Other than John Harbaugh, which rookie coach has done the best job, the Falcons' Mike Smith or the Dolphins' Tony Sparano?

Sparano was amazing

First of all, it is absolutely startling what both Mike Smith in Atlanta and Tony Sparano in Miami have accomplished. However, leaving the Ravens' John Harbaugh out of this particular discussion, I give the nod to Sparano for the most remarkable turnaround for not only this season, but perhaps all time. A year ago, the Dolphins, now 10-5, were 1-15 and seemingly bereft of talent (that win over the Ravens notwithstanding). The few veteran stars they did have, namely linebacker Zach Thomas and defensive end Jason Taylor, headed off to Dallas and Washington, respectively.

Meanwhile, new front office honcho Bill Parcells' approach in the draft, taking offensive tackle Jake Long with the No. 1 pick, signaled that the Dolphins had a distant horizon for turning the program around. But Sparano installed an offense - the so-called "Wildcat," with running back Ronnie Brown taking the snap - that allowed Miami to steal some early wins. And he created an environment for quarterback Chad Pennington, who performed unevenly with the New York Jets the previous three years, to have an incredibly efficient season (17touchdown passes, seven interceptions), despite the fact that Pennington was a relatively late addition.

Sparano has also taken fringe players and plugged them in at key times. Heard of Lousaka Polite? He's a fullback the Dolphins signed in October who has just 68 yards on 17carries - but 13 have been for first downs. Recall Maryland tight end Joey Haynos? Haynos has one catch for the Dolphins after being signed in September; it was for the winning touchdown against the San Francisco 49ers. This is not to take away from Smith or even Harbaugh, but Sparano had neither the great fortune of catching lightning in a bottle with a franchise rookie quarterback nor the luxury of inheriting a fistful of Pro Bowl players. And with a win Sunday against the Jets, his club will be AFC East champions.

Smith did unthinkable

NFL teams have gone 1-15 before. But how many have had their franchise quarterback get sent to Leavenworth, and then had their head coach skulk out of town before finishing his first season, leaving "Dear John" letters in his players' lockers? Yeah, give me Mike Smith. He didn't make chicken salad out of … what Michael Vick and Bobby Petrino left behind in Atlanta. He made chicken cordon bleu. At least in Miami, when Tony Sparano was entrusted by Bill Parcells to put the pieces back together, there were pieces to put back together.

Falcons owner Arthur Blank deserves credit for choosing all the right people and working to regain the fans' trust (and handling the Vick loyalists' separation anxiety), and Matt Ryan has outperformed any reasonable projections at quarterback. But Smith, a relative unknown hired by a novice general manager has brought it all together, exactly the way a smart, organized, inspirational coach should.

Remember, the Falcons were a virtual expansion team coming into this season. A rookie quarterback, a veteran running back given his first real chance (Michael Turner), a defense full of holes that everyone was convinced needed to be addressed more than quarterback, a group of players who, in a bizarre reversal, had their coach quit on them, and a city that needed to be re-sold on the very idea of pro football.

It was the least appealing job opening in the NFL, by far. The clincher? Bill Parcells passed on them to take the Miami gig. Smith's task was much bigger than Sparano's, and he accomplished it much earlier than anyone thought possible, with fewer proven resources, in a tougher division and with not low expectations, but no expectations.What Sparano has done is shocking. What Smith has done is a miracle.