In an interview last Friday with Bryan Burwell of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, recently fired Rams head coach Steve Spagnuolo said that he will take time before deciding on his next step, going as far as revealing that he may take the 2012 season off.
The phone has been ringing, Spagnuolo told the Post-Dispatch. There has been contact (from several teams), but I have asked that everyone respect the fact that I need some time to figure out what I want to do next, and so far, everyone has."
Spagnuolos wife, Maria, found humor in his suggestion that he take a year off to spend more time with his family.
I know Steve, and I told him no way, Maria said. There's no way he will be able to sit around for a year doing nothing. He loves coaching way too much to sit around idly for a year.
As ProFootballTalk points out, however, there is little incentive for Spagnuolo to coach in 2012 unless he is offered more money than he will make from the Rams to sit on his couch.
The Rams are on the hook for Spagnuolos 2012 salary, but if he takes a job in coaching somewhere else for less money, he wont make the money due him by St. Louis. (Depending on his contract, he might be able to work in television and get paid by both entities.)
So unless the Eagles or another team are willing to offer Spagnuolo head coach-type money to be a coordinator or make a significant long-term commitment, it would make sense for Spagnuolo to take the year off to re-charge his battery. No matter how much he loves coaching, it is hard to imagine Spagnuolo giving money away to work.