Worst 1-Year Boston Head Coaches: Ranked
Written by Joseph Medeiros
Boston sports fans have been fortunate for their various sports teams’ overwhelming success for the past decades. There is a reason fans call Boston “Title Town” after all.
However, the Patriots success ended abruptly and now with Head Coach Jerod Mayo leading the way the Patriots are 1-6. It is undeniable that Mayo’s first season has been poor, whether it was expected or not, so let’s rank the other Boston Coaches that have had poor first seasons.
- Rod Rust
Older Patriots fans remember coach Rodney Arthur Rust, coach “Rod Rust” had a long coaching career before his one year with the New England Patriots. Rod Rust was the defensive coordinator of the 1985 Patriots team that played an all-time Bears team that would score 46 points on them in the Super Bowl.
Rod Rust is at the top of the list because of his 1-15 record with the team. The 1990 Patriots won their season opener against the Colts 16-14, but the team would not see another win after that. The defense allowed 446 points (28 Ppg) and the offense only scored 181 points the entire season. Rod Rust was fired after the season, but this time marks an all-time low for the Patriots, putting Rod Rust at the top of this list.
2. Tom Sanders
It is never easy to see former players struggle as coaches, and “Satch” Sanders is a prime example of this case. Satch took over after Russell and Havlick’s eras which made it difficult to implement his style.
Sanders replaced Tom Heinsohn early in the season but was unable to lead the team in the right direction as the Celtics went 13-29 under his tenure. Satch would be fired in January of 1978 and would be replaced by Dave Cowens.
3. Joe Kerrigan
Joe Kerrigan was regarded as a good pitching coach before he was appointed to manage the Red Sox in the 2002 season. He was interim manager in 2001 but stayed despite the new owner, John Henry, taking over.
Kerrigan’s tense management style didn’t go well with the players as he went 17-26 before being let go. The quality of players can’t be a question here as replacement manager Grady Little would guide the team to 2nd place in the AL East but would not secure a wild card spot.
4. Bobby Valentine
The Red Sox had their fair share of bad coaches in the 2000s, and Bobby Valentine was not the exception. Valentine replaced Francona who led the team to two World Series wins, making his appointment even more controversial.
Valentine’s Red Sox finished 69-93, their worst record since 1965, placing them last in the AL East. Many of the Sox key players were injured but Valentine publicly criticized players like Youkilis which did not help his popularity. Valentine was fired the day after the season ended after only one season.
5. Dave Lewis
The former NHL defenseman Dave Lewis had a storied career in hockey, tallying over 1,000 games in the league with the Islanders, Kings, Devils, and Redwings. His successful spell with the Red Wings would cause the Bruins to take a chance on him for the 2006-07 season.
Lewis was not able to elevate the team he had as the Bruins finished 35-41-6 which was the worst record in the Northeast Division. The Lewis experiment was short as he was replaced by Claude Julien after the season.
6. Dave Cowens
Dave Cowens is like Satch as both are widely considered Celtics legends, who unfortunately had bad coaching tenures. Cowens had a lot to deal with as he was handed a poor roster in a tough NBA.
Cowen’s coaching was not up to standard as he led the Celtics to a 29-53 record which is the worst in franchise history. Cowens was a player-coach during his role which one can imagine is extremely tough, especially on a struggling team like the Celtics.
7. Ron Roenicke
The 2020 season where Ron Roenicke managed the Red Sox may have an asterisk next to it because of the context, but there was still poor management regardless. Alex Cora was suspended due to the sign stealing scandal, leaving Roenicke to coach the team in his place.
Mookie Betts would be sent to the Dodgers in February depleting the talent once again. The Red Sox would finish the season 24-36 and Roenicke would be dismissed after the season ended. The roster was depleted but Roenicke was unable to get anything out of the team in the reduced season
8. Mike Keenan
Mike Keenan has had an extensive coaching career with multiple teams across 30 years. He ranks 15th all-time in the NHL for league wins, being one of only 23 coaches with 600 wins. Keenan was brought in to see if his tough coaching style could spark the Bruins.
Keenan’s Bruins would finish 36-38-8 which placed them 9th in the Eastern Conference. The Bruins would narrowly miss out on the playoffs even though captain Jason Allison scored 95 points.
9. Ime Udoka
Ime Udoka being on this list seems out of place due to the amount of success the Celtics had with him, which is why he is last in the rankings. Ime Udoka was hired in 2021 after his reputation with the Spurs, 76ers, and Nets saw the Celtics give him a chance.
Udoka’s Celtics were ruthless on defense and he got the best out of his players; his record reflected this as they went 51-31 on the season and made it to the Finals as the 2nd seed. They would fall to a great Warriors team that was deeper than the Celtics, and that would turn out to be the beginning of Udoka’s end. Udoka would be suspended for internal issues with the Celtics for the 2022 season, and he would eventually be replaced by Joe Mazzulla.
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