Today In Patriots History Feb 7, 1983: Ron Meyer hires Rod Rust to be DC

[jmt57]

Today in Patriots History
Rod Rust hired to be Defensive Coordinator​

February 7, 1983:
Rod Rust is hired as defensive coordinator by Ron Meyer.

Rod Rust had been the DC for the Kansas City Chiefs since 1978. He began his coaching career as an assistant at New Mexico in 1960, then held the same position at Stanford for four years. In 1967 Rust became the head coach at North Texas State, then defensive coordinator for the CFL's Montreal Alouettes from 1973-1975. The following year Rust moved to the NFL as a linebackers coach, a position he held for two seasons before moving to KC.

In Foxborough Rust replaced Jim Mora, who accepted a job as head coach of the Philadelphia Stars of the USFL. Mora would win two championships in the USFL before the league disbanded, then coached for the Saints and Colts for 15 years.

Jim Mora responds to Peyton Manning's 4-interception performance:​

See what happens when you fail to properly praise Peyton publicly? Your NFL career is over!​

Rust was a central figure of the drama that led to Meyer being fired. Meyer fired Rust after a 44-24 loss to Miami in the middle of the 1984 season, without notifying general manager Patrick Sullivan. The GM wasn't bothered by Meyer's decision to make a change - but he was extremely upset about being kept out of the loop and hearing about the move second hand. The very next day Rust was reinstated - and Meyer was fired - despite the team having a winning record at that time.


In 1990 the Patriots hired Rod Rust to be their head coach, after twelve straight years in the NFL as a defensive coordinator - including '83-'87 with the Pats, '88 with KC, and '89 in Pittsburgh. The timing for him could not have been any worse, as the disastrous distractions from the Lisa Olson incident proved to be far too much to handle. Until a few weeks ago, he was the only head coach in franchise history to be fired after only one season. After that Rust continued to coach in the NFL and CFL as a defensive coordinator and linebackers coach until he was 77, in 2005.




Before moving on, let's have some fun and stick with Peyton for a moment.

February 7, 2010 in Miami
Super Bowl 44
Colts favored by 5½
New Orleans Saints 31, Indianapolis Colts 17

Tracy Porter's Pick-Six off Peyton Manning:

#3 Tracy Porter Picks Off Peyton Manning in Super Bowl XLIV | NFL Films | Top 10 Interceptions
5:11 NFL Films Highlight Video​

Former Patriot TE David Thomas earned a super bowl ring in this game with New Orleans; a bit of retribution after having been beaten by the Colts when he was with the Pats in the no-AC/turn up the heat 2006 AFC championship game.

Patriots Hire Rod Rust to Succeed Berry

Rod Rust, who spent 14 seasons as an NFL assistant, has become the second oldest coach in the league, taking over the New England Patriots a day after the team fired Raymond Berry.

www.latimes.com

Rust Fired as Patriots Coach

Rod Rust, who guided New England to the worst record in its 31-year history, was fired today after one season as coach of the Patriots.

www.latimes.com

Patriots fire Rod Rust - UPI Archives

New England Patriots chief executive Sam Jankovich fired head coach Rod Rust Friday, following the worst season in club history -- both on and off the field....

www.upi.com

Former Patriots head coach Rod Rust dies at age 90

Rod Rust, who was head coach of the New England Patriots in 1990, died Tuesday morning at age 90, the team announced Wednesday. Rust was defensive coordinator of the Patriots' first Super Bowl tea…

www.providencejournal.com

OBF: Recalling the dark, sad days of the Rod Rust-led Patriots

For the first time in 34 years, the Patriots have a Rust problem.

www.bostonherald.com

Former NFL, CFL, college coach Rod Rust dies at age 90

Rod Rust, who spent one season as head coach of the Patriots but was mostly known as a defensive coordinator for several NFL teams, died Tuesday. He was 90.

www.espn.com

 

[jmt57]

Today in Patriots History
More February 7th Transactions​

February 7, 1980:
Patriots trade a 1981 10th-round draft pick to Cleveland for seven-year veteran DE Ernie Price
Price was a situational backup (81 games, 32 starts), who only started one season, in '79 with Seattle after spending most of his career with Detroit. He had been signed by the Browns late in the year after being released by the Seahawks. The Pats cut Price near the end of training camp, ending his NFL career. He later played in the USFL for the Boston Breakers. Considering how little the Pats gave up for him, it was virtually a zero-risk move.

Patriots trade a 1980 6th-round draft pick to Cleveland for four-year veteran DE Mike St. Clair
Same position, same result: St. Clair was also released on August 26, 1980.
St. Clair was a better player of the two, having played in 57 games with 33 starts in Cleveland. The Bengals signed him a month later, and he spent four seasons there. Overall he played in 91 NFL games, with 21 sacks. The draft pick that the Pats gave up was used on Mike Guman, a backup RB/ST who played for nine seasons with 15 touchdowns.




February 7, 2005
Defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel resigns.
Crennel had worked for the Patriots from 1993-96 as the defensive line coach, and from 2001-04 as the DC - winning three super bowl rings.
Defensive backs coach Eric Mangini would be promoted to become the new defensive coordinator.




February 7, 2006:
Pats re-sign special teams veteran Don Davis

OLB Don Davis: Signed through 2006

According to NFLPA documents OLB Don Davis has signed with the team through the 2006 season. Davis, who was a free agent this season, appears to have signed a one-year deal for a 10-year veteran minimum of $770,000. His contract will only count for $460K (plus his signing bonus) against the Patriots 2006 cap, assuming the bonus is $25,000 or less and meets the qualifying contract requirements. The Boston Globe reports that Davis received a $25,000 bonus which indicates his 2006 cap number is $485,000.​

Davis played in 59 games over four seasons with the Patriots, plus eight playoff games, and was part of two championship teams (SB38 & SB39).




February 7, 2009
Matt Cassel signs his franchise tag tender
The Patriots had placed the tag on Cassel two days earlier. With his accepting that designation, the Pats could now seek a trade for the quarterback.

Cassel to sign franchise tender

An NFL source confirmed that Patriots quarterback Matt Cassel and his representatives have notified the team that they agree to the franchise tender.

www.boston.com

Patriots quarterback Matt Cassel and his representatives sent a letter Saturday notifying the Patriots that Cassel accepts the non-exclusive franchise tag and the one-year, $14.65 million tender that goes with it. This is akin to the sides agreeing to contract terms.​

All that remains is for the Patriots to send Cassel a formal contract with the tender offer and he will sign it, guaranteeing himself a significant raise from the $520,000 he made last season. (Unlike standard NFL contracts, franchise tenders are guaranteed for the full amount.) The Patriots notified Cassel via a letter Thursday that they were designating him as their franchise player. Cassel’s letter is a response to that letter.​

On February 28 the Patriots would trade Cassel to Kansas City, as was expected.
What was a surprise was that the Pats also included Mike Vrabel as part of the cap-saving transaction.




February 7, 2012

Patriots Sign Underwood To Future Contract After Cutting Receiver Night Before Super Bowl

Normally, cutting a wide receiver who is fifth or sixth on the depth chart wouldn't normally generate many headlines, but when it comes the night before a Super Bowl, it becomes a bit of a big deal.

www.cbsnews.com

Normally, cutting a wide receiver who is fifth or sixth on the depth chart wouldn't normally generate many headlines, but when it comes the night before a Super Bowl, it becomes a bit of a big deal.​

That was the case with the Patriots and Tiquan Underwood, who was let go by the team on Saturday. While it was likely a tough pill to swallow for the 24-year-old, there were clearly no hard feelings, as the team signed Underwood, along with six other players, to a future contract on Tuesday.​

Patriots sign 7 to futures contracts, including Underwood

The Patriots announced this evening that they have signed seven players to futures contracts: WR Tiquan Underwood DB Ross Ventrone LB Markell Carter OL Matt Kopa DE Aaron Lavarias WR Britt Davis LB Mike Rivera Underwood became known nationally on Saturday night when he was released from the...

www.boston.com

The Patriots announced this evening that they have signed seven players to futures contracts:​

WR Tiquan Underwood
DB Ross Ventrone
LB Markell Carter
OL Matt Kopa
DE Aaron Lavarias
WR Britt Davis
LB Mike Rivera​

Underwood became known nationally on Saturday night when he was released from the 53-man roster by New England on the eve of the Super Bowl in order for DE Alex Silvestri to be promoted for the game. It was believed that Silvestri might play on special teams against the Giants, but he never got into the game.​

Ventrone was part of 21 roster transactions during the season, shuffling between the 53-man roster and practice squad. He played in eight regular-season games, mostly on special teams. Under league rules, had he played in a ninth game, Ventrone would no longer be eligible for practice squad.​

Carter, a seventh-round draft pick last spring who spent the entire season on practice squad, received a hefty pay raise from the Pats in December, likely an indication that another team tried to sign Carter away from New England.​

Kopa, Lavarias, Davis and Rivera also were members of the practice squad.​

Two other practice squad players were not re-signed: TE Carson Butler and TE Dorin ****erson.




February 7, 2017:

Patriots sign nine

The team announces the signings of nine players to futures contracts.

www.patriotledger.com

The New England Patriots announced that they have signed eight players from the 2016 practice squad to future contracts. In addition, the Patriots signed TE Rob Housler to a future contract.​

OL Chris Barker, LB Trevor Bates, OL Jamil Douglas, OL Chase Farris, RB Tyler Gaffney, DL Woodrow Hamilton, DL Darius Kilgo and WR Devin Lucien all finished the season on the New England practice squad.​

Housler, 28, is a veteran of five NFL seasons with Arizona (2011-14), Cleveland (2015) and Chicago (2015). The 6-foot-5, 250-pounder, originally entered the NFL as a third-round draft pick (69th overall) of the Arizona Cardinals out of Florida Atlantic in the 2011 NFL Draft. Housler has played in 65 NFL games with 27 starts and has 109 receptions for 1,166 yards with one touchdown. After four seasons in Arizona, he signed with Cleveland as an unrestricted free agent on April 9, 2015. Housler played in six games with the Browns before being released. He signed with Chicago on Dec. 8, 2015 and played in four games for the Bears. Housler was released by Chicago On Sept. 3, 2016 and spent the season out of football.​

Housler didn't even come close to making it to training camp; he was released on May 17, 2017.




February 7, 2022:

Patriots Sign DT Bill Murray to Futures Contract for 2022

The College of William and Mary product joined the Patriots as an undrafted free agent in 2020.

www.si.com

Murray signed with the Patriots as an undrafted rookie free agent in 2020 as a product of the College of William & Mary. He spent his first two seasons in New England on the practice squad after finishing his FCS career as a team captain and two-time All-Colonial Athletic Association selection.​

Murray was a standout lineman at William & Mary due to his athleticism. The 6-foot-4, 295-pound lineman has a knack for pursuing the quarterback, especially when moving outside the pocket. His explosiveness off the line helped him dominate interior linemen every time he took the field. In 2019, Pro Football Focus graded five of his collegiate games, scoring him with an 89.2 overall grade, as well as a 91.1 run defense grade in 202 snaps.​

Murray is a high-energy defensive lineman who performed well during his two training camps in New England. In theory, he would provide depth behind the Patriots’ defensive tackles. At his best, Murray can be useful as a sub-package pass rusher, capable of contributing on some run-blocking schemes.​

Prior to clearing waivers at the 53-man roster deadline last August, Murray registered two sacks through 81 defensive snaps in the preseason. He was also credited by PFF for seven quarterback hurries, two stops and one batted pass.​

Murray now becomes the tenth Patriot to ink a futures contract with the team this offseason. Defensive tackle Daniel Ekuale, running back Devine Ozigbo, wide receivers Malcolm Perry, Tre Nixon and Kristian Wilkerson, offensive linemen Will Sherman, Arlington Hambright and Drew Desjarlais, as well as kicker Quinn Nordin all signed their deals in January.​

Bill Murray's Cinderella story never came to fruition in Foxborough, as he got on the field for just one game for the Pats.

 

[captain stone]

Today in Patriots History
Rod Rust hired to be Defensive Coordinator​

February 7, 1983:
Rod Rust is hired as defensive coordinator by Ron Meyer.

Rod Rust had been the DC for the Kansas City Chiefs since 1978. He began his coaching career as an assistant at New Mexico in 1960, then held the same position at Stanford for four years. In 1967 Rust became the head coach at North Texas State, then defensive coordinator for the CFL's Montreal Alouettes from 1973-1975. The following year Rust moved to the NFL as a linebackers coach, a position he held for two seasons before moving to KC.

In Foxborough Rust replaced Jim Mora, who accepted a job as head coach of the Philadelphia Stars of the USFL. Mora would win two championships in the USFL before the league disbanded, then coached for the Saints and Colts for 15 years.

Jim Mora responds to Peyton Manning's 4-interception performance:

See what happens when you fail to properly praise Peyton publicly? Your NFL career is over!​

Rust was a central figure of the drama that led to Meyer being fired. Meyer fired Rust after a 44-24 loss to Miami in the middle of the 1984 season, without notifying general manager Patrick Sullivan. The GM wasn't bothered by Meyer's decision to make a change - but he was extremely upset about being kept out of the loop and hearing about the move second hand. The very next day Rust was reinstated - and Meyer was fired - despite the team having a winning record at that time.


On December 18, 1978 Rust was also in the middle of more Patriot drama. News that Chuck Fairbanks would leave the Patriots to coach at Colorado had leaked out, which infuriated the Sullivans. Fairbanks was suspended for the final game of the regular season. Rather than choose one person to be the interim head coach, it was decided that the Pats would use two head coaches: their offensive coordinator would be the head coach when the Patriots had the ball, and the defensive coordinator would be in charge when the opponent had the ball. No word on what happened on punts and kickoffs.

In 1990 the Patriots hired Rod Rust to be their head coach. The timing for him could not have been any worse, as the disastrous distractions from the Lisa Olson incident proved to be far too much to handle. Until a few weeks ago, he was the only head coach in franchise history to be fired after only one season. After that Rust continued to coach in the NFL and CFL as a defensive coordinator and linebackers coach until he was 77, in 2005.




Before moving on, let's have some fun and stick with Peyton for a moment.

February 7, 2010 in Miami
Super Bowl 44
Colts favored by 5½
New Orleans Saints 31, Indianapolis Colts 17

Tracy Porter's Pick-Six off Peyton Manning:

#3 Tracy Porter Picks Off Peyton Manning in Super Bowl XLIV | NFL Films | Top 10 Interceptions
5:11 NFL Films Highlight Video​

Former Patriot TE David Thomas earned a super bowl ring in this game with New Orleans; a bit of retribution after having been beaten by the Colts when he was with the Pats in the no-AC/turn up the heat 2006 AFC championship game.

Patriots Hire Rod Rust to Succeed Berry

Rod Rust, who spent 14 seasons as an NFL assistant, has become the second oldest coach in the league, taking over the New England Patriots a day after the team fired Raymond Berry.

www.latimes.com

Rust Fired as Patriots Coach

Rod Rust, who guided New England to the worst record in its 31-year history, was fired today after one season as coach of the Patriots.

www.latimes.com

Patriots fire Rod Rust - UPI Archives

New England Patriots chief executive Sam Jankovich fired head coach Rod Rust Friday, following the worst season in club history -- both on and off the field....

www.upi.com

Former Patriots head coach Rod Rust dies at age 90

Rod Rust, who was head coach of the New England Patriots in 1990, died Tuesday morning at age 90, the team announced Wednesday. Rust was defensive coordinator of the Patriots' first Super Bowl tea…

www.providencejournal.com

OBF: Recalling the dark, sad days of the Rod Rust-led Patriots

For the first time in 34 years, the Patriots have a Rust problem.

www.bostonherald.com

Former NFL, CFL, college coach Rod Rust dies at age 90

Rod Rust, who spent one season as head coach of the Patriots but was mostly known as a defensive coordinator for several NFL teams, died Tuesday. He was 90.

www.espn.com

"...On December 18, 1978 Rust was also in the middle of more Patriot drama. News that Chuck Fairbanks would leave the Patriots to coach at Colorado had leaked out, which infuriated the Sullivans. Fairbanks was suspended for the final game of the regular season. Rather than choose one person to be the interim head coach, it was decided that the Pats would use two head coaches: their offensive coordinator would be the head coach when the Patriots had the ball, and the defensive coordinator would be in charge when the opponent had the ball. No word on what happened on punts and kickoffs..."

How did the incident above involve Rust? Wasn't Hank Bullough the DC back then?

 

[jmt57]

"...On December 18, 1978 Rust was also in the middle of more Patriot drama. News that Chuck Fairbanks would leave the Patriots to coach at Colorado had leaked out, which infuriated the Sullivans. Fairbanks was suspended for the final game of the regular season. Rather than choose one person to be the interim head coach, it was decided that the Pats would use two head coaches: their offensive coordinator would be the head coach when the Patriots had the ball, and the defensive coordinator would be in charge when the opponent had the ball. No word on what happened on punts and kickoffs..."

How did the incident above involve Rust? Wasn't Hank Bullough the DC back then?

Good catch, I don't know wtf I was thinking about.

Mailed it in on that entry, my bad.

 

[Actual Pats Fan]

Rust was a central figure of the drama that led to Meyer being fired. Meyer fired Rust after a 44-24 loss to Miami in the middle of the 1984 season, without notifying general manager Patrick Sullivan. The GM wasn't bothered by Meyer's decision to make a change - but he was extremely upset about being kept out of the loop and hearing about the move second hand. The very next day Rust was reinstated - and Meyer was fired - despite the team having a winning record at that time.

Ron's coaching tenure here was colorful, not in a great way a lot of the time. But along with Rod, who was a good guy and coach, he brought Scar here, and he helped Steve Grogan get Mark Henderson to clear the spot for John Smith.

It seems to always be a power play between coaches and management on any pro team in any sport. Ron - correctly - was not in favor of drafting Tony Eason, due to his concerns about Tony's toughness. Anyway, it's an ego trip, and not even twenty years of unmatched success seems to change that.

 

[Actual Pats Fan]

Good catch, I don't know wtf I was thinking about.

Mailed it in on that entry, my bad.