Dave Shula, who had his father's prominent jaw but not his knack for winning, was replaced today as the Cincinnati Bengals' head coach.
Offensive coordinator Bruce Coslet will coach the team for the rest of the season. Coslet, a former New York Jets head coach, rejoined the Bengals prior to the 1994 season after a prior tour as offensive coordinator."I've asked Dave to step aside as head coach. That's a hard thing for me to do," Bengals general manager Mike Brown told a news conference. "He's good people, worked hard. . . . We just didn't get the wins. In this game, in this business, you have to do that."
Shula is the first NFL coach to lose his job this season.
"I wish Bruce Coslet and the Bengals all the luck in the world," said Shula, who stood with Brown before reporters. "I thank Mike for the patience he's shown through the years as we've struggled to put a winner on the field."
Shula, 37, was the youngest coach in the NFL and one of the least successful. He was 19-52 in four-plus seasons and lost 50 games faster than any coach in league history.
His final loss was one of the most demoralizing. The Bengals blew a 21-point lead in San Francisco on Sunday, giving up a pair of touchdowns in the closing minutes for a 28-21 defeat that left them 1-6.
It is only the second mid-season coaching change in the franchise's 29-year history. The last such change also followed a loss in San Francisco - Bill Johnson was replaced by Homer Rice in 1978 after a 28-12 loss to the 49ers left Cincinnati winless in five games.