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Fraley: Jason Garrett got the power he wanted, now he must make the right pick on 'D'
12:21 AM CST on Wednesday, January 12, 2011
COLUMN By GERRY FRALEY / The Dallas Morning News
gfraley@dallasnews.com
The known field of candidates for the defensive coordinator position with the Cowboys provides insight into the mind of newly installed head coach Jason Garrett.
He will stay with the 3-4 alignment but is uncertain about the stylistic approach that will be applied to this broken defense.
The three candidates – Vic Fangio, Greg Manusky and Paul Pasqualoni – play different tunes with the 3-4. They range from a high-risk, high-reward tight-rope walker to a facsimile of Wade Phillips, who was heavily involved in the defense during his three-plus years as coach. Consider the options each candidate brings:
• Does Garrett want do to everything possible to make life miserable for opposing quarterbacks?
In that case, Fangio is the choice.
Fangio learned the concepts of zone blitzes and attacking quarterbacks from unexpected angles at the foot of the master: Dom Capers. Their relationship started with the "Doghouse Defense" of the Philadelphia-Baltimore Stars of the USFL and continued when Fangio ran the defense when Capers was head coach at Carolina and Houston.
Fangio has had some remarkable successes.
With Carolina in 1996, the franchise's second season, his defense had a league-high 60 sacks and ranked fifth in takeaways with 38. At Stanford this season, Fangio took smart but physically average players and produced a defense that ranked 15th nationally in sacks with 2.69 per game. A year earlier, without Fangio, Stanford had 1.69 sacks per game.
Fangio, who interviewed Monday, has also had failures. At Houston and Indianapolis , he could not duplicate the success of Carolina. In four seasons with Houston, his last stop as an NFL coordinator, Fangio had defenses that twice ranked among the bottom three in sacks and takeaways.
• Or does Garrett want Phillips with a harder edge?
In that case, Manusky is the choice.
Manusky coached linebackers when Phillips served as San Diego's defensive coordinator from 2004-06. Like Phillips, Manusky is of the bend-but-do-not-break school.
Like Phillips, Manusky believes in first stopping the run. San Francisco has ranked eighth or better in yards rushing allowed per game in three of Manusky's four seasons as the defensive coordinator.
Anyone who plays for the fiery Manusky, a linebacker and special teams demon for 12 years in the league, must be stout against the run. That includes the secondary. Cornerback Nate Clements was third on the Niners in tackles this season, including a team-high 6 ½ for a loss.
Manusky will use blitzes at about the same rate as Phillips and is more willing to use zone coverages, but he rarely gambles. In 2009, Manusky put together a defense that ranked among the NFL's top five in sacks and takeaways. The defense went backward this season, dropping to 14th in sacks and 25th in takeaways.
Manusky gets his chance with Garrett today. Manusky met with Arizona for its defensive coordinator opening Tuesday.
• Or does Garrett go with a mix on defense?
In that case, the answer is already in the building.
After Phillips' dismissal, Paul Pasqualoni took over the defense, at Garrett's request, for the final eight games. He made changes on the fly, working in more zone coverages to keep quarterbacks off balance and making the defense more conscious of takeaways.
The argument can be made that the Cowboys improved by about one touchdown per game with Pasqualoni. The Phillips-led defense had a score of 167: 204 points allowed minus 37 points scored off takeaways. The Pasqualoni-led defense had a score of 108: 181 points allowed minus 73 points scored off takeaways. Play at that rate for an entire season, and the Cowboys are at worst a nine-win team.
In theory, the defense would be better after working with Pasqualoni for a full off-season and training camp. The counter-point is that his defense played much better in his first season than in his second season as coordinator with Miami.
Jason Garrett wanted the authority to pick his staff. He has it. It's nearly time for him to use it on his most important call of the off-season.
• • •
12:21 AM CST on Wednesday, January 12, 2011
COLUMN By GERRY FRALEY / The Dallas Morning News
gfraley@dallasnews.com
The known field of candidates for the defensive coordinator position with the Cowboys provides insight into the mind of newly installed head coach Jason Garrett.
He will stay with the 3-4 alignment but is uncertain about the stylistic approach that will be applied to this broken defense.
The three candidates – Vic Fangio, Greg Manusky and Paul Pasqualoni – play different tunes with the 3-4. They range from a high-risk, high-reward tight-rope walker to a facsimile of Wade Phillips, who was heavily involved in the defense during his three-plus years as coach. Consider the options each candidate brings:
• Does Garrett want do to everything possible to make life miserable for opposing quarterbacks?
In that case, Fangio is the choice.
Fangio learned the concepts of zone blitzes and attacking quarterbacks from unexpected angles at the foot of the master: Dom Capers. Their relationship started with the "Doghouse Defense" of the Philadelphia-Baltimore Stars of the USFL and continued when Fangio ran the defense when Capers was head coach at Carolina and Houston.
Fangio has had some remarkable successes.
With Carolina in 1996, the franchise's second season, his defense had a league-high 60 sacks and ranked fifth in takeaways with 38. At Stanford this season, Fangio took smart but physically average players and produced a defense that ranked 15th nationally in sacks with 2.69 per game. A year earlier, without Fangio, Stanford had 1.69 sacks per game.
Fangio, who interviewed Monday, has also had failures. At Houston and Indianapolis , he could not duplicate the success of Carolina. In four seasons with Houston, his last stop as an NFL coordinator, Fangio had defenses that twice ranked among the bottom three in sacks and takeaways.
• Or does Garrett want Phillips with a harder edge?
In that case, Manusky is the choice.
Manusky coached linebackers when Phillips served as San Diego's defensive coordinator from 2004-06. Like Phillips, Manusky is of the bend-but-do-not-break school.
Like Phillips, Manusky believes in first stopping the run. San Francisco has ranked eighth or better in yards rushing allowed per game in three of Manusky's four seasons as the defensive coordinator.
Anyone who plays for the fiery Manusky, a linebacker and special teams demon for 12 years in the league, must be stout against the run. That includes the secondary. Cornerback Nate Clements was third on the Niners in tackles this season, including a team-high 6 ½ for a loss.
Manusky will use blitzes at about the same rate as Phillips and is more willing to use zone coverages, but he rarely gambles. In 2009, Manusky put together a defense that ranked among the NFL's top five in sacks and takeaways. The defense went backward this season, dropping to 14th in sacks and 25th in takeaways.
Manusky gets his chance with Garrett today. Manusky met with Arizona for its defensive coordinator opening Tuesday.
• Or does Garrett go with a mix on defense?
In that case, the answer is already in the building.
After Phillips' dismissal, Paul Pasqualoni took over the defense, at Garrett's request, for the final eight games. He made changes on the fly, working in more zone coverages to keep quarterbacks off balance and making the defense more conscious of takeaways.
The argument can be made that the Cowboys improved by about one touchdown per game with Pasqualoni. The Phillips-led defense had a score of 167: 204 points allowed minus 37 points scored off takeaways. The Pasqualoni-led defense had a score of 108: 181 points allowed minus 73 points scored off takeaways. Play at that rate for an entire season, and the Cowboys are at worst a nine-win team.
In theory, the defense would be better after working with Pasqualoni for a full off-season and training camp. The counter-point is that his defense played much better in his first season than in his second season as coordinator with Miami.
Jason Garrett wanted the authority to pick his staff. He has it. It's nearly time for him to use it on his most important call of the off-season.
• • •