Broncos' Nolan leads charge as coordinators earn kudos

I wasn't sure one man could make a difference in a locker room, but one man in Denver has -- and, no, I'm not talking about Josh McDaniels or Kyle Orton or Elvis Dumervil. I'm talking about Mike Nolan, the team's defensive coordinator. In five weeks he turned one of the league's most porous units into a brick wall -- and he did it overnight.

Yeah, I know, the story in Denver is McDaniels and how he has the 5-0 Broncos running away with a division that was supposed to belong to San Diego. But what about the defensive coordinator he hired? Nolan has the Broncos playing as they haven't since ... well, since 2006, when they won five of their first six and held opponents to 44 points.

I mention that because this year's team checks opponents at a league-low 43. I also mention it because the 2006 Broncos cratered, a reminder that things aren't always what they seem.

Only this season things in Denver don't seem to change from one week to the next. The Broncos win. The offense commits few mistakes. Orton makes plays. Brandon Marshall makes more plays. And the defense puts up more zeroes than the Rockies' Jason Marquis.

"Mike is one of the best coaches I've ever been around," said former head coach Brian Billick, now a TV analyst. "He brings a passion as well as a continuity to their defense that they haven't seen in Denver for a long time.

"Aside from Brian Dawkins, let’s be honest: He's done it with a lot of guys coming off the streets. Part of it is that he got them to buy into the defense, and part of it is that he has the perfect scheme that he's fitting to those players."

If there was an award for Assistant of the Year -- which there isn't -- and they handed it out five weeks into the season, Nolan would be the runaway winner. His influence on the Broncos has been that dramatic. But he is not alone. Coordinators can -- and have -- made differences in the locker room as well as on the field this season, with Nolan the first of a deep field.

And the others? Read on.

Mike Nolan
Broncos defensive coordinator

Memo to Denver fans: It's not too soon to send thank-you notes to the San Francisco 49ers. Because without the 49ers, there is no Mike Nolan in Denver. It was the 49ers who fired Nolan as their head coach, freeing him to join McDaniels' staff and shape up one of the league's sorriest defenses.

If you want to know why the Broncos collapsed down the stretch last season, look no farther than their defense -- and I use that term loosely. In the Broncos' last three starts -- all losses -- they hemorrhaged 112 points, including 52 in the season finale at San Diego. That's an average of 37.3 per game, and it's one way to get fired, which is what happened to Mike Shanahan and his staff.

The next thing you know, Nolan arrives and turns the Broncos' 4-3 into a 3-4. Hmmm, OK. It couldn't be worse than what we saw last season, so why not? The next thing he does is collect veterans like Dawkins, cornerback Andre Goodman, defensive lineman Vonnie Holliday and safety Renaldo Hill, move Dumervil from defensive end to outside linebacker, then throw them together to see what he has.

Well, surprise, surprise, surprise. What Nolan has is a defense nobody can solve.

In five starts, the Broncos surrendered 43 points -- or nine fewer than San Diego put up on them in one game last year. They're better everywhere, and the stat sheet, please: A year ago they were last in takeaways with 13; now they have 11, good for second. A year ago they were 25th in third-down efficiency; now they're third. A year ago they were 26th in sacks; now they're third.

I think you get the idea. The defense is a force, and notice we haven't mentioned Champ Bailey's name. Once, he was all you talked about with Denver's D because he was all that was worth talking about. But look how the Broncos flummoxed Tom Brady last weekend, particularly in the second half, and tell me these guys aren't for real. I don't know how Mike Nolan has done it, but I do know he must stand up and be recognized.

Williams

Gregg Williams
Saints defensive coordinator

Don't ask me why he didn't succeed Joe Gibbs as head coach in Washington. He was the head-coach-in-waiting but never got the job. Lucky for New Orleans. Because now Williams is back on the head-coaching radar by making the Saints into a respectable -- yes, respectable -- defense. Like Denver, the Saints haven't lost. Unlike Denver, they can bury you with an avalanche of points -- which, of course, they did the first couple of weeks when they punctured Detroit and Philadelphia for 93.

It's one thing to hammer the Lions; it's another to stick it to the Eagles ... in Philadelphia, no less. The Saints were supposed to be this year's version of Air Coryell, with a blitzkrieg passing attack and a matador defense, only that hasn't happened. In fact, the past two games the Saints won the old-fashioned way -- by running the football and by playing defense. And I mean good, solid, hard-hitting defense, pounding the then-unbeaten New York Jets with two touchdowns off turnovers.

Once upon a time, you could rely on the Saints' defense for a lot of laughs and big plays ... usually by opponents. But with Williams in charge, New Orleans has proven it can win with defense. The Saints are beating people with their front four, with Williams' trademark aggressive play and with safety Darren Sharper's league-leading five interceptions.

So what? A year ago, New Orleans had 22 takeaways, tied for 20th; this season they lead the league with 13, including 10 interceptions. A year ago it had 28 sacks; now it has 10, which projects to 40 for the season. A year ago, opponents converted 40 percent of their third downs; now it's down to 26.8. I don't need to go on. There's a big difference in this year's Saints, and Gregg Williams has helped to make it.

Zimmer

Mike Zimmer
Bengals defensive coordinator

You probably knew about Mike Zimmer before the Bengals stunned Baltimore last weekend because his wife died unexpectedly last Thursday. I don't know how he showed up to work that weekend, but he did and somehow managed to focus on football, calling the signals that stifled mighty Baltimore. Afterward, the team gave him a game ball and a team hug. He deserved both because Mike Zimmer is one of the reasons the Bengals are serious threats in the AFC North.

But Zimmer didn't pull his guys together overnight. He started reshaping the Bengals when he arrived in 2008, making them the defense they are now. And what they are now is a unit that has two of the best cornerbacks anywhere, with active linebackers who can chase down backs from behind and a front four that stood up to Baltimore, took its best punch and held on for an unexpected victory.

That didn't exactly come as a surprise to those inside the Cincinnati locker room because the Bengals have been down this road before. Remember, this is a team that would be unbeaten were it not for a miracle finish by Denver, and this is the team that went into Green Bay and Baltimore and won in both places.

Zimmer is responsible for some of that. Under his direction, the Bengals are one of the tightest, most active and most underappreciated defenses around. Yeah, I know, they rank 17th overall. Big deal. They're sixth in first downs allowed, 10th in third-down efficiency and ninth in points. Throw out the Green Bay game, and opponents average 16.5 points a game against them. Yeah, I think that will work, and it has.

The turnaround here is not as dramatic as it is in Denver or New Orleans. Zimmer's 12th-ranked defense was one of the few things that was good about the 2008 Bengals. But the development of the Bengals as a winner -- as a club that plays together and believes in itself -- could not have happened without Mike Zimmer improving and overhauling the team's defense.

Cameron

Cam Cameron
Ravens offensive coordinator

For most of the past decade the Baltimore Ravens have been known for one thing, and it wasn't offense. Defense. There was also kicking, coaching, scouting, drafting. You name it. It was everything but moving the ball up and down the field. Well, times have changed, and the Ravens are one of the league's most effective offenses. So they were stymied by Cincinnati last weekend. That's one reason Mike Zimmer made this list. Until that game, the Ravens averaged -- averaged -- 31 points per game and ranked in the top five in seven NFL categories.

Their quarterback wasn't just good; Joe Flacco was scary good, with eight touchdown passes and two 300-yard games. Their rushing attack was so effective that Willis McGahee led the league in touchdowns as a part-time player. Their offensive line was dominant, overwhelming opponents behind the blocking of two huge tackles, Jared Gaither and Michael Oher.

Then Gaither got hurt, the offensive line was reshuffled and Cincinnati came to town. Now, all of a sudden, everyone wants to know what's wrong with Baltimore.

Don't ask Cam. He has the Ravens ranked fifth in offense, sixth in rushing and 10th in passing. They're fourth in scoring, fifth in third-down efficiency and first in first downs. If there's a problem it's this: The Ravens last year led the league in time of possession; this year they're 14th. Hey, everything's a tradeoff, right? All I know is that for years critics grumbled about the Ravens offense, wondering when it would produce results. Open your eyes, people. The Ravens have broken the mold.

Larry Coyer
Colts defensive coordinator

Hard as it is to believe, the Colts are not Peyton Manning and a cast of thousands. Yes, the Colts are winning behind a bulletproof Manning, who has five straight 300-yard passing games for the first time in his career. There is almost nothing Manning does wrong, but last time I checked one man does not carry a football team.

Never was that more apparent than when the Colts made their 2006 stretch run, suddenly checking opponents in the playoffs with a resurgent defense bolstered by the return of safety Bob Sanders. Sanders is missing again, but the Colts' D is not, and thank Larry Coyer. He took over the defense this year and has it ranked seventh, a minor miracle considering Sanders is missing. Without him the Colts are supposed to be vulnerable in general, especially to the run. But that's not been the case.

Yes, Miami shredded them for 239 yards, but look what's happened since: In three games, all victories, the Colts surrendered 163 yards -- an average of 54 per game. But forget all that. Look at the most important number: points. The Colts allowed 71 in their first five starts, or almost half as many as they scored.

I think back to the season opener when the Colts, then holding a 14-12 lead, were stopped on a fourth-and-1 at the Jacksonville 35 with two minutes left. Fans braced themselves because they were certain that what would follow was a last-second Jags' field goal. Only it didn't happen, and it didn't happen because the Colts' defense stiffened, holding the Jags to two yards. We should have known then. We do know now. The Colts are more than Peyton.

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