In a word, the reason the Dallas Cowboys opted to move on from defensive coordinator Rob Ryan and replace him with Monte Kiffin and Rod Marinelli--masters of the Tampa 2 defense--was turnovers. Or maybe more accurately, a lack thereof.
Head coach Jason Garrett told reporters at the Senior Bowl this week in Mobile, Alabama, that the team’s desire to see a bump in turnovers led to the move earlier this month. Kiffin comes to Dallas after spending three seasons as USC’s defensive coordinator; Marinelli comes after spending four seasons in Chicago, three of them as defensive coordinator.
Garrett believes the duo--Kiffin the defensive coordinator and Marinelli the defensive line coach--will help them to this end.
“The Bears had 44 takeaways. We had 16. That’s 28 more opportunities with the ball,” Garrett said, per the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. “Give me some of those 28 opportunities. That’s something that we really sat back and thought a lot about, had a lot of discussions about – what’s the best way to try to achieve that, and then, ‘OK, you want to do that, now who are the guys who can help implement that?’ ”
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