Do most of you see us as a playoff team?

THUMPER

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LaTunaNostra said:
I think more than injuries, breaks, Bledsoe's resurrection, the older players' staying healthy, etc, whether we make the playoff or not will come down to the coaching.

Until Bill has proven he has amassed anything like the quality staffs he put together in the past, I think the answer is 'no'.

Just read today's Jen Floyd piece in which she accurately tags the oline as, on the whole, underachieving. Anytime the 'under' word is relevant, it's as much an indictment of the coaches as the players, probably more so.

Some of what I want to see in order to have faith in the coaching staff:

Todd Haley (whom I admittedly never cared for) has got to do more than tread water with two vet receivers who could teach him a few things about the position. He's got to DEVELOP Quincy, improve his reception technique, make a consistent performer out of Crayton, and yes, really prove himself thru Crowder, who is reported to have worked very hard this offseason. When there is that much will (I think Randal Williams lacked it) and that much speed/athleticism, it's on the wideout coach to make it happen. Glenn and Johnson are finished products..Haley needs to earn his keep.

Sparano has got to naysay that underachiever critque. Something has to be done to get Flo more consistent, and tho many have given up on Gurode, he's a player that could turn things around with the right coach, as could Tucker. There is way too much talent on hand for the inability to develop a RT to sabatoge it all. Technique, and cohesion..with as many vets on hand the should be no excuse for young players not knowing what to do. Making the oline and run game coordinator the same coach makes sense ...but Sparano has to be up to the task of coordinating both units to max performance. He also has to keep those blitzes off Bledsoe. His backs have to be blitz read savvy to the extreme. It's going to take very smart play to make it work. Johnny Lynn has to teach technique well.

Witten has nowhere near reached his peak, and Pasqualoni has got to find a way to maintain, or even up the rate of progress. David Lee has an opportunity to make a real name for himself with Henson.

If Bill is going to remain the de facto OC, fine, his playcalling could be much worse, but let's see Payton find the right balance for Bledsoe, do better at correcting his bad habits, and in general, prevent Drew from doing to Sean's career what he did to Gilbride's and Zampese's. With Bledsoe's OCs, it's self-preservation that has to kick in...it isn't just Tuna that is going to be taken down by DB if he fails...Sean is only going to survive if he is TOUGH and stands up to both Bill and Bledsoe, who is notoriously resistant to instruction . That might mean recommending Henson or Romo down the line, and working as closely with Lee as possible to get them ready.

Of course the defensive coaches have the greatest task, especially Gibbs and Rogers. It won't be easy under a DC who himself is learning a new scheme. But the key to a successful first year implemention of the 3-4, is I think, having the balls to play with abandon, not being overly rigid, perfectionist, and anal. Mistakes are going to be made, and a lot of them..players out of position, not understanding assignments, rookies messing up, not getting calls right... the only thing that I have noticed keeps a team in a new scheme competitive is maximizing speed and athletic ability coupled with sound tackling technique, knowing there will be over running on plays, and assorted goofs, but compensating for them with exuberance and killer instinct.

I have seen this work..two examples last year in NY under rookie Donnie Henderson when he played several rookies while introducing a 3-4, and a few years back in Baltimore when the cap cost so many good players to the Ravens after their SB year. Billick and Lewis had a free for all kamikaze preseason in which they threw out young players like Will Demps and told them to earn their spots. There was no holding back and they were able to evaluate both individual skills and decide who could be integrated successfully that season, and how fast.

Intangibles like momentum and "excitement" certainly play a large role, tho. You can tell when hesitancy is destroying a defense's opportunity....one player doubting another and all trying to do too much...it takes just the half second to give the O the edge. When you're not sure of what you're doing, (and that is part of the process) I've witnessed it's better to gamble that you will lose less on head strong play than on looking at each other in puzzlement.

I frankly doubt Zim has the temperament to allow young talent and speed to maximize itself, and will be so in fear of losing, that he won't gamble enough to compensate for the mistakes that will come anyway when implementing a new scheme. Even Tuna himself always featured a careful, slower implementation process. "Bend don't break" is the antithesis of what it takes to succeed early on... that's for later, when everyone is secure with his assignments. "I may break as I break on that ball but I will break your head off as I do" might be more in order. ;)

I think we can win, and win quickly in the early season (it will be later season we will have to regroup when DCs have watched film and seen the growing pains and how to combat them) if as the coaches teach, they give the Wares, Spears, Davis's and hopefully Canty's some headway. If the basic tackling skill is there, the vet smarts, and the rookie/young player exuberance can compensate for the mistakes...but I really think allowing the young ones a looser rein than Bill and Zim might fancy will not be a mistake, but the only way to stay competitive early on.

But if our coaches have the sand to play it that way, I do not know.

The coaches need to be worthy teachers, and also have brass ones for us to win, imho.


GREAT post, I totally agree! My biggest concern is, and has been, Zimmer. He does NOT have that killer instainct and works from the incorrect standpoint of trying not to lose rather than playing to win. He does not take chances and is too fixated on not making mistakes than on making big plays. To me that is a guaranteed way to lose.

I have stated numerous times that the way to measure a defense's effectiveness is not simply by yardage allowed or even points allowed but by turnovers and mistakes forced as well as points scored by the defense.

Stopping a team after 3 downs and forcing them to punt is nice but forcing a turnover where we get the ball in their territory is 1000 times better. We have been near the bottom in turnovers and sacks since Campo took over as the DC and it has continued with Zimmer. Both play that pansified bend-but-don't-break style of defense that tries to limit what an offense can do rather than an attacking style that dictates the game to the offense and forces turnovers and mistakes.

Worrying about making mistakes is not the way to win games. Taking chances and making plays is what wins games in the NFL. That is not to say that mistakes don't matter but that can't be the main focus.
 

jimmy40

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Boy's fan in Giant land said:
I don't think there's any question that we'll make the playoffs, more than likely as a wild card. Last season was an aberration of major proportions. Before the season, no one realized Darren Woodson's importance to this defense. Turns out he was the glue that held it all together & losing him for the season had a domino effect on the entire D.

How many teams suddenly lose their starting QB before the season even starts? How many have a truly servicable backup in place should something like this happen? Off the top of my head, only the Bengals come to mind.

For the 1st half of the season, our best effort at rb was Eddie George trying to crack the line of scrimmage with a friggin' refridgerator strapped to his back. Our o-line was weak on the right & didn't have the 'spark' needed to help them step it up. They played much better in the 2nd half of the year with JJ firing on all cylinders. Glenn & Campbell sat on the bench the majority of the year, leaving the often doubled Key with little help. And, of course there was Vinny, who I supported, but never should have been dropped in the middle of a situation like this. Damned near ANY qb would've suffered a meltdown.

This season is completely different. Bledsoe is, imho, a minor upgrade from Vinny BUT, he'll have much better protection. He'll be handing off to a guy who has the potential to be one of the best ever providing he picks up where he left off last year. JJ's backups are the best trio we've had around here in a VERY long time. They'll be running behind a far superior OL with an improved Al Johnson and a pro bowl RG in Marco. Whoever wins the RT battle (go Petitti) will receive an enormous amount of help from both Marco and Dan Campbell, neither of which had the pleasure of blocking for JJ last season.

Our w/r's are all healthy, & while aging, are still a better combo than many. I expect great things from Crayton, possibly replacing Morgan by mid season.

Witten will be even BETTER this year.

And you all can scream HOMER at the top of your lungs, but I'm telling you that we will have a top 10 defense by game 11, just in time to stomp into the playoffs with a full head of steam.
5-11,5-11,5-11,10-6,6-10. Now which of those seasons is the major aberration? Where do you buy those rose colored glasses?
 

burmafrd

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One can not put all the blame on coaches when players do not perform. The players themselves have to do at least half the job. Gurode is someone who just does not appear to have the mental capacity, discipline, WHATEVER to be consistent and not make a lot of mistakes. The Hotel can be as good as he wants to be- last year he got lazy- that is where a coach can USUALLY make a difference. But when you have NO ONE to replace him, and he has a big fat contract, your means of leverage is much reduced. BP probably could have forced more out of him, but with all the other problems he just did not have the time to put that much attention on one player.
As regards the D- its really simple why we do not have a lot of turnovers: we do not have the talent to force them. Turnovers happen when you sack/pressure the QB, or when you hit the ballcarrier so hard he drops it.Ballhawks in the secondary can make INTS- do we have any? Pressure on the QB- something we have not had much of for years. Only NOW are we reaching the point where we have the talent to actually play aggressive.
 

big dog cowboy

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burmafrd said:
Only NOW are we reaching the point where we have the talent to actually play aggressive.
Agreed.

But will the coaching staff allow it? :banghead:
 

LaTunaNostra

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burmafrd said:
One can not put all the blame on coaches when players do not perform. The players themselves have to do at least half the job. Gurode is someone who just does not appear to have the mental capacity, discipline, WHATEVER to be consistent and not make a lot of mistakes. The Hotel can be as good as he wants to be- last year he got lazy- that is where a coach can USUALLY make a difference. But when you have NO ONE to replace him, and he has a big fat contract, your means of leverage is much reduced. BP probably could have forced more out of him, but with all the other problems he just did not have the time to put that much attention on one player.
As regards the D- its really simple why we do not have a lot of turnovers: we do not have the talent to force them. Turnovers happen when you sack/pressure the QB, or when you hit the ballcarrier so hard he drops it.Ballhawks in the secondary can make INTS- do we have any? Pressure on the QB- something we have not had much of for years. Only NOW are we reaching the point where we have the talent to actually play aggressive.

There is a big difference between "blaming coaches for players not doing their jobs", and expecting coaches to do theirs.

The coaches here have had little to work with in many cases for far too long. I for one do not blame Zim for giving up on Hunter a year and a half ago. He was right, and Tuna was amiss to think he could turn Pete into Marcus Coleman.

I pity any coordinator who had to rely on Tony Dixon as a last line of defense. That bottom of barrel secondary that excelled in nothing but diminishing the effectiveness of Roy and Tnew has to get laid at Bill and Jerry's feet.

You put players on the field who just can't do it, and no coach can be expected to win with it. But just as players have to execute, fundamentals
such as basic tackling skills have to be refined, and sometimes even retaught. Word here was some coaches felt that was a skill learned back in college and even high school and could just be assumed. The good coaches assume nothing.

But there is a GOOD reason Warhop, for example, was let go. And that was failure to develop adequately or fast enough Gurode, Tucker, Vollers, Walter.
Failure to get a line functioning well enough as a unit. The lapses occurred in too many places in too many ways for just the orchestra to have been remiss...the maestro was dopping the baton as well.

Sorry but I am not impressed by a wide out coach who can get a game out of Terry Glenn or Keyshawn Johnson. I will be impressed by one who makes a receiver out of Tom Crowder, who so ardently wants to make one of himself.

As for Zim, I was and am a supporter. But he has an ABUNDANCE of young talent now, a whole draft load of it.

If he and his underlings could not do much with a Jemeel Powell or Jermaine Brooks, so be it. But that better not be the case with a Canty or Burnett.

Many folks think the most critical factor separating the haves from the have nots in today's game is coaching. Coaches make big bucks now for a reason...their diligence and creativity are crucial to a team's success.

If players don't execute, it is on them. If they don't know how because they haven't been practiced enough, or taught enough, or prepared enough, or exposed enough....it's on their teachers.

Accountability, in both areas.

I like that Bill cleaned some staff house this off season. And I hope it will result in more accountability.
 
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