|
|
Mike McCarthy’s defense is getting a major makeover.
The Green Bay Packers' coach on Monday scrapped the defensive scheme of his first three years as coach by firing almost his entire defensive coaching staff.
Only Winston Moss, the assistant head coach and linebackers coach, Joe Whitt Jr., the defensive quality control coach, were retained on that side of the ball after McCarthy’s purge.
McCarthy not only fired defensive coordinator Bob Sanders, but also cornerbacks coach Lionel Washington, who had been with the Packers since 1999; defensive tackles coach Robert Nunn, defensive ends coach Carl Hairston and secondary coach Kurt Schottenheimer, all of whom had been with the team since at least 2006. McCarthy also fired his strength and conditioning coach, Rock Gullickson.
McCarthy did not make himself available to reporters on Monday to discuss his decisions, but it’s obvious he wants to run a new defensive system, perhaps even the radically different 3-4 scheme, depending on his choice to replace Sanders.
Regardless, the new coordinator will be able to hand-pick almost his entire staff to teach and implement his system.
In a written statement released by the team, McCarthy said only: “These are difficult decisions. I hold each of these men in high regard on a personal level, and I want thank them for their service to the Green Bay Packers.”
McCarthy is expected to move quickly to begin interviews to fill the position, and there are several respected defensive coaches available for the role.
Perhaps the top two candidates are Moss, who also has interviewed for the head-coaching position with the St. Louis Rams, and Mike Nolan, who was McCarthy’s boss with San Francisco in 2005 and was fired as head coach by the 49ers after seven games this season.
Among the biggest issues McCarthy faces is whether he wants to hire a coach with experience as an NFL defensive coordinator or will take a chance on a rising young assistant who coaches a scheme McCarthy likes, and whether McCarthy and General Manager Ted Thompson are willing to make the major leap from a 4-3 defense to a 3-4.
The 3-4 requires different personnel than the 4-3 on the defensive line and at linebacker, though some coaches and scouts prefer it because they think it’s easier to find the hybrid defensive end-outside linebackers who play such a key role in the scheme than it is to find 4-3 defensive ends. Those hybrid ends-linebackers generally are ‘tweeners who don’t fit in a 4-3 because they’re too small to play defensive end and not agile enough to play linebacker.
One top candidate: Winston Moss
McCarthy made Moss, 43, a key member of his coaching staff in 2007 by adding assistant head coach to his title, which means Moss can’t break his contract with the Packers to coach for another team unless it’s as head coach.
The question is whether McCarthy, who is entering his fourth year as coach after going only 6-10, will be willing to of give the job to someone who’s never been a coordinator and live with the likely growing pains.
Moss, who played linebacker in the NFL for 11 seasons, worked with McCarthy on the New Orleans Saints’ coaching staff from 2000 to 2004, and then rejoined him as linebackers coach when McCarthy became Packers coach in 2006.
Though Moss worked the past three seasons under Sanders, he also coached in Jim Haslett’s 4-3 defensive scheme with New Orleans and does not appear wedded to either system. It’s unclear exactly what defense he’d run as a coordinator, though it presumably would be a 4-3 scheme.
Another top candidate: Mike Nolan
Nolan, on the other hand, could be a top candidate because he has an extensive track record as NFL defensive coordinator and appears to have had a good working relationship with McCarthy in their one year together in San Francisco.
Nolan, 49, was an NFL defensive coordinator for 11 seasons as well as the 49ers’ head coach for 3˝ years. The 49ers hired him because of his performance as Baltimore’s defensive coordinator from 2002 to 2004, when in his final two seasons the Ravens finished in the top six in the NFL in both fewest yards allowed and fewest points allowed. He also was defensive coordinator for the New York Jets (2000), Washington Redskins (1997-99) and New York Giants (1993-96).
Nolan became had coach for a rebuilding San Francisco team and was unable to turn it around on either side of the ball — the 49ers’ defenses ranked Nos. 30, 32 and 20 in points allowed in 2005 to 2007, respectively.
But his defense in Baltimore, after finishing ranked No. 22 in yards allowed and No. 19 in points allowed in his first season, became one of the best in the league in 2003 and 2004. In 2003, the Ravens finished third in yards allowed and sixth in points, and in 2004 they were sixth in both categories.
The possible drawback to hiring Nolan is that he runs primarily a 3-4 defense, though he occasionally mixes in some 4-3. That would require a major change in philosophy and personnel for the Packers, though Nolan has good reputation in league circles as a hard worker and a coach defensive players like playing for.
The rest of the field
Here’s a thumbnail look at several other former NFL defensive coordinators available as well as a sampling of position coaches who are considered good candidates to become coordinators:
Gregg Williams: Another highly respected and experienced defensive coordinator for Tennessee (1997-2000), Washington (2004-07) and Jacksonville (’08), as well as the former head coach of Buffalo (2001-03).
The 50-year old was let go by Jacksonville coach Jack Del Rio last week because of philosophical differences — Williams’ runs an aggressive, blitz-oriented 4-3 defense, but Del Rio, a former defensive coordinator himself, asked Williams to scale back. The Jaguars finished No. 17 in yards allowed and No. 21 in points allowed this season.
However, Williams produced three good defenses in his four seasons with Washington. In 2004, his defense ranked No. 3 in yards and No. 5 in points; in 2005, No. 9 in both categories; in 2006, Nos. 31 and 27, respectively; and in 2007, Nos. 8 and 11.
Jim Haslett: Hired McCarthy as offensive coordinator when he became New Orleans Saints coach in 2000, though McCarthy left the Saints for San Francisco in 2005, and it’s unclear what kind of relationship the two have now.
Haslett, 53, just finished this season as interim coach of the Rams and is a candidate to take over full time, though the Rams likely will go outside the organization for their new coach. He was the Rams’ defensive coordinator beginning in 2006, and also was defensive coordinator for Pittsburgh (1997-99) and New Orleans (1996).
Haslett runs a blitz-oriented 4-3 defensive scheme, and the Rams finished No. 21 in yards allowed and No. 31 in points allowed in 2007, and Nos. 23 and 28, respectively, in 2006. In his six seasons as head coach, from 2000 to 2005, the Saints' scoring defense ranked Nos. 10, 27, 26, 14, 28 and 28.
Romeo Crennel: Was fired as Cleveland’s head coach last week. His biggest selling point is working as New England’s defensive coordinator from 2001 to 2004, so he knows the ins and outs of Bill Belichick’s creative, versatile 3-4 defensive scheme.
Crennel, 61, has for now decided to stay with the Browns in an undetermined role. Cleveland’s defense finished last season No. 26 in yards allowed and tied for No. 16 in points.
Eric Mangini: Was fired as the New York Jets’ coach last week. Another Belichick protégé who was New England’s defensive coordinator in 2005. Considered a quality defensive mind but appears to be the leading candidate to become Cleveland’s head coach, a source said.
Rod Marinelli: Was fired as Detroit’s coach last week. Never was a defensive coordinator before becoming the Lions’ coach in 2006, and his niche might be as a defensive line coach and assistant head coach. Runs the Tony Dungy-Monte Kiffin Tampa 2 scheme.
Sean McDermott: At 34. he’s an up-and-comer who has worked in the increasingly popular scheme of Philadelphia defensive coordinator Jim Johnson since 2001. Johnson’s 4-3 system, which the New York Giants also run in a pure form, is probably the most blitz-oriented scheme in the NFL. Johnson will bring almost any combination of linebackers and defensive backs on blitzes, and he’ll do it at almost any time.
Keith Butler: Has been Pittsburgh’s linebackers coach since 2003 and an NFL assistant since 1999 after nine seasons as a coach on the college level. The Steelers' 3-4 scheme has produced good to great defenses and is one of the longest-running success stories in the NFL. The 52-year-old Butler probably is the best candidate for any team looking for a disciple of Steelers defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau.
Pepper Johnson: Has worked for Belichick on New England’s defensive staff since 2001, and at 44 could be ready to become a defensive coordinator. The former Pro Bowl linebacker is gaining respect in league circles as a tough-minded coach. Would bring the flexible Belichick 3-4 system.
Bill Sheridan: Though he's 49, the fourth-year NFL assistant for the Giants might not be quite ready to be a defensive coordinator. Has worked the past two years under Steve Spagnuolo, who brought Johnson’s creative 4-3 system from Philadelphia to the Giants. |
|
01-05-2009, 01:34 PM
