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When longtime coordinators move from one defense to another Jimmy Garoppolo Jersey , it's noteworthy.

There were several such transfers for this season, including former head coaches Romeo Crennel, back to Houston, and Mike Pettine, now in Green Bay. Dean Pees, as successful as nearly any assistant coach over the past two decades, landed in Tennessee.

Here are six intriguing new defensive coordinators:

Romeo Crennel, Houston 鈥?If there was a Hall of Fame for coordinators, Crennel would have the credentials for first-ballot entry.

He replaces new Titans coach Mike Vrabel in a job Crennel held from 2014-16, pretty much when J.J. Watt was becoming the best player in the league. Crennel inherits a unit that fell apart with Watt and Whitney Mercilus injured and little help from the offense when Deshaun Watson wasn't available.

But the talent is there, particularly if Watt is healthy and back to form, teaming with Mercilus, Jadeveon Clowney, Benardrick McKinney and newcomer Tyrann Mathieu. Crennel seems the right guy to turn those ingredients into a tasty dish.

"I don't think you forget what it takes and what you need to do," Crennel said. "It's all about evaluating, motivating and trying to put a good plan together and get the guys to execute and play it."

Dean Pees, Tennessee 鈥?Pees actually does replace a Hall of Famer, though Dick LeBeau made the Canton shrine for his playing career Authentic Malik Jefferson Jersey , not his incredible success as a coordinator.

Pees has been around, too, coaching since 1979 and about to turn 69. He's won Super Bowls with the Patriots and Ravens, takes over a group that can stop the run, but needs to be much more stingy against the pass. If Watson and Andrew Luck are healthy, that adds to the challenge for Pees.

At least Tennessee added CB Malcolm Butler and DT Bennie Logan, plus a pair of linebackers early in the draft. This group will be aggressive and the Titans come off a playoff appearance, so expectations are raised.

"Just having two legends as coaches on the defense, man, I was blessed," All-Pro safety Kevin Byard said.

Mike Pettine, Green Bay 鈥?The Packers need an aggressive scheme on D to match the Aaron Rodgers approach with the ball. Pettine surely will pick up the tempo and take more chances than Dom Capers did.

Whether he has the talent on that side of the ball is another matter. The Packers almost seemed in desperation mode when they re-signed Davon House and Tramon Williams for the secondary.

If Muhammad Wilkerson gets his mojo back after signing, then not living up to his big contract with the Jets, Pettine might upgrade a defense that finished 26th in points allowed.

"In the new defense we're getting ready to hit this season strong," star linebacker Clay Matthews said, "and hold up our end of the bargain."

Ken Norton Jr., Seattle 鈥?Norton spent five seasons working under Pete Carroll with the Seahawks, handling linebackers and overseeing the rapid development of Bobby Wagner into an All-Pro.

The Legion of Boom has been torn asunder Tarvarius Moore Jersey 49ers , though, and there are serious questions where a pass rush will come from. Norton must find the answers as Seattle goes through roster upheaval, a difficult chore.

But he does have Wagner, Frank Clark and K.J. Wright.

"We went through a lot those first three years and obviously I paid close attention when he left and we stayed in touch," Wagner said. "When I heard he was coming back I had a lot of joy and a lot of excitement because I felt like we had a little bit of unfinished business. It's good to have him back ..."

James Bettcher, New York Giants 鈥?Bettcher replaces a popular coordinator, Steve Spagnuolo, who was doomed by replacing the fired Ben McAdoo in December and not seeing any improvement from the Giants. Like Spags, Bettcher is a go-get-'em type who did a lot with under-the-radar defenders in Arizona.

Gone is inconsistent sack master Jason Pierre-Paul, but Olivier Vernon and Damon Harrison remain up front, with the linebackers getting a boost thanks to adding Alex Ogletree. If Bettcher can help the secondary get stingier, he will have done a good job.

"What it is about is playing relentless," Bettcher said. "The game is about playing hard. The game is about playing physical. The game is about playing smart.

Paul Guenther, Raiders 鈥?If Guenther can simply keep up with Jon Gruden's nonstop enthusiasm, he will have performed well.

He must find a pass rush 鈥?it doesn't hurt having Khalil Mack on hand 鈥?and better coverage in the secondary, which has struggled for years. He's working with a few journeymen who can't be expected to make a huge impact.

Gruden figures to get the offense rolling, so Oakland's fortunes could rest on Guenther's work.

"Paul Guenther's defense, it's very aggressive Customized New York Giants Jerseys ," said new middle linebacker Derrick Johnson, the veteran who came over from the Chiefs. "So many different looks. The onus is really on the linebackers to learn a lot of stuff."

The Golden State Warriors, so used to making things look easy, overcame one of their toughest tests to return to the NBA Finals.

They climbed out of huge holes in the last two games of the Western Conference finals to beat Houston, but may have to play in the first half the way they have after halftime if they hope to knock off LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers and repeat as champions.

”They played a great series, they made us work for everything … I’m just proud of the way we battled,” Klay Thompson said. ”We’ve been through a lot with this team, and believe it or not, it’s not all success with the Warriors.”

”We’ve got our bumps throughout the season,” he continued. ”But to get to this point again, we earned it.”

Without Andre Iguodala again, the Warriors shook off another terrible first half in Game 7 on Monday night to rally for a 101-92 victory that made them the fifth team in NBA history to advance to the finals in four straight seasons.

Golden State trailed by 11 at halftime after being behind at the break by 10 points in Game 6, becoming the first team to win multiple elimination games in the same series when trailing by double digits after two quarters.

Coach Steve Kerr lamented that Golden State’s first half on Monday night was ”one of the most bizarre first halves” his team has played since he’s been with the Warriors and joked that he thought of resigning at halftime before getting serious.

”Our talent took over,” Kerr said. ”It’s as simple as that. We’ve got three of the best shot-makers in the league … we stayed with it.”

The trio – Thompson, Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant – combined to score 47 points in the second half to pull away from a Rockets team that missed 27 straight 3-pointers from the second quarter to the halfway mark of the fourth quarter.

”I think it was just a level of experience and maturity from our group that helped us get to the finish line,” Curry said.

The Warriors outlasted the Rockets despite missing Iguodala for the last four games with a bone bruise on his left leg. It’s unclear if the 2015 NBA Finals MVP will return for Game 1 on Thursday, but if he does it will give Golden State a boost in trying to slow down James.

While Golden State certainly isn’t happy the way it started the last two games, its ability to turn things around in the second half gives the Warriors confidence heading into the next challenge. The Warriors outscored Houston 122-63 in the second half of the final two games.

Houston gave them a much bigger test than the Warriors have had in quite some time and this series was their first with three losses since the Cavaliers won the 2016 finals 4-3.

”Just keeping our composure was big for us the entire series Youth Jaleel Scott Jersey ,” Curry said. ”Whether we figured it out, win or lose, we showed a lot of fight, a lot of grit and resiliency to stay positive as we went through the series no matter what the situation was.”

Thompson was clear that the mistakes he made before halftime on Monday night won’t happen again. After scoring 35 points in Game 6, he collected three fouls in less than four minutes to force him to sit out most of the first quarter.

”I cannot do that next series, and that’s a big no-no,” he said. ”Learned my lesson. Those guys are great at drawing fouls but I’ve got to be smarter than that. That really hurt. I hated not being out there when I was supposed to.”

Curry, before he could look forward to the finals, he took some time to reflect on what it took to get past the Rockets and appreciate the accomplishment of having another shot at the title.

”This was a part of our story that we hadn’t been through before,” he said. ”Our backs against the wall, not having home-court advantage, needing to win two games to keep ourselves alive. This is a true testament to how hard it is to get to the finals, how hard it is to have a chance to play for a championship.”

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