Knox Won’t Say Quit

Chuck Knox said Monday that quitting “is not in my vocabulary,” but Ram President John Shaw said the coach’s future will be discussed with owner Georgia Frontiere after the season. Although the Dallas Morning News reported Monday that the Rams already have had conversations with former Dallas Cowboy Coach Jimmy Johnson and his attorney about Johnson coaching the team, Shaw insisted that was not true.

“I have had a number of conversations with Jimmy Johnson,” Shaw said, “but I have had no conversation with him about employment. And I have not discussed any such thing with his attorney.”

The Morning News reported Monday that Johnson’s attorney has had talks with the Philadelphia Eagles, the Rams and prospective owners of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The newspaper said Johnson will announce this weekend whether he intends to become coach of the Eagles or remain at Fox-TV.

Knox, who is paid more than $700,000 a year, has one year remaining on a four-year contract. A 15-31 record, dwindling interest from local fans and the prospect of a fresh start elsewhere have raised speculation that Knox will be fired at season’s end.

“I anticipate talking about him (Knox) with ownership at the end of the season,” Shaw said. “There are a number of factors involved: Whether we move, or don’t move, for example. But there have been no discussions at this time and there won’t be until the end of the season.”

Knox said Monday, if the team moves, he intends to go with it, and under no circumstances will he resign.

“I’ve been doing this a long time, and no, that would not be something I would think about. I have never walked away from anything in my life.

“I didn’t say I was going to come in here and turn this around in three years. I expected to have a good year this year based on the people we had gotten signed, but some things have happened and we haven’t gotten it done. I signed a four-year contract and I still have a year to go.”

The Johnson rumors began early this season, but Johnson was quoted recently as saying that his attorney has had talks with the Rams about his return to coaching. Knox, who particularly enjoys league-wide gossip and who regularly stays in touch with league officials, said he was unaware of the Jimmy Johnson-to-the-Rams talk.

“I haven’t heard that,” Knox said. “I wouldn’t bother to check it out, and I haven’t heard it.”

Knox said he has not spoken to management about his future. “Why should I?” he said. “I don’t speak to management about those kind of things.”

Why should Knox be given an opportunity to remain as Rams head coach?

“I think we’ve been competitive and we’re just a player or two here from getting it done,” he said. “And we can get it done. There have been a lot of coaches that have coached a lot longer in one place than I have here that have not won. And some have coached for a long time at certain places and not won Super Bowl championships.

“I don’t think I’ve lost it. Obviously I’m not going to be a fool and tell you that we are playing like I want us to play or that we have won as many games as I want to win. But I don’t think it’s a question . . . I could turn this around and ask you questions about certain coaches in this league if you think they’ve lost it?

“I think we turned it around the first year here. We doubled the number of wins (six) from the year before. As far as the won-loss record, there could be a lot of reasons for that, too: Injuries last year, the quarterback situation, you have to look at it all. You see when those kind of questions are asked, you put me in the position of sounding like a guy that’s alibi-ing or something, which is what I don’t want to do.”

Knox inherited a team that finished 3-13, and guided it to a 6-10 mark in 1992. Last season the team opened 2-2 only to finish 5-11; this year the Rams again were 2-2, but are now 4-10.

The team’s performance of late has been especially disappointing. The Rams have not run the ball well, lacked discipline against Tampa Bay and appeared to cash it in against New Orleans.

“I think you have to look at all of it,” Knox said. “Certainly I take responsibility, accountability for whatever the record is. There are a lot of other reasons involved, to be correct, that I don’t want to go into at this time.”

But what glimmer of hope is there for Ram fans?

“My record is there--prior to coming here--for one thing,” Knox said. “And that’s something that’s an historical fact.”

Before rejoining the Rams, Knox compiled a 171-114-1 record. Knox led the Rams to five consecutive NFC West Division titles between 1973-77 and then went on to make the Bills AFC East Division champs in his third year at Buffalo. Knox put the Seahawks into the playoffs in his first year on the job in Seattle in 1983 and won the AFC West Division title in 1988.

His overall record is 186-145-1, however, and this will be the sixth straight season that his team has failed to advance to the playoffs.

“It’s a matter of perception,” Knox said. “We just have not been able to win those close games like we used to win them and you could say, well, maybe the coaching isn’t what it should be. I can’t give you the answer for it, other than the fact I think we still can get the job done. Period.

“The record is there, and we’ll see what happens. I don’t have any control over what people may or may not say and I’d like everybody to think positive and not be negative. Obviously I don’t have any control whether or not I will be back here, so why worry about it?”