[RamWraith]

By Jim Thomas
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
01/08/2006


Michael Strahan was as blunt as could be on the topic: He hopes to part ways with defensive coordinator Tim Lewis next season. But it's not what you think.

"He's going to be a great head coach," said Strahan, the Pro Bowl defensive end for the New York Giants. "I would really be surprised if he doesn't get a job somewhere.

"I think he's done very well with this unit. He's made it exciting. He's made me want to go out there and play like I was young again. Trust me, that means a lot.

"So I'm proud to play for Tim. You know what? Unselfishly, I hope I'm not playing for him next year."

In other words, Strahan hopes Lewis is working as a head coach somewhere in the NFL next season. That place could be St. Louis. Lewis is scheduled to interview with the Rams today as the search continues to replace the ousted Mike Martz.

Lewis could have done a better job displaying his resume based on what happened in Sunday's 23-0 wild-card loss to Carolina at Giants Stadium. DeShaun Foster rushed for 151 yards for Carolina, which controlled the clock for a whopping 42 minutes 45 seconds.

Despite finishing third in the NFL in takeaways during the regular season, the Giants' defense couldn't come up with a turnover Sunday. But there were extenuating circumstances, not the least of which was a Giants linebacking corps that has been decimated by injuries.

Lewis and the Giants' defenders patched over the injuries as much as they could over the course of the season, but ...

"Eventually, it's just going to show itself," said Nick Greisen, the only one of the Giants' regular linebackers still standing. "And I guess it did (Sunday)."

Despite the disappointing effort against the Panthers, Lewis' overall body of work is impressive. Although he was fired in Pittsburgh after the 2003 campaign, the Steelers finished among the NFL's top teams in total defense all four seasons in which Lewis ran their defense for Bill Cowher.

Following his surprise dismissal in Pittsburgh, Lewis was quickly hired by Tom Coughlin to run the Giants' defense. It's an aggressive style of defense that likes to disguise coverages and fronts to confuse opponents.

No less an authority on the subject than Green Bay's Brett Favre once said Lewis' Giants defense was confusing because it seemed to lack "rhyme or reason."

On the practice field and in the meeting room, Lewis can be very personable. But he isn't exactly what you'd call a players' coach.

"He's very hard on his players," Giants strong safety Gibril Wilson said. "He wants things done precisely, and done his way."

There were complaints by some Giants players last season about the way things were done in the new Coughlin regime. Not all of those complaints were directed at Coughlin. Strahan, for example, wasn't thrilled with the altered role he had under Lewis. But Strahan and other Giants defenders have come around.

"He sways you onto his side eventually," said free safety Brent Alexander, who has played for Lewis the past six seasons in New York and Pittsburgh. "He has his way that he's going to force on the guys, and he knows it can be successful."

And what, exactly, is Lewis' "way?"

"He's an aggressive-natured coach," Alexander said. "An attacking coach. And he wants his players to play in that particular fashion. He doesn't want players backing down.

"Sometimes that's a mentality. It's not always just the type of player that you pick. But you have to mold and teach the guys, and coach the guys to play in that particular fashion."

The Rams' interview isn't Lewis' first go-around as a head-coaching candidate. Last season, he was a finalist for the San Francisco job. He also was interviewed for the head-coaching job at Syracuse University, but didn't exactly score points by saying his ultimate goal as a football coach was to win the Super Bowl.

Lewis also was a finalist two years ago in Atlanta. So sooner or later, it looks like someone will take a chance on Lewis as head coach. Will it be the Rams?