The pro and cons of Wink Martindale as Michigan football's new defensive coordinator

Soon after he was introduced as Michigan football’s new head coach, Sherrone Moore appeared resolute when he said he wished to maintain the core elements of the championship program he inherited from Jim Harbaugh.

“If it isn’t broken,” he said, “we don’t fix it. We want the players to be as comfortable as possible as we move forward.”

Continuity became a priority. So, it was no surprise Moore’s first major move, the reported hiring of Don “Wink” Martindale as the team’s new defensive coordinator, achieves that goal. Martindale, after all, was the primary architect of the Baltimore Ravens’ system that helped launch the Wolverines into their golden age the past three seasons.

Two of Martindale’s protégés, Mike Macdonald and Jesse Minter, ran their own versions of the scheme during that prosperous period, when the Wolverines won 40 of 43 games, three straight Big Ten titles and the sport’s greatest prize last month. The multifaceted defense, which Macdonald installed and Minter perfected, was at the root of their success. On the way to the national championship, Michigan stifled its opponents from one week to the next. By the time the Wolverines lifted the trophy, Minter’s unit had become the best in the land. No team allowed fewer points or yards per game than Michigan.

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With Minter following Harbaugh to the Los Angeles Chargers, Martindale steps into a job with high standards and great expectations. We’ll examine why he could sink or swim in his new job, assessing the pros and cons of Moore’s decision to bring Martindale aboard:

Pros

After the Wolverines crashed to a 2-4 record in 2020, Harbaugh recognized his listless program needed some energy. He was 57 and many of his assistants had grown long in the tooth. So, he dumped the old guard and welcomed in a bunch of 30-something coaches with new ideas. Among the additions was Macdonald, who helped revitalize the culture inside Schembechler Hall.

“Everybody has just been buying in ... and we're just all coming together,” running back Hassan Haskins said that year. “The energy is top tier.”

A deficiency suddenly became a strength because Harbaugh diagnosed the problem and found a solution. But whereas Harbaugh looked for young up-and-comers to address a weakness within his staff, the 38-year-old Moore now wants the opposite: Someone with plenty of experience. In steps Martindale, a 60-year-old veteran whose career on the sidelines has spanned five decades, 10 jobs and three levels. Martindale has seen a lot of football. He could become a good sounding board for Moore, a first-time head coach whose offense will be run by a combination of millennials and Gen-Zers.

He can also operate the defense independently, giving Moore the flexibility to invest more time in other areas. Martindale’s knowledge of the Ravens’ system should allow Michigan to make a smooth transition and prevent an exodus of talent that could have materialized had another coordinator been hired. Martindale, after all, had developed a good reputation in the NFL. In his first year as Baltimore’s coordinator, the Ravens finished first in total defense. A year later, they were ranked in the top five in the same category.

A person who worked with Martindale told the Free Press that he has the “it factor,” projecting confidence and a commanding presence.

“He’s got a way of connecting,” the source said.

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Cons

But Martindale is also known for being stubborn and strong-minded. Towards the end of his two-year tenure with the New York Giants, he reportedly clashed with head coach Brian Daboll. Multiple outlets detailed a verbal altercation that transpired last month after Daboll moved to fire two of Martindale’s most trusted assistants in the dreary aftermath of a 6-11 season.

“Wink is a strong-minded individual who comes out of the background of Buddy Ryan, Rex Ryan, Rob Ryan,” the source said. “I always thought of Wink as the third twin, with Rex and Rob.”

It made sense. The Ryan family recipe, after all, was pressure. Buddy, Rex and Rob all liked to bring the heat, sending waves of defenders after the quarterback. So does Martindale. This past season, he blitzed on 45% of all dropbacks — the second-highest rate in the NFL.

Should he take that aggressive approach with him to Ann Arbor, it will be a departure from what Michigan did under Minter. U-M used extra rushers on only 22.9% of dropbacks, a lower rate than 92 other teams at the FBS level. What Minter did do was implement a series of simulated pressures, devising ambushes that originated from unsuspecting areas. They created the same effect as blitzes but only required four defenders to execute. That allowed Michigan to preserve the integrity of its two-high safety shell. Under Minter, the Wolverines predominantly played zone coverage.

But Martindale, whose style is reminiscent of former Michigan defensive coordinator Don Brown, prefers man principles. Cover 1 and Cover 0 are his jam. In fact, no NFL team played a lower frequency of snaps in zone coverage this past season than Martindale’s Giants. Will he be willing to adjust after seeing what Minter was able to accomplish in his interpretation of the Ravens’ scheme?

“I’m sure there will be compromising on both sides to say, ‘What will make this transition suitable? What will make it easier for the players?’” the source speculated.

It may require some concessions from Martindale, whose move to Michigan comes at a time when many of his coaching peers at the college level are trying to make the reverse migration to the NFL. The advent of NIL and the transfer portal have introduced new challenges to recruiting and roster management that didn’t exist six years ago, spurring the exodus towards the pro ranks. Whether Martindale can navigate this tough terrain at 60, more than a quarter-century removed from his last job at an FBS program, is uncertain.

Final evaluation

Moore’s primary objective was to preserve the DNA of the program Harbaugh built. Martindale’s arrival helps him achieve that goal because he had a hand in creating the defensive playbook that has been the foundation of Michigan’s recent success. It’s uncertain if there was a better option out there. After all, the marketplace for assistants with expertise in the Ravens’ system has become extremely competitive. The Harbaugh brothers in Baltimore and Los Angeles have already tapped the pool of coaches well-versed in the scheme. So too has Macdonald, who was just hired to run the Seattle Seahawks.

That left Moore in a difficult spot as he tried to build his first staff.

“Everybody wants a piece of the Ravens,” the source said.

And Moore got his slice of the pie with Martindale.

“I think is a good hire,” the source said.

Contact Rainer Sabin at rsabin@freepress.com. Follow him @RainerSabin.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Wink Martindale: Pros, cons of Michigan football's defensive coordinator