George Seifert

Discuss candidates for the Pro Football Hall of Fame and the PFRA's Hall of Very Good
Halas Hall
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George Seifert

Post by Halas Hall »

In hindsight, would it have enhanced George Siefert's Hall of Fame candidacy if he had not taken the Carolina Panther's job from 1999-2001? That 1-15 season in 2001 hurts some, but he has two Super Bowl victories and a .667 winning percentage in the playoffs. Is he being overlooked?
boknows34
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Re: George Seifert

Post by boknows34 »

In hindsight, we can say the same for Tom Flores and his disastrous 14-34 tenure with the Seahawks.
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74_75_78_79_
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Re: George Seifert

Post by 74_75_78_79_ »

boknows34 wrote:In hindsight, we can say the same for Tom Flores and his disastrous 14-34 tenure with the Seahawks.
Other than their respective three-year tenures with Carolina and Seattle which are basically similar, and other than of course each having won two Rings, Seifert has noticeably more going for him than Flores. First off, his overall win %-age. In his eight years as SF's head coach, he made the playoffs 7 times. The one miss was in '91, that 10-6 finish which is widely considered one of the best-ever non-playoff teams. With the Raiders, Flores mustered 5 playoff berths out of 9 seasons. Outside each of their two Super Bowl campaigns, Seifert won three playoff games to Flores's one; the one win being vs 4-5 Cleveland in that 'tournament'. The other thing Seifert's got going for him HOF-wise (that, sadly, won't seem to ever make up for...1-15), is his work as a defensive coordinator in which he is arguably an all-time-great in that field. He'll seem to always be historically underrated as a DC though he very well may have been better than Buddy Ryan and Wade Phillips, as well as being razor-close to Arnsparger.

He "inheriting" an already superior team, his very unassuming persona, and '1-15' are the three things that'll always keep him out, fair-or-not.
Jeremy Crowhurst
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Re: George Seifert

Post by Jeremy Crowhurst »

74_75_78_79_ wrote:He "inheriting" an already superior team, his very unassuming persona, and '1-15' are the three things that'll always keep him out, fair-or-not.
I think all three apply to both. There are days when I think, first and foremost, it is a Hall of FAME, and neither Seifert nor Flores have ever been "Must See TV" in the way that Walsh and Madden both were, as coaches and afterwards.
sheajets
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Re: George Seifert

Post by sheajets »

Seifert is such a weird case. I still don't quite know what to think of him. 1989 was Bill Walsh's team and I think Bill regrets not sticking around for an easy 89 coronation after the tumult of 88. But at that moment he felt he was done. Heck perhaps the 9ers are in Tampa Bay playing Buffalo if Walsh was still there.

Still Seifert didn't just keep the 49ers competitive, he kept them elite in the regular season. Even 1991 at 10-6, they had Steve Bono starting games, they were unlucky (losing to ATL on a Hail Mary). But I think that little window of 1990-1993 people feel as if there's a missing ring there
JohnH19
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Re: George Seifert

Post by JohnH19 »

Jeremy Crowhurst wrote:
74_75_78_79_ wrote:He "inheriting" an already superior team, his very unassuming persona, and '1-15' are the three things that'll always keep him out, fair-or-not.
I think all three apply to both. There are days when I think, first and foremost, it is a Hall of FAME, and neither Seifert nor Flores have ever been "Must See TV" in the way that Walsh and Madden both were, as coaches and afterwards.
I have never watched a game because someone was coaching in it. :)
JuggernautJ
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Re: George Seifert

Post by JuggernautJ »

JohnH19 wrote: I have never watched a game because someone was coaching in it. :)
Really?
I certainly have (like every Patriots game for the last umpteen years).
sluggermatt15
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Re: George Seifert

Post by sluggermatt15 »

In my opinion, I don't think one bad season should keep a coach out of the PFHOF. Seifert's time with SF should be much more heavily weighted than what he did in Carolina.
rebelx24
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Re: George Seifert

Post by rebelx24 »

sluggermatt15 wrote:In my opinion, I don't think one bad season should keep a coach out of the PFHOF. Seifert's time with SF should be much more heavily weighted than what he did in Carolina.
I’d been unsure about Seifert for a while, but am starting to come around to the idea of his case being re-opened, so to speak. Short career, but a lot of things going for him. I’d say Blanton Collier is a decent comparison; his resume looks fairly similar, minus the three crappy years with another team at the end. I like Blanton as well, as I think a number of you do.
JuggernautJ
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Re: George Seifert

Post by JuggernautJ »

In 1981 George Seifert coached "Dwight Hicks and the Hot Licks" (the 49ers defensive backfield), taking three rookies (Carlton Williamson, Eric Wright and, of course, Ronnie Lott) and a second year free safety (Hicks) to the Super Bowl.
Lott was All-Pro as a rookie and he and Hicks went to the Pro Bowl.
Many things came together in that championship season but I think it is safe to say that superior DB play was one of the facets that enabled that team to achieve great things. Seifert is probably the man most responsible for that.

As defensive coordinator he helped the Niners to Super Bowls in 1984 and 1988 and was head coach for their wins in 1989 and 1994. In 1984 the entire 49ers defensive backfield played in the pro bowl.

It is true that the 49ers of that era paid exorbitantly for the best talent money could buy. But it also true that talent alone doesn't win championships. It takes (among other things) coaching to make a great team.

I believe the totality of Seifert's resume entitles him to serious consideration for the Hall of Fame.

https://www.pro-football-reference.com/ ... eifGe0.htm
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