Cowboys 1st & 10: Welcome, Coach Garrett?
It's Dallas Cowboys 1st & 10: Welcome, Coach Garrett? Top 10 Stories Of The Week As We Prep For Giants visit
1) Welcome, Coach Garrett?
Earlier this week New York Giants offensive coordinator Jason Garrett talked to the media. You may remember that Garrett was the head coach of the Dallas Cowboys for nearly a decade (c’mon you haven’t completely blocked it out, right?). Well, some things don’t change, such as how Garrett answers a question about, well, anything (as relayed by our Mike Fisher):
"The biggest thing we're all focused on is what we can do to help the New York Giants play as well as we can play and that's what we're focused on as players, coaches," Garrett said. "Many people around the league, you have history in another place, you know people on other teams. I obviously spent a lot of time in Dallas. I was very grateful for my experience there, all the players I was fortunate to coach and the guys I was fortunate to coach with, everyone in that organization, and really the people of Dallas. They were amazing to me. It was a great time in my life.''
You know I used to think listening to Bill Belichick press conferences was the cure for insomnia (and it still is). But, in a pinch, Garrett would make a great backup.
Fish’s full story can be found here.
Sunday’s matchup between the Dallas Cowboys and the New York Giants would be more auspicious if Garrett were the head coach with the Giants and facing his former employer for the first time. But, maybe it’s better for Garrett that way. Former Cowboys head coaches haven’t fared well against the Cowboys at their next stops, not that we have a significant sample size.
Tom Landry, of course, never coached after new Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones fired him in 1989. Wade Phillips, who was the head from 2007-10 and Garrett’s predecessor, hasn’t had a head-coaching job since his split with the Cowboys, either (let’s not count his three-game stint as the Texans’ interim coach, OK?). Same for Barry Switzer, Dave Campo and Bill Parcells.
The only two former Cowboys head coaches to face the Cowboys as a head coach for another team are Jimmy Johnson and Chan Gailey. Their combined record is 0-3.
Johnson made his ballyhooed return to the NFL in 1996 as the head coach of the Miami Dolphins. The NFL dialed up a rematch right away on Oct. 27, 1996. Johnson was trying to hurriedly rebuild the Dolphins around aging Dan Marino. The Cowboys were coming off a Super Bowl XXX victory. As one might imagine, the Cowboys won, 29-10, in South Florida.
The pair met once again in 1999 and, oddly enough, Gailey was on the other sideline at Texas Stadium on Nov. 25, 1999 (yep, Thanksgiving Day). The Dolphins were on a roll, off to an 8-2 start. But the loss to the Cowboys on that day, 20-0, started a tailspin in which the Dolphins lost five of their final six games, but still made the playoffs and reached the divisional round. Gailey, meanwhile, led the Cowboys to an 8-8 record and a Wild Card playoff loss before Jones fired him.
Johnson retired for good after the 1999 season.
Gailey, meanwhile, launched on a decade of serving as an offensive coordinator for hire with the Miami Dolphins (right after Johnson retired, no less) and Kansas City, sandwiched around a six-year stint as the head coach at Georgia Tech. Buffalo then tapped Gailey to take over for the 2010 season. He lasted three seasons and went 16-32.
It took the NFL two seasons to get around to matching Gailey up with the Cowboys, and it happened on Nov. 13, 2011, at Cowboys Stadium (now AT&T Stadium). The Cowboys blew the Bills out, 44-7. It was part of the Bills losing eight of their final nine games of the season. Dallas, meanwhile, went 8-8 and failed to make the playoffs.
So Sunday’s game won’t have that sheen of a Johnson vs. Cowboys matchup, but all eyes will be on Garrett all day on Sunday as the second-longest tenured head coach in Cowboys history tries to re-boot his career in the Big Apple. Maybe, one day, Garrett will become a head coach somewhere else and we’ll get that marquee matchup. For now, we’ll have to take what we can get.
I mean, you know, the Cowboys have some other issues besides getting reacquainted with Garrett these days.
2) Cowboys 2021 Free Agent Power Rankings: Dak & Who?
After four games, the Dallas Cowboys are 1-3, but you can bet the front office is looking ahead to 2021. In specific, they’re trying to figure out what they’ll be able to do in free agency. One of the key pieces of that process is determining which of their free agents to keep.
So these power rankings are through the Cowboys’ first four games and we’re ranking the Top 5 players that the Cowboys will keep, or need to keep, if you’re projecting ahead to 2021. Within those rankings we’ll examine the likelihood of them staying in Dallas.
Click here to check out the rankings.
3) Check out the Cowboy Maven Top 60 All-Time Dallas Cowboys
We published our Top 60 Dallas Cowboys of all-time as part of our celebration of the Cowboys’ 60 seasons in Dallas. We presented the Top 60 in groups of five. We hope you enjoyed the series and if you have an opinion, take them to our Cowboy Maven community or hit me up on Twitter at @PostinsPostcard.
If you missed any of the stories in our Top 60, just click on them below.
➡️ Cowboys Top 60 Greatest Players: Nos. 56-60
➡️ Cowboys Top 60 Greatest Players: Nos. 51-55
➡️ Cowboys Top 60 Greatest Players: Nos. 46-50
➡️ Cowboys Top 60 Greatest Players: Nos. 41-45
➡️ Cowboys Top 60 Greatest Players: Nos. 36-40
➡️ Cowboys Top 60 Greatest Players: Nos. 31-35
➡️ Cowboys Top 60 Greatest Players: Nos. 26-30
➡️ Cowboys Top 60 Greatest Players: Nos. 21-25
➡️ Cowboys Top 60 Greatest Players: Nos. 16-20
➡️ Cowboys Top 60 Greatest Players: Nos. 11-15
➡️ Cowboys Top 60 Greatest Players: Nos. 6-10
➡️ Cowboys Top 60 Greatest Players: Nos. 1-5
4) Cowboys Anniversary Countdown: Top 60 (Plus) Moments
Despite the existence of an entire generation of DFW 20-somethings that have yet to witness it with their own eyes, the Dallas Cowboys were once a successful, superior organization.
They’re still proud. Still relevant. Just, let’s be honest, no longer as good as they used to be.
Our Richie Whitt dives into the Top 60 Moments in Dallas Cowboys history.
5) O-Line Problems
The retirement of center Travis Frederick started it.
The season-ending hip surgery for La'el Collins continued it.
This week came the decision from Tyron Smith to shut it down ...
➡️ BREAKING: Cowboys Tyron Smith To Undergo Season-Ending Neck Surgery
And then came Fish talking to Ron Leary, who says he's not coming back.
➡️ Exclusive: Cowboys Ex O-Lineman Ron Leary - 'I'm Retiring'
What a bad week for the Cowboys offensive line. What a challenge for coaches Mike McCarthy, Joe Philbin and company.
6) Rookie Roundup: Biadasz set to make his first career start
The injury to Joe Looney last Sunday has opened the door for fourth-round pick Tyler Biadasz to make his first NFL start on Sunday against the New York Giants. This will make him the third 2020 Cowboys draft pick to make a start.
In this rookie roundup, we take a look Biadasz and why his successful insertion into the starting lineup would be helpful to the entire Cowboys offensive line.
7) Things that will help you this Sunday vs. Giants
If you’re still getting ready for Sunday’s game with the New York Giants, here is some great content to get you prepped:
➡️ How to Watch: Cowboys ('Must-Win'?) vs. Giants
➡️ 'It Hurts': Zeke Details Cowboys Turnover Problem
➡️ Should Coordinator Mike Nolan Be On Cowboys 'Hot Seat'?
➡️ Profane Tank Lawrence Rips Cowboys Critics
➡️ Xavier Woods Explains - And Admits - Cowboys 'Lack Of Effort'
8) Cowboys Have QB Questions? Nah; Check Out Washington Turmoil
Upset about the Cowboys’ 1-3 start? Get in line. But at least you’re not a Washington fan. You don’t even have a mascot. And there’s plenty of drama in D.C.
9) Whitt's End: Should Cowboys Hire Wade Phillips? (And Other Fix-It Ideas)
In the wake of the worst defensive start to a season in the Dallas Cowboys’ 60-year history, fans are understandably clamoring for a solution. Even a redo, perhaps.
I’ve heard the name Wade Phillips.
Now, admittedly, Wade is one of the best defensive minds of a generation. With a southern drawl but a straight face, he used to refer to himself as “Mr. Fix It.”
But let’s not forget his final days in Dallas.
As the head coach/defensive coordinator in 2010, his team surrendered consecutive point totals of 34, 24, 41, 35 and 45. He was fired after a 38-point loss in Green Bay in which several players – most visibly cornerback Mike Jenkins – undeniably quit.
While Wade is unemployed these days and is on social media campaigning for yet another go-round, Cowboys’ fans should direct their lament another direction.
Read Whitt’s End by clicking here.
10) Tweet Of The Week
Wanna talk Cowboys? Hit up Postins on Twitter at @PostinsPostcard or Mike Fisher on Twitter @FishSports
