from http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/giants/fewell_fits_bill_for_jints_KywMDnJwJSidLwOocPGibL

Fewell fits Bill for Giants
Giants Blog

By PAUL SCHWARTZ

Last Updated: 6:08 AM, January 16, 2010


Here is a warning for the Giants now that Perry Fewell is running the defense: You do something dumb, watch out.

"If you get out there and consistently make mistakes, he's going to blow up," Bills safety George Wilson told The Post. "He doesn't like repetitive mistakes. He doesn't like silly mistakes. Hitting a guy out of bounds and getting a penalty. I saw that happen in one of our games this year -- he just went berserk.

"We're battling for field position, the guy was a veteran guy, Drayton Florence, and he should have known better, and Perry just chewed [him] out. Sometimes as players we need that. Perry does a good job of knowing when to get in your face and when to step back and do some positive reinforcement. He does a good job of doing a balancing act."

Fewell, 47, brings that act to the Giants after he was hired Thursday as the team's new defensive coordinator, replacing Bill Sheridan, who was fired after one miserable season. As so often is the case in these situations, the newcomer is lauded as being so very different from the coach he replaces.

Sheridan was reserved and studious. Fewell -- the defensive coordinator in Buffalo the past four years -- is described as emotional and inspiring, though he calls the game from the quiet of the press box rather than the tumult of the sideline.

"He's an upbeat guy. He's a very optimistic guy, doesn't try to find the bad in everything," said Wilson, who completed his fifth year with the Bills. "You can talk to him about football, you can talk to him about life. The guys respect him the in the locker room, and at the end of the day, that's what you have to have as a coach. They will battle for him and lay their bodies on the line for him.

"He's definitely a fiery guy that you can tell he has a passion for the game, that he wishes he could get out there and play. He always talks to us, refers back to '79. He may see somebody make a good play and he'll joke around and say, 'Ah, man, I could do that back in '79.' I have a lot of love for Perry."

Fewell was a defensive back at Lenoir-Rhyne in North Carolina. He was part of coach Tom Coughlin's staff for five years in Jacksonville; if Coughlin trusts him to run the deteriorated Giants defense you know Fewell's work ethic cannot be questioned.

This past November, Fewell received an unexpected promotion when he was named interim head coach following Dick Jauron's firing. The Bills went 3-4 in their last seven games --three of the losses were by seven or fewer points -- and Fewell grew in the job.

"He was put into a tough spot, having to step in for his friend, Coach Jauron," Wilson said. "One thing about Perry, from the first time he addressed the team, the first time he stepped before us, he took ownership of the team. He changed the expectations. I think it was a great experience for him. I know the guys in our locker room rallied behind him."

Fewell worked with Lovie Smith with the Rams and Bears in the Tampa Two defense that favored zone coverage, but Wilson says Fewell's nature is to scheme aggressively with a single-high safety and plenty of pressure.

"He definitely likes to get after the quarterback," Wilson said. "We had a lot of interceptions. We made progress in sacks. He's definitely an aggressive coordinator. He'll try to get a feel for what the offense is trying to do in the first drive of the game, and then he'll make an adjustment. He'll get a feel for the game and he'll start to dial 'em up."

Thanks for sharing that.

Ya know, the more I read, the more there is to like about the guy.
I really haven't read any negativity yet from neither fans, players, coaches, or GM/ownership.

Sounds like a very solid hire

He is alot more than a cover 2 guy or Tampa 2 guy


Fewell seems alot more like Spags in attitude and style

I really like the idea of a single deep safety with "scheme aggressively with a single-high safety and plenty of pressure"

It also brings the SS up closer to the action as well, which will help the run defense.

more info

from http://www.nj.com/giants/index.ssf/2010/01/perry_fewell_charged_with_rest.html

Perry Fewell charged with restoring pride to disgraced NY Giants defense
By Mike Garafolo/The Star-Ledger
January 17, 2010, 7:00AM

Perry Fewell BillsEd Zurga/Associated PressPerry FewellMost of the time, Perry Fewell is smiling.

But one November morning last year, in his first team meeting as interim head coach of the Buffalo Bills, Fewell entered the room with a serious expression that told George Wilson the former defensive coordinator meant business.

“From that very moment, he took ownership of the team,” Wilson, the Bills’ veteran safety, said the other day by phone. “He changed expectations, he changed the way we traveled, he changed the way we practiced. Guys rallied around it, and we played our best football when he was leading the way.

“He’s matured as a coach. He has a complete perspective of a team now and that, in turn, will make him a better defensive coordinator.”

Fewell might be a head coach again some day. For now, though, his assignment is to change expectations and restore pride for a Giants defense that this past season was repeatedly embarrassed by missed tackles, blown assignments and lopsided scores.

Some of Fewell’s former players from his four-year stint as the Bills’ coordinator believe he’ll be successful. They say the Giants can expect a coach with outstanding knowledge of the game, a willingness to adapt and mix up schemes, and the ability to build true connections with his players —
correcting their mistakes or celebrating their successes with equal zeal.

“He brings a lot of energy, he’s very enthusiastic and loves what he does,” Bills middle linebacker Paul Posluszny said. “It was a lot of fun to play for him.”

Former Giants linebacker Kawika Mitchell, who signed with Buffalo as a free agent two years ago, said via his Twitter account the 47-year-old Fewell is a “creative” coach who listens to his players.
Fewell also makes it easy to listen to him, current Jets and former Bills safety Jim Leonhard said.

“You know what he expects from you, you know what to expect from him,” Leonhard said. “It’s not like he’s leaving a lot of things in the gray area. If you’re not doing it, it’s pretty black and white why you’re not.”

Leonhard, now with his third team, has been around coaches who will “be your friend in the meeting room but as soon as something goes wrong, it’s like, ‘That’s not what I told you.’ ”

That was Osi Umenyiora’s gripe when he walked out of the Giants’ practice facility last season after being criticized by Bill Sheridan.

“You lose respect for coaches when that happens,” Leonhard said. “And you won’t get that from Perry.”

What the Giants will get is a passionate coach who has a reputation as a yeller on the sideline. But former Bills and Rutgers defensive end Ryan Neill rarely heard Fewell curse at or berate a player.

Rather, everyone understood Fewell’s intent was “to chew you out, tell you how to do it the right way and then applaud you when you did it right.”

Fewell applauded even the little things, such as when Neill disrupted a pass to the running back the Bills knew would come out of a certain formation. Fewell, who appreciated Neill’s executing what he stressed all week, also admired Neill’s desire to contribute on defense as well as special teams.

Pass defense has been the strength of units run by Fewell, a former defensive backs coach. The Bills ranked second to the Jets in passing yards per game allowed, and their 28 interceptions were also second-most in the league. Buffalo also finished seventh in 2006 and 13th in 2008. The only hiccup on Fewell’s watch came in 2007, when the Bills slipped to 29th.

Wilson said the biggest key was a solid pass rush that disrupted the offense’s rhythm, forced opposing quarterbacks to move the “launch point” of their passes by creating pressure and allowed the defensive backs to be aggressive.

Fewell dialed up blitzes and man-to-man coverages out of “single-high” (one safety) packages, which means his being categorized as strictly a “Tampa 2” (Cover-2) coach isn’t accurate. Posluszny agreed Fewell broke the Cover-2 mold on second and third downs.

And Neill provided a bit of information that should make the Giants’ pass-rushers happy after a season full of zone blitzes under Sheridan.

“If he trusts they’re going to get to the quarterback, he’s going to let them do it,” Neill said. “He’ll occasionally drop them back into coverage, but he won’t do it a lot.”

And if they have concerns about the schemes, Fewell will listen. And adjust. And correct, while also
encouraging his players.

“It makes you want to play for him,” Neill said, “and be excited to come to practice.”