Possible Cardinals connection No. 3
This is not about a black executive or coach but being put in a tough situation as a black player, according to Acho.
At the end of one season early in my career, I went to the team facility for exit interviews. I had a meeting scheduled with my position coach before I was to meet with the head coach. Both coaches were white.
Going into the meeting with my position coach, my goal was to get feedback on what I could do during the off-season to improve. I didn’t come into the league as a high draft pick, so getting that type of information was really valuable for me when it came to competing to keep my roster spot.
So my goal was professional feedback, but what actually happened during the meeting was something much different.
“Sam,” the position coach began, “you’re very well-respected around the building. Everybody thinks highly of you, including the head coach.” I figured that was a good start. But then he continued, “Do me a favor and put in a good word for me, will ya?”
I thought he might be joking.
“You know this whole thing is based on who you know,” he said. “It would mean the world to me if you could just do me this favor. And don’t worry, I’ll pay it back down the line.”
He wasn’t joking.
And at that point, I didn’t know what to do. I honestly didn’t believe he was a good coach. But if I didn’t put in a good word, could that potentially come back to hurt my career? Also, maybe I had some personal bias and he actually was a good coach. So I decided to ask another coach on staff what he thought of the guy’s abilities — and what he told me basically cut to the core of everything.
“You don’t have to worry about putting in a good word,” he said, trying to reassure me. “That guy’s already got the job. He’s friends with the head coach. That’s how he got here in the first place. He’ll keep advancing and be exposed for the coach he is.”
He was right. That assistant would go on to become a coordinator for another team. And he ultimately failed because he performed as poorly as he had as a position coach. But still, he got the opportunity because of who he knew, not what he could do. And even after being fired, he got another opportunity to work for a different NFL team — a team coached by a guy he knows.
This sounds like it could be James Bettcher. Acho’s final year in Arizona was 2014, when defensive coordinator Todd Bowles left to be head coach of the Jets. Bettcher was Acho’s position coach and was under consideration for the coordinator vacancy. He got the job and was close with Bruce Arians. He also became the DC of the Giants, where he did not fare so well.
However, some of the details Acho mentions don’t connect completely, as Bettcher appeared to never have crossed paths with then-Giants head coach Pat Shurmur previously with another team.
It could have been his position coach in 2011-2012, Matt Raich, who was let go with Ken Whisenhunt after the 2012 season, but he never was a coordinator in the NFL.
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Ep. 268
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Ep. 267
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