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Eyes Wide Open
Fresh Perspective Can Help The Secondary
Josh Ellis
DallasCowboys.com Staff Writer
Henderson worked under Rob Ryan in Cleveland in 2009 and 2010.IRVING, Texas - With the personnel of the Cowboys secondary relatively the same for the last four years, and the unit's overall production trending downward, it was time for a new direction.
Team owner Jerry Jones has promised there will be some new faces back there in 2012, but that won't be the only difference for the secondary, which had been coached by Dave Campo and Brett Maxie since 2008. Incoming defensive backs coach Jerome Henderson has been enlisted to provide new thoughts, a new voice and a new direction on the practice field and in meeting rooms.
More than anything else, his fresh set of eyes could be a positive for the group. After three years in the same position with the Cleveland Browns, Henderson joins the Cowboys without the bias of past history with the depth chart.
While he's certainly familiar with coordinator Rob Ryan from their two years together in Cleveland, Henderson has worked with only one player on the current roster of defensive backs, safety Abram Elam, an unrestricted free agent.
As for guys like Terence Newman, Mike Jenkins, Orlando Scandrick, Gerald Sensabaugh and Barry Church, Henderson is just getting to know them as players. Since moving into his office a few weeks back, he's been breaking down film, dividing every defensive play the Cowboys ran by individual involvement.
For several weeks more, Henderson will be studying those players, then make his recommendations for the future of the secondary.
"Especially when I want to evaluate a guy and really help him develop and see what he is, I just want to study him," Henderson said, "and I don't want to be distracted by looking at everybody. ... Once that's done I go back, and that's when I really sit down and get to know the guy."
While Henderson has only six years of experience in coaching, including three years with the Jets before he got to Cleveland, he did play cornerback in the league for eight years in the '90s, and has a definite idea of what he's looking for in his players, a vision that fits right in with the hopes of head coach Jason Garrett.
"Guys who will challenge, guys who are tough, guys who play with, again, intelligence – situational intelligence," Henderson said. "That's one of the things that I will really talk to the guys about, having a situational understanding of football. Like, there are certain situations where I've got to go get down (in press coverage) on that guy. There are certain situations where it's probably not good to get down on that guy, that I want to play with a little more space, and to understand when my mentality must change between the two."
In their first year under Ryan, the Cowboys allowed 7.2 yards per pass, which ranked 24th in the league, the secondary complaining of breakdowns in communication down the stretch. In their complex new scheme, players are required to understand the different responsibilities of their defensive teammates, and it now falls to Henderson to impart that knowledge.
The team is still in the market for an assistant secondary coach, but as opposed to last year, when Maxie and Campo shared the primary duties, the Cowboys are hopeful that a streamlined approach to instructing the secondary can lead to improvement.
Henderson's two years of experience in Ryan's system can help, but the players themselves are still most responsible for synchronizing their duties on every snap.
"I don't think there's a timeframe for that," Henderson said. "They've got to communicate, and they've got to talk and they've got to be together. I think that can come quickly, and that may not come as quickly depending on them, and how much effort and how much instruction you give them. Hopefully that comes quickly, and I'm hoping that we can get them to play better next year."
Thus far, Henderson has had only minimal interaction with the Cowboys' cornerbacks and safeties. He acknowledges some will return in 2012, and others will not, and his personal relationship with the players won't affect that.
The Cowboys should have serious interest in upgrading their secondary in both free agency and the draft. Henderson's unbiased comparison of the talent on the roster versus the talent that's available will have a lot to do with who's on the roster next season.
"I'm not going to say, 'I'm looking for this, I'm looking for that,'" Henderson said. "I'm going to say, 'I looked at the guy; this is what I think he is, this is where I think he fits.' I'll just say what you're getting with this player is X, Y, Z, whatever that is."
Fresh Perspective Can Help The Secondary
Josh Ellis
DallasCowboys.com Staff Writer
Henderson worked under Rob Ryan in Cleveland in 2009 and 2010.IRVING, Texas - With the personnel of the Cowboys secondary relatively the same for the last four years, and the unit's overall production trending downward, it was time for a new direction.
Team owner Jerry Jones has promised there will be some new faces back there in 2012, but that won't be the only difference for the secondary, which had been coached by Dave Campo and Brett Maxie since 2008. Incoming defensive backs coach Jerome Henderson has been enlisted to provide new thoughts, a new voice and a new direction on the practice field and in meeting rooms.
More than anything else, his fresh set of eyes could be a positive for the group. After three years in the same position with the Cleveland Browns, Henderson joins the Cowboys without the bias of past history with the depth chart.
While he's certainly familiar with coordinator Rob Ryan from their two years together in Cleveland, Henderson has worked with only one player on the current roster of defensive backs, safety Abram Elam, an unrestricted free agent.
As for guys like Terence Newman, Mike Jenkins, Orlando Scandrick, Gerald Sensabaugh and Barry Church, Henderson is just getting to know them as players. Since moving into his office a few weeks back, he's been breaking down film, dividing every defensive play the Cowboys ran by individual involvement.
For several weeks more, Henderson will be studying those players, then make his recommendations for the future of the secondary.
"Especially when I want to evaluate a guy and really help him develop and see what he is, I just want to study him," Henderson said, "and I don't want to be distracted by looking at everybody. ... Once that's done I go back, and that's when I really sit down and get to know the guy."
While Henderson has only six years of experience in coaching, including three years with the Jets before he got to Cleveland, he did play cornerback in the league for eight years in the '90s, and has a definite idea of what he's looking for in his players, a vision that fits right in with the hopes of head coach Jason Garrett.
"Guys who will challenge, guys who are tough, guys who play with, again, intelligence – situational intelligence," Henderson said. "That's one of the things that I will really talk to the guys about, having a situational understanding of football. Like, there are certain situations where I've got to go get down (in press coverage) on that guy. There are certain situations where it's probably not good to get down on that guy, that I want to play with a little more space, and to understand when my mentality must change between the two."
In their first year under Ryan, the Cowboys allowed 7.2 yards per pass, which ranked 24th in the league, the secondary complaining of breakdowns in communication down the stretch. In their complex new scheme, players are required to understand the different responsibilities of their defensive teammates, and it now falls to Henderson to impart that knowledge.
The team is still in the market for an assistant secondary coach, but as opposed to last year, when Maxie and Campo shared the primary duties, the Cowboys are hopeful that a streamlined approach to instructing the secondary can lead to improvement.
Henderson's two years of experience in Ryan's system can help, but the players themselves are still most responsible for synchronizing their duties on every snap.
"I don't think there's a timeframe for that," Henderson said. "They've got to communicate, and they've got to talk and they've got to be together. I think that can come quickly, and that may not come as quickly depending on them, and how much effort and how much instruction you give them. Hopefully that comes quickly, and I'm hoping that we can get them to play better next year."
Thus far, Henderson has had only minimal interaction with the Cowboys' cornerbacks and safeties. He acknowledges some will return in 2012, and others will not, and his personal relationship with the players won't affect that.
The Cowboys should have serious interest in upgrading their secondary in both free agency and the draft. Henderson's unbiased comparison of the talent on the roster versus the talent that's available will have a lot to do with who's on the roster next season.
"I'm not going to say, 'I'm looking for this, I'm looking for that,'" Henderson said. "I'm going to say, 'I looked at the guy; this is what I think he is, this is where I think he fits.' I'll just say what you're getting with this player is X, Y, Z, whatever that is."
