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Dallas' High-Flying Offense Has Garrett's Stock Soaring
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/football/nfl/cowboys/2007-12-26-garrett_N.htm
By: Chris Colston, USA TODAY
IRVING, Texas — His office suggests that of a play-calling geek. An array of markers stand at attention at the edge of his desk: green, yellow, blue and especially red, because red reads easier over black ink when he's changed a script.
A half-full bottle of Gatorade sits beside a stack of notebooks. On the wall before him stretches a white video screen, paused in mid-play. But first-year Dallas Cowboys offensive coordinator Jason Garrett transcends these trappings of geekdom.
It could be his piercing blue eyes. His measured cadence. His combination of Ivy League intelligence and street-corner intuition that seems to impress everyone he meets.
Even in a T-shirt and a baseball cap streaked with sweat, Garrett possesses a quality that goes deeper than being adept at designing football plays. And people are noticing.
Despite less than three years of NFL coaching experience, he could land a head coaching job next year. And with the regular season ending this weekend, opportunities could open soon.
Among proven candidates, former Pittsburgh Steelers coach Bill Cowher comes to mind. But teams are on the lookout for the next big thing. And Garrett, says NBC analyst Cris Collinsworth, "is the hottest guy in the league right now."
During an early-season broadcast, Fox analyst Troy Aikman proclaimed Garrett's greatness to a national TV audience. After the game, he spotted Garrett — his Dallas teammate from 1993-99 — outside the Cowboys locker room.
"Oh, by the way, Jason — on the air today, I said you'd be a head coach next year," Aikman said.
Garrett — whose mantra is "take care of today" — looked appalled.
"Well," Aikman said, "I know that by the end of the season, a lot of people will be saying that. I just wanted to be the first."
Garrett, 41, directs the NFL's second-ranked offense that features seven Pro Bowlers; Dallas is an NFC-best 13-2 and has clinched home-field advantage. Buffalo Bills defensive coordinator Perry Fewell matched wits with Garrett in a Monday night game, won by Dallas 25-24 on a last-second, 53-yard field goal.
"It was like (Garrett) was actually on the field, playing quarterback," Fewell says. "He had a rhythm to his play-calling and did a great job of setting up his plays."
Based on a particular personnel group Garrett used on first down and 10, Fewell expected tight end Jason Witten to run the same route he had shown the previous four weeks. "But he changed the route on me," Fewell says, "and (quarterback) Tony Romo hit Witten for a touchdown pass. He anticipated my grouping — and he was right."
In his first season under Garrett, Witten — a four-time Pro Bowl selection — has set career highs in catches (94), receiving yards (1,121) and TDs (seven).
He says Garrett carries "street cred" among players because he played on two Cowboys Super Bowl title teams.
"He's been around some great players and some great teams," Witten says, "so he knows what it takes to win."
In his first full year as a starter, Romo also has blossomed under Garrett's guidance, ranking second in the league in touchdown passes and passing yards.
Garrett asks Romo to turn down his radio for 15 minutes while driving so he can practice calling plays out loud. Garrett does it himself. But because he occasionally gets funny looks from other motorists, they've both learned to shut up when they approach a stoplight.
"If you don't say it out loud, when that call comes in, you're going to be like, 'All right. … uh, wait,' " Romo says. "One little mistake, and somebody's going to get something wrong. So you have to practice it."
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, who thought about hiring Garrett as his head coach before this season, says Garrett "gets people to buy into his ideas and how his ideas become their ideas."
He's always been that way, according to his father, Jim Garrett.
"People gravitate to Jason because they see his interest in them," he says. "A lot of coaches say, 'We're doing it my way.' He doesn't do that.
"When we all get together at my house during the summer in New Jersey, our 27 grandchildren migrate to him. They can smell his humanism and friendship."
Football lineage
Garrett, one of eight siblings, grew up in a football family. His brother John coaches the Dallas tight ends. His brother Judd coaches the St. Louis Rams tight ends. Jim III coached high school football and is a teacher.
Their father, now retired, served as an NFL assistant coach for the New York Giants, Cleveland Browns and New Orleans Saints and was head coach for the WFL's Houston Texans in 1974 and Columbia University in 1985. From 1987-2004, he was a Cowboys scout. Jones' familiarity with Jim Garrett played a big role in hiring his son.
"Jason's lineage meant a lot to me," Jones says. "You just had a sense that osmosis alone was going to influence Jim's children."
But Jim's greatest impact came from creating a strong home environment with wife Jane, preaching consistency and work ethic. The lessons stuck because his kids saw him live those words on a daily basis. Since July 5, 1980, Jim, 77, says he's run at least 2 miles every day of his life. "To see your father rise at 5 a.m. every day in the formative years of your life really makes an impression," Garrett says. "When you talk about consistency and work ethic, to me, he doesn't have to say a word. He lives it."
Bouncing around
Jason Garrett began his college career at Princeton but transferred to Columbia when his father was named head coach. When Jim Garrett resigned after going 0-10, Jason returned to Princeton, with brothers John and Judd. In 1988, Jason's senior year at Princeton, he threw three interceptions in 299 attempts, completed 68.2% of his passes and was named Ivy League player of the year.
But he went undrafted, and the Saints released him from their developmental squad in 1990. He spent that fall as a Princeton assistant before playing in the World League of American Football (a predecessor of NFL Europe) and the CFL. He joined the Dallas practice squad in 1992 and then backed up Aikman in Dallas for seven seasons. "Jason spent more time like a coach drawing up plays," Aikman says.
After leaving Dallas, Garrett spent four seasons with the York Giants (2000-03). In his final season, 2004, he played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Miami Dolphins. When he realized it was time to retire in 2005, most of the jobs in the NFL had been filled. But Nick Saban's Dolphins had an opening. Garrett asked Aikman to put in a call to offensive coordinator Scott Linehan on his behalf.
Aikman got Linehan's voice mail and left this message: "Scott, Jason Garrett is one of the smartest people I've ever been around. It wouldn't matter what business I was entering; if they said I could hire one person, Jason would be the first guy I'd hire. He always looks at the bright side of things, always finds the good in people. You'd be fortunate to have him on your staff."
Linehan, now head coach in St. Louis, said it was the strongest recommendation he'd ever heard. Garrett got the job coaching Miami's quarterbacks, managing a revolving group that included Gus Frerotte, Sage Rosenfels, Joey Harrington, Daunte Culpepper and Cleo Lemon.
First hired
Garrett arrived in Dallas this year with a strange twist. When Bill Parcells retired Jan. 22, Jones needed a new head coach — yet hired Garrett as coordinator Jan. 25. The move raised eyebrows; Garrett only had two years of NFL coaching experience.
But Garrett's interview went so well it left Cowboys officials giddy. Jones seriously considered him for the head vacancy, along with 10 other candidates.
Jones ultimately settled on San Diego Chargers defensive coordinator Wade Phillips, who had five years of head coaching experience. But Garrett remains in Jones' long-range plans.
"Wade understands that Jerry Jones would like Garrett to be the heir apparent," Collinsworth says. "At the same time, there's no denying the job Wade has done. He might win coach of the year honors. Now what you do to get Jason Garrett to stay until the Wade Phillips era is over, I don't know."
Garrett's status with Jones gives him a position of leverage; if another team does come calling after the season, he can be selective, knowing his future in Dallas is secure. "If he's not a head coach next year, it's only because he chose not to be one," Aikman says.
Garrett prefers not to talk about next year. His father says his son "will not do anything unless he feels prepared to be a head coach. I don't think he's going to just run into anything. He loves Dallas."
Asked if the chance of losing Garrett worries him, Jones says, "Worry is not the word. If someone gets a head coaching opportunity, your agreements and contracts can't stand in the way. It's all about having a chance to get in a better spot.
"What you hope is that Jason has the kind of success so it becomes an issue. At least, an issue for me — an opportunity for somebody else."
**********************************************************
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/football/nfl/cowboys/2007-12-26-garrett_N.htm
By: Chris Colston, USA TODAY
IRVING, Texas — His office suggests that of a play-calling geek. An array of markers stand at attention at the edge of his desk: green, yellow, blue and especially red, because red reads easier over black ink when he's changed a script.
A half-full bottle of Gatorade sits beside a stack of notebooks. On the wall before him stretches a white video screen, paused in mid-play. But first-year Dallas Cowboys offensive coordinator Jason Garrett transcends these trappings of geekdom.
It could be his piercing blue eyes. His measured cadence. His combination of Ivy League intelligence and street-corner intuition that seems to impress everyone he meets.
Even in a T-shirt and a baseball cap streaked with sweat, Garrett possesses a quality that goes deeper than being adept at designing football plays. And people are noticing.
Despite less than three years of NFL coaching experience, he could land a head coaching job next year. And with the regular season ending this weekend, opportunities could open soon.
Among proven candidates, former Pittsburgh Steelers coach Bill Cowher comes to mind. But teams are on the lookout for the next big thing. And Garrett, says NBC analyst Cris Collinsworth, "is the hottest guy in the league right now."
During an early-season broadcast, Fox analyst Troy Aikman proclaimed Garrett's greatness to a national TV audience. After the game, he spotted Garrett — his Dallas teammate from 1993-99 — outside the Cowboys locker room.
"Oh, by the way, Jason — on the air today, I said you'd be a head coach next year," Aikman said.
Garrett — whose mantra is "take care of today" — looked appalled.
"Well," Aikman said, "I know that by the end of the season, a lot of people will be saying that. I just wanted to be the first."
Garrett, 41, directs the NFL's second-ranked offense that features seven Pro Bowlers; Dallas is an NFC-best 13-2 and has clinched home-field advantage. Buffalo Bills defensive coordinator Perry Fewell matched wits with Garrett in a Monday night game, won by Dallas 25-24 on a last-second, 53-yard field goal.
"It was like (Garrett) was actually on the field, playing quarterback," Fewell says. "He had a rhythm to his play-calling and did a great job of setting up his plays."
Based on a particular personnel group Garrett used on first down and 10, Fewell expected tight end Jason Witten to run the same route he had shown the previous four weeks. "But he changed the route on me," Fewell says, "and (quarterback) Tony Romo hit Witten for a touchdown pass. He anticipated my grouping — and he was right."
In his first season under Garrett, Witten — a four-time Pro Bowl selection — has set career highs in catches (94), receiving yards (1,121) and TDs (seven).
He says Garrett carries "street cred" among players because he played on two Cowboys Super Bowl title teams.
"He's been around some great players and some great teams," Witten says, "so he knows what it takes to win."
In his first full year as a starter, Romo also has blossomed under Garrett's guidance, ranking second in the league in touchdown passes and passing yards.
Garrett asks Romo to turn down his radio for 15 minutes while driving so he can practice calling plays out loud. Garrett does it himself. But because he occasionally gets funny looks from other motorists, they've both learned to shut up when they approach a stoplight.
"If you don't say it out loud, when that call comes in, you're going to be like, 'All right. … uh, wait,' " Romo says. "One little mistake, and somebody's going to get something wrong. So you have to practice it."
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, who thought about hiring Garrett as his head coach before this season, says Garrett "gets people to buy into his ideas and how his ideas become their ideas."
He's always been that way, according to his father, Jim Garrett.
"People gravitate to Jason because they see his interest in them," he says. "A lot of coaches say, 'We're doing it my way.' He doesn't do that.
"When we all get together at my house during the summer in New Jersey, our 27 grandchildren migrate to him. They can smell his humanism and friendship."
Football lineage
Garrett, one of eight siblings, grew up in a football family. His brother John coaches the Dallas tight ends. His brother Judd coaches the St. Louis Rams tight ends. Jim III coached high school football and is a teacher.
Their father, now retired, served as an NFL assistant coach for the New York Giants, Cleveland Browns and New Orleans Saints and was head coach for the WFL's Houston Texans in 1974 and Columbia University in 1985. From 1987-2004, he was a Cowboys scout. Jones' familiarity with Jim Garrett played a big role in hiring his son.
"Jason's lineage meant a lot to me," Jones says. "You just had a sense that osmosis alone was going to influence Jim's children."
But Jim's greatest impact came from creating a strong home environment with wife Jane, preaching consistency and work ethic. The lessons stuck because his kids saw him live those words on a daily basis. Since July 5, 1980, Jim, 77, says he's run at least 2 miles every day of his life. "To see your father rise at 5 a.m. every day in the formative years of your life really makes an impression," Garrett says. "When you talk about consistency and work ethic, to me, he doesn't have to say a word. He lives it."
Bouncing around
Jason Garrett began his college career at Princeton but transferred to Columbia when his father was named head coach. When Jim Garrett resigned after going 0-10, Jason returned to Princeton, with brothers John and Judd. In 1988, Jason's senior year at Princeton, he threw three interceptions in 299 attempts, completed 68.2% of his passes and was named Ivy League player of the year.
But he went undrafted, and the Saints released him from their developmental squad in 1990. He spent that fall as a Princeton assistant before playing in the World League of American Football (a predecessor of NFL Europe) and the CFL. He joined the Dallas practice squad in 1992 and then backed up Aikman in Dallas for seven seasons. "Jason spent more time like a coach drawing up plays," Aikman says.
After leaving Dallas, Garrett spent four seasons with the York Giants (2000-03). In his final season, 2004, he played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Miami Dolphins. When he realized it was time to retire in 2005, most of the jobs in the NFL had been filled. But Nick Saban's Dolphins had an opening. Garrett asked Aikman to put in a call to offensive coordinator Scott Linehan on his behalf.
Aikman got Linehan's voice mail and left this message: "Scott, Jason Garrett is one of the smartest people I've ever been around. It wouldn't matter what business I was entering; if they said I could hire one person, Jason would be the first guy I'd hire. He always looks at the bright side of things, always finds the good in people. You'd be fortunate to have him on your staff."
Linehan, now head coach in St. Louis, said it was the strongest recommendation he'd ever heard. Garrett got the job coaching Miami's quarterbacks, managing a revolving group that included Gus Frerotte, Sage Rosenfels, Joey Harrington, Daunte Culpepper and Cleo Lemon.
First hired
Garrett arrived in Dallas this year with a strange twist. When Bill Parcells retired Jan. 22, Jones needed a new head coach — yet hired Garrett as coordinator Jan. 25. The move raised eyebrows; Garrett only had two years of NFL coaching experience.
But Garrett's interview went so well it left Cowboys officials giddy. Jones seriously considered him for the head vacancy, along with 10 other candidates.
Jones ultimately settled on San Diego Chargers defensive coordinator Wade Phillips, who had five years of head coaching experience. But Garrett remains in Jones' long-range plans.
"Wade understands that Jerry Jones would like Garrett to be the heir apparent," Collinsworth says. "At the same time, there's no denying the job Wade has done. He might win coach of the year honors. Now what you do to get Jason Garrett to stay until the Wade Phillips era is over, I don't know."
Garrett's status with Jones gives him a position of leverage; if another team does come calling after the season, he can be selective, knowing his future in Dallas is secure. "If he's not a head coach next year, it's only because he chose not to be one," Aikman says.
Garrett prefers not to talk about next year. His father says his son "will not do anything unless he feels prepared to be a head coach. I don't think he's going to just run into anything. He loves Dallas."
Asked if the chance of losing Garrett worries him, Jones says, "Worry is not the word. If someone gets a head coaching opportunity, your agreements and contracts can't stand in the way. It's all about having a chance to get in a better spot.
"What you hope is that Jason has the kind of success so it becomes an issue. At least, an issue for me — an opportunity for somebody else."
**********************************************************
