No mention of Green.
----------------------------------------
Updated: Sep. 28, 2005, 1:45 PM ET
Coaches have teams going in right direction
By Jeremy Green
The recent offseason resulted in only three head coaching changes, but with such little turnover, you can expect a lot of change following this season.
Given the early results of 2005, you can bet that the blueprints Nick Saban, Romeo Crennel and Mike Nolan are laying down are something NFL owners have noticed.
While things in the NFL go in cycles, the current blueprint for success seems to be hiring a defensive-oriented coach. The three new hires in 2005 are all defensive-minded guys who have been able to instill their toughness into their football teams.
In addition, here are a few other similarities between Saban, Crennel and Nolan.
• All three head coaches know how to win. Crennel has a handful of Super Bowl rings, Nolan has one from Baltimore and Saban won a national championship at LSU. For players that don't have a winning attitude, there is "no need to apply."
• They are great motivators. You look at their teams right now and you can see a belief in their players' eyes that though undermanned on some Sundays, they can play with any team in the NFL.
• All three have built the foundation for the future on the defensive side of the ball. They don't have the most talented defensive units in the NFL, but they play hard and opposing offenses "better strap it up" when they step between the lines.
• While they don't have the most explosive offenses in the league, they have QBs who can be the caretaker of the offense. They don't have guys under center who are going to carry a team, but they aren't going to lose games for you either.
They have taken three different approaches, but the message seems to be the same and that is that they have their franchises going in the right direction. Let's take a look at the blueprint these head coaches have used to take the league by surprise early in the season.
Miami Dolphins (2-1)
In most instances, when there is a coaching change, the theory is that the new coach wants to come in and blow up the previous roster, so to speak. That has not been the case with the Dolphins.
[size=-1]Kevin Carter[/size]
[size=-2]Defensive End
Miami Dolphins
[/size]
[size=-2]Profile
[/size]2005 SEASON STATISTICS[size=-2]Tot[/size][size=-2]Ast[/size][size=-2]Solo[/size][size=-2]FF[/size][size=-2]Sack[/size][size=-2]Int[/size][size=-2]11[/size][size=-2]8[/size][size=-2]3[/size][size=-2]0[/size][size=-2]2[/size][size=-2]0[/size]
Saban inherited a team with some aging veterans on defense, but as a group they were still playing at a solid level. Knowing that Saban wanted to build with defense, the Dolphins kept a majority of these players and went out and added even more veteran talent: DE Kevin Carter, DTs Vonnie Holliday and Keith Traylor, and OLB Donnie Spragan. The above-mentioned players, along with veteran holdovers Zach Thomas and Jason Taylor, give the Dolphins a formidable front seven. Saban has created a scheme for Taylor in which he can align anywhere at anytime, and it is keeping offensive coordinators up at night.
Looking at the roster of the team he was given, Saban knew he was going to need to play solid defense and be efficient on offense to win. When you are a team that is going to be defensive-oriented, you don't need a star QB, but you must be able to find a guy who can be efficient at the position.
Enter Gus Frerotte, not a spectacular QB, but a veteran who can manage an offense. Early in the season, he has shown a very good understanding of the offense and has done a solid job of distributing the ball to different receivers to keep opposing defenses off balance. While Frerotte is not a QB you can ride to Super Bowl glory, he is a veteran, and the one thing Saban was counting on was that he wouldn't flat-out cost the Dolphins games when the defense was going out and giving the head coach another stellar performance.
The last piece that Saban needed to add this season to get the type of team he wanted was a power running back. When the Dolphins selected RB Ronnie Brown with the second pick of the NFL draft, they got the guy that fit the system that Saban wants to run. While he has not put up the early-season numbers that former Auburn teammate Carnell "Cadillac" Williams has in Tampa Bay, Brown is a perfect fit for the power running game that Saban wished to instill in this football team.
While the Dolphins probably won't be in the playoffs this season, they have assembled a team that fits Saban's persona. This is a "hungry" team that plays with a lot of passion and emotion, feeding off the energy that its head coach brings to the table. Sure, the Dolphins are going to struggle some on offense at times because they don't have a large number of playmakers on that side of the ball, but as opponents will continue to find out as the season goes on, you better "buckle up your chin strap" and come to play, because this team is going to come out, play physical and try to hit you in the mouth from the get-go.
Cleveland Browns (1-2)
You would be hard-pressed to find any head coach who would tell you a 1-2 start is what you were looking for to open the season, but in the Browns' case, it's not quite the record you look at, but how you arrived there. The Browns, the league's most penalized team so far, are conceivably three turnovers away from being 3-0. In Week 1 vs. Cincinnati, the Browns had interception and punt return TDs wiped out by penalties. In Week 3 at Indianapolis, they had another punt return TD wiped out by an extremely questionable block-in-the-back call.
So how have they managed to be so competitive? Well, they have taken a little bit of a different approach than the Dolphins. Instead of keeping a large chunk of veteran players, they tried to turn over a large majority of the roster in year one. Gone are underachieving defensive linemen Courtney Brown and Gerard Warren. The offensive line, which has played a major role in the shortcomings of past Browns teams, has been overhauled. The new offensive line additions (L.J. Shelton, Joe Andruzzi and Cosey Coleman) are part of a group that did not give up a sack in the first two weeks.
[size=-1]Trent Dilfer[/size]
[size=-2]Quarterback
Cleveland Browns
[/size]
[size=-2]Profile
[/size]2005 SEASON STATISTICS[size=-2]Att[/size][size=-2]Comp[/size][size=-2]PaTD[/size][size=-2]RuTD[/size][size=-2]Int[/size][size=-2]Rat[/size][size=-2]104[/size][size=-2]69[/size][size=-2]4[/size][size=-2]0[/size][size=-2]2[/size][size=-2]95.1[/size]
With so many QB issues surrounding this team since its return, that position was shaken up, too. The team added veteran Trent Dilfer and drafted its QB of the future when it selected Charlie Frye in the third round of the draft. When Dilfer finishes his career, he will be remembered as an average starter at best. However, he is also the guy who led the Ravens to a Super Bowl win. He is also a smart QB who takes care of the ball and includes all his weapons in the short to intermediate passing game. While not spectacular, he has been extremely efficient and the team likes the way he has mentored Frye. Under the guidance of Crennel and new GM Phil Savage, the Browns have done a very good job of adding a few veteran players in needed areas and drafting players for their future.
At the end of the season, this still might be only a five- or six-win team with a bright future, but you cannot overlook the Browns in the present. I talked with an NFL advance scout who summed up the 2005 Browns this way: "This is not a very talented team, but of the teams I have looked at early in the season, no team plays harder. This is a well-coached team with a head coach that knows how to get the most out of his players. They have a look about them, that they believe they can win, and you couldn't always say that about past teams."
San Francisco 49ers (1-2)
Like the Browns, don't let the record fool you. This San Francisco team could easily be 2-1 right now and with a game coming up this week vs. an injury-riddled Cardinals team, it has a very good chance at getting to 2-2.
[size=-1]Tim Rattay[/size]
[size=-2]Quarterback
San Francisco 49ers
[/size]
[size=-2]Profile
[/size]2005 SEASON STATISTICS[size=-2]Att[/size][size=-2]Comp[/size][size=-2]PaTD[/size][size=-2]RuTD[/size][size=-2]Int[/size][size=-2]Rat[/size][size=-2]76[/size][size=-2]45[/size][size=-2]5[/size][size=-2]0[/size][size=-2]5[/size][size=-2]75.6[/size]
Like the Dolphins and Browns, the 49ers are using a more experienced QB in Tim Rattay. While they drafted their future at the position in Alex Smith, Rattay is the guy they feel gives them the best chance to win today. While Rattay is not a big, strong-armed QB, he is smart, alert and gives their receivers a chance to make plays on the ball. Under the leadership of Nolan, they are making the switch from a 4-3 to a 3-4 defense. While this is hard to do successfully in the short term, it has allowed the 49ers to get the strength of their team on the field at the same time, and that is their LB group. Their star player, Julian Peterson, is a perfect fit in this scheme, and Nolan has done an excellent job of moving him around to find weaknesses in opposing teams' offenses.
For the 49ers to continue this transition and become the type of team Nolan would like to put on the field, they will need to address the RB situation in the near future. While starter Kevan Barlow has very good size, he is a soft runner who does not like to press the hole.
The 49ers didn't have a lot of turnover on their roster after Nolan took over. It appears that Nolan is going to use the model that made the Ravens so successful, which is building your roster through the draft. While this may cause some growing pains early on, it is the model that the Bengals used. Now Cincinnati coach Marvin Lewis has a team that may be the surprise of the AFC.
The Dolphins, Browns and 49ers might not finish above the .500 mark this season, but you can't judge their new head coaches on wins and losses. What they need to be judged on is how their teams play and whether they are going in the right direction.
So NFL teams, beware, when you step into the ring with these teams, get ready to take their best shot. Win or lose, there will be no quit in these guys -- their head coaches won't let it happen.
Jeremy Green has been an NFL scout for 10 years. Most recently, he was director of pro personnel for the Cleveland Browns
----------------------------------------
Updated: Sep. 28, 2005, 1:45 PM ET
Coaches have teams going in right direction
By Jeremy Green
The recent offseason resulted in only three head coaching changes, but with such little turnover, you can expect a lot of change following this season.
Given the early results of 2005, you can bet that the blueprints Nick Saban, Romeo Crennel and Mike Nolan are laying down are something NFL owners have noticed.
While things in the NFL go in cycles, the current blueprint for success seems to be hiring a defensive-oriented coach. The three new hires in 2005 are all defensive-minded guys who have been able to instill their toughness into their football teams.
In addition, here are a few other similarities between Saban, Crennel and Nolan.
• All three head coaches know how to win. Crennel has a handful of Super Bowl rings, Nolan has one from Baltimore and Saban won a national championship at LSU. For players that don't have a winning attitude, there is "no need to apply."
• They are great motivators. You look at their teams right now and you can see a belief in their players' eyes that though undermanned on some Sundays, they can play with any team in the NFL.
• All three have built the foundation for the future on the defensive side of the ball. They don't have the most talented defensive units in the NFL, but they play hard and opposing offenses "better strap it up" when they step between the lines.
• While they don't have the most explosive offenses in the league, they have QBs who can be the caretaker of the offense. They don't have guys under center who are going to carry a team, but they aren't going to lose games for you either.
They have taken three different approaches, but the message seems to be the same and that is that they have their franchises going in the right direction. Let's take a look at the blueprint these head coaches have used to take the league by surprise early in the season.
Miami Dolphins (2-1)
In most instances, when there is a coaching change, the theory is that the new coach wants to come in and blow up the previous roster, so to speak. That has not been the case with the Dolphins.
[size=-1]Kevin Carter[/size]
[size=-2]Defensive End
Miami Dolphins
[/size]
You must be registered for see images attach
[size=-2]Profile
[/size]2005 SEASON STATISTICS[size=-2]Tot[/size][size=-2]Ast[/size][size=-2]Solo[/size][size=-2]FF[/size][size=-2]Sack[/size][size=-2]Int[/size][size=-2]11[/size][size=-2]8[/size][size=-2]3[/size][size=-2]0[/size][size=-2]2[/size][size=-2]0[/size]
Saban inherited a team with some aging veterans on defense, but as a group they were still playing at a solid level. Knowing that Saban wanted to build with defense, the Dolphins kept a majority of these players and went out and added even more veteran talent: DE Kevin Carter, DTs Vonnie Holliday and Keith Traylor, and OLB Donnie Spragan. The above-mentioned players, along with veteran holdovers Zach Thomas and Jason Taylor, give the Dolphins a formidable front seven. Saban has created a scheme for Taylor in which he can align anywhere at anytime, and it is keeping offensive coordinators up at night.
Looking at the roster of the team he was given, Saban knew he was going to need to play solid defense and be efficient on offense to win. When you are a team that is going to be defensive-oriented, you don't need a star QB, but you must be able to find a guy who can be efficient at the position.
Enter Gus Frerotte, not a spectacular QB, but a veteran who can manage an offense. Early in the season, he has shown a very good understanding of the offense and has done a solid job of distributing the ball to different receivers to keep opposing defenses off balance. While Frerotte is not a QB you can ride to Super Bowl glory, he is a veteran, and the one thing Saban was counting on was that he wouldn't flat-out cost the Dolphins games when the defense was going out and giving the head coach another stellar performance.
The last piece that Saban needed to add this season to get the type of team he wanted was a power running back. When the Dolphins selected RB Ronnie Brown with the second pick of the NFL draft, they got the guy that fit the system that Saban wants to run. While he has not put up the early-season numbers that former Auburn teammate Carnell "Cadillac" Williams has in Tampa Bay, Brown is a perfect fit for the power running game that Saban wished to instill in this football team.
While the Dolphins probably won't be in the playoffs this season, they have assembled a team that fits Saban's persona. This is a "hungry" team that plays with a lot of passion and emotion, feeding off the energy that its head coach brings to the table. Sure, the Dolphins are going to struggle some on offense at times because they don't have a large number of playmakers on that side of the ball, but as opponents will continue to find out as the season goes on, you better "buckle up your chin strap" and come to play, because this team is going to come out, play physical and try to hit you in the mouth from the get-go.
Cleveland Browns (1-2)
You would be hard-pressed to find any head coach who would tell you a 1-2 start is what you were looking for to open the season, but in the Browns' case, it's not quite the record you look at, but how you arrived there. The Browns, the league's most penalized team so far, are conceivably three turnovers away from being 3-0. In Week 1 vs. Cincinnati, the Browns had interception and punt return TDs wiped out by penalties. In Week 3 at Indianapolis, they had another punt return TD wiped out by an extremely questionable block-in-the-back call.
So how have they managed to be so competitive? Well, they have taken a little bit of a different approach than the Dolphins. Instead of keeping a large chunk of veteran players, they tried to turn over a large majority of the roster in year one. Gone are underachieving defensive linemen Courtney Brown and Gerard Warren. The offensive line, which has played a major role in the shortcomings of past Browns teams, has been overhauled. The new offensive line additions (L.J. Shelton, Joe Andruzzi and Cosey Coleman) are part of a group that did not give up a sack in the first two weeks.
[size=-1]Trent Dilfer[/size]
[size=-2]Quarterback
Cleveland Browns
[/size]
You must be registered for see images attach
[size=-2]Profile
[/size]2005 SEASON STATISTICS[size=-2]Att[/size][size=-2]Comp[/size][size=-2]PaTD[/size][size=-2]RuTD[/size][size=-2]Int[/size][size=-2]Rat[/size][size=-2]104[/size][size=-2]69[/size][size=-2]4[/size][size=-2]0[/size][size=-2]2[/size][size=-2]95.1[/size]
With so many QB issues surrounding this team since its return, that position was shaken up, too. The team added veteran Trent Dilfer and drafted its QB of the future when it selected Charlie Frye in the third round of the draft. When Dilfer finishes his career, he will be remembered as an average starter at best. However, he is also the guy who led the Ravens to a Super Bowl win. He is also a smart QB who takes care of the ball and includes all his weapons in the short to intermediate passing game. While not spectacular, he has been extremely efficient and the team likes the way he has mentored Frye. Under the guidance of Crennel and new GM Phil Savage, the Browns have done a very good job of adding a few veteran players in needed areas and drafting players for their future.
At the end of the season, this still might be only a five- or six-win team with a bright future, but you cannot overlook the Browns in the present. I talked with an NFL advance scout who summed up the 2005 Browns this way: "This is not a very talented team, but of the teams I have looked at early in the season, no team plays harder. This is a well-coached team with a head coach that knows how to get the most out of his players. They have a look about them, that they believe they can win, and you couldn't always say that about past teams."
San Francisco 49ers (1-2)
Like the Browns, don't let the record fool you. This San Francisco team could easily be 2-1 right now and with a game coming up this week vs. an injury-riddled Cardinals team, it has a very good chance at getting to 2-2.
[size=-1]Tim Rattay[/size]
[size=-2]Quarterback
San Francisco 49ers
[/size]
You must be registered for see images attach
[size=-2]Profile
[/size]2005 SEASON STATISTICS[size=-2]Att[/size][size=-2]Comp[/size][size=-2]PaTD[/size][size=-2]RuTD[/size][size=-2]Int[/size][size=-2]Rat[/size][size=-2]76[/size][size=-2]45[/size][size=-2]5[/size][size=-2]0[/size][size=-2]5[/size][size=-2]75.6[/size]
Like the Dolphins and Browns, the 49ers are using a more experienced QB in Tim Rattay. While they drafted their future at the position in Alex Smith, Rattay is the guy they feel gives them the best chance to win today. While Rattay is not a big, strong-armed QB, he is smart, alert and gives their receivers a chance to make plays on the ball. Under the leadership of Nolan, they are making the switch from a 4-3 to a 3-4 defense. While this is hard to do successfully in the short term, it has allowed the 49ers to get the strength of their team on the field at the same time, and that is their LB group. Their star player, Julian Peterson, is a perfect fit in this scheme, and Nolan has done an excellent job of moving him around to find weaknesses in opposing teams' offenses.
For the 49ers to continue this transition and become the type of team Nolan would like to put on the field, they will need to address the RB situation in the near future. While starter Kevan Barlow has very good size, he is a soft runner who does not like to press the hole.
The 49ers didn't have a lot of turnover on their roster after Nolan took over. It appears that Nolan is going to use the model that made the Ravens so successful, which is building your roster through the draft. While this may cause some growing pains early on, it is the model that the Bengals used. Now Cincinnati coach Marvin Lewis has a team that may be the surprise of the AFC.
The Dolphins, Browns and 49ers might not finish above the .500 mark this season, but you can't judge their new head coaches on wins and losses. What they need to be judged on is how their teams play and whether they are going in the right direction.
So NFL teams, beware, when you step into the ring with these teams, get ready to take their best shot. Win or lose, there will be no quit in these guys -- their head coaches won't let it happen.
Jeremy Green has been an NFL scout for 10 years. Most recently, he was director of pro personnel for the Cleveland Browns
