Mike McCarthy is doing big things in big D
My Dallas Cowboys finally moved on from Head Coach Jason Garrett. After being left in the dark about the future of Garrett, The team finally announced six days after the season he won't be back. Garrett spent 9 1/2 years as our coach and failed to get us to a single championship game.
McCarthy after taking a year off to evaluate his coaching and offense, Has come in and put together a coaching staff with a vision. One member that he has added to the staff I like is former Rams special teams coordinator John Fassel. Fassel also is known as "Bones" is a highly regarded coach by players and coaches around the league. He is considered a top 3 special teams coordinator in the league.
When people talk about football, most of the focus is on offense and defense. Special teams have great importance as well and here is why:
1. Field positioning
The saying is, "football is a game of inches",1 inch can be the difference between winning a game or losing it. Putting your offense closer to the end zone makes it a lot easier for them to score whether it's a touchdown or field goal. It minimizes turnovers and provides confidence for them. The same effect is had on the defensive side of the ball. Having your opponent backed into your their 10-yard line, which forces them to drive the length of the field and increases the turnover opportunity
2. Turnovers
This is probably the most significant reason for good special teams, Blocked punts, field goals, and forced fumbles are huge momentum swingers regardless of how out of reach a game may seem.
3. Scoring opportunity
Like the defense, Special Teams can score. This could be through forced fumbles, Punt returns or Kickoff returns. Points from anywhere other than offense would be spectacular.
The Cowboys Special Teams unit sucked!
The Special teams unit was the worst in the entire NFL, I dare say in the history of the NFL. Without finishing in the top 10 in any stat and having constant mistakes like muffed punts, bad blocking and just a negative impact on the game as a whole set the offense and defense up for failure. Better special teams result in more efficient play from the offense and defense
In the hands of Mike McCarthy, great trust and expectations are warranted, This could finally be the time for the Dallas Cowboys to win the Super Bowl.