NFL on CBS’ Bill Cowher on a Head Coach’s Mindset When a Starting QB Gets Hurt

Bill Cowher coached 15 years in Pittsburgh with a simple insurance policy: always keep a veteran quarterback in the building. Two weeks into a season full of quarterback injuries, that philosophy suddenly looks like the smartest thing in football.

The Hall of Famer and NFL Today analyst joined Rich from an office decorated with a replica bust, a Super Bowl trophy, a photo from his first year with Mr. Rooney and a shot of him with Marty Schottenheimer. Then they got to work.

Rich started with the Giants. With Jaxson Dart done for the season, what does John Harbaugh do? Cowher wasn't worried about Harbaugh. "He's been in this league long enough to understand that that's kind of part of every season's journey," he said. Jameis Winston "will come in there and do the things that Jameis Winston does."

Cowher pointed to Drew Lock in Seattle, Carson Wentz in Minnesota and Marcus Mariota stepping in for Jayden Daniels in Washington. In Pittsburgh, he said, he had Bubby Brister behind Neil O'Donnell, then veterans behind Kordell Stewart and Ben Roethlisberger, including Tommy Maddox. "I think it's really important as you develop your football team and put it together that you have those kind of alternate plans in place just for situations like this."

The rest of the answer was about the roster around the backup. "Having a good running game and having a good defense are two factors that really help that quarterback come in and take the pressure off of him."

Rich raised the trade market, arguing nobody is going to hand the Giants their veteran depth, and asking why San Francisco would ever move Mac Jones after he nearly won them the one seed while Brock Purdy was out. Cowher agreed that experience is everything, and cited the Steelers keeping Mason Rudolph because the young quarterbacks behind him, Drew Allar and Will Howard, "don't really have any experience."

Then came the hard question. Dan Quinn chose to be aggressive at the end of the half instead of kicking a field goal, and Daniels got hurt. Do coaches kick themselves over that?

"No," Cowher said. "You don't sit there and think about the worst case scenario because you run one more play and you try to go for a touchdown."

He compared it to the preseason debate about playing starters, where the risk of injury is always weighed against the need for game-day timing. "The one thing about football is that you have to do what's in the best interest of the team and not be too conscientious about any one individual or thinking about the negative to something," he said. "It's going to happen. It's kind of part of the game."

That's why "next man up" isn't a cliche for Cowher. "That's why it's the ultimate team sport. That's why you have 53 guys." Even injuries have a silver lining: players stepping in develop the depth, so when the starters return, "you actually have better depth than you had before." His verdict on hindsight: "You make the decisions in the moment that you think in the best interest of the team," and injury "is not going to be one of them."

The segment that drew headlines came next. On a CBS broadcast of Steelers and Patriots, Cowher said the Pittsburgh offense "does not have any identity right now." Rich asked him to put meat on the bones.

Cowher started up front. The Steelers moved linemen around during the preseason in a new system, and a hit on Aaron was "a miscommunication on the offensive line." Zach Frazier has admitted as much. "There may be no other position where the continuity and having a feel for the guy you're lined up next to is more important than offensive line," he said.

The other problem is third down. Cowher said the Steelers aren't converting third downs, even though their average distance to go is in the upper half of the league. "It's hard to get into any kind of rhythm if you can't convert a third down. Therefore, it's hard to have any kind of identity." He also mentioned some dropped passes by DK.

But he doesn't think they're far off. "I always felt, Rich, the first month is fact-finding month," he said. If he came out of September at .500, "I didn't feel that bad about it." The key is knowing "a very fine line" between "being committed to something or being stubborn about something."

Rich noted this week's opponent, a Bengals team winning with defense and Dexter Lawrence in the middle of it, a player Zac Taylor had praised on the show the day before. Cowher agreed the Cincinnati defense is "one of the best defenses I've seen," and noted Houston is 0-2 after moving the ball but failing in the red zone.

Asked which AFC team surprised him, Cowher went negative first. "I'm surprised by the Chargers to be quite honest with you. I thought they would be a lot better with Mike McDaniel coming in there." Right now, "Justin Herbert doesn't seem to be able to have any kind of feel for what they want to do offensively," with two bad losses against Arizona and Las Vegas.

On the flip side, he's "been very impressed" with the Raiders. He credited a shored-up offensive line, Kirk Cousins doing "a good job," Ashton Jeanty running well and a defense that can "get after people" with Quay Walker and Nakobe Dean. And Fernando Mendoza is still sitting behind it all.

The Chiefs, he said, are no surprise at all. He praised Patrick Mahomes' "grit of determination," called Steve Spagnuolo one of the best defensive coordinators in the league and loved the Kenneth Walker addition. Rich noted the question all offseason was whether Andy Reid would really use Walker. Cowher added that Walker is a weapon in the passing game too, pointing to his role in setting up the game-winning field goal in overtime. And Travis Kelce "looks like he's gotten five years younger." His verdict: "They're for real."

Rich's last question was whether Josh Allen, Joe Brady and the Bills are the class of the AFC. Cowher said they'll "be there when it's all said and done," though the playoffs are something "they have to get over." He called DJ Moore the best receiver Allen has had since the days of Stefon Diggs, praised James Cook and the offensive line, and said the return of Ed Oliver makes a big difference on defense.

He also said New England "kind of got back on track," with the question being whether Drake Maye gets comfortable and whether AJ Brown joins the offense. He likes what Jesse Minter has done in Baltimore and won't count out Houston, noting the Texans lost three games last year and still finished the season strong.

That led to his parting thought. Minnesota won its last five games last season and New Orleans went 4-1 down the stretch, and now both look like some of the best teams in the NFC. "There's a lot to be said for finishing the season strong," Cowher said. "Build culture, build an expectation of winning." His conclusion: "New Orleans Saints are for real. The Minnesota Vikings are for real."

Before letting him go, Rich asked about new CBS colleague Russell Wilson, and Cowher said Wilson is excited to join him, Kyle Long, Nate and JB. Cowher is in his 20th year at CBS, and when he got a number 20 jersey, he thought it was for his Hall of Fame class until his director, Jen, set him straight.