Byline: Mark Craig; Staff Writer
Jacksonville, Fla. -- New England Patriots defensive backs coach Eric Mangini is on the brink of collecting his third Super Bowl ring and touching off a potential high-stakes bidding war between the Patriots and three other NFL teams believed to have interest in him as their defensive coordinator next season.
'And to think he came to Cleveland in 1994 as a ballboy,' laughed Kevin Byrne, who was the Browns' vice president and director of public relations at the time. 'He started out at the bottom and just kept working his butt off. Just like [Patriots coach] Bill Belichick did.'
With Patriots defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel expected to take the Cleveland Browns' head coaching job after the Super Bowl, Mangini might assume control of New England's vaunted defense. Or he could leave his mentor for Cleveland, Miami or San Francisco.
Long before Mangini boosted his reputation as the guiding hand through the tumultuous Lawyer Milloy release of 2003, or became the brains behind using veteran receiver Troy Brown at cornerback this season, the young man needed a job. Any job.
'Kevin Spencer was my coach at Wesleyan University [Conn.] and he was Bill's offensive assistant in Cleveland at the time,' said Mangini, who set a school record with 36 1/2 sacks as a nose tackle. 'I called Kevin right before I graduated and asked if there was anything that I could do. I wanted a way to learn about the game.'
Mangini ended up writing a letter to Browns equipment manager Ed Carroll. It didn't hurt that Mangini went to Belichick's alma mater and belonged to the same fraternity.
Belichick said calling Mangini a former 'ballboy' is a stretch. He said he remembers Mangini more as the public relations intern in 1994.
Yes, Mangini was a public relations intern, but the 'promotion' came after a brief stint as Carroll's assistant in minicamp and training camp.
'Call it whatever you want, Eric was a ballboy,' Byrne said. 'He did the same things my kids did when they were ballboys for the Browns.'
When it appeared Mangini's days with the Browns were over, Byrne offered him the internship. Among his many duties were transcribing quotes from Belichick's press conferences and fetching pizzas for the media on Wednesdays.
'And I used to have to cut out every article about the Browns and photocopy them,' Mangini said. 'That was before the Internet. I tell our PR guys now they have it made because they just have to print the stories off the Internet.'
Shortly before Mangini's internship was scheduled to end on Jan. 31, 1995, Belichick stopped by Byrne's office.
'He said, `What are you going to do with that Eric kid?' ' Byrne said. 'I told him his internship was ending. And then he told me to tell Eric to stop by his office. Next thing I knew, Eric was an offensive assistant with the coaching staff.'
Belichick had admired Mangini because he put in long hours for what amounted to less than minimum wage, and never complained. It reminded Belichick of himself when he worked for $25 a day as a gofer for Ted Marchibroda's Baltimore Colts in 1975.
'What Bill didn't know was Eric needed the free food we had at the facility,' Byrne said. 'Eric was always there. He lived at that place.'
Actually, Mangini was sleeping on the couch in an apartment shared by Spencer and Scott Pioli, who was a Browns personnel assistant at the time and now heads the Patriots personnel department. At least until Belichick offered him the coaching job for the 1995 season.
'Bill taught me how to break down film,' Mangini said. 'If he hadn't given me that job, I was on my way to Trinity College to be the offensive line coach.'
Except for one year with the Baltimore Ravens in 1996, Mangini has followed Belichick from the Jets to the Patriots since 1997.
When injuries rocked the Patriots' secondary this season, Mangini found himself needing two new starting cornerbacks and a nickel back. Rookie free agent Randall Gay became one of the starting corners. The nickel back is Brown.
'I joked with Eric a couple of years ago that I could play defensive back,' Brown said. 'He agreed and went to Bill and sold him on it. One day, I'm at my locker, and Eric comes up to me and says, `You got some reps at DB today.' He said, `Don't worry, I'll be right beside you every step of the way.' '
Mangini is quiet and uncomfortable talking about himself. And those aren't the only similarities to Beli-chick.
'He works hard and he's got a real passion for the game,' Belichick said. 'He's a good decision-maker. He can take information, analyze it and make a decision. He has a lot of confidence, communicates well and has a good relationship with everybody he works with.'
All are traits of a good defensive coordinator. One who will never, ever have to fetch pizzas for reporters again.
'He would be a great defensive coordinator,' Brown said. 'Look who he's been around all these years. All of that stuff rubs off on you if you've been around it as long as he has.'
Mark Craig is at mcraig@startribune.com.
