More assistant coaches blurbs

by Dave Halprin on Jan 4, 2008 11:42 PM CST in News Comment 14 comments

FOX Sports John Czarnecki ponders Jason Garrett’s possible future.

No one is quite sure what Garrett's answer is going to be if he is offered the job in Atlanta. Many NFL people believe Garrett, who is only 42, may bide his time waiting on possibly landing the Dallas job in the future or the New York Giants job, should it ever become available. Garrett is from New Jersey and he and his brothers, all NFL coaches, played at Princeton.

Now that’s just not right. Throwing a possible Giants’ gig in the future for Garrett at us? Say it isn’t so.

This article from the Sun-Sentinel has some good info about Tony Sparano and the Dolphins

Another sign pointing to Sparano was the firing of Dolphins offensive line coach Hudson Houck, who has a year remaining on his contract and is considered one of the best offensive line coaches in the NFL.
"You've got to bring in better players, and you bring in someone to run the entire program and [Parcells] is the best guy available," Houck said.
"Bill Parcells is the ideal guy, that's the guy I'd get. Then you bring in your own people."

Houck sure would be a nice replacement if the inevitable happens. But Keyshawn says it’s not inevitable.

[Sparano’s] a good coach, but somebody is missing something. Knowing Bill, I'm not ready to anoint [Sparano] the guy just yet. Mo Carthon and Todd Haley know the program, and they're just as good."

But this little nugget below is something we haven’t talked about much.

Parcells is expected to pursue Cowboys linebackers coach Paul Pasqualoni, the former Syracuse coach, and secondary coach Todd Bowles for staff positions. Bowles is believed to be a strong candidate for the defensive coordinator job, formerly held by Dom Capers. Bowles worked with Parcells in Dallas and on the Jets in 2000.

Now, would Jerry let them go? I think in the NFL rules you only have to let someone go if they are offered a head coaching position. I believe the NFL changed the rules a few years ago because teams were making up titles and calling it a promotion for coaches. So anything below head coach is treated as a lateral move that can be blocked.

Thoughts?

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Jerry says

that he will not release any coach who is undercontract for any position outside of a head coaching offer today on his radio show. This is just media speculation.

by Impatient on Jan 5, 2008 12:27 AM CST reply actions 0 recs

I heard that as well.

In Romo we Trust

by Terry on Jan 5, 2008 11:02 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs

Meshawn is an idiot

He thinks because he and Tuna are good buddies he has some sort of mystical insight. He is just speculating, and he's not even doing a good job at it. I do hope he comes out of retirement to play for BP, just so his media days come to an end. He's about as annoying as any ex-player I've ever heard. "Somebody's missing something" what the hell does that even mean?

by APerfectStar on Jan 5, 2008 4:04 AM CST reply actions 0 recs

Dude

slow your Tuna roll! We need coaches too!

by sublimezg on Jan 5, 2008 8:05 AM CST reply actions 0 recs

Take the high road

Even if you have the legal ability, I don’t think you ever block a guy from leaving who really wants to go. Two reason for this: first, the guy probably isn’t going to do a good job anymore if he feels jilted and held against his will – human nature. Second, if management blocks a guy from leaving, that has a very detrimental effect on your ability to attract top-notch guys in the future. Blocking guys from new opportunities sends a message to future prospective employees that this isn’t a very good place to work.

If Jerry really covets a guy, then he should try and put the best possible compensation/employment opportunity package together and then go into sales mode. But he shouldn’t legally keep a guy from leaving that wants to go.

by Cowboy Louie on Jan 5, 2008 9:47 AM CST reply actions 0 recs

Con-tract

"But he shouldn’t legally keep a guy from leaving that wants to go."

Really? Well, Sprint shouldn't legally keep me from canceling my cell phone service a month after they give me a nice shiny 200 dollar phone for free.

The point of a contract is that Jerry already has put together the best possible compensation and employment package. Think of contracts as establishing a de facto salary cap for coaches.

Or do you believe that it's a good thing when coaches decide to walk out on contracts? Personally, if I were the AD of somewhere like WVU I wouldn't be suing for the 4 mil termination, I'd be asking for specific performance- requiring that Rich Rodriguez coach either your team, or no team for the remainder of the contract period.

If coaches want the flexibility to pull up stakes and leave whenever they want, well, that's what God invented the one year contract for.

by BrodyV on Jan 5, 2008 10:24 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs

response to your position

If you think your phone contract with Sprint is a relevant comparison to the discussion of coaching changes, then I recommend you don’t waste your time reading the rest of my post because there is no hope of you seeing any validity whatsoever in my perspective.

These coaching contracts are not absolutes. What if Dallas was 2-14 with the 32nd ranked offense in the NFL this year. Would Jerry honor the contracts of Sparano, Garret and the rest? I doubt it. The point is that both sides frequently bail out on these contracts before they run their course. Where I think Jerry might have done something different is that he may have pursued compensation from other clubs a little more forcefully. But ultimately, I wouldn’t stop a guy from leaving even if compensation was refused.

This is management decision and my positions are based on my management experiences. I have found that unhappy employees are generally poor employees. And I assume that someone who is held against their will is not very happy at all. The coaching fraternity is a tight-knit one. I would assume that if a team builds a reputation as one that will block future advances and promotions, then top-notch prospective coaches – the ones with multiple options and opportunities - will view other franchises as better opportunities. Do I know this to be certain? Nope, but it makes intuitive sense to me based on my experiences.

Your statement: The point of a contract is that Jerry already has put together the best possible compensation and employment package. I completely disagree with this. The contracts in force represent the fair market value of the coach at the time of his signing. It does not represent the best possible compensation and employment package Jerry could put together. Given the success of Dallas this season, the market value of our coaches has significantly increased since the time the contract was signed. If Jerry so chooses, he could put together a far, far better compensation and employment package in an attempt to keep our guys.

Think of contracts as establishing a de facto salary cap for coaches. Again, I completely disagree with this. In a free market (which coaching generally is) contracts represent the best deal each individual coach can get at the time of signing. It is nearly opposite of a salary cap. In fact, coaching and management is one area that is not subject to a salary cap and does give big-money clubs an advantage is they spend it wisely.

I do not follow college football so I cannot comment on your WVU perspective.

Regarding one-year contracts, I sometimes think that would be the best way to go.

by Cowboy Louie on Jan 5, 2008 1:46 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

This isnt new

We blocked Pasqualoni and Sporano from taking coordinator positions last year. They will not be allowed to leave unless it is for a head coaching position unless their contract is up, or we receive compensation.

by Impatient on Jan 5, 2008 10:44 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs

This is right to a degree

and it's clear that JJ has taken the high road with Ireland, Sporano and even Red ball. But there is a fine line between generous and stupid and JJ should not allow every coach on the team a chance to interview. The boys have a good thing going and you need a certain amount of continuity to keep that going strong.
If being the Dallas Cowboys, a successful franchise full of history and SB rings, is not enough to lure potential employees then screw them, they can go work for Detroit. Look at New England - I highly doubt that Belicheck is a fun guy to work for, all they do is win SB rings.
The NFL is a business and the most successful franchises lure the smart businessmen who want to win and advance their own careers as well.

by Billito on Jan 5, 2008 10:52 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs

damn straight

There are two Adrian Petersons, but there is only one Marion Barber.

by Nelson on Jan 5, 2008 11:26 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs

DONT FORGET

One of the problems Parcells had when he first came to Dallas was he struggled to build a staff b/c many of his former assistants were head coaches or under contract and you can't just offer some one Asst HC and call it a promotion.

Its the way of the NFL. It was hard for him here and we should not make it easier for him there.

Put another way if in 2 years Garrett is HC in Dallas and ww\ants the Dolphins LB coach or DL coach to be his D Coordinator you can bet your life that BP won't release them.

I like Parcells but he played hardball with Jerry last year dragging out his retirement until most good assistants had landed in Head Coaching jobs. he was stringing thing along hoping that he could lure JJ into firing him so he would get severance instead of retiring.

Parcells definitely helped Dallas and while we owe him gratitude, we sure don't owe him coaches or players. Luckily JJ has been locking guys up over the last few weeks before free agency starts and BP can go after them.

As for the harm inflicted on coaches by holding them to their contracts.... It wasn't as much JJ as BP who blocked Sparano and Pasqualonio from taking OC and DC positions. If he didn't want them on the staff JJ would have let them walk. BP had total control over his staff. I bet if you ask Sparano it worked out pretty well for him. I doubt he would be interviewing for 2-3 head coaching positons as the New Orleans offensivfe coordinator.

Parcells and Ireland will be a thorn in our collective side for the next year or two.

by 325424 on Jan 5, 2008 11:17 AM CST reply actions 0 recs

What is the Capers situation?

They gave him a fat deal last year, signing him to (if I remember correctly) a four-year deal to keep him around after Saban flew the coop. That allowed the Dolphins to go after Cameron, an offensive coach and keep the continuity on the defensive side of the football.

I haven't heard any news out of South Florida regarding the status of Capers. Capers has coached the 3-4 defense, so his retention would make sense and also direct the hiring to be an offensive coach (i.e. Sparano).

by Fargo Cowboys on Jan 5, 2008 1:06 PM CST reply actions 0 recs

From the article in the post

Capers doesn't believe he will be asked to interview for the head coaching job with the Dolphins, but he hasn't ruled out a return to the team.
"It depends on who they hire," Capers said. "I don't have a problem if the guy they hire wanted me. I would certainly weigh that against other offers."
Capers, who has two years left remaining on a lucrative contract, said he has been contacted by other teams with defensive coordinator positions. The Ravens, Bengals and Falcons have openings.

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by Dave Halprin on Jan 5, 2008 2:17 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

Look no further than Brian Stewart..

...if you want an example of a defensive position coach that was released from his contract to become the DC in Dallas.

Phillips obviously wanted Stewart and Stewart wanted to be the DC in Dallas, but SD was unwilling to release him from his contract. Their logic was that even though Stewart would be called the DC, it was really HC Phillips that would be making the defensive calls. SD finally realized that holding Stewart back from the opportunity in Dallas wasn't in the best interest of both parties, and finally gave Dallas permission to interview and ultimately hire Stewart as the DC.

My guess is that if Dom Capers is not retained, you might se a similar situation with either Bowles and/or Pasqualoni. Sure, JJ is going to take a hard stance initially, but if these guys really want to be in South Florida to re-unite with Bill, my guess is that he'll reluctantly allow them the opportunity. I would guess that Bowles is probably still a little upset over not getting the DC position a year ago and I'm actually quite surprised that Pasqualoni's name hasn't resurfaced on the college coaching carousel recently, given his significant college coaching experience.

by Fargo Cowboys on Jan 5, 2008 1:18 PM CST reply actions 0 recs