WoodysGirl
11-08-2010, 07:40 PM
Nov 8
5:23
PM CT
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By Tim MacMahon
IRVING, Texas -- The Cowboys failed Wade Phillips.
Phillips, who set a soft tone and struggled as a defensive coordinator this season, certainly gets a large share of the blame. But the players who consistently professed their love for the coach performed so poorly that they forced Jerry Jones to fire Phillips.
“Anytime the head coach gets fired, it’s an indictment of the football team,” fill-in quarterback Jon Kitna (http://espn.go.com/blog/dallas/cowboys/post/_/id/4674235/defenses-failure-gets-wade-phillips-fired#comments) said. “I hope it serves as a wakeup call for guys around here. When they start making decisions like that and things like that happen, it’s just a prelude of things to come as far as changes on the football team.”
The defense especially failed Phillips, although opposing players told the Cowboys after games that they’d caught up with their scheme. The Cowboys allowed 1,299 yards and 121 points over the last 12 quarters.
Nose tackle Jay Ratliff (http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/players/profile?playerId=8638), the lone defensive player to talk to the media Monday, acknowledged that he felt like the defense let Phillips down. Ratliff, like Phillips, just can’t figure out how a defense that allowed the fewest points in the NFC last season deteriorated so drastically.
Read more: [URL]http://espn.go.com/blog/dallas/cowboys/post/_/id/4674235/defenses-failure-gets-wade-phillips-fired
5:23
PM CT
Email (http://sendtofriend.espn.go.com/sendtofriend/SendToFriend?URL=/blog/dallas/cowboys/post/_/id/4674235/defenses-failure-gets-wade-phillips-fired&title=Defense\'s%20failure%20gets%20Wade%20Phillip s%20fired)
Print (http://espn.go.com/blog/dallas/cowboys/print?id=4674235)
Comments (http://espn.go.com/blog/dallas/cowboys/post/_/id/4674235/defenses-failure-gets-wade-phillips-fired#comments)[/URL]
By Tim MacMahon
IRVING, Texas -- The Cowboys failed Wade Phillips.
Phillips, who set a soft tone and struggled as a defensive coordinator this season, certainly gets a large share of the blame. But the players who consistently professed their love for the coach performed so poorly that they forced Jerry Jones to fire Phillips.
“Anytime the head coach gets fired, it’s an indictment of the football team,” fill-in quarterback Jon Kitna (http://espn.go.com/blog/dallas/cowboys/post/_/id/4674235/defenses-failure-gets-wade-phillips-fired#comments) said. “I hope it serves as a wakeup call for guys around here. When they start making decisions like that and things like that happen, it’s just a prelude of things to come as far as changes on the football team.”
The defense especially failed Phillips, although opposing players told the Cowboys after games that they’d caught up with their scheme. The Cowboys allowed 1,299 yards and 121 points over the last 12 quarters.
Nose tackle Jay Ratliff (http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/players/profile?playerId=8638), the lone defensive player to talk to the media Monday, acknowledged that he felt like the defense let Phillips down. Ratliff, like Phillips, just can’t figure out how a defense that allowed the fewest points in the NFC last season deteriorated so drastically.
Read more: [URL]http://espn.go.com/blog/dallas/cowboys/post/_/id/4674235/defenses-failure-gets-wade-phillips-fired