Jimmy Johnson Q&A

I had coaching great Jimmy Johnson on the show Wednesday. Man is he a great interview. Anyway, here's a transcript of the key questions I asked him.

Q: How well do you know new Dolphins defensive coordinator Mike Nolan and should Dolphins fans be happy with him?
A: "I've got tremendous respect for Mike Nolan. I've known him for a long time. I think he's done a quality job every place he's been. I think he's really, really going to help the Dolphins."

Q: What is your take on high-maintenance NFL receivers like Brandon Marshall? Do you take a chance on a guy that's a good player on Sunday but he's a pain in the ass?
A: "It's got to concern you. Jerry Jones and I had this conversation at the Super Bowl last year because he was aking me whether or not to keep Terrell Owens. It depends a lot on your head coach. These receivers that come in with a lot of baggage . . . what that does is it takes away from your head coach's time because you're continually putting out fires. That's part of the job and as a head coach you've got to do that. But there's only so much you can put up with. You have to weigh everything and say, 'Is he that good that it's worth it?' Obviously, everybody wants to have Andre Johnson. He's the best in the league as a player and as a person. But there's not that many Andre Johnsons out there. There's a lot of Braylon Edwards, Terrell Owens and Ochocincos."

Q: What kind of a year do you think Randy Shannon had with the Hurricanes?
A: "Randy Shannon had a really good year. When you consider all the injuries they had and how young the team was . . . I thought he had a good year. Now, you'd like the team to finish on a winning note against Wisconsin. But I think they'll be much better next year."

Q: With National Signing Day less than a week away, are all those recruiting lists overrated as far as where UM ranks?
A: "I think Randy and his staff have zeroed in on what they need to improve as a team. Look at some of the great classes that we had. Jimmie Jones did not have a single offer. Russell Maryland had one offfer. Rob Chudzinski . . . Villanova was the only offer. So we took a lot of players that we wanted, but weren't highly recruited. I think Randy is doing the same thing. He has proven in the last few years that he knows talent and he knows how to recruit."

Q: Were you happy with the way "The U" documentary came out?
A: "I liked a lot of things about it. I was disappointed they didn't emphasize the graduation rate as much as what they should have. When I went to Miami the graduation rate was 33 percent. When I left it was 88 percent. They graduated everybody last year. They talked a lot about us taking guys from the inner-city. But it was almost like, 'We took them from the inner-city, and we went out there and beat everybody, but then left it hanging after that.' Those guys got their degrees, and that's something I'm very proud of. So I was disappointed in that.
"Michael Strahan told me he loved it. He said he watched five minutes of "The U" and said, 'Man, I wish I would have played for you.' He said it looked like y'all had a ball. . . . Some of the stuff was funny. I know it was controversial and I wasn't there when it happened, but when Miami played Texas and Randall Hill coming down that ramp shooting those guns -- I was cracking up."

Q: Who do you like in the Super Bowl?
"I like the Colts because they have Peyton Manning and are consistent on defense. The Saints are going to have a problem because they have lived by the blitz. I just ddon't think that you can blitz Peyton Manning because he'll catch up with you. You may hurry him, but eventually he's going to make big plays on you. And the Saints have had so many holes in their defense."


(sun-sentinel.com)