The first full day in Iraq began with an early wake up call and included meet-and-greets with US troops Mosul and Kirkuk before wrapping up with a Q&A with hundreds of troops at a reception in Baghdad.

The trip to Iraq is never easy, and this tour is no exception. But we are looking forward to a number of full, exciting and meaningful days ahead.

The NFL is becoming increasingly comprised of first-time head coaches, with 13 “rookie” coaches filling the 15 head-coaching openings in the league the past two years, and 25 of the 32 coaches with their first NFL team in that capacity.

CBS-TV employs former Steelers coach Bill Cowher and former Cardinals offensive tackle Dan Dierdorf. Each has his own perspective, outlook and thoughts on Super Bowl XLIII.

Here are some of their ideas on some of Sunday’s issues:

Initially, at least, it doesn’t appear Herm Edwards’ replacement in Kansas City will be Bill Cowher.

While the football world has speculated on the Chiefs’ head-coaching search the past few weeks, now the team actually can commence it. One NFL source said a name near or at the top of the Chiefs’ list is former Steelers coach Bill Cowher.

File this one under a Chief area to watch next season. CBS analyst Boomer Esiason said on his WFAN-NY radio show this week that he wouldn’t be surprised if Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli hired Bill Cowher to coach the team in 2010.

Over and over, former Steelers coach Bill Cowher has insisted that he is not interested in returning to the sidelines in 2009. But now a potential landing spot has emerged for 2010.

The coaching class of 2010 is shaping up to be like the quarterback class of 1983.

Next season, the three coaches expected to be available for hire at anytime are former Broncos coach Mike Shanahan, former Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren and former Steelers coach Bill Cowher. Two others, Tony Dungy and Bill Parcells, also could be added to the collection.

There’s no longer a question of whether Bill Cowher will coach next season. He will not. The more pertinent question is, will he ever coach again?

Bill Cowher madness is running through New York, sports talk radio and national football shows. Time to curb it. No more backpage headlines, no more sports-talk radio calls, no more ticker scrolls, no more conjecture.

While rumors persist that former Steelers coach Bill Cowher could wind up in Cleveland, those close to Cowher insist the speculation has no teeth. None.

As soon as the coaching carousel starts spinning, so does the speculation about whether CBS analyst Bill Cowher will coach next season.
But late last month, Cowher told me the soonest he could see himself coaching was 2010. At the earliest. And even then, he didn’t sound very convinced he would be back.