Garrett hired to change Cowboys

Associated Press

IRVING, Texas

Jason Garrett stood behind a lectern for his first news conference as the interim coach of the Dallas Cowboys. That alone sent the message there’s a new way of doing things around America’s team.

Wade Phillips, you see, always sat behind a table.

Rearranging the furniture isn’t going to revive the 1-7 Dallas Cowboys, but team owner Jerry Jones is hoping the switch in leaders will. He fired Phillips on Monday and promoted Garrett from offensive coordinator to “affect a culture change” for a team that’s been playing worse each week.

Phillips is folksy and laid-back. Garrett, a Princeton grad, comes across more like the Ivy League image. Take the lectern, for instance. Or this description of how he’s going to run the team: “One of the things that we’re going to focus on going forward is the process.”

“I believe you give yourself the best chance of winning by focusing on doing things the right way each and every day,” Garrett continued. “We’re going to emphasize that in meetings, in walkthroughs on the practice field and hopefully take that to the game field on Sunday.”

Garrett declined Monday to discuss any lineup changes. But he made it clear that players will be held to a new standard.

“I think it has to be very clear as to what you expect from everyone in your organization, then hold them accountable to those expectations,” he said. “We will do that on a daily basis.”

Some of the people who know him best believe he will.

“You need somebody to do that and he is more than happy to,” said Cowboys radio analyst Babe Laufenberg, a former Dallas quarterback who has been friends with Garrett for nearly 20 years. “Just because he’s nice to people and considerate, don’t mistake that as not being demanding. You can do that without screaming and yelling.”

Garrett could be blamed for some of what’s gone wrong this season. In fact, he’s had his critics every year he’s been in charge, which is why his promotion surprised many observers.

The offense has been out of whack most of this season, even before Tony Romo broke his collarbone. The biggest problem has been the running game going from one of the NFL’s best to one of the worst.