Adam Schein, a weekly columnist for FOX Sports.com has his annual NFL Organization Rankings posted for 2011. This list isn't a typical power ranking, instead they grade each team on six somewhat open to interpretation categories. Ownership, quarterback, head coach, front office, coaching staff and the always hard to get a handle on intangibles, which they say include the teams facilities, their fan support, and public relations. The New England Patriots failed to threepeat, and the top team this year is the Green Bay Packers.
The Packers win shouldn't be a surprise to anyone. Even the staunchest of Bears fans has to respect what the Pack have accomplished and how they went about it. The Packers 56 total points was just .5 higher than second place New Orleans, but 19 points higher that the 14th place Bears. Here's what he had to say about Chicago:
14. Chicago Bears: 37
Owner: 6
Quarterback: 6
Coach: 6
Front office: 6
Coaching staff: 4.5
Intangibles: 8.5Last year I blasted the Bears assistant coaching staff. For the first half of the season, offensive coordinator Mike Martz proved me correct. Then he remembered to run the ball. Now let's see it for a full year.
The most obvious issue I have is the 4.5 rank to the coaching staff. The Bears have arguably the NFL's best d-line coach on staff in Rod Marinelli, and even though that isn't his #1 job as he's the Defensive Coordinator, he has a ton of input for those guys. I thought as a 1st year play caller Marinelli did a real good job. Mike Tice has a good reputation around the league as an o-line coach, I'd say he's a top 5 guy in that capacity. And Mike Martz, for all his oddities, even showed a willingness to adapt his style last year. Do I even have to mention the best special teams coordinator in the business, Dave Toub?
Go check out their full rankings, then come back and tell us what you think.