Dallas Cowboys: The Trial of Jason Garrett

With the season officially over for the Dallas Cowboys, their attention turns to whether the Cowboys will take the interim tag off of Jason Garrett's job status and let him become the official head coach of the Cowboys. 

It was reported earlier that the Cowboys would take the interim tag off for Garrett and make him the head coach, but Jerry Jones said that no decision has been made and that he would comply with the NFL's Rooney rule and interview minority candidate Skip Peete (The Cowboys receivers coach).

So here it is, the prosecution will go first and the defense will go after. 

Prosecution.

As the prosecution we will show that Jason Garrett shouldn't be the Cowboys next full time coach. There is a lot of evidence to prove this and here it is. 

First off, a big reason the Cowboys struggled out of the gate this season was because of Garrett. His reluctance to stay with the pass and abandon the run in close games was well noted. When Garrett took over for Phillips he did change the way he called plays, sticking with the run a lot more, but that brings up the question of why this change in philosophy didn't happen sooner.

Also while Garrett went 5-3 in his stint as the coach, which of these wins were exactly a quality win? The Cowboys beat a Giants team that fell apart at the end of the season; the Lions (enough said) the Colts during Peyton Manning's slump; the Redskins, who they were blowing out, but let them comeback in the fourth and won by three, and the Eagles, who played their backups the entire game. 

Garrett wasn't able to produce wins in the Cowboys two biggest games, against New Orleans (although you can put that on Roy Williams) and Philadelphia in December. There's also the loss in Arizona that made Jones "Mad as hell."

In those two losses the Cowboys defense couldn't make stand at the end of games, and in general while the defense created more turnovers under Garrett, they gave up more passing yards, rushing yards and points than they did in their first seven games.

While Garrett may not be particularly to blame for that as Paul Pasquloni was running the defense, Garrett did make it clear that he didn't know most of the players on his defense and had to get to know them in team meetings and during practices. How is he expected to lead the team when he doesn't even know who they are?

Defense.

Jason Garrett was asked to coach a team that quit halfway through the season and brought discipline, accountability and most importantly winning to the Dallas Cowboys. 

The Cowboys went from a team that was terrible on defense and undisciplined on offense to a respectable team. The Cowboys flourished under Garrett as head coach, with a second string qb playing all but one game. 

Under Garrett the Cowboys averaged 29.5ppg under Garrett, and he showed he was committed to the run as the Cowboys averaged 147.6 rushing ypg with Garrett calling the plays. The Cowboys had at least one interception in every game except last week against the Cardinals. 

Garrett made the Cowboys practice more physically, putting them in pads on Wednesdays, making the pace of the practices quicker and more efficient and even giving the team a dress code, and when that was violated by Marion Barber he was fined and didn't start against the Giants. 

You can also say that he lost some games but he put the team in a position to win in every game. The Cowboys would've beaten the Saints if Williams didn't fumble, and would've had at least a tie with the Cardinals if David Buehler didn't miss the extra point. Those are things that Garrett can't control. 

What he did control was the Cowboys attitude and it skyrocketed once he became the coach. The penalties stopped, the breakdowns weren't as frequent and plays that weren't working at the beginning of the season were working late in the season and the Cowboys ended the season on a positive note as they were able to beat the Eagles in the last minute of the game.

Final Arguments.

Prosecution:

While the Cowboys did have some positives during the end of the season, they need a new coach. They need a new defense, one that can get turnovers and not give up a ton of yards. They need a new to get rid or Barber and Williams and the Cowboys need a new attitude, one built on toughness and execution. 

Jerry Jones has put a lot of money into this team and into the stadium and a 6-10 finish wasn't what he or anyone else had in mind. Now he has a chance to bring in someone who's established and ready to get back into the game and get the Cowboys back on top. 

Defense: 

The Cowboys already have a new coach and that's Garrett, he's changed what this team is about and how they prepare and if Jones decides to hire a new coach it'll be the second time that this team will have a new coach in less than six months. 

That means everything will once again have to change and it'll take a lot for a new coach to get the respect of the players that they have for Garrett. You can tell that this team is playing to win and playing for Garrett, so there isn't a reason to change anything. 

Decision: The decision will be made by the readers. Vote on whether you want Garrett to stay or go and comment on why. After all Jones may own the team, but it belongs to the fans.