Bears fans could barely recognize the guy. He did not pace. He did not run his hand back through his hair. He did not grimace or fret.
Miami Dolphins coach Dave Wannstedt was down 14-0 to the quick-strike Colts in a home playoff game. His quarterback had gone Bears on him, triggering flashbacks of Rick Mirer, Steve Stenstrom and Moses Moreno. Three boneheaded interceptions had Jay Fiedler thrown. But Wannstedt didn’t move a muscle.
Up in the booth, Joe Theismann was incredulous he didn’t yank Fiedler. In front of my TV, I was incredulous he chose Fiedler over free agent Jim Miller.
Not once did Wannstedt’s face break into the tortured desperation of a coach who just can’t get a break. That’s what Chicago often saw during the final three seasons of Wannstedt’s six. But this time he wasn’t giving up on his QB or himself.
From Jimmy Johnson, a gifted actor, Wannstedt learned to choreograph halftime explosions. Not this time.
“I’ve thrown the Gatorade and punched blackboards,” he said Thursday. “But this time I decided just to talk to them. I didn’t raise my voice. I almost pleaded with them to understand if we just kept running the ball and went right down and scored, we’d be right back in it. The second half was a blueprint of what I always wanted to do in Chicago–control the clock and play defense.”
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From behind the mustache, a tanned Wannstedt watched almost serenely as a Ditka discard turned into what he hoped Curtis Enis would in Chicago. Lamar Smith, cut by Mike Ditka in New Orleans, pummeled the Colts with body blows until they crumbled in overtime 23-17. Smith: 209 yards in a playoff-record 40 carries.
Even at tropical Pro Player, Wannstedt couldn’t help imagining the 230-pound Smith powering into a January wind on Soldier Field’s frozen battlefield. Here was what might have been before Wannstedt was written off as “Wanny,” the pained face of luckless losing.
“Lamar did what I wanted Curtis Enis to do his rookie year,” Wannstedt said. “I hoped he would save my job. Sometimes you can coach your tail off, but you just need a break.”
Like Indy’s Mike Vanderjagt, the NFL’s most pressure-proof kicker, missing a 49-yarder in overtime.
Wannstedt readily shares blame for encouraging Mark Hatley to draft Enis. But he bristles at suggestions he’s just along for Miami’s sailboat ride, leaving personnel moves to ex-Bears scout Rick Spielman, the offense to Chan Gailey and the defense to inherited talent.
For sure Wannstedt made one decision that could have turned him into shark bait. He encouraged the most beloved athlete in Miami history, Dan Marino, to retire. If Wannstedt’s first-year Dolphins had gone Bears, he wouldn’t have had a snowball’s chance in South Florida.
He said:”I wish I could tell you I’ve changed because it would make a better story. But I’m doing the same things I did in Chicago. People picked us 5-11. We’re 12-5 and we won the AFC East for only the third time in 15 years.”
To questions he responded: “It was my idea to bring in Lamar [pre-Spielman]. … We liked Miller but went with Fiedler because he’s a better athlete. His running [against Indy] was key (43 yards on seven carries). … Jimmy built this defense, but I tweaked it.”
So where did beating the Colts rank among his head-coaching wins? This is telling: “Top five. No. 1 was the playoff win at Minnesota my second year in Chicago.”
Ah, yes, the day he emerged from Ditka’s shadow and began casting his own. He narrowly missed the playoffs with another 9-7 his third year. But then Erik Kramer suffered a spine injury and Mirer forgot how to throw and “Wanny” finally was portrayed as a flailing bumbler.
I took a lot of flak for defending him, but nothing like the beating his coaching soul took. He might prove to be a better defensive coordinator than head coach, but there are many, many worse head coaches. Now calling Dick Jauron “Jauronstedt” is a compliment.
Wannstedt gives you the feeling his one regret about going 12-5 is that it didn’t happen in Chicago. He loved the town and looked the tough-guy part of its coach. He still reads the Chicago papers.
But it’s on to Oakland. “If we can run the ball and not turn it over, we have a chance. If Baltimore pulls one off at Tennessee, we’d have the AFC championship game in Miami. We just need a break.”
Chicago still owes him at least one more.