At 11-5, the Dallas Cowboys are back to being one of the NFL’s best teams. Jerry Jones has assembled a roster filled with elite players on both sides of the ball, but we can’t act like the Cowboys aren’t also benefiting from a strong coaching staff in all three phases.
Offensively, the Cowboys enter Week 18 with the third-highest scoring unit in the NFL. The story is the same on defense, with Dallas allowing the fifth-fewest points in the league.
But what about special teams?
That’s where we’ll get a little help from a recent survey conducted by the NFL Players Association, which polled over 1,000 current NFL athletes who contribute on special teams.
According to the survey, John Fassel ranks as the best special teams coordinator in the NFL. Fassel is in his fourth season in Dallas after previously spending time in Baltimore, Oakland, and Los Angeles with the Rams.
Here’s how the rest of the top-five NFL special teams coordinators stack up, according to players.
- John Fassel – Dallas Cowboys
- Chris Tabor – Carolina Panthers
- Matt Daniels – Minnesota Vikings
- Dave Fipp – Detroit Lions
- Darren Rizzi – New Orleans Saints
Tabor is currently serving as the interim head coach of the Panthers after Frank Reich was let go. He has led his team to a 1-4 record but is not expected to be viewed as a legitimate head coaching candidate in this hiring cycle. Still, Tabor can celebrate the fact that his players view him as a great special teams coordinator.