Like many before him, Jason Garrett tried his hands at more than one sport before settling on football. The former football quarterback had a checkered career and was played for seven NFL teams from 1989 to 2004.
Since retiring, the Pennsylvania man has taken on various coaching responsibilities for the Miami Dolphins and Dallas Cowboys, both of whom he played for. His first responsibility as head coach came in 2010, when he replaced Wade Phillips as head coach of the Dallas Cowboys head coach.
Biography of Jason Garrett
Jason Calvin Garrett’s story begins in the city of Abington, Pennsylvania on March 28, 1966, when he was born to his parents, Jim Garrett and Jane Garrett. He was educated at Holy Cross School in Rumson, New Jersey. Subsequently, he attended Hunting Valley’s University School, a preparatory school for Ohio University. During his time here, he devoted himself to the world of sports and athletics, as evidenced by the fact that he was a basketball, baseball and football player.
In 1984, his senior year in college, he played football at quarterback and safety, earning himself the All-League trophy for his performance and contribution.
Jason then moved to Princeton University where he was a starting quarterback for the freshman team and in his junior and senior year. Her sophomore year was a little fuzzy on her record. After a successful start to his college career, he moved to Columbia University in 1985, when his father was named head coach of the school’s football team. However, Jim Garrett quit after an abysmal 0–10 record, prompting Jason to return to Princeton University.
Due to transfer rules, the former freshman starting quarterback missed his sophomore season while leading the scouting team. He returned to the starting quarterback position in his junior year and recorded a win and a loss against his former team, Columbia University. At the end of the season, he received the Asa S. Bushnell Cup in recognition of his Ivy League Player of the Year status.
Jason graduated with a history degree in 1989, and a host of enviable college football records, including a 66.5 percent (366 of 550) completion rate for career-highest passes, 4,274 yards and 42 touchdowns, as well only 20 touchdowns.
Professional career
Post Princeton, Jason Garrett participated in the 1989 NFL Draft but was not drafted. He was picked by the New Orleans Saints as an undraw free agent. He spent little time with the Saints as he spent the rest of 1990 as an assistant coach at Princeton University after being discharged on September 3 of that year.
Garrett’s 1991 season saw him open the season for the starting quarterback of the WLAF San Antonio Riders, however, he dislocated his right shoulder. He returned after four games on the sidelines, ultimately wasting the team’s time.
He then spent two months with the Canadian.Ottawa Rough Riders of the Football League from June to August 1991. Jason Garrett joined the Dallas Cowboys in 1992, partly through the influence of his father, who was then part of the team monitoring staff. After some time with the practice squad, he made enough of an impact to become the third-string quarterback.
Due to continued improvement in his game and injury to then starting quarterback Troy Aikman, Jason was given the opportunity to replace the New York Giants. Son was named the starting quarterback for the upcoming game against the Phoenix Cardinals. However, the new boy, Bernie Kosar, would once again impose the pecking order on him.
In the years that followed, Jason Garrett continued to get the occasional opportunity to prove himself due to injuries suffered by quarterbacks ahead of him in the lineup. One such occasion he produced arguably the best performance of his professional career. It was during the Thanksgiving Day game against the Green Bay Packers in 1994 where he played in place of injured Rodney Peete. Jason recorded 2 touchdowns, 15 of 26 complete passes, for 311 yards to lead his runaway team to a 42-31 victory on the return.
In 1995, he had a brief stint as a starter, effectively contributing to the team’s NFC Eastern Conference title. Jason Garrett spent eight seasons with the Cowboys and was on the Super Bowl-winning teams of 1993 and 1995. His time with the team saw him play just 39 games, with a 56.1% completion rate and 11 touchdowns.
Garrett joined the New York Giants in 2000 and although outnumbered, he remained on their roster until 2003. Early the following year he was signed by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and later by the Dolphins. Miami as a free agent on November 24, 2004. He ended his playing career in the same year.
Coaching career
Garrett’s coaching career proved more successful than his playing experience. He moved from quarterback to coach for the Miami Dolphins 2005–06 season under head coach Nick Saban.
Moving on from the Dolphins, he joined another of his former teams, the Dallas Cowboys, as offensive coordinator. His impact led to a rapid improvement in the team’s offensive game which finished the season as the 2nd best offense in the NFL. Garrett immediately became an attractive coaching prospect and was approached by the Baltimore Ravens and Atlanta Falcons. He finally decided to continue his work in Dallas.
Over the years, he continued to receive offers from franchises like the Detroit Lions, Denver Broncos, and St. Louis Rams. On November 8, 2010, Jason became interim head coach of the Dallas Cowboys after team management parted ways with head coach Wade Phillips. He immediately turned around the former coach’s terrible start to the season 1-7, earning decisive victories over the New York Giants and Detroit Lions.
Jason Garrett was officially named the player’s head coach on January 6, 2011. In his first three seasons, he contested the division title and part of the playoffs. However, he failed to do so on three occasions, as he lost the final game of each of those seasons. He finally earned his first head coaching title when the Cowboys won the 2014 NFC Eastern Conference title.
In January 2015, Garrett penned a $30 million contract that would keep him five more years as Cowboys head coach. The 2015 season was bad by their own standards, in part because of injuries to their star quarterback, Tony Romo.
However, they bounced back the following season, giving Jason Garrett his best practice record so far with a 13-3 record and the NFC’s first playoff spot. At the end of the season, Jason, who had become the franchise’s second-longest-serving head coach, was named the 2016 NFL Coach of the Year.
Family: parents, siblings
The honorary leader of the Dallas Cowboys comes from a large family. He has seven siblings from his parents Jim and Jane Garrett.
Jason comes from a sports-loving family. His father, Jim, was a linebacker, running back and running back. Jim, who also played for the New York Giants in the 1950s, had more success as a coach, including his two consecutive undefeated seasons (1961 and 1962) as the head coach of the University of Susquehanna. He also had success when he worked with the New York Giants, New Orleans Saints and Cleveland Browns as an assistant coach. He was on the Dallas Cowboys scouting service from 1987 to 2004. Jim died on February 9, 2018, with his wife and eight children in attendance.
Both Jason and John and Judd of his two brothers followed in their father’s footsteps, playing and then coaching in the NFL. The three brothers were all on the football team at Columbia University and then Princeton at the same time. As of 2018, Judd is the Dallas Cowboys’ office manager, while John is the head coach of Lafayette College. Jason also has another brother, Jim Garrett III, an English teacher. He also coached football at Hunting Valley University.
Is Jason Garett Married? Wife Brill, Children
Jason has been married to his wife Brill AldridgeGarrett since 1994. However, Brill graduated a year before Jason in 1988. As she transitioned to Harvard Law, Jason was pursuing her own dreams on the grid. The couple finally tied the knot in 1994, when Jason was working for the Miami Dolphins. The couple’s union produced no children.
Relationship with Jerry Jones
Garrett’s many years as head coach of the Cowboys is proof of his close relationship with Jerry Jones. Jones is a successful American businessman who also played high school and college football. He is best known for his ownership of the Dallas Cowboys. Jones, who bought the Cowboys in 1989 for $140 million, was chosen as head coach in 2011 by Jason Garrett and has since developed a close bond with him.
Jones has always thrown his weight behind Garrett in good times and bad, especially after a terrible 2017 season that started with high expectations. As fans and critics alike called Jason’s head, Jerry gave the coach his vote of confidence and retained him for the 2018 season.