Firing Henning Is Not the Solution

Don’t get a jaywalking ticket. Not in this town. A jury would probably come up with an 18-year sentence.

It’s back to the days of the wild, wild west in these parts.

You know, lynch mob mentality.

The Chargers had a 25-year-old quarterback virtually run out of town by surly fans who treated him like a triple ax-murderer. Presumably he wore a wig, fake beard and traveled under a phony name to avoid the tar and feathers.

A 20-year-old San Diego State sophomore was treated almost as rudely during the nationally televised game against UCLA.

Greg Riddoch has had the Padres overachieving all year, finishing in third place with one makeshift lineup after another, yet he would probably lose his job if the issue were on a ballot.

This, of course, gets us to one Daniel Ernest Henning. He is the Chargers’ head coach, a position akin to being chairman of the Democratic Party or Mike Tyson’s image consultant. He’s not exactly in what might be called a win-win situation.

The multitudes hereabouts are getting quite antsy, to put it mildly, about Mr. Henning’s continued employment with the Chargers. They would like him relocated, not necessarily with his head attached.

It is, to be sure, getting very nasty at the stadium and equally nasty on talk shows. One self-designated tongue has condescendingly said he will give Henning through Game 7 to secure a win and thus save his hide. This is the ruthless direction sentiment has taken.

One enterprising group of fans at last Sunday’s game held up cards saying, “DUMP. HENNING NOW!” The period after the word “dump” was a grammatical flaw that indicated these were not English teachers.

However, the grammatical flaw was not as drastic as the flawed reasoning.

Dump Henning?

For whom?

Exactly who is available to step into the breach and lead this team to a glorious and miraculous march to the playoffs? To hire anyone from outside the organization at this point would be to hire someone who is unemployed. Maybe the Chargers should look into one of those people carrying “Will work for food or money” signs.

No one now under contract is available in October. It doesn’t work that way in football.

To stay within the current staff, the name most frequently mentioned in the past has been Ron Lynn. And he has been under fire this fall.

This is not to suggest that Henning should be retained just because no one else available. This point is made just to underscore the silliness of even thinking about making a change at this time of year.

The more compelling reason to stand pat is that this organization’s most consistent trait has been inconsistency. It has not had the patience to get with a program and stay with a program since Alex Spanos took over ownership in 1984.

Henning has installed a system that gives this team its only chance to win games. He is playing with what he has been given, which is to say a strong running game and a baby brigade at quarterback and wide receiver. This is not the stuff to encourage bold and dramatic football, but rather close to the vest maneuvering.

It is not easy to win in such circumstances.

The Chargers will win more games this year with Henning than would be possible with a replacement. They may not win a lot, but they will win more. If having a chance to win football games is what critics crave, they should zip their lips and leave their signs in the garage.

Henning is being castigated because the Chargers are hanging tough and losing close games, the suggestion being that better coaching would turn these losses around. This is an interesting notion which flies in the face of reality, that being that coaching could well be what is keeping these games close.

Would Henning be a more palatable coach if his team was getting blown away week after week? Seriously. Would he then be considered a sympathetic figure confronted by a hopeless task?

Not likely.

For all of its reputation for being laid back and maybe even a little bit apathetic at times, San Diego has become a very tough sports town with very tough sports fans.

It’s no place to be mediocre, even if that’s the best you can be.