Mike Shanahan is available...

I was caught off-guard when the Denver Broncos fired long-time head coach Mike Shanahan yesterday, but I shouldn't have been. They haven't made the playoffs for three years and had the epic meltdown in December, losing three straight to blow a two-game lead in the division with three weeks left. That Nov. 23 blowout loss to Oakland couldn't have helped things, either.

Shanahan ought to shoot to the top of the Rams' HC candidates list immediately. The guy's won two Super Bowls, and who would be a more perfect coach for the running attack the Rams say they want to run? Shanahan could make Steven Jackson a 2,000-yard back. Plus whatever he gains receiving!

Then again, Shanahan's going to want to be a full-control kind of head coach, I assume, and that's not going to mesh at all with what the Rams want to do. Shanahan's the dummy who drafted Maurice Clarett; you don't want him in charge of the draft or personnel, which may be a dealbreaker from his standpoint. I also thought, even though it worked, that Shanahan was certifiably insane to try that two-pointer at the end of their home win over San Diego earlier this season. That was an idiotic gamble, and EVERYBODY knows it, but you won't find anybody criticizing the call because Denver got the two and the win.

Denver's likely to be a factor in the quest for Cowher, Mangini and Spagnuolo, possibly also Rex Ryan, in the high-dollar neighborhood the Rams don't seem inclined to move to. For his part, I doubt Shanahan will work for any team next year, more likely a network. Not with the Broncos owing him $20 million.

But, as with Mangini, I'd better hear that Devaney at least tried to contact Shanahan about the Rams' HC job. Any head coaching search that doesn't involve at least contacting those two would be a farce.