Big-time assistants: Who might step to forefront?
I don't need to remind you which coaches are under fire this season or what teams need to win and win now. What I would like to talk about are some of the year's most fascinating assistants and why they could play the biggest roles in what happens this year.
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| It's Kyle Shanahan's job to improve a Redskins offense that ranked 26th in points. (US Presswire) |
Kyle Shanahan, offensive coordinator, Washington: A year ago the Redskins lost seven games by six or fewer points, failed to score more than 17 in any first-half contest and unraveled so completely they wrested the play-calling from the head coach and put it in the hands of Sherman Lewis, out of the game five years and on his way to call a bingo game at a senior center when the Redskins reached him. Lewis helped, but not enough to raise the Titanic. The Redskins lost 12 games, their offense ranked 22nd in yards and 26th in points and Jason Campbell finished as the league's 15th-ranked quarterback. Something had to change, and something did. New coach Mike Shanahan brought in veteran Donovan McNabb to replace Campbell and hired his son to resuscitate an offense that failed to exceed 17 points in 19 of its last 32 starts. Naturally, the Redskins feel pretty good about themselves because they have a head coach with Super Bowl credentials, a quarterback with Super Bowl credentials and an offensive coordinator who last season produced the league's top-rated passing attack. But read the fine type: Shanahan (Kyle, that is) also had Matt Schaub, Andre Johnson and an offensive line that could pass block. The Texans ranked fifth in sacks per pass play; the Redskins ranked 28th. The challenge here is to give McNabb the security that Schaub enjoyed, one reason the Redskins drafted Trent Williams and traded for Jammal Brown. In the end, though, it's Shanahan who must make this work -- and, yes, I mean father or son.
Mike Nolan, defensive coordinator, Miami: There's this feeling that the AFC East is a two-team race, with the New York Jets and New England the two teams, but I'd be careful not to exclude Miami. First of all, the Dolphins won the division two years ago. Second, they have Nolan to coach a defense that was atypically porous in 2009. Yeah, I know, Miami lost starting quarterback Chad Pennington early, but his injury didn't sabotage this club; a defense that surrendered 17 or more points in all but two starts did. What's hard to figure about these guys is that they could get to opposing quarterbacks but couldn't produce takeaways (their six fumble recoveries bettered only Buffalo) and couldn't stop the pass. Enter Nolan, who helped Denver win its first six games by turning a defense that ranked 29th in 2008 into the league's seventh-best unit a year later. How? By improving its pass defense, that's how. I don't know what happened to sour the relationship between Nolan and head coach Josh McDaniels, but I know the Dolphins were smart to hire him once he became available. Under Nolan, the Broncos were especially adept against the pass, ranking third overall, and that's always good when you're trying to catch Tom Brady and the Patriots. But look a little deeper: In three years as Baltimore's defensive coordinator, Nolan led a defense that forced a league-best 106 turnovers, and in one season with the Broncos his unit went from a league-worst 13 takeaways to 30. Pass defense and takeaways kept Miami down last season; they should not and will not this time around.
Mike Martz, offensive coordinator, Chicago: This is the most intriguing hire of the offseason because Mike Martz is one of the most intriguing offensive minds anywhere. He is brilliant. He is imaginative. He is gutsy. And he is single-minded, his ideas sometimes clashing with others within the organizations that employ him. Martz's job here is simple: Resurrect Jay Cutler while there's still time, which means this season. Coach Lovie Smith cannot afford to wait on anyone or anything, one reason he hired Martz when others would not. Martz worked with Smith in St. Louis, and the two produced a Super Bowl team. They're hoping for similar results here, though I don't know how you rely on a passing game in November and December in Chicago. That's for Martz to figure out, and I know one respected league assistant who believes strongly that Mad Mike will intimidate Cutler and get him to pay attention, clean up his mistakes and become the quarterback he's supposed to be. Maybe. But one thing about Martz's wide-open offenses is that they can leave quarterbacks vulnerable -- and Chicago doesn't have the pass protectors to keep onrushing linemen off its quarterbacks. Nevertheless, you can't argue with the facts, and the facts are that Mike Martz helped make Kurt Warner a Hall-of-Fame candidate and turned Jon Kitna into a 4,000-yard passer in back-to-back seasons in Detroit. I don't know that Martz has the receivers, the offensive line, the running game or the quarterback to make it here, but I do know the futures of the Bears and their head coach depend on him. Like it or not, Chicago has its wagon hitched to Cutler. It's up to Martz to make him go forward.
Perry Fewell, defensive coordinator, N.Y. Giants: After last season's 8-8 finish, coach Tom Coughlin is on a short leash -- and, just a hunch, but he knows it. The last time he was in a position like this, he changed his offensive coordinators for the last game of the 2006 season, and Kevin Gilbride -- with a 234-yard boost from Tiki Barber -- responded by saving Coughlin's job. Now it's Fewell who has been called to the rescue, and if his name sounds familiar it should. He was promoted from defensive coordinator to interim head coach last season in Buffalo and, under the circumstances, did well at both jobs. His pass defense produced 28 interceptions, second-best in the NFL, and that was with starting cornerbacks Leodis McKelvin and Terence McGee missing 18 games because of injuries. What's more, standout rookie safety Jairus Byrd tied for the lead league with nine pickoffs and finished second in Defensive Rookie of the Year voting. Under Fewell, Buffalo ranked second against the pass, and, granted, part of that had to do with the success opponents had running on the Bills. But what I like about the job he did there was that he kept the Bills competitive. Not only did they win three of their last six starts, refusing to coast after all hope was lost; they didn't allow more than 19 points in six of their last seven starts, with opponents averaging 14.2 points per try in those games. So what? So the Giants swung in the opposite direction, with three of their last four opponents piling up 41 or more points and the club hemorrhaging an average ... an average ... of 32.4 points a game over its last 11 starts. No wonder team president John Mara said it felt more like a 2-14 season. Fewell will make changes, and the Giants should find the pass rush and the pass defense they lacked a year ago. Will it be enough for Coughlin? That's why they play the games.
Mike Westhoff, special teams coordinator, N.Y. Jets: I'll tell you why I have one of the game's most respected special teams coaches in here: Because the Jets' season could hinge on their kickers. I'm serious. When I stopped by the team's Florham Park headquarters in late May and early June the field-goal accuracy was so dreadful that coach Rex Ryan joked that his specialists were seeing how successful they could be with their non-kicking legs. Only this is no laughing matter. The Jets believe they have the ammunition to push New England for supremacy in the AFC East, and they might ... if they have someone who can make a clutch field goal. A year ago they lost four games by four or fewer points each, and that was with a kicker (Jay Feely) who was so reliable he nailed 30 of 36 field-goal attempts. Now they go from Feely to Nick Folk, who was so inaccurate in 2009 Dallas exchanged him for Shaun Suisham, and, yeah, the Jets' turning to Folk is a risk -- and I'm being kind. He has a strong leg; just not an accurate one. For the sake of the Jets, that better change. He was 6 of 14 on kicks from 40 yards and beyond, including 5 of 12 from the 40 to the 49, and he tied with Jacksonville's Josh Scobee for the lowest field-goal percentage by any of the league's top 29 kickers. I didn't like what I saw earlier this month, and the Jets couldn't have, either. But there's time to straighten this thing out, and I guarantee that if Folk doesn't change by late August, Westhoff will make the change for him -- finding someone he can trust. The Jets' future could depend on it.
Clyde Christensen, offensive coordinator, Indianapolis: This is the first season that Peyton Manning hasn't played with Tom Moore as his offensive coordinator, and there is no way of overstating the obvious: It is a very, very big deal. Moore and Manning were in sync on everything, and the results were the proof. Manning annually was among the league leaders in touchdown passes and passing percentage, while the Colts annually were at or near the top of the AFC. Now Moore steps aside, acting as an offensive consultant, while Christensen takes over as head of the offense, and keep your fingers crossed, Colts fans. The last time Christensen ran an offense was 2001 in Tampa Bay, and the results weren't good: The Bucs ranked 26th in yards, 28th in touchdown passes and 31st in rushing. Of course, they didn't have Manning, Dallas Clark or Reggie Wayne, either. But this will be a challenge, and if Manning isn't comfortable with his new partner it could mean a shakeup in the AFC South. All I know is that Tom Moore is a tough act to follow. Granted, it's always good to have a security blanket like Manning, but Manning doesn't go down this road alone. He must have a coach he can trust. Having Moore as a consultant is a bonus, but where does his authority stop and Christensen's begin? Stay tuned.
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| Mike Solari will try take the 49ers back to the playoffs for the first time since 2002. (US Presswire) |
Sean Kugler, offensive line coach, Pittsburgh: The Steelers want to improve the league's 19th-ranked rushing attack, and they should. When they were on top so was their running game, so it figures that they're interested in improving their offensive line. But they also want to clean up the 50 sacks that Ben Roethlisberger absorbed, and that seems like another good idea. I know Roethlisberger holds the ball longer than most quarterbacks, but look what happens: He extends plays, often producing big gains after other quarterbacks might have bailed out. Still, he gets hit too often. So maybe it's time to look at the pass protection. I think you get the idea. Roethlisberger has his own set of issues, and that's for coach Mike Tomlin and offensive coordinator Bruce Arians to deal with in the four-to-six games that Big Ben sits out. But there was nothing wrong with him on the field last season ... that is, when he wasn't getting sacked. He had a monstrous season, throwing for a career-best 4,328 yards, as well as 26 touchdowns and a 100.5 passer rating. Still, it wasn't enough to get the defending Super Bowl champions back to the playoffs, and there's a reason: The offensive line was inadequate in its pass protection, and the running game was atypically ineffective -- tied for 15th in yards per carry. The Steelers want to be better up front, one reason they drafted center Maurkice Pouncey and hired Kugler. If they make a difference, Pittsburgh may, just may, overcome the winter of Big Ben's discontent to return to the top of the AFC North.
Joe DeCamillis, special teams coordinator, Dallas: I watched Shaun Suisham miss two field goals in the Cowboys’ playoff loss to Minnesota -- the first when the game was scoreless; the second when Dallas was down 14 points -- and wondered how in the name of Jerry Jones did they put themselves in this position? I mean, the Cowboys seem to cover most, if not all, of their bases when it comes to personnel. So how is that they trusted an erratic kicker like Suisham -- or Nick Folk before him -- to pull them through close games? I don't know, either, but now they're down to Suisham’s backup, the strong-legged David Buehler, and talk about rolling the dice. Buehler is outstanding for kickoffs and field position. In fact, nobody last season had more touchbacks, and only Atlanta was better on average drive starts. But now the Cowboys want to count on him for field goals, too, and that could be a problem. I mean, if he wasn't good enough to beat out Folk and Suisham, why should he be better than either now? That's where DeCamillis comes in, and he plays an important role in the team's fortunes this season. In essence, he must make Buehler the kicker that Folk and Suisham were not, and so far, so good. The guy was so impressive in OTAs the team released his competition, Connor Hughes, on Tuesday. Still, the last time a kicker led the league in touchbacks and hit 75 percent of his field goals was 2002 when Neil Rackers did it for Arizona. We all know Buehler can kick the ball from outer space; what we don't know is how accurate he'll be. If he's no improvement on his predecessors, Dallas could be in trouble.
Charlie Weis, offensive coordinator, Kansas City: Yes, I think the Chiefs could be among this year's surprises, but how far they advance may depend on how far Weis perks up the NFL's 25th-ranked offense and the play of its quarterback. The Chiefs believe they have a franchise passer in Matt Cassel, but he must improve on last year's numbers when he had as many interceptions (16) as touchdown passes (16) and was among the league's worst third-down performers. Having a reliable running game will help, and teaming Thomas Jones with Jamaal Charles -- even with Jones turning 32 -- should make the Chiefs more formidable in that department. He could use help at wide receiver, too, where the additions of Jerheme Urban and rookie Dexter McCluster can't help but make the Chiefs stronger. McCluster is the wild card here, a small guy who produces big plays from different positions -- much like a Percy Harvin in Minnesota -- and that is nothing but good. All I know is that Kansas City must energize an offense that eight times couldn't produce more than 14 points, and Weis might be the solution. The last time we saw him in the pros he was punching tickets to the Super Bowl. But the Patriots had Tom Brady. The Chiefs have Cassel. Some people will tell you that Cassel isn't a bad second choice, but I need to see more than what we got last season. Charlie Weis will, too.
