With Cowboys at Top of NFC, Jason Garrett Is NFL's Coach of the Year Right Now

Quick: Who is the front-runner for NFL Coach of the Year?

If you're answering anyone other than Dallas Cowboys coach Jason Garrett, you're not doing it right. Garrett is the right answer—the only answer—and it isn't particularly close.

After Garrett's Dallas Cowboys went into Seattle and beat the defending Super Bowl champions, 30-23—earning their fifth consecutive victory and moving to 5-1 in the process—it's time for all the critics (yours truly included) to stand up and admit to the world how wrong we were.

We presumed Garrett was a dead man walking. We thought he had no clue how to manage the clock. We surmised that he'd never oversee a balanced offensive attack.

We were all wrong.

Through six weeks, Garrett is the NFL Coach of the Year. And if you refuse to acknowledge that, you're straight hating.

Unbelievable? Yes. True? Yes.

Consider Sunday's win in Seattle. The Cowboys fell into an early 10-0 hole, and in the past few years, they would have been buried by an avalanche of cacophonous noise and Seahawk points. But this Cowboys team picked themselves off the mat, persevered and out-toughed Seattle en route to a potential season-altering victory.

They say no one beats the Seahawks in Seattle. Not true. Garrett and the Cowboys beat the Seahawks in Seattle.

In his fourth full season as Cowboys coach, it seems as if Garrett has finally put it all together. His sideline demeanor is cool, calm and collected. He appears to be at ease, firmly in control of the situation. He's no longer making grotesque errors in time management, and he has earned the full support of his coaches and players.

After beating the Seahawks, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones was on cloud nine, telling Jon Machota of The Dallas Morning News:

"

I’ve certainly had all of the appreciation in the world for everything Jason is as a coach. His qualities as an individual, a human being, his ability to lead men, whether it be his staff or his coaches. But what we certainly wanted to see success on the kind of impressive scale that we saw it today. Certainly yes, this is probably Jason Garrett’s finest hour as a Cowboy.

"

Let's not get it twisted. Jones also deserves a ton of credit. When you take the arrows and criticism in bad times, you deserve praise when things are good. 

And the Cowboys players have been fantastic, particularly quarterback Tony Romo and running back DeMarco Murray. Without either man (especially Murray), it's hard to imagine Dallas enjoying this type of success.

But Garrett has been the straw that stirs the drink. It's true that his staff has been excellent (particularly defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli), but since when does the head coach not deserve credit for the success of his staff?

Garrett has overseen an offense that has truly committed to a devastating ground game and a defense playing somewhere in between 60 and 70 billion times better than expected. That's Coach of the Year material.

You don't think that Garrett has the pulse of his team? Before the flight back to Dallas (per David Moore of The Dallas Morning News), Garrett relaxed the dress code, allowing his players to wear warm-ups. The decision was met with praise, with star receiver Dez Bryant picking Garrett up in front of the entire team.

Speaking on the reaction, Garrett noted, "It’s unbelievable. Coats and ties, I didn’t think that was such a bad thing. But yeah, I thought given the effort and a four-hour flight home, it was a good idea to give these guys a chance to be a little more comfortable."

We're so used to Garrett looking forlorn and devastated after heartbreaking losses that it's legitimately jarring to see him and the team in such a good place. The switch has definitely flipped on for him in year four.

And he's doing all of this as a lame duck coach in the final year of his contract. While Jones told Machota that "(he and Garrett) won't talk (an extension) tonight," it's merely delaying the inevitable. Barring a collapse that doesn't seem likely, Garrett will author one of the biggest upsets in sports history by receiving a new deal.

In many ways, it's been a miraculous turn of events. Few expected Garrett to make it to this point, especially after three consecutive 8-8 finishes and zero postseason trips. But here he is, at the top of his game, better than ever. 

The Cowboys came into the 2014 season expected to be terrible. Instead, they have the look and feel of one of the best teams in football.

And take a gander at their next four games before their Week 11 bye: three consecutive home games against the Giants, Redskins and Cardinals followed by a road game in London against the Jaguars. Not only is it possible that the Cowboys could start the season 9-1, but if Romo and Murray stay healthy, it appears likely.

Save the barbs, sneers and insults for another time. The hate is no longer applicable.

America loves a comeback, and Garrett has its team in position to contend for a world title.

We wrong wrong. Garrett isn't a dead man walking. It's quite the contrary, actually.

He's never been more alive.