News: Bob Sturm: Why I was so wrong about Cowboys coach Jason Garrett

[CCBoy]

Bob Sturm: Why I was so wrong about Cowboys coach Jason Garrett
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Bob Sturm


http://cowboysblog.***BANNED-URL***...wrong-about-cowboys-coach-jason-garrett.html/




Roughly 2 years ago, immediately following the end of the 2012 season, I discussed the end of another year in Dallas. That particular season ended with the team losing a game in Washington to a hobbled QB and to self-imposed mistakes in too many critical moments.

The season featured a football team that seemed talented, but could never string things together and find a stride that would separate them from the peloton of mediocrity. It had been the end of the 2nd full season of Jason Garrett, less than a month after the death of Jerry Brown (who was killed in that tragic auto accident with Josh Brent behind the wheel).

I looked at every angle of the team and tried to figure out where the progress was and what we could expect from this team moving forward. I discussed big changes and little ones and philosophical premises that seemed filled with fantasy over reality. This is where the Cowboys are, but way over here (across the room), this is where the Cowboys need to be to be taken seriously. The span seemed massive and the bright signs seemed few...

 

[waving monkey]

Strum this was were we parts ways.
I'll explain if anybody cares

 

[BAZ]

Strum this was were we parts ways.
I'll explain if anybody cares

Please.

There is no mention of Linehan or Marinelli taking the reigns in 2014, this should not be played down and they didn't even come up in that article.

 

[Sportsbabe]

...and your opinion matters soooo much... Why??? Bob Sturm.

I hate "let me validate myself" articles.

 

[arglebargle]

Please.

There is no mention of Linehan or Marinelli taking the reigns in 2014, this should not be played down and they didn't even come up in that article.

I'd say Garrett picking his co-ordinators is an important part of his coaching.

 

[gmoney112]

Please.

There is no mention of Linehan or Marinelli taking the reigns in 2014, this should not be played down and they didn't even come up in that article.

"Taking the reigns"?

The fact that he followed *the* successful business model of surrounding yourself with quality assistants is a testament, and not a detriment, to the quality of coach he is.

The fact he was able to obtain them speaks volumes about their high opinion of him.

 

[Toruk_Makto]

I have never seen a CEO take so much grief for hiring bright and talented minds to work for him.

Do Google and Apple and Facebook hire dummies and rise and fall on Sergey, Tim and Mark?

 

[BAZ]

"Taking the reigns"?

The fact that he followed *the* successful business model of surrounding yourself with quality assistants is a testament, and not a detriment, to the quality of coach he is.

The fact he was able to obtain them speaks volumes about their high opinion of him.

Before season ended they were considered Jerry hires.

 

[ShiningStar]

Yes Linehan had to take the reigns, remember it was Garrett who, when the run was working would abandon it, see the GB game of 13. Tells you all you need to know. So, insert Linehan, whos main job it, "if the run is working, stick with it" and what do we do, run the heck out of a runner who can be run with. And what happens, we win some games. Something Garrett did not figure out on his own. And dont justify it, he had years to figure it out.

Now, lets forget the 8-8 seasons, because thats what everyone is doing, but do you honestly think the Giants will roll over twice for us? That, many teams on our new schedule have not gotten better? Some did some didnt, but we are not going to have the NFCE lay down and let us route them again. So i expect a few less wins this year. Yes, that will affect on Garrett if we drop to 8. No i dont fully expect an 8-8 season, but im also not expecting 12 wins either. That will all be determined on the field regardless of our own ideas as it always is.

Does all the credit go to Garrett, no, we had to hire Linehan, it wasnt a luxury, it was a need. Its not like Garrett had a good season and said "you know what will be better, lets add another offensive guy to get us over that boost" No, Linehan was hired because someone would simply see something working and panic and got pass happy. Did the run have success? Yes, and who was it with, every so called expert who claimed "he runs into darkness" and what happens with a better line and a guy who can stick to the run, records broke. Was the pass happy way successful? no.

Am i thrilled with Garrett? No, he would never have been hired, in fact i would let him interview just to tell him if we ever hired him, we would quickly rectify it and fire him during a game. But he is our coach. Im not going to get excited over 1 good season. I do feel he will have success in part with everything else that has come around him. Better scouting, good coaching, good talent, Everything coming together that even made some previous coaches in the league better than they were.

I dont feel Garrett can go offense to offense with anyone in our division, so im hoping he leaves that to Linehan. After watching Chip come into the league and face Garrett and steal his lunch and eat it front of him, no, i dont feel Garrett can challenge offensively with any one. Tom Coughlin with a bad team, can usually rally to beat Garrett, and RG3 by himself beat on Garrett with a hobbled leg. So i have little faith he can do that.

What i will credit Garrett for, getting in better players. Does that always translate to a better? No, but its mainly dependent on your view of success in the league is. Do i feel Garrett could ruin this? No, i feel the organization has taken time to put all the safety nets around him that it would be harder for him to fail than to succeed. He only needs 9 wins for public relations to say "9 is better than 8, SUCCESS".

What am i looking for concerning the next year. Simple, and i think this happened last year, so lets see it continue this year, I want Garrett to keep the penalities low again. It was becoming a staple that if the Cowboys converted a 3rd and long, there was a penalty somewhere. A sack, Dallas got a penalty, for a while any positive play that was good, got us a penalty.

I dont always necesarily need the roster churned, but Garrett has been doing that fairly well as of late, so ill credit him with that too. I will also credit him with having the team better prepared as well. The team from 2014 was vastly different from 2013.

 

[ShiningStar]

I have never seen a CEO take so much grief for hiring bright and talented minds to work for him.

Do Google and Apple and Facebook hire dummies and rise and fall on Sergey, Tim and Mark?

umm, yea, I believe at one point Microsoft had to keep Apple afloat because of "monoply laws, also the same company that fired Jobs. So when thinking of apple and being smart, leave that company out.

Google successful, possibly, depends on what your definition is.

the rest of the post is ok, i like the word "a"

 

[AsthmaField]

I have never seen a CEO take so much grief for hiring bright and talented minds to work for him.

Do Google and Apple and Facebook hire dummies and rise and fall on Sergey, Tim and Mark?

Jimmy Johnson won absolutely nothing until he hired Norv Turner to run the offense. Dave Shula was about to get Jimmy run out of Dallas before Jimmy hired Norv.

Good coordinators matter.

 

[Toruk_Makto]

umm, yea, I believe at one point Microsoft had to keep Apple afloat because of "monoply laws, also the same company that fired Jobs. So when thinking of apple and being smart, leave that company out.

Google successful, possibly, depends on what your definition is.

the rest of the post is ok, i like the word "a"

Cool story bro.

 

[CCBoy]

Jimmy Johnson won absolutely nothing until he hired Norv Turner to run the offense. Dave Shula was about to get Jimmy run out of Dallas before Jimmy hired Norv.

Good coordinators matter.

So true. And Jimmy was supported by two very good coordinators through the run. Jimmy almost alienated Troy Aikman completely.

And Norv Turner was a last alternative at the time.

 

[Sportsbabe]

Jimmy Johnson won absolutely nothing until he hired Norv Turner to run the offense. Dave Shula was about to get Jimmy run out of Dallas before Jimmy hired Norv.

Good coordinators matter.

But it takes game to recognize game.

 

[DandyDon1722]

Yes Linehan had to take the reigns, remember it was Garrett who, when the run was working would abandon it, see the GB game of 13. Tells you all you need to know. So, insert Linehan, whos main job it, "if the run is working, stick with it" and what do we do, run the heck out of a runner who can be run with. And what happens, we win some games. Something Garrett did not figure out on his own. And dont justify it, he had years to figure it out.

Now, lets forget the 8-8 seasons, because thats what everyone is doing, but do you honestly think the Giants will roll over twice for us? That, many teams on our new schedule have not gotten better? Some did some didnt, but we are not going to have the NFCE lay down and let us route them again. So i expect a few less wins this year. Yes, that will affect on Garrett if we drop to 8. No i dont fully expect an 8-8 season, but im also not expecting 12 wins either. That will all be determined on the field regardless of our own ideas as it always is.

Does all the credit go to Garrett, no, we had to hire Linehan, it wasnt a luxury, it was a need. Its not like Garrett had a good season and said "you know what will be better, lets add another offensive guy to get us over that boost" No, Linehan was hired because someone would simply see something working and panic and got pass happy. Did the run have success? Yes, and who was it with, every so called expert who claimed "he runs into darkness" and what happens with a better line and a guy who can stick to the run, records broke. Was the pass happy way successful? no.

Am i thrilled with Garrett? No, he would never have been hired, in fact i would let him interview just to tell him if we ever hired him, we would quickly rectify it and fire him during a game. But he is our coach. Im not going to get excited over 1 good season. I do feel he will have success in part with everything else that has come around him. Better scouting, good coaching, good talent, Everything coming together that even made some previous coaches in the league better than they were.

I dont feel Garrett can go offense to offense with anyone in our division, so im hoping he leaves that to Linehan. After watching Chip come into the league and face Garrett and steal his lunch and eat it front of him, no, i dont feel Garrett can challenge offensively with any one. Tom Coughlin with a bad team, can usually rally to beat Garrett, and RG3 by himself beat on Garrett with a hobbled leg. So i have little faith he can do that.

What i will credit Garrett for, getting in better players. Does that always translate to a better? No, but its mainly dependent on your view of success in the league is. Do i feel Garrett could ruin this? No, i feel the organization has taken time to put all the safety nets around him that it would be harder for him to fail than to succeed. He only needs 9 wins for public relations to say "9 is better than 8, SUCCESS".

What am i looking for concerning the next year. Simple, and i think this happened last year, so lets see it continue this year, I want Garrett to keep the penalities low again. It was becoming a staple that if the Cowboys converted a 3rd and long, there was a penalty somewhere. A sack, Dallas got a penalty, for a while any positive play that was good, got us a penalty.

I dont always necesarily need the roster churned, but Garrett has been doing that fairly well as of late, so ill credit him with that too. I will also credit him with having the team better prepared as well. The team from 2014 was vastly different from 2013.

Your entire post was about tangibles when in reality it is the intangibles of Garrett's leadership as a coach you completely missed. Leadership qualities are nuanced and subtle. They are not about getting better players. It's about communication between coach and player, between ownership and coach. It's about building consensus, identifying goals and defining a direction. It's about instilling confidence and belief, Does he own the room, does he engage, does he have "it."

I hope you got a chance to see his speech at Princeton. It was riveting. I'm not trying to criticize your post I'm trying to expand the definition of what a good to great coach is and it's so much more than getting good players.

An army of lions led by a sheep can never defeat an army of sheep led by a lion.

Forget his boyish looks - Garrett is a lion.

 

[CATCH17]

Garrett..

Top 10 Monday - Saturday coach

Bottom 3-5 game-day coach.

 

[big dog cowboy]

"I was fine with Garrett’s run ending in 2012. And I am here to say that I was wrong. I was cynical about his ability to solve this team’s issues and to truly have a plan and the authority to carry out that plan. And I am here to say that I was wrong.

The Jason Garrett growth has been substantial, and it often takes clear and obvious evidence for some of us to ignore our confirmation bias and just consider the evidence that doesn’t agree with our predetermined view.

I like how his team has developed under his plan. I know what a Jason Garrett football player looks like and I know what they are trying to accomplish. I see the vision and it doesn’t hurt that it matches my dream of 24 months ago. I wondered how the Cowboys could ignore their past and try to design a team that doesn’t rely on 300 pound bullies. Heck, I wondered how they could ignore that Seattle and San Francisco have dominated the NFC in the last 5 years with nothing but might and power. And now, right under our noses, they have become the next team in the NFC that is built to beat you up."

This speaks volumns to what the future years with Garrett could possibly hold for our team. I love the direction we are moving with FA and the draft. All we need is to find a QB to take over when Romo retires.

 

[dargonking999]

But it takes game to recognize game.

Game recognize game grandad and you looking kinda unfamiliar right now

 

[DFWJC]

More often than not, I agree with Sturm.

Not in 2012 though. That team sucked and probably overachieved going 8-8.
Worst defense in Dallas history and a complete wet paper bag at Oline.
Also , a beat up QB and RBs, and a WR1 who still hadn't figured out how to run routes.

 

[xwalker]

Strum this was were we parts ways.
I'll explain if anybody cares

I don't know how people could not see that Garrett was highly like to be the best HC for the Cowboys. For somebody like Sturm that has following the Cowboys all these years, he should have known that neither the Parcells type or the Wade Phillips type would work here. The Parcells type just won't work with Jerry for long. Jerry can't have a HC that gets all of the attention and runs the team like he is in complete control. The HC under Jerry has to know how to manipulate Jerry without Jerry even knowing it for the most part.

Garrett seemed like and still seems like the idea middle ground between dictator Parcells and Jerry errand boy Wade. I don't know why somebody like Sturm couldn't see that then. I guess that Garrett's role as Offensive Coordinator clouded the issue. As a young HC, he really should not have been trying to do both jobs. They can get OCs. It is Garrett's ability to run a team like a real coach without having to get all of the attention like Parcells that makes him valuable to the Jerry owned Cowboys.