Blaming Kiffin makes no sense

[unionjack8]

we have an offense stuck in the 90's and a defense stuck in a by gone era where teams didnt air it out 50 times every game. Doesnt take a genius to realise we wont win consistently.
Both schemes are utterly dire.

 

[dupree89]

. Saints aren't going anywhere with Rob Ryan.

Saints are going somewhere...and thats the playoffs. It remains very much in question whether Dallas gets there.

 

[dupree89]

Cowboy fans know nothing about football that's why they blame Kiffin. Said it before and will continue. Saints defense sucks too but there offense bails them out. They couldn't even expose Geno Smith. Rob the great. Whatever

Saints defense last year was # 31 in points allowed. 28.4 PPG
This year they are # 5. 18.1 PPG.

You mean to tell me Rob Ryan has nothing to do with this turn around?

 

[blackbull]

Saints defense last year was # 31 in points allowed. 28.4 PPG
This year they are # 5. 18.1 PPG.

You mean to tell me Rob Ryan has nothing to do with this turn around?

You mean to tell me Sean Payton isn't the main reason? Monte on the saints would look good too.

 

[PA Cowboy Fan]

The game has passed Monte Kiffin by. I was afraid of this when Jerry hired him.

 

[17yearsandcounting]

You mean to tell me Sean Payton isn't the main reason? Monte on the saints would look good too.[/quote]

No, he wouldnt. His own son had to fire him after his USC dumpster fire. His. Own. Son.

 

[Cas2800]

The defense has had its problems with injuries. But whart the hell is the offenses excuse?? They cant sustain a drive to keep opposing offenses off the field. What were they 0-8 on thrird down? Pathetic!

 

[jnday]

The game has passed Monte Kiffin by. I was afraid of this when Jerry hired him.

You make a valid point. If you remember, they said that they would run a defense like the Seahawks. That is the type if 4-3 that works in the modern game. Kiffin must be senile and have forgot about that statement.

 

[links18]

You mean to tell me Sean Payton isn't the main reason? Monte on the saints would look good too.

Can't tell if serious.

 

[Matts4313]

You make a valid point. If you remember, they said that they would run a defense like the Seahawks. That is the type if 4-3 that works in the modern game. Kiffin must be senile and have forgot about that statement.

or we just don't have Seahawks personal....?

its funny that so many ignore that we have the same defense coach that the bears have been dominating for 10-15 years with. You know he is in all the meetings, and helping design the game plan... Right?

its not the coaches that cause our defense to suck.

 

[WV Cowboy]

Did anyone else see Kiffin sitting up in the booth near the end of the game or just as it was ending, .. he looked like he was asleep or dead.

I thought for sure someone would bring that up and laugh.

 

[Kevinicus]

I think any defensive coordinator would struggle with the mess Jerry has assembled. That said, i still think Kiffen’s scheme is putrid. The middle of the field is always open. The blitzes are outdated. It doesn’t hide the holes in the defense, only exposes them. The fact he hides up in the booth is lame.

What do you expect when the Head Coach doesn't seem to think there is any value to the middle of the field?

 

[TwoDeep3]

Cowboy fans know nothing about football that's why they blame Kiffin. Said it before and will continue. Saints defense sucks too but there offense bails them out. They couldn't even expose Geno Smith. Rob the great. Whatever

I believe broad brush statements about Cowboy fans not knowing anything is misplaced. There is no way you can read a message on this or any board and come away with the intelligence or amount of knowledge a specific fan has, much less all fans in general. That is simply a form of name calling.

Injuries surely played a huge part in this game. But this complete failure has been coming at 1000 MPH for several years now.

You have a disorganized franchise led by an incompetent or a puppet. You have the General Manager building a defensive front during a season where there was a scheme change and employing 30 something year old players and a 29-year old.

Jason Hatcher - Born: July 13, 1982 (age 31), Alexandria, LA
Jay Rattliff - Born: August 29, 1981 (age 32), St. Petersburg, FL
DeMarcus Ware - Born: July 31, 1982 (age 31), Auburn, AL
Anthony Spencer - Born: January 23, 1984 (age 29), Fort Wayne, IN

The team over spent on corner backs that cannot cover if the defensive line cannot get pressure.

During the arguments over Eli Manning and his abilities in comparison to Romo, so many people here have suggested the only reason the Giants won championships was their defensive line and its rotation.

To a degree they were right, but this Dallas Cowboys team doesn't seem to get that.

Football games are won in the trenches. This results we see is from not building those trenches.

For a very long time I have been an advocate that coaching only takes you so far. Players are what matters most.

Coaching can point out what to do, but if the players cannot get into position to execute, then you have this debacle we saw last night.

People argue that point because the reality of what it says is this. If your players are not talented enough, and you have a GM that insists on rewarding them with huge contracts, you have no choice but to be mediocre until your team falters and fails completely.

But coaching is responsible for half time and on the fly adjustments, and motivation. And this team laid down last night on both sides of the ball.

And Kiffin is very responsible for that.

 

[TheCoolFan]

I can't blame him at all. The injuries have been far worse than what Rob Ryan had last year...and getting worse by the game. Trying to play a completely new scheme after 7 years in the 3-4 with players who would be thrilled to get on the field in the 2nd half of a preseason game but are thrown into the fire vs. the best offenses in the NFL. No chance!

Scheme-wise there's not much you can do when you have 4th stringers out there who probably don't even know the full playbook yet. Just gotta play a lot of zone/soft coverage so they don't get beaten deep. You can get by like that vs. the Vikings and Commanders but against the good offenses, they will find ways to exploit it. There's just nothing that can be done at this point.

 

[blackbull]

Can't tell if serious.

I'm very serious. When saints can't score bunches of points you see what happens. Defense doesn't look too hot. If you think Payton isn't the reason saints d has improved as well as Rob you're a fool. Rob is ok but please

 

[dupree89]

The defense has had its problems with injuries. But whart the hell is the offenses excuse?? They cant sustain a drive to keep opposing offenses off the field. What were they 0-8 on thrird down? Pathetic!

This is my issue with the team too. I fully admit that our defense is the worst in the league. Thats a given. But this team was supposed to be all about the offense. I have read on this very message board how Jason Garrett is an offensive genius. I have read that Tony Romo is an elite QB. I have read that we have great playmakers. Yet we had 12 yards passing in the first half last night? And never converted a 3rd down the entire game? This is an absolute disgrace. No other way to put it. Its an embarrassment and its a reflection on these very coaches/players that I have heard are going to make this such a dynamic offense.

 

[DallasCowboysRule!]

If you really want to judge Kiffen based upon how well his scheme is working you have to judge him based upon the entire season and not just on the last game. I've taken the time to compile some stats for you guys. First, a game by game breakdown of the passing defense with totals and averages at the end:

Eli Manning: 27/42, 450 Yards, 4 TD, 3 INT, 102.3 Rating
Alex Smith: 21/36, 223 Yards, 2 TD, 0 INT, 95.0 Rating
Sam Bradford: 29/49, 240 Yards, 1 TD, 0 INT, 80.2 Rating
Phillip Rivers: 35/42 401 Yards, 3 TD, 1 INT, 120.3 Rating
Peyton Manning: 33/42, 414 Yards, 4 TD, 1 INT, 129.6 Rating
Robert Griffen III: 19/39, 246 Yards, 0 TD, 1 INT, 58.3 Rating
Nick Foles and Matt Barkley: 22/49, 209 Yards, 0 TD, 3 INT, 31.7 Combined Rating
Matt Stafford: 33/48, 488 Yards, 1 TD, 2 INT, 91.3 Rating
Christian Ponder: 25/37 237 Yards, 1 TD, 1 INT, 82.7 Rating
Drew Brees: 34/41, 392 Yards, 4 TD, 0 INT, 139.2 Rating

Total: 278/425 65.4 %, 3300 Yards, 20 TD, 9 INT, 95.8 Passer Rating
Average: 27.8/42.5 65.4%, 330 Yards, 2 TD, .9 INT, 93.06 Average Passer Rating

Now we will move on to the rushing game:

Giants: 14 carries, 50 yards, 3.6 ypc
Chiefs: 25 carries, 114 yards, 4.6 ypc
Rams: 12 carries, 35 yards, 2.9 ypc
Chargers: 27 carries, 112 yards, 4.1 ypc
Broncos: 31 carries, 103 yards, 3.3 ypc
Commanders: 33 carries, 216 yards, 6.5 ypc
Eagles: 23 carries, 84 yards, 3.7 ypc
Lions: 29 carries, 143 Yards, 4.9 ypc
Vikings: 29 carries, 169 Yards, 5.8 ypc
Saints: 38 carries, 242 yards, 6.4 ypc

Total: 261 carries, 1268 yards, 4.8 ypc
Average: 26.1 carries, 126.8 Yards, 4.8 ypc

And finally points allowed:

Giants: 31
Chiefs: 17
Rams: 7
Chargers: 30
Broncos: 51
Commanders: 16
Eagles: 3
Lions: 31
Vikings: 23
Saints: 49

Total: 258
Average: 25.8

Some of these stats are subjective. Teams that are behind throw a lot and get garbage yards. Teams that are ahead run a lot and point allowed doesn't take into account if the offense turns it over deep in our own territory. It seems obvious to me however, that if you look at the stats we have only had two or three solid defensive games all year. Most of the games have been defensive debacles, especially in the yards allowed area.

 

[PA Cowboy Fan]

This is my issue with the team too. I fully admit that our defense is the worst in the league. Thats a given. But this team was supposed to be all about the offense. I have read on this very message board how Jason Garrett is an offensive genius. I have read that Tony Romo is an elite QB. I have read that we have great playmakers. Yet we had 12 yards passing in the first half last night? And never converted a 3rd down the entire game? This is an absolute disgrace. No other way to put it. Its an embarrassment and its a reflection on these very coaches/players that I have heard are going to make this such a dynamic offense.

This offense hasn't looked that great since the Denver game.

 

[dupree89]

If you really want to judge Kiffen based upon how well his scheme is working you have to judge him based upon the entire season and not just on the last game. I've taken the time to compile some stats for you guys. First, a game by game breakdown of the passing defense with totals and averages at the end:

.

nicely done

 

[Beast_from_East]

No defensive coordinator in the history of football could stop the Saints offense without SEVEN projected starters on the field. Get real.

Sometimes in football, a crazy rash of injuries make it virtually impossible to succeed no matter how good the coaching. This is one of those times.

It's hilarious how some people are crying about the Rob Ryan firing now.

Remember how bad his D was last year after the absurd rash of injuries? Now that Kiffin's dealing with the same thing (if not worse), we want HIM gone? Even though you regret not giving Rob the same leeway?

Then there's the reality that Kiffin's trying to implement a new scheme, on top of all the injuries. Those aren't excuses, those are facts.

Sorry, you can't have it both ways. Either Rob AND Kiffin should get free passes for having to deal with an ungodly number of injuries, or neither of them should get the pass. Don't be inconsistent now just because you're emotional.

Now Kiffin will probably be gone after this year and many of you will be cheering when it happens. Just remember how you were also cheering last year when Rob got the axe. Funny how his D is doing great now in New Orleans since he's starting players who were actually projected to be starting.

I don't know what the answers are as I don't know if anything can be done about our horrific luck recently with defensive injuries. Some have suggested that the training staff is to blame and maybe there's something to that... or maybe there's nothing to that since none of us know nearly enough about our training regimen compared to that of other teams.

Bye week couldn't have come at a better time. The good news is we're still in 1st place (thanks to tiebreakers) and we have a chance to get Lee, Durant, Claiborne and Wilcox back before the end of the year. Then we'll see if Kiffin's unit can step up.

Since we are talking about fairness and getting free passes...........

Wade was fired for his beat down, so why is Opie not getting the same treatment?

Why the double standard?