Ranking the Cowboys Head Coaches

[T-RO]

Can you imagine how successful Parcells would have been if he had taken over after Jimmy instead of Switzer?

I can!

I do wonder how he would have handled the scheme. He was a 3-4 coach...but the team had an outstanding defense. Quite possibly he would have adjusted and learned the 4-3.

 

[ABQCOWBOY]

Garrett is a VERY distant fourth. No way you can rank Tuna below him.

I agree. Parcells is HOF Coach, Garrett is one and two as a HC in the playoffs.

 

[Toruk_Makto]

If a coach can't win playoff games, is he even worth ranking?

It's not like players where regular season stats have at least a modicum of value.

This is like you posting simple win loss record in h2h meetings between quarterbacks to determine who was better.

I'd never have thought you'd be unwilling to take a nuanced position on something football related.

 

[MikeT22]

Garrett is a VERY distant fourth. No way you can rank Tuna below him.

Exactly. And I think Parcells would be a distant 3rd coming here at the end of his career. Switzer would be a very distant 4th by default. Garrett is just a notch above Wade and the rest of the coaches who never should've been hired.

 

[T-RO]

Landry, Johnson, Switzer............... those are the top 3.

Switzer gets completely disrespected by Cowboys fans because of his aww schucks attitude and that he inherited a talented team. But you still have to be able to coach to steer a team to a SB win even if you have a quality team. We've seen talented teams spit the bit (cough, cough the 2016 Cowboys) not get very far.

Switzer was 5-2 in the playoffs with a SB win. To put Garrett ahead of him, at this point, is laughable. Maybe, hopefully, Garrett eclipses him in the near future but in 7 years Garrett has 2 playoff wins and has never made a NFC title game.

Barry inherited a dozen pro-bowlers and 3 HOF players. He inherited an offensive and defensive system that he didn't change. The coordinators that had been there previously basically ran the show.

With coaches...look at what they inherit and what they build...and what they leave behind. Switzer presided over the melting of a dynasty into a puddle of goop.

Both Garrett and Switzer wield very limited authority and role. They aren't involved in a lot of the X's and O's of offense or defense...and they are often usurped in disciplinary and personnel decisions by Jerry and family. I won't exactly call them figure-heads, but almost.

 

[cowboys5xsbs]

Phillips team went in the tank after Romo was lost for the season.

I think you can have a healthy debate on the 'level of quit' in JG's 2015 club at the end of the season after everbody knew the Cowboys were out of the playoffs.

Last season's 4-12 campaign was horrific.

Even last year we were very competitive. Alot of games came down to the last possession and we just did not have the qb to win games.

 

[cowboys5xsbs]

People like to **** on Garret but look at what he's done since coming here. He has completely changed the culture from Wade Phillips cupcake camp. On top of that he was able to keep Jerry Jones in check enough to draft the players we have now instead of Jerrys' guys, a.k.a Manziel. Garret has also been a much better coach since giving up his play-calling duties to Linehan.

 

[perrykemp]

This is like you posting simple win loss record in h2h meetings between quarterbacks to determine who was better.

I'd never have thought you'd be unwilling to take a nuanced position on something football related.

I can spend tens ways to Tuesday giving you my perspective on how to rank players.

For reason, when it comes to ranking coaches, I just don't find it in myself to care much about the ones who either never made the playoffs or really need got anywhere in playoffs.

I freely admin that's way too nebulous of an approach to good for anything -- but I am trying to be honest about. I think I'd rather spend brain cycles on were the best punters in spots 6-10 in Cowboys history than the best coaches, spots 6-10 (or whatever it is) for coaches. Yes, I am weird.

 

[Sydla]

People like to **** on Garret but look at what he's done since coming here. He has completely changed the culture from Wade Phillips cupcake camp. On top of that he was able to keep Jerry Jones in check enough to draft the players we have now instead of Jerrys' guys, a.k.a Manziel. Garret has also been a much better coach since giving up his play-calling duties to Linehan.

Garrett gets way too much credit for the change in culture and the notion of keeping Jerry in line during the draft. That's been Stephen keeping Jerry in line, not Garrett.

The whole "culture" thing is peculiar to me because what good is a great culture if you aren't winning. 7 years and he has 2 playoff wins. Now maybe the culture will manifest itself into greater playoff success going forward but to date, giving him credit for a great culture when the Cowboys have been a non-factor for much of his 7 years, makes little sense to me.

 

[KJJ]

It's the off-season so time for posts like this to past the time. This is my ranking of the Cowboys head coaches. This is based mostly on their time in Dallas.

1. Tom Landry
He's on the Mount Rushmore of NFL head coaches. Need I say more?

2. Jimmy Johnson
Personnel and leadership were his strength. If only he and Jerry could have coexisted.

3. Jason Garrett
He kept the team competitive while it was being rebuilt. He has a big influence on how the roster is constructed. He's not the best coach in the league but he does a lot of things well and he's gonna be around for awhile. I believe he's going to start reaping the benefits of the rebuilding and go on a good run of seasons. I almost put Parcells in this spot but decided to give the nod to Garrett.

4. Bill Parcells
He also rebuilt the team on the fly and had a tremendous impact on how the roster is constructed. I believe Jerry learned some things that still benefit the Cowboys today. Like Jimmy, he was here much to short a time.

Now it gets tough.

5. Barry Switzer
I believe he could have been an effective NFL head coach but he was in a bad situation here. He had to follow Jimmy, retain the old staff, basically be place holder at the position. He handled better than many would have and did win a championship. If Jerry had kept the talent coming in he might have stuck around longe

6. Chan Gailey
He took over a Cowboys teams that was getting old and was lacking talent due to some really bad drafts. I don't think he was a great hire but e did have the resume to be head coach. Also, he did take a couple of average Cowboys teams to the playoffs each of his two seasons.

7. Wade Phillips
Great coordinator, bad head coach. Talk to the guy for five minutes and you can tell he's not head coaching material. He just doesn't have that leadership skill to lead a football team. However, the team did have a lot of success for his first few years before bottoming out. Parcells built a good team but he could only win one playoff game.

8. Dave Campo
Never should have been hired. Never ... ever ... as a head coach. He had even worse leadership skills to be an NFL head coach. He was also handicapped by some really bad teams and horrible drafts .

That's my list. Feel free to disagree.

Garrett #3??? Top 3 are Landry, Jimmy and Parcells. Parcells brought in Romo and drafted Ware and Witten. He went 10-6 with the same teams that Campo went 5-11 with and Parcells got the team to the playoffs with Quincy Carter in 2003.

 

[ghst187]

Garrett is a VERY distant fourth. No way you can rank Tuna below him.

This x 1000

 

[haleyrules]

Garrett gets way too much credit for the change in culture and the notion of keeping Jerry in line during the draft. That's been Stephen keeping Jerry in line, not Garrett.

The whole "culture" thing is peculiar to me because what good is a great culture if you aren't winning. 7 years and he has 2 playoff wins. Now maybe the culture will manifest itself into greater playoff success going forward but to date, giving him credit for a great culture when the Cowboys have been a non-factor for much of his 7 years, makes little sense to me.

Absolutely. Garrett is little more than a Jerry yes man! Maybe McClay has Jerry's ear or Stephen has gained some influence...but Garrett is a liability and along for the ride.

 

[haleyrules]

To me, the Tuna would be 3rd. He was at least an NFL caliber HC and did bring in some decent players AND had to contend with ole Jerry boy at the height of his arrogance. No easy task.

 

[Sydla]

I should note that the reason I have Switzer over Parcells is because Switzer had more success in Dallas. I was focusing just on success in Dallas. However, if you are just ranking the coaches we have had based on their entire resumes.................. Landry, Jones, Parcells, then Switzer.

Garrett doesn't even sniff the Top 4 at this point.

 

[GoJacks]

OMG, I looked back at the 1999 roster. Remember the feared pass rush of Peppi Zelsner, Ebenezer Ekuban and Kavika Pittman?

 

[rockj7]

Garrett is a VERY distant fourth. No way you can rank Tuna below him.

cml750 I'm not trying to start anything with this but do you think Tuna wins that playoff game against the Packers with the same team

 

[Cowboy89]

Garrett gets way too much credit for the change in culture and the notion of keeping Jerry in line during the draft. That's been Stephen keeping Jerry in line, not Garrett.

The whole "culture" thing is peculiar to me because what good is a great culture if you aren't winning. 7 years and he has 2 playoff wins. Now maybe the culture will manifest itself into greater playoff success going forward but to date, giving him credit for a great culture when the Cowboys have been a non-factor for much of his 7 years, makes little sense to me.

Garrett beat Detroit. Where was his other playoff win?

 

[Sydla]

Garrett beat Detroit. Where was his other playoff win?

I was apparently fraudulently audacious in my recollection of Garrett's playoff accomplishments!

 

[Idgit]

This thread tells me a lot of people romanticize Bill Parcels tenure in Dallas. It's interesting, because I'm not sure why that is. He definitely improved the roster. But we didn't win anything of consequence when he was here, and he kind of left us in the lurch when he went.

 

[KJJ]

This thread tells me a lot of people romanticize Bill Parcels tenure in Dallas. It's interesting, because I'm not sure why that is. He definitely improved the roster. But we didn't win anything of consequence when he was here, and he kind of left us in the lurch when he went.

We didn't win anything of consequence with Parcells but he took over a team that had been declining for several years and had just come off 3 straight 5-11 seasons. The game had passed him by as a HC but he greatly improved the roster with players that helped us contend for a number of years after he left. He found us a QB and he drafted 2 players Witten and Ware that likely will end up in the HOF.