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Bears defensive coordinator Greg Blache
I’d really like to pick the Steelers’ assistant responsible for Kordell
Stewart’s amazingly unexpected transformation this season. The problem is that I
think QB coach Tom Clements and offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey are equally
responsible. Mularkey is the big-picture guy who has tailored the playbook so well to
Stewart, while Clements is the guy who taught Stewart proper mechanics and keeps him from
falling back on bad habits. Thus, I’ll go with Bears defensive coordinator Greg
Blache by a narrow margin over Rams defensive coordinator Lovie Smith. Other than at
defensive tackle, it’s not as if the Bears had a huge infusion of talent on defense
this year, yet Chicago’s defense has been dominant. The defense has made huge strides
primarily because a lot of young players have improved nicely and some veterans have
surpassed expectations. That’s proof of good coaching. Let’s face it, the Bears
are an enormous story for one reason this season — the defense.
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Steelers QB coach Tom Clements
There are so many assistant coaches deserving of praise. They put in insane hours
almost year-round preparing their teams to play 16 regular-season games in hopes of
reaching the playoffs. The coach I picked, though, is Tom Clements, who has done a
phenomenal job of resurrecting the career of Kordell Stewart. Do you remember last season
or the season before, when Stewart was the Steelers’ fans favorite target for
criticism? Bluntly put, Stewart was not a good quarterback. He had no confidence, and few
around him had confidence in him. But Clements, the Steelers’ first QB coach in
Pittsburgh since 1973, and offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey have done a masterful job
of putting Stewart in a position to thrive. Clements worked with Stewart in the offseason,
helping him refine his mechanics. Having a guy to evaluate Stewart’s mechanics each
week has kept the quarterback from regressing. Hiring a QB coach — someone whom
Stewart can basically call his own — may have been the best hire that head coach Bill
Cowher has ever made.
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Rams defensive coordinator Lovie Smith
The numbers don’t lie. Last season the Rams’ defense was one of the worst in
NFL history. This season the Rams’ defense is ranked among the best in the league. A
unit with eight new starters instantly embraced Lovie Smith’s "Cover 2"
scheme patterned after that of the Buccaneers and has played with tremendous energy all
season, getting solid contributions from every player. With Smith calling the defensive
shots, Rams head coach Mike Martz has been able to concentrate on devising new wrinkles in
the league’s most freewheeling, talented offense. The defense has excelled despite
one of the league’s tougher schedules and a rash of injuries. Smith has seen to that.
Don’t get the idea that a guy named "Lovie" is a soft touch. After a shaky
start in the Week 16 game against the Colts’ potent offense, he read his troops the
riot act, telling them that their early effort was unacceptable. After Smith’s pep
talk, the Colts scored only three points the rest of the game. When he speaks, his players
definitely listen, and that’s why he has very quickly emerged as a legitimate
head-coaching candidate.
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Bears defensive coordinator Greg Blache
Greg Blache has a great chance to become an NFL head coach someday. His defense is one
of the best in the league, he’s schemed his players very well and he’s an
outstanding motivator. Though the Bears have ranked near the bottom of the league in
passing yards allowed, that’s mainly because only the Packers have been able to run
on them. Still, the Bears haven’t given up a lot of big plays through the air, and
Blache has turned up the heat to make up for a defensive line that’s lacking in the
pass-rush department. This is where Blache deserves the most credit. He’s blitzed
from all over the field, using linebackers, safeties and cornerbacks. Of course, it helps
that he has some top-notch talent, but Blache has put his players in position to succeed.
He’s used OLB Rosevelt Colvin, a rush end in college, as an end in the nickel.
He’s kept stud DTs Ted Washington and Keith Traylor fresh. And if you’ve ever
spoken with Blache, it’s a good bet he could have had you running through walls by
the end of the conversation. He’s kept his players focused, motivated and on the same
page. It’s rare to see a breakdown in the Bears’ defense.
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Bears defensive coordinator Greg Blache
With all due respect to the Rams’ Lovie Smith, the 49ers’ Greg Knapp and a
handful of other qualified candidates, I’m going to go with Greg Blache for what the
Bears have been able to do on his side of the ball. The old saying states that the best
defense is a good offense, but Blache and his crew have proved the opposite can be true as
well, as the Bears’ defense has played such a huge part in the success of the team
this season. Blache’s unit leads the league in points allowed and is close to the top
in rushing yards allowed, red-zone defense and turnovers forced, and the Bears always seem
to turn a takeaway into a big play that ignites the team. True, the Bears added the very
important gap-clogging DT tandem of Ted Washington and Keith Traylor, but a lot of the
Bears’ success defensively has come from their own handpicked players, groomed and
used to perfection by Blache’s schemes. When offensive coordinator John Shoop was
under fire for his conservative approach and head coach Dick Jauron was battling for job
security earlier this season, Blache’s focus was the glue that helped keep things
rolling in Chicago.
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Steelers offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey
While just about every Steelers assistant coach has made his contribution to
Pittsburgh’s success this year, Mike Mularkey has made the biggest impact overall.
After acting as the TE coach for Pittsburgh for five seasons, Mularkey was promoted to his
current position, taking over for Kevin Gilbride, who was unable to bring about
improvement in the team’s passing game. Mularkey didn’t make many changes in the
game plan and kept Gilbride’s system. He looked at the players the Steelers had,
analyzed the team’s playbook and cut out the plays that didn’t match the
personnel’s abilities. That has been the main reason for the Steelers’
renaissance on offense this year. QB Kordell Stewart has benefited from mechanical
fine-tuning by QB coach Tom Clements, the receivers have matured under the tutelage of WR
coach Kenny Jackson, and the offensive line has been stellar on OL coach Russ Grimm’s
watch. But it has been Mularkey who has made the pieces fit together perfectly. Head coach
Bill Cowher and defensive coordinator Tim Lewis deserve much credit as well.
For other views of the NFL coaching situation, see:
- Joel Buchsbaum's report card for the 31 NFL head coaches, with an analysis of each and a
grade from A to F
- Bob LeGere's profile of Bears coach Dick Jauron, who has confidently and calmly turned
around the Bears' fortunes
- Kevin Lynch's story on 49ers field boss Steve Mariucci, who has guided the 49ers back to
the playoffs amid a season full of distractions
- Jerry Magee's column, in which he laments the prospect of Steve Spurrier bringing his
pass-happy college offense to the NFL
All of the above stories can be found in the current print edition (Vol. XVI, No. 27)
of Pro Football Weekly, dated Jan. 14, 2002, on sale at newsstands and bookstores across
the country. Or you can subscribe
online to PFW's print edition, or subscribe by calling 1-800-FOOTBALL (366-8225) and
charging your subscription to a major credit card.
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