Jason Garrett’s record as head coach of the Dallas Cowboys is 29-27.
Jason Garrett’s game management – on display again Sunday night with an inexplicable and unnecessary timeout to set up a last-minute field goal before halftime – is at times mind-boggling.
Jason Garrett frustrates us with his repetitive, numbing use of vanilla coachspeak dipped in “process” and “challenge” and “all three phases.”
Add it all up and, despite last night’s season-ending 24-22 loss to the Eagles … Jason Garrett should be back in 2014. Why?
Because, I’ll say it again: Coaching is the most overrated aspect in all of professional sports.
At some point we’ve got to admit that for a long time now we’ve overrated this team’s core captains of Tony Romo-Jason Witten-DeMarcus Ware. They’ve now failed under Bill Parcells, Wade Phillips and Garrett.
Garrett abandons the run too much in the second half of games and against Philly he forgot he had a Pro Bowl left tackle in Tyron Smith and instead forced backup quarterback Kyle Orton to rollout and make a throw on the run on the game’s most important play.
But he has the Cowboys playing hard. He has them acting like professionals. There is accountability at Valley Ranch.
Alas, there is no winning. There are no playoffs. There is no success.
2014 will be the fourth and final year of Garrett’s contract. He should march, no, make that tip-toe, into Jerry Jones’ office and politely ask to hire his own coordinators in an attempt to change Dallas’ fate and save his own job. Monte Kiffin will retire and Bill Callahan – who is anything but chummy with the head coach – will be gone. If Garrett gets his wish, Norv Turner (hanging by a thread as Browns’ offensive coordinator) will help him call plays next season.
“If we don’t have Jason,” said Jones after last night’s game outside the locker room, “we don’t get payback for all the miscues, the losses and the criticism of sideline management. There’s a real reward for seeing this thing through and that’s what we’re going to try to do.”
We all get tricked into saying how “talented” the Cowboys are. But are they? Honestly? This year they have two Pro Bowl players and the drop-off from starters like Sean Lee to Ernie Sims and from Anthony Spencer to George Selvie was alarming.
Bill Belichick is regarded as one of the NFL’s best coaches. He’s been with Tom Brady in New England since 2000. Before that? He went 36-44 in five seasons with the Cleveland Browns.
If the Cowboys don’t acquire better players and find a way to keep them healthy, changing coaches will be irrelevant.
Jerry said last night that this year’s team was “close enough” to give him hope. And to keep his head coach in place.
In the harsh light of another Monday after another season-ending loss, it’s the right decision.
A native Texan who was born in Duncanville and graduated from UT-Arlington, Richie Whitt has been a mainstay in the Metroplex media since 1986. He’s held prominent roles on all media platforms including newspaper (Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Dallas Observer), radio (105.3 The Fan) and TV (co-host on TXA 21 and numerous guest appearances, including NBC 5). He currently writes a sports/guy stuff blog at DFWSportatorium.com and lives in McKinney with his fiancee, Sybil, and two very spoiled dogs.
