Wade Phillips wants to turn around the Texans defence
After being fired by the Dallas Cowboys, Wade Phillips is now on the Houston Texans coaching staff, as the defensive coordinator. Phillips is excited about the possibilities of coaching a new group of talented athletes.
“I'm fired up about the opportunity,” Phillips said in an interview. “I studied a tape of 15 Texans games. I like their talent. I'm excited to work with them.” Phillips has quite a history in Houston. He played as a linebacker for the University of Houston
and started his career there too. Now decades later, he is back in Houston to coach the Texans.
Within days after being let go by the Dallas Cowboys, Phillips has joined Head Coach Gary Kubiak’s coaching staff. Houston recently fired defensive coordinator Frank Bush, allowing Phillips to become part of the staff. Along with Bush, secondary coach David
Gibbs, linebackers’ coach Johnny Holland and his assistant Robert Saleh have also been let go.
Houston’s defence proved to be their undoing in the 2010 regular season. The Texans ranked as one of the worst defences in the league and ended their season 6-10. Against the run Houston ranked 30th, and against the pass they were the worst team
in the league, allowing 267.5 yards per game. What the former Cowboys coach can do about that is uncertain, because Dallas hasn’t exactly been a defensive powerhouse. In the regular season the Cowboys allowed 27.2 points on average. That statistic puts them
in 31st place in the league. Their winning record matches that of the Texans.
However, when Phillips was the defensive coordinator for the Cowboys the team on average conceded just 329.9 yards per game, and was ranked the 10th best defence in the league.
“We had a list of candidates that we lined up, but we wanted to start with the guy that we thought was most qualified and fit our situation,” Kubiak said. “So we started with Wade, and that's where it ended.” How much of an impact Phillips will have on the
team remains to be seen, but there is no doubt that he is one of the most experienced defensive coordinators in the league right now. The majority of his 35-year career was spent as defensive coordinator for many different clubs.
He might not have seen a success with the Cowboys in his final year, but Phillips has turned teams around before. The last four times Phillips joined a team as the defensive coordinator, he took the team to the playoffs. “I’ve done this several times, you
know,” Phillips said. “I think I know what it takes.” Phillips has coordinated the defence for the New Orleans Saints, Philadelphia Eagles and Atlanta Falcons in the past.
Texans owner Bum Phillips was pleased to have Wade join his organisation. He said that they couldn’t have picked a better person for the Job. Phillips said, “And I don't think Wade could've picked a better job to come to. He's going to get to work with a
guy who he knows and respects.”
Under Wade Phillips the Houston defence will switch from a 4-3 to a 3-4 arrangement. The Texans have been playing the 4-3 defence for the past two years, and the switch would be a bit of an adjustment for many players. Phillips however, is confident that
the 3-4 is the way to go for Houston’s defence, and he has Kubiak’s support. Kubiak said, “Wade said he feels good about the talent we have and how he'll use the players.” The players though, aren’t as excited as Phillips or Kubiak.
Talking about the change in defence, defensive-end Antonio Smith said that sometimes a defence just doesn’t suit a player. He said that with a change in position, a player is looking at an early end to his career, if the new position doesn’t suit him and
he is unable to perform. Team owner Bum Phillips though was confident about the changes.
He said, “You've got to make it fit the guys you've got. Whatever system fits the best, that's what I'm sure they'll try to run.”
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