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By Peter
King | November 15, 2021
Coaches
of the Week
Joe Barry, defensive coordinator, Green Bay. For
pitching the first shutout of Russell Wilson’s NFL life. That’s right. This was
the 166th game of Wilson’s 10-year pro career, regular season and
playoffs, and never before had he been shut out. Barry’s scheme counted on the
defensive front swarming around Wilson while six and seven in the secondary
made it hard for any Seahawk to be open regularly. Wilson didn’t look right
returning from his middle finger injury, and his 39.7 passer rating was a combo
platter of pressure, coverage and Wilson perhaps not being fully ready to
return; only he knows the latter. Whatever, holding a Russell Wilson offense to
208 total yards will be, and should be, a career highlight for Barry.
Mike Vrabel, head coach, Tennessee. Titans laid
a gigantic egg Oct. 3 at the Jets to fall to 2-2. Since then, the Titans:
- Trounced
Jacksonville by 18.
- Came
back from four deficits to beat Buffalo, the second seed in the 2020 AFC
playoffs, by three.
- Went
up 27-0 at the half and beat Kansas City, the defending AFC champ, by 24.
- Got
down 14-0 early at Indianapolis, another 2020 playoff team, but came back
to win a 71-minute OT game by three.
- With Derrick Henry gone
for two months, beat NFC power Los Angeles on the road by 12.
- Beat
another NFC power team, the Saints, at home by two on Sunday.
Vrabel
sets a tone for his team and his players take no crap from anyone. To go 5-0
against five defending playoff teams is a great accomplishment, particularly
playing the last two without your best player. That’s why Vrabel is coach of
the week.
Josh Boyer, defensive
coordinator, Miami. I’m sure Thursday’s night’s imaginative game plan in the 22-10 win over
Baltimore also had Brian Flores’ fingerprints on it, but what a smart and
forceful idea it was to safety-blitz more than any team in the NFL in the last
six years. The Ravens couldn’t figure out a solution for Dolphins secondary
players blitzing a stunning 38 times. (Lamar Jackson had 47 pass-drops in the
game.) Boyer’s D held Lamar Jackson to 39 yards rushing and the Ravens to 304
yards overall. These were the Baltimore drives between a field goal in the sixth
minute and a TD in the 55th: missed field goal, punt, punt, punt, punt, punt,
punt, punt, fumble, punt. Great job by the Dolphins.
