Does this year feel different?

cowboybish

cowboybish

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I for one, was not going to get too excited about the upcoming season bc I've been let down so often as we all have. That being said... does this off season seem different... like there is an actual plan? Was Shotty the right pick for HC? Will Klayton Adams really have us moving the ball on the ground... will we set up every play to look the same so the run and the pass keep the defenses honest. Did we really draft a 1-2 punch at RB? Will George P and CD rip up defenses. Have we done enough on the D side of the ball to at least put us in the top half of league and will our O be able to up points as we hope they will?
 
Yes, it feels like they've finally aggressively built a team, especially in the context of what they usually do. That said, alot still has to go right. Their picks need to pan out. Blue needs to be a stud. Guyton and Steele need to turn it around and play well (to me our OT play may be the biggest factor in this season being good or not between being able to run and Dak not getting shook by pressure). DTs and LBs need to stop the run. Diggs and Overshown need to come back healthy. Pickens and Lamb need to gel. Our QB needs to step up and play well in big games and return to form in general because he was off all of last year before he got hurt. Schottenheimer needs to show he can lead this team.

Alot needs to happen, but yes, it feels like there's a small glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel, especially compared to the hopelessness we all felt going into last year. But, as always we just have to wait and see before getting our hopes up. I do like that we start with a tough schedule. We'll either come out firing or get shaken out of apathy early enough to do something about it.
 
It feels different in many ways, but I don't think a lot of us are a ready to anoint anything until we see results!! Damn all the talking and hopeism, let's see results, blocking, tackling, effort, physicality
 
The team will go as the o-line goes imo. At this point, it's more likely that the offense carries the team than the defense. Micah needs a stud buddy. Not sure who that will be this year. Lamb has Pickens and if they are both reasonably healthy, Dak will have all the weapons a QB could want. No excuses. This offense has the ability to equal the one they fielded in 2021, which was a juggernaut through the first six games (before Elliott got hurt and was neutered for the rest of the year). TWO 1,000 yd receivers and a 1,000 yd rusher will make them tough to deal with for any defense. However, a brutal back end schedule could be a real impediment.
 
cowboybish said:
I for one, was not going to get too excited about the upcoming season bc I've been let down so often as we all have. That being said... does this off season seem different... like there is an actual plan? Was Shotty the right pick for HC? Will Klayton Adams really have us moving the ball on the ground... will we set up every play to look the same so the run and the pass keep the defenses honest. Did we really draft a 1-2 punch at RB? Will George P and CD rip up defenses. Have we done enough on the D side of the ball to at least put us in the top half of league and will our O be able to up points as we hope they will?
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No not really.
 
TexasBacon said:
Yes, it feels like they've finally aggressively built a team, especially in the context of what they usually do. That said, alot still has to go right. Their picks need to pan out. Blue needs to be a stud. Guyton and Steele need to turn it around and play well (to me our OT play may be the biggest factor in this season being good or not between being able to run and Dak not getting shook by pressure). DTs and LBs need to stop the run. Diggs and Overshown need to come back healthy. Pickens and Lamb need to gel. Our QB needs to step up and play well in big games and return to form in general because he was off all of last year before he got hurt. Schottenheimer needs to show he can lead this team.

Alot needs to happen, but yes, it feels like there's a small glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel, especially compared to the hopelessness we all felt going into last year. But, as always we just have to wait and see before getting our hopes up. I do like that we start with a tough schedule. We'll either come out firing or get shaken out of apathy early enough to do something about it.
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Nope. Not even close.

This offseason regardless of the slurry of moves to bring in guys that are mostly JAGs proved to me this front office is LAZY.

They proved it with the HC search, they are continuing to prove it with the Micah deal, and they continuously get fans to buy in. I don't know how but they do it. I am not one of those fans anymore. This ownership has sucked the fan out of me.

Out of ALL of the moves they made this offseason. The only ones I am happy/excited about are. Murray, Milton and Fowler. Booker will be a stud at G but I still feel that G wasn't a need position with Hoffman on the roster. Again. Being lazy and not willing to take risk.

Sorry but bringing in Javonte Williams, and Miles Sanders doesnt scream aggressive team building to me.

They still havent made any improvement on stopping the run. Its like they refuse to see it as a problem.
 
It feels different because it is different. They drafted BPA, which was a good start. Then they draft fell their way and we got some serious value and future players. The other trades and acquisitions were sneaky good signings that really ended up fitting well with what they did in the draft. That's another reason this season is different. We've got a team that can be really good together.

Sure, there are a few question marks. But we have to trust our evaluations to some degree. And if they end up being bad evals, there's still time to address that after camp, even after the season starts.

The question marks are at positions that don't really need months to get up to speed with the playbook, so they're playing that correctly.

We're going to compete this year for the division.
 
It feels different than last year but that doesn’t necessarily mean a successful season ahead. Anytime you make a coaching change it’s going to feel different. If it’s going to be different in a good way we need to improve as the season goes on and be playing our best football in Dec and Jan.
 
phildadon86 said:
Nope. Not even close.

This offseason regardless of the slurry of moves to bring in guys that are mostly JAGs proved to me this front office is LAZY.

They proved it with the HC search, they are continuing to prove it with the Micah deal, and they continuously get fans to buy in. I don't know how but they do it. I am not one of those fans anymore. This ownership has sucked the fan out of me.

Out of ALL of the moves they made this offseason. The only ones I am happy/excited about are. Murray, Milton and Fowler. Booker will be a stud at G but I still feel that G wasn't a need position with Hoffman on the roster. Again. Being lazy and not willing to take risk.

Sorry but bringing in Javonte Williams, and Miles Sanders doesnt scream aggressive team building to me.

They still havent made any improvement on stopping the run. Its like they refuse to see it as a problem.
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For the most part all we did was replace what we lost. The two biggest holes on our team have not been adequately addressed - run defense and run offense.

The only legit move made was trading for Pickens and that comes with some risks. Could end up being a 1 year rental.
 
MountaineerCowboy said:
Yes.

They didn't hire a qualified HC.
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While I agree, I think we have the best assistant staff we've had in some time, which is definitely a silver lining. If Schottenheimer can be competent then it could work out better than expected. Certainly better than the outdated McCarthy/Zimmer combo, and probably much better than Kellen Moore (though that's hard to know until we see what he does).
 
Chasing6 said:
For the most part all we did was replace what we lost. The two biggest holes on our team have not been adequately addressed - run defense and run offense.

The only legit move made was trading for Pickens and that comes with some risks. Could end up being a 1 year rental.
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They had very little to no depth last year, which I think they've done a good job of addressing. I agree DT is still a need, but hopefully OL has been shored up, and Pickens will also do alot in helping the run game because defenses can't just stack the box, double Lamb, and dare us to try anything like they did last year. I think it's understated how much a good second WR does to help the run game. The interior OL has also been shored up, as I don't think many of us realized how bad Martin was playing last year (at least I didn't). They added alot of good depth to the defensive line and quietly got much better/deeper at DE and LB. DT and maybe OT are the only glaring holes on this roster right now. I'm not saying Jerry turned into Howie Roseman overnight, but they fielded playoff teams 3 years in a row doing much less than they did this offseason, and somehow still aren't in cap Hell and won't be even after signing Micah. Sure, it still all hinges on Dak playing up to his contract, and frankly he's out of excuses this year. But I do, perhaps foolishly, feel some modicum of optimism, at least compared to last year.
 
TexasBacon said:
While I agree, I think we have the best assistant staff we've had in some time, which is definitely a silver lining. If Schottenheimer can be competent then it could work out better than expected. Certainly better than the outdated McCarthy/Zimmer combo, and probably much better than Kellen Moore (though that's hard to know until we see what he does).
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Kellen Moore was at least a real OC here, unlike Schotty last year, and had the 2nd best offense in the NFL, only behind KC during his tenure here.

So "much better" than Super Bowl champ OC and now HC Kellen Moore is wishful thinking.

Kellen Moore got a bad rap because of the loser QB he was strapped with. I predicted when he took a lateral job to get away from Dak that he would be a HC within 3 years of leaving Dak and he did just that.
 
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