Dallas Cowboys: Head Coach Power Rankings Stiff Jason Garrett
By Erik Lambert
NFL.com released it’s power rankings for the best head coaches in the game of football. Suffice to say the Dallas Cowboys got jilted bad.
Look nobody is saying Jason Garrett is Tom Landry but the guy continues to get disrespected in a major way. How Elliott Harrison, who wrote the column, can justify putting Mike Zimmer and John Fox ahead of him is beyond perplexing. Sure Fox went to two Super Bowls but that was four years ago. He’s 9-23 since he left Denver. Zimmer made the playoffs once and has been hovering around average the rest of the time.
Garrett has posted a losing record just once in his career. That being 2015 thanks to an ill-timed string of injuries including Tony Romo. He was 5-3 in his first eight games, .500 for three-straight years and then went 12-4 in 2014, helping the team win their first playoff game in five years. If that weren’t enough, he just got done posting a 13-3 record with a rookie quarterback under center.
"“In August, the season appeared lost following injuries to Tony Romo and backup Kellen Moore. By January, Garrett had his guys in the playoffs. Offensive Rookie of the Year Dak Prescott and NFL rushing leader Ezekiel Elliott had much to do with the overall success, but you can’t take credit away from Garrett, who lets his assistants coach. That includes offensive coordinator Scott Linehan, who worked wonders with Prescott. Garrett’s steady hand and experience as a journeyman quarterback should serve Prescott and this Dallas team well going forward.”"
Overcoming his own front office
Garrett has thrived despite some questionable personnel decisions over the past few years, particularly on the defensive side of the ball. Like any good head coach he’s worked through it and continued to make this team look Super Bowl capable. Of course he’ll need more success before he can be considered one of the top guys in the league. At the same time the level of disrespect he continues to receive is rather surprising.
Maybe that will change after this year. Then again when a man has the aura of Jerry Jones hanging over him, it will always be that way.