Herman Edwards

At 70 years old, Herman Edwards has this physical status:

Herman Edwards Jr. (born April 27, 1954) is an American football coach and former player as the head coach at Arizona State University in 2018.

He worked as a pro football analyst for ESPN from 2009 to 2017.

With the Philadelphia Eagles, Los Angeles Rams, and Atlanta Falcons, he played cornerback for ten seasons (1977–1986).

Edwards was a fan of the 1978 "Miracle at the Meadowlands," when he recovered a fumble by Giants quarterback Joe Pisarcik for a touchdown during a crucial Eagles loss, turning it into a victory. Edwards was the head coach of the New York Jets from 2001 to 2005 before being hired in 2006 as the tenth head coach in Kansas City Chiefs history.

Fans of his poor clock operation and gameday jargon, nicknamed "Hermisms" by fans.

"You play to win the game," the quote and sound bite indicate. "A message he gave at a Jets press conference became the subject of his book, a series of "leadership lessons" for the reader to use as personal motivation."

Early life

Edwards was born on an Army base in Eatontown, New Jersey. He played football at Monterey Peninsula Junior College in 1972 and 1974, and at San Diego State University (SDSU) in 1975. He earned a degree in criminal justice from SDSU. For many years, he helped promote the Monterey County Special Olympics. His public involvement in Monterey County taught residents that athletics are very important to children of the developmentally disabled.

Personal life

Edwards was born in Fort Monmouth, New Jersey. Edwards is the son of Master Sergeant Herman Edwards, Sr., and his partner, Martha. Edwards grew up in Seaside, California, and attended Monterey High School.

Edwards earned a criminal justice degree from San Diego State University. Gabrielle and Vivian are his sons, and he and his wife Lia have two children. Marcus Edwards' son, Samuel, is a descendant from his previous marriage.

Edwards has a "tradition" of not watching the Super Bowl until he himself participates in one. Edwards did not even watch his colleagues Tony Dungy and Lovie Smith play in Super Bowl XLI. Dungy had a tradition much like Edwards', if you're looking for the notable successes of Dungy in both Super Bowls XIII and XLI. Edwards continued to watch Super Bowl XLIV in 2010 when he began to work as an ESPN analyst.

Edwards has a strict workout program that keeps him in the gym at 5:00 AM six days a week. Edwards wears dress shoes rather than wearing athletic sneakers with his coaching attire. Edwards polishes the shoes himself before every game.

Edwards was born and raised Baptist but converted with his family and became a devoted Catholic.

Edwards appeared in the 2012 episode Broke, about the high incidence of bankruptcy and poor financial decisions amongst professional athletes, as part of ESPN's 30 for 30 series of sports documentaries. Edwards served as a head coach in the NFL Collegiate Bowl in 2013. In 2015, Herm was appointed senior advisor to the newly formed Major League Football.

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Playing career

Edwards spent nine seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles from 1977 to 1985, making a championship appearance with the team in Super Bowl XV. His 33 interceptions in a row fell short of the franchise's record. He never missed a game in his nine seasons with the Eagles, and he stayed with the team for 135 consecutive regular season games until being cut by new head coach Buddy Ryan in 1986. Edwards went on to play briefly for the Los Angeles Rams and Atlanta Falcons in 1986 before announcing his retirement.

In the final seconds of a match against the New York Giants at the Meadowlands on November 19, Edwards' playing career came in the twelfth game of the 1978 season. The Giants led 17-19-12 and the Eagles had no timeouts remaining, but rather than simply taking the ball off center and kneeling, Giants quarterback Joe Pisarcik began to hand the ball over to running back Larry Csonka. However, the ball came loose and Edwards recovered it for a touchdown, allowing the Eagles to win 19–17. "The Miracle at the Meadowlands" in Philadelphia was called "The Miracle at the Meadowlands," and "The Fumble" in New York City. The Eagles and the Giants both made the playoffs, and the Giants finished at 6-10.

The triumph formation, which was planned as a result of "The Miracle at the Meadowlands," was known as the "Herman Edwards play."

Coaching career

Edwards worked as a defensive assistant at San Jose State (1987–1989), then became a football scout and defensive backs coach for the Kansas City Chiefs (1990–1995), and Chargers coach Marty Schottenheimer. He was a defensive backs/assistant head coach for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1996-2000), under Tony Dungy. Edwards was hired as the head coach of the New York Jets on January 28, 2001.

Edwards' five-year tenure as the Jets' head coach, including a 5–15 stretch in his first 20 regular season games as the team's head coach, as well as a 2–3 record in the playoffs. Edwards opted for a 4–3 "Cover 2" defense. Despite many followers and players' concerns regarding Edwards' selections, the Jets had modest success in Edwards' first two seasons, winning the playoffs in both directions. In 2001, the Jets fell short of the Oakland Raiders 38-24, losing on the road in the first round. The Jets made the playoffs with a 9-7 record in 2002, due to winning the tie-breakers in a three-way tie for the AFC East Division lead with the New England Patriots and the Miami Dolphins. This time, the Jets advanced to the Wildcard round, resulting in a return trip to Oakland. Edwards and the Jets fell short of the Browns losing 30–10 to the Raiders once more. The Jets advanced to the divisional round of the AFC playoffs for the first time in 2004, when they lost 20–17 to the Pittsburgh Steelers after a disappointing 6–10 season in 2003. Edwards led the Jets to a disappointing 4–12 record in 2005, a year marred by injuries, inconsistent play, a lack of player growth, and rumors of Edwards leaving the team. Following the conclusion of the season, the Jets made the bizarre decision of swapping an assistant—Edwards—to another team (the Kansas City Chiefs), in exchange for a player to be selected in round four of the 2006 draft. Despite Edwards' supposed expertise in the Cover 2 defense, Edwards' tenure as head coach of the Jets was marred by persistent clock management challenges, an ultra-conservative "play not to lose" attitude, and a lack of a concrete defensive philosophy. Eric Mangini, a senior assistant coach with the New England Patriots, was hired by the Jets to replace Edwards.

Following the 2005 season, Chiefs President Carl Peterson expressed concern in recruiting Edwards, which may have been regarded as tampering. Edward Edwards was allowed to talk with the Chiefs by the Jets. Edwards had two years on his Jets contract at the time. However, Peterson wanted Edwards (a longtime personal acquaintance) to replace head coach Dick Vermeil, who had been Edwards' coach and had just retired.

As the rumors began swirling, a war of words between the two teams began to unfold in the media. Edwards attempted to obtain a contract extension and a modest compensation increase from the Jets in the midst of all the rumors, only to anger the club's owner. The two teams eventually reached an agreement, and the Chiefs sent the Jets a fourth-round pick in the 2006 NFL Draft as compensation (the Jets later used this pick to draft Leon Washington).

Edwards' first season as a head coach with the Cincinnati Bengals was a 23–10 home loss to the Cincinnati Bengals on September 10. On October 1, the San Francisco 49ers' first victory of the season came in his third game of the season.

Many highs and lows will be present in the 2006 season. In the first game of the season, starting quarterback Trent Green suffered a serious concussion. Despite Green's injury, the Chiefs remained in contention, largely thanks to backup quarterback Damon Huard and Pro Bowl running back Larry Johnson. Edwards returned from injury, in a move that some considered controversial, chose to sit Huard and start Green. Huard's quarterback debut at the time was one of the best in the league, with 11 touchdowns and just one interception, averaging 7.7 yards per pass attempt, and second to only Peyton Manning) and a 98.0 quarterback rating of 98.0 (second best quarterback rating in the NFL).

In addition, Huard's games were 5–3 in 2006. Green failed to produce at the level of play he had at in previous seasons, throwing seven touchdowns (against nine interceptions) and going 4–4 as a starter. Edwards put more of the offensive burden on Larry Johnson's shoulders, who later set a record for rushing attempts in a season.

The Chiefs defeated the Denver Broncos (who lost in OT to the San Francisco 49ers in their final game of the season) by divisional tiebreaker for second place in the AFC West and the sixth seed in the AFC. This was their first playoff appearance since 2003.

The Chiefs were soundly defeated by the Indianapolis Colts 23–8 on January 6, 2007. The Chiefs offense struggled to get a single first down in the first half. This was the first time in modern NFL history (post AFL–NFL merger), and the first time since 1960 that no team had been held without a first down in the first half of a playoff game.

Edwards' streak of losses on the first day of the Chiefs began in 2007, when the Chiefs lost to the Houston Texans 20-3. This was the first time the Chiefs had lost by a margin of 17 points on the first day of the 1970 season, and it was the first time in a decade that the Chiefs had been held to three points or less on opening day. The Chiefs over Edwards won the 2007 season 4–12 for the first time in Chiefs franchise history, with a nine-game losing streak.

The Chiefs were plagued with quarterback, running back, kicker, and offensive coaching scandals throughout the 2007 season. Damon Huard joined the season and set a new record of 4–5 years. Brodie Croyle, Edwards' 2006 draft pick who spent time with Huard mid-season, was suspended and missed the majority of the season. Croyle played in a total of nine games but did not win any. Larry Johnson suffered his foot mid-season and was replaced by Priest Holmes, who came out of retirement early in the year and was ineffective, averaged only three yards per carry and no touchdowns.

Justin Medlock was Edwards' draft pick but he was fired after the first game and replaced by Dave Rayner. He was drafted late in the year and was replaced with John Carney, who was recalled with John Carney. After promoting Mike Solari from offensive line coach to offensive coordinator in 2007, Edwards fired Solari and replaced him with Chan Gailey in early 2008. He's also fired his offensive line coach, receivers coach, and running backs coach.

Clark Hunt, the Chiefs' owner, set the tone for the 2008 season by pledging Edwards and general manager Carl Peterson's plan to rebuild the team. Clark, on the other hand, warned that he wanted the Chiefs to be contending for a playoff spot.

The Chiefs cut several senior players in the offseason, and the team traded Jared Allen to the Minnesota Vikings to help the team rebuild, and the team sold Pro Bowl defensive end Jared Allen to the Vikings in an attempt to resurrect the team. Edwards coached one of the NFL's youngest teams as a result. Edwards' streak of opening day losses continued as the Chiefs lost 17–10 to the New England Patriots, a loss that was largely overshadowed by Patriots quarterback Tom Brady's season-ending injury after a low blow by Chiefs safety Bernard Pollard. The team then fell to a franchise-wide loss for the 12th time in a row. The Chiefs also snapped the streak off after losing to the Denver Broncos 33–19 at home on September 28. However, the Carolina Panthers were beaten the following week. The Chiefs only gained 127 total yards during the game, their lowest offensive effort in 22 years. Edwards converted to win (rather than tie the game) after the Chiefs has scored a touchdown to bring the score to 20-19. The contentious decision backfired, as the two-point conversion attempt went wrong, resulting in another loss. He was fired on January 23, 2009.

Edwards was hired in 2009 to work as an analyst for the network's NFL Live program.

Edwards was named head coach of the Arizona State football team on December 3, 2017. Edwards won his first match with Arizona State against UTSA on September 1, 2018. He defeated the 15th-ranked Michigan State Spartans in their first match against a ranked opponent on September 8, 2018. In Edwards' first season, Arizona State finished 7-6.

The Sun Devils' true freshman Jayden Daniels was chosen to quarterback the 2019 season. Arizona State will open the season with a 3–0 record, including Edwards' second straight victory over a ranked Michigan State Spartans team. With a Sun Bowl victory over the Florida State Seminoles, the team finished 8-5.

ASU announced on June 16, 2021, that the football team is looking at recruiting high school students during the 2020 COVID-19 dead period. Multiple assistant coaches were placed on administrative leave throughout the 2021 season. Multiple coaches, including Zak Hill and Antonio Pierce, resigned after the 2021 season came to an end. As a result of the probe and NIL, 17 players, including quarterback Jayden Daniels, wide receiver Johnny Wilson, and All-American linebacker Eric Gentry, have joined the transfer portal. Despite the mass exodus, Edwards stayed as head coach for the Sun Devils.

Following a 30–21 loss to Eastern Michigan, Arizona State fired Edwards on September 18, 2022.

Edwards is a professor of practice at Arizona State University's Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication.

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