Trgovac says he left Panthers to get 'fresh start'
He says contract status, fan criticism not factors; Packers add him to staff.
By Charles Chandler
cchandler@charlotteobserver.com
Posted: Saturday, Jan. 24, 2009
Mike Trgovac said he telephoned John Fox late Wednesday in Mobile, Ala., and asked to talk.
When they met face-to-face, Trgovac's message wasn't what Fox, the Carolina Panthers' head coach, wanted to hear.
Trgovac informed Fox that he had reconsidered his decision to return for a seventh season as defensive coordinator – news that Trgovac said resulted in a “very long, detailed talk.”
“John is very thorough in everything he does,” Trgovac told the Charlotte Observer on Friday. “It was a talk where there was a lot of emotion to it. You don't work seven years with a guy and go through some of the things we went through together and not talk and get everything out in the open. I did and he did, but that will always remain between him and I.
“He was very fair to me. I'll always appreciate him for that.”
Trgovac had planned to accept the Panthers' contract extension offer, but changed his mind after days of deliberation.
“I just wanted a fresh start,” he said. “That's all. That's really what it came down to.
“I had been there seven years. In coaching, that's a lifetime. I just thought it was best if I did this at this time.”
Trgovac's decision ultimately meant surrendering a coordinator's position to return to being a position coach. He was hired Friday as Green Bay's defensive tackles coach.
“I loved being a coordinator,” said Trgovac, “but I just love coaching football.”
Trgovac took issue with Internet and newspaper reports suggesting defections from the Panthers' coaching staff this week, including four defensive assistants, were related to the team delaying contract extension offers until after a Jan.10 playoff loss to Arizona.
The other defensive assistants to leave were line coach Sal Sunseri (who took a college job at Alabama), linebackers coach Ken Flajole (new defensive coordinator with the St. Louis Rams) and defensive backs coach Tim Lewis (new secondary coach in Seattle, where his brother, Will, is director of pro personnel).
“What this thing looks like is not really what it is with everybody on the defensive side of the ball going to other places,” Trgovac said. “I know what the outside people are probably saying. I can't speak for other people, but this was not something from my perspective that had anything to do with contracts or anything else.”
Trgovac said he was offered an extension before the Arizona game and that he and other team officials were so focused on other things, he hadn't received or signed a new contract.
“I truly had seven good years with John, and I appreciate everything he and (general manager) Marty Hurney did for me,” Trgovac said.
Trgovac said he thought it was time for Fox to get a fresh start with a new defensive coordinator, too.
One option for the job is former St. Louis and New Orleans head coach Jim Haslett, who has worked previously with Fox.
Trgovac was on Fox's original Carolina staff in 2002 as defensive line coach, then was promoted to defensive coordinator in 2003 when Jack Del Rio left to become Jacksonville's head coach.
The Panthers defense finished in the top 10 in the NFL in total defense three times under Trgovac, and he helped lead the team to the playoffs three times. However, the defense struggled in the final seven games of this season, slipping from third to 18th in the league rankings.
Trgovac was unpopular with some Panthers fans, especially after the 33-13 loss to Arizona.
However, he said that had nothing to do with his decision.
“The fans are very important to any pro football team,” he said. “When you take a job as a defensive coordinator at a high profile (place), you're always going to have your critics. I had a lot of support from a lot of fans here.
“That's why this game is so great – the fans' love for it, the way the fans dive into it.”
Trgovac said he leaves with good memories.
“I was very fortunate to come to this organization,” he said. “Mr. (Jerry) Richardson has built a fabulous place here. I wanted to depart this place as friends with everybody, and I think I've done that.”
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