Seattle Seahawks: 3 coaches who need to replace Ken Norton, Jr.
By Lee Vowell
Joe Whitt, Jr.
Dallas did the smart thing the last couple of seasons and made an effort to get better coaches on defense. For several years, the Cowboys won or lost games based on their offense while the defense was mostly not good. One of those hires was to add Joe Whitt, Jr. as the secondary coach and passing game coordinator in 2021. Dallas ranks third in QBR-allowed (76.6) and leads the league in interceptions with 26 (Seattle was 23rd with 11).
Whitt, Jr. has changed teams every season since 2018 when he was with the Green Bay Packers but he has maintained the same position: Secondary coach and passing game coordinator. Nearly every step of the way Whitt, Jr.’s teams have created turnovers. In 2019, his Browns defense was 10th in the league with 14 interceptions.
In the early 2010s, one of the reasons the Seahawks defenses were so dominant was that they created turnovers and got the ball back for the offense. In 2021, Seattle created 18 turnovers, 25th in the NFL. Not only did Seattle allow teams to stay on the field far too long but they couldn’t create errors for the opposing offense and set the Seattle offense in good field position.
Norton, Jr.’s defenses let offenses dictate the style and tempo of play and try to react to that. Good defenses pressure opposing offenses. Whitt, Jr.’s defenses would do this.