Coaches Discussion Part I- 2008 NFL Coach of the Year

Originally I was going to do a top five list of who I thought were the five best coaches and use by previous post to determine that. But after looking at the teams and the head coaches, I could only come up with three. See, just because I team is good doesn't mean the head coach deserves praise. And just because a team did terrible last year and great this year does also not warrant coach of the year credit (although that's usually a determinant for who does get the CoY award). The vast majority of teams that have winning records is the result of great talent on the field. The New York Giants, for example. Their offensive line is amazing. They had TWO running backs go over 1000 yards. TWO! Most teams don't even have one. They also have some of the best talent and depth in pass rushers. That organization simple knows talent. Tom Coughlin deserves some credit for easing up on his harsh personality to create a cohesive locker room, but your personality alone should not get you CoY votes. So without further ado, here's my top three

3) Jeff Fisher, Tennessee Titans. I think the Hall of Fame praise he got in the beginning of the year is somewhat unwarranted, but the fact remains he did an excellent job this year. First of all, any team that dethrones the Indianapolis Colts deserves a HUGE pat on the back. But Jeff Fisher did it with essentially the same players as last year, where they only went 8-8. He helped develop his defense to put pressure on the QB (even AFTER losing pro bowl defensive end Kyle Van De Bosch) and still have a phenominal secondary just in case a QB ever got away. This defense was more than just talent alone because this same talent was never THIS good. He also did a great job playing to his strengths on offense. Kerry Collins is really not that good. But Chris Johnson and LenDale White are. And teams knew this. Yet Fisher was still able to run over teams and make sure his QB didn't throw picks. And in games where teams stopped his great running attacks (ie the one vs Chicago, he helped change strategy to end up winning the game in the second half. His team absolutely deserved to be the best team in the NFL.

2) Tony Sparano. Miami Dolphins. This roster from top to bottom was really not that good. They had some talent here and there (i.e. Ronnie Brown, Joey Porter) but their best weapon, Jason Taylor, was traded away. The only real difference between last year's squad and this year team was two things: Chad Pennington and not hearing a peep from Ricky Williams. Chad Pennington is not THAT much of a difference maker to just accrue 11 wins. So what does Sparano do with his lackluster squad- he plays to their strengths. A lot of dink and dumps and a lot of trickery. A lot of designing schemes to utilize your best defensive weapon (Porter) to attack the QB. The reason the Wildcat offense was prevalent throughout the NFL? Tony Sparano. You think the Dolphins would have scored five TDs on the Patriots without it? Nope. And when teams starting getting wise to the Wildcat, Sparano adjusted and played gold ol' smash mouth running football. Sparano has done so much with very little and helped turn this franchise around

1) Bill Belichick. New England Patriots. No coach is better at attacking his opponent's weakness. Oh, he's going to throw the ball. But where the ball is thrown and where he tells his receivers to run to is the few places you don't want the Patriots to be. Are you weak up the middle? Well, a lot of screen passes to where the receiver runs from the sideline to the middle. Is your right tackle not that good of a blocker? Well, guess which player his blitzes are going to attack. And he did this with lots of injures. Not only to Tom Brady but he lost a lot of his great star defensive players to free agency or the injury bug, yet STILL was able to thwart his defensive will. Are you beating the Patriots by 24 with one quarter left to go? Don't be surprised if the game is tied or if you lose at the end. No coach is better at half time and game time adjustments than Bill Belicheck. And his players love him. LOVE HIM. It's crazy to think but if Belicheck told his players to strip naked and do the Chicken Dance during half time, all 53 players would. Without question. (The only reason Bill probably doesn't do this is because he needs his players to make half time adjustments!)

Oh, and who makes the Patriots better: Tom Brady or Bill Belichick? Both. Belicheck helps the team win games, Brady helps the teams be absolutely fucking amazing. Plus Tom Brady doesn't play defense.