be better.  Kinda like Yoda, constantly seeking knowledge he is.

 

Dagobah Ron?