I was on board with your hiring from day-one. I trust the Rooneys and I believe you are as smart of a football mind as there has been. That includes Vince Lombardi and Chuck Noll. But those guys weren't stupid. You are not either, but you are acting like it right now because of your stubbornness and your inexplicable allegiance to your OC. Allow me to explain.
- Isaac Redman was supposed to be a "known commodity". All I know for sure is he better find a box full of his belongings waiting in the middle of the locker room when he gets there, with his locker exhibiting a name placard of "Offensive Tackle To Be Named Later". I said in my mock draft at Behind the Steel Curtain that Redman needed to be cut and Dwyer kept. I was considered a bit crazy. Your apology can be expressed with a Coffee K-Cup sampler from Community Coffee of Louisiana.
- This OL is not made for power running. They are gifted and athletic, but only DeCastro is a pure power blocker. Beachum is (and is also your best tackle, for what it's worth) as well but he's tpp busy playing tight end. On a side note, throw him the dadgum ball! Everyone knows why he is there, so it would shock everyone on the planet -- Kelvin included -- if you actually, you know, threw him the rock now and then. It worked for the Fridge, it worked for Jumbo Elliot. Let's give him a nickname like "M1A1" and toss a few goal-line TDs his way.
But back to the scheme. Aside from M1A1 and DeCastro, this group is a zone-blocking group. So quit trying to run an even split and do what works. Let's aim for about 10:1 Outside Zone to Power O. Through the first four runs of the night, I counted four outsize zone runs and two power runs. The yardage was 26 to -4 in favor of zone. Just sayin', dude. - Markus Wheaton is greater than Jerricho Cotchery in every regard except age. Allow me to explain.
Cotchery has been a huge leader for us. But the man is slower than Christmas. On one play, Ben found himself slightly hurried into a throw. He let it go before the receiver (Cotchery) had finished his route. It was a curl, and it was clear that Cotch was Ben's primary read. The ball sailed past Cotchery and into the hands of a defender. Why? Because Jerricho couldn't get his walker turned around that fast. If that's Wheaton, he has made the turn, run to the second level of the stadium, gotten and eaten a hot dog, drank a beer, sobered up, whittled a new helmet out of clay, fired it in a kiln, painted it, fitted it, and is standing there filing a hangnail waiting for the ball to get there. Heck, before it even hits his hands, he has already run it in for a touchdown, autographed it and given it to some kid in the first row.
Flash back to last week and the end-around to Cotchery (we'll come back to this one in a minute, because you can bet your ever-lovin' rear end there is more to be said here). I'm pretty sure that, as he was being dragged down behind the line of scrimmage, I actually could read the brand name on his dentures as they flew from his mouth. - About that end-around: basic football knowledge says these two immutable rules about them: they only work when the defense is not playing 27 people at the line of scrimmage, and they don't work with the slowest, oldest man on the field!
I love Jerricho. I really do. But Ed Hochule would have had more success on that play. Heck, Ed Hochule's niece would have done better. You send Cotchery on slants and flags and even the occasional mid-range comeback route. You do not let your (highly) offensive coordinator send your slowest receiver on an end-around. There is much to say for the element of surprise. There is more to say for the element of stupidity. - Why, oh why, have you not tried to trade Emmanuel Sanders for a decent ILB? Manny is a favorite of mine. But given his recent propensity for drops, and the fact that Kion Wilson can cover receivers but not stop the run while Vince Williams is a beast at the line but looks like a lost puppy in coverage, we need some sort of a solution that fits both situations. Someone like a...Marshall McFadden?
I'm sensing a trend here...\ - Antonio Brown just had a career-best game. Given your recent history with guys like Jarvis Jones, Markus Wheaton and Jonathan Dwyer, I assume the next step is to either bench him or cut him?
Mike, we live and die by our team. You will find no better, more passionnate fanbase, and what we saw tonight was a great deal of promise. The errors are correctable. But you have lost control of your men, and much of that is due to an impending Mutiny on the Haley. The offense performs is best when #7 is calling the shots, and the defense needs to be given a break. They have been carrying the load. It's time for you to step up and lead your men. Either fire your OC, or expect your offensive players to start ignoring you.
Ever see Varsity Blues?
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