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Marc Trestman, who's won two Canadian Football League titles, is one of the Browns coaching candidates.
BEREA, Ohio – Browns coaching candidate Marc Trestman will make a seamless transition from the Canadian Football League provided he remembers a few simple rule changes and field adjustments, said two NFL legends who successfully negotiated similar jumps.
Punting on third down is frowned upon by the American fan base. Employing 12 men on offense or defense will draw a flag every time. NFL end zones aren’t the size of mall parking lots like they are in Canada.
“You do have to adapt a bit, but it’s the same game,” former CFL and NFL coach Marv Levy said. “The same things that win in the U.S. win up there. If you run, throw, block, tackle, catch, kick better than your opponent, you’re probably going to win. It’s still about fundamentals and teaching.
“I have been very impressed with Marc. I know he’s being considered for several jobs and I think he’d make a darn good NFL coach.”
Levy and Bud Grant -- a pair of Pro Football Hall of Famers who excelled on both sides of the Ambassador Bridge – believe Trestman would have no trouble making the conversion back to the American game. He’s spent the past five seasons coaching the Montreal Alouettes, winning Grey Cup titles in 2009-10.
Grant and Levy offered the 56-year-old former Browns offensive coordinator and long-time NFL assistant strong endorsements Wednesday. Trestman has been interviewed by the Browns and Chicago Bears in recent days.
“He’s made all the stops and coached in almost every capacity,” said Grant, who guided the Minnesota Vikings to four NFC titles in the 1960s and 70s. “We try to make football more complicated than it really is. Coaching is coaching whether it’s here or in Canada. The same principles apply.”
Levy and Grant are each familiar with Trestman, the Browns offensive coordinator in 1989 when they reached the AFC Championship Game. Trestman is a Minneapolis, Minn., native who tried out for Grant’s Vikings as a defensive back in the late 1970s before earning his law degree from the University of Miami and serving as Bernie Kosar’s quarterbacks coach with the Hurricanes.
Grant hired Trestman and Pete Carroll, now coach of the Seattle Seahawks, in 1985. Trestman toiled for eight NFL franchises then became head coach of the Alouettes in 2008. One of Trestman’s early acts was to invite another Grey-Cup-winning Alouettes' coach to training camp. It was the 87-year-old Levy.
“Marc’s a good teacher,” said Levy, who guided the Buffalo Bills to four straight Super Bowls in the 1990s. It’s about more than just knowing the game, it’s being able to convey it to players in a manner where they buy in and understand it . . . Good teacher, works well with everyone in the organization and he’s a straight shooter. Those are qualities that are so important as a head coach.”
Both coaches said Trestman is innovative without, in the words of Levy, “being off the wall.” Trestman has twice served as offensive coordinator on teams (San Francisco and Oakland) that finished first in passing.
Despite 17 seasons as an NFL assistant, Grant believes Trestman’s five years of head-coaching experience are important to the men doing the interviewing this week.
While Levy and Grant are the most successful examples, other coaches such as Rod Rust and Hugh Campbell have toggled between the NFL and CFL. One of the NFL’s former top executives, Bill Polian, scouted for Levy in Montreal.
Levy, who won two CFL championships, said the Canadian league offers the best football outside the NFL. The Grey Cup winner, he added, would “dominate” the best college teams.
“The difference between the college and the pro game is unbelievable, even up there,” Levy said.
Grant, 85, a four-time Grey Cup winner with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, remains close with Trestman who returns to his native Minnesota in the offseason.
“He’s got the experience, dedication and smarts for the job,” Grant said. “I wouldn’t hesitate to hire him.”