Smith edges Sparano for AP honors

by Barry Wilner
AP Football Writer NEW YORK - Mike Smith and Tony Sparano performed so brilliantly as rookie head coaches it was almost impossible to separate them.

Atlanta's Smith edged Miami's Sparano by one vote Sunday for The Associated Press 2008 NFL Coach of the Year award.

Both coaches oversaw sensational turnarounds, leading their teams from last-place finishes in 2007 to playoff berths this year. Their achievements were reflected by the closeness of the balloting, with Smith getting 23½ votes and Sparano 22½ from a nationwide panel of 50 sports writers and broadcasters who cover the NFL.

After improving from 4-12 to 11-5 and making the NFC playoffs as a wildcard, the Falcons fell 30-24 at Arizona on Saturday night. That should not detract from a memorable season that bodes well for the football future in Atlanta.

"I'm honored individually, but more so for our coaching staff and our players," Smith said. "I think we have tried to establish that we'd be very systematic in how we did things, that we were going to have a plan.

"We laid that plan out from the very beginning how we were going to practice, how we were going to travel, how we were going to meet, how we were going to communicate, and I think the guys really appreciated definitely how we presented the plan in the framework for us to start the season."

Smith had to deal with a makeover of the Falcons' organization and its image after the incarceration of quarterback Michael Vick for dogfighting and the resignation after 13 games last season by coach Bobby Petrino. He left Jacksonville, where he was the defensive coordinator, to take on one of the biggest rebuilding challenges in sports.

"We went through every bit of pain last year that an NFL owner or a franchise or a community of fans could imagine," said Falcons owner Arthur Blank, who hired Thomas Dimitroff away from New England to be his general manager before hiring Smith.

Sparano, a former offensive line coach in Dallas, joined Bill Parcells with the Dolphins, and the makeover in Miami was just as impressive as in Atlanta. The Dolphins were 1-15 a year ago before cleaning house, and Sparano guided them to an 11-5 mark that won the AFC East.

Sparano's Dolphins lost to the Baltimore Ravens in the first round of the playoffs Sunday.