Jacksonville Jaguars Fan Forums

Who knows --- so many variables at this time.

Quote:Who knows --- so many variables at this time.

 

If Gus can start turning those variables into W's, he will be going in the right direction.

After two years of struggling to get out of the black hole that Gene Smith put this team in I think we still can't really tell objectively if we're heading in the right direction. We simply still have too many needs to be filled, personnel wise, on the field to be able to tell yet. I think that as far as our player acquisition is concerned Dave Caldwell is doing his best to try to get the best people he can on the field as quickly as can be done; but it takes time, unless you're just extraordinarily lucky!

 

Until we have more of those key pieces on the field, you can't objectively tell if what Gus wants to do will work or not. There are just so many factors that have an impact on how fast a team can 'turn it around'. For instance; we have what we hope is our franchise quarterback in Blake Bortles, but he has some issues with his fundamental throwing footwork that is going to take some time to overcome. Until he does, we aren't going to see his best game; and the current philosophy is that as the quarterback goes, so goes the team... and probably the career of the head coach.

 

Unfortunately, we have multiple factors complicating the issue of our quarterback development. For starters, our o-line was epic in it's dysfunction this past season and must be addressed or there is no hope for Blake to ever get better. Another factor is that with the firing of Jedd Fisch, the offense now has to learn a new system instead of growing more used to the old one. Until they do, there is no reason to expect anything different from what we saw last season.

 

So taking things like this into consideration, it would not be realistic, at least in my opinion, to be able to objectively judge if Gus Bradley is 'doing the right stuff' as a head coach. It's like trying to evaluate the 500 horsepower engine in your car when your transmission is only capable of handling half the torque the engine is capable of. Until all.. or at least most, of the pieces needed are on the field, we won't be able to judge Gus fairly. That's not his fault or Dave Caldwell's either; that is the fault of former owner Wayne Weaver for allowing Gene Smith to put this team in a 'black hole'. We are still trying to climb out of that hole...

The post above pretty much sums it up.

I feel like the team has improved, but is still not where it should be. What the Jaguars need now is a, winning season. A playoff berth would be nice, but at least going 8-8 or 9-7 would be a breathe of fresh air. Our biggest need is, improving the O-Line. I still have high hopes for Bortles. If the Jags go 3-13 or 4-12 again then it's time to move on from Gus Bradley. Hopefully things go well this year, because Gus is a really cool guy.

The poll asked if you think we are heading in the right direction. Not if we have reached the pinnacle. So I'm not sure why people are putting "We'll see" or "Can't really answer that right now"

 

Yea you can. You either think what he's done so far is the right thing or what hes done so far is the wrong thing. I think he is a great motivator but not a very good game day coach or a great game planner. I kind of got that feeling when they hired Marrone and Olson. I think they're here to help him improve his game planning and game time coaching.

 

I think we are heading in the right direction though because I think the coaches in place now are definitely better than they were last year. I think our offense will be better next year and when you add in an improve defense, I think we will, at minimum, double our win total from last year.

Quote:That is the smartest thing you have ever said.

 

Really?!

 

Dangit. I went and wasted it on this Message Board.

 

 

Feels pretttttty good to peak though, I gotta tell ya.

I really like Gus but clock management issues and inability to hire a quality OC I think is gonna cost him.

From 4 wins to 3 wins... absolutely he is.

I feel that he is leading the team in the right direction. However, 2015 is make or break for him. I don't know if Khan will force his hand with Caldwell. He may cut them both loose. I think Caldwell should keep his job though if this season doesn't turn out right. I don't think the team is talentless, we could use some playmakers in a few areas, but they're young. Not sure if they will make a huge leap like winning a play-off spot but I think this team has to finish 7 - 9 / 8 - 8 minimum for Bradley to keep his job heading into 2016 after this season is over.

Quote:I think Bradley needs 4 full seasons. No less. This rebuild is a long process as they had to start with a dumpster fire of a roster.

No. Just like the OP stated, it's do or die this year. Minimum 8-8, or a shot at winning the division. If not, he should be fired.


All this optimism will soon be gone if we start out 0-2.

Quote:I feel that he is leading the team in the right direction. However, 2015 is make or break for him. I don't know if Khan will force his hand with Caldwell. He may cut them both loose. I think Caldwell should keep his job though if this season doesn't turn out right. I don't think the team is talentless, we could use some playmakers in a few areas, but they're young. Not sure if they will make a huge leap like winning a play-off spot but I think this team has to finish 7 - 9 / 8 - 8 minimum for Bradley to keep his job heading into 2016 after this season is over.

Agreed, and I think that's the way both Caldwell and Bradley are looking at it as well.  This year is the season where the team has to turn the corner and start showing tangible signs of improvement on the field.  With the money we've stockpiled, and the young talent this team has at key positions, there's no reason the product on the field shouldn't improve significantly this year. 

Gus Bradley's defense with the Seahawks made a huge turn-around in year three. Hopefully this team does the same.

Hmmmm..... YEAR 3 ..... Is that the same year that Pete Carroll was hired as the HC of Seattle?

Quote:I voted yes. It is not Gus Bradley's fault that 10 starters on offense were rookies or second-year players. It was not Bradley's fault that several key starters suffered season-ending injuries. It is not Gus Bradley's fault Justin Blackmon cares more about alcohol than football. What was his fault? Hiring Jedd Fisch, and he corrected that shortly after the season ended.

You have a little validity to some of your points but he should have replaced Fisch after his first season.  His hesitation has caused a 1 year delay in the development of the offense.

Quote:BINGO! There have been some mistakes on Gus's part, but that's to be expected...Even coveted seasoned HCs make mistakes...It's funny when Caldwell was hired and tore the roster all pieces, and then hired Gus, everyone on this board knew and understood that this was a LONG project just to be competitive...After just 2 drafts, some have forgotten about this being a long process and want to blow everything up and start over with a new gm and coaching staff without allowing this current regime to get past the point of having to start a [BAD WORD REMOVED] pot full of rookies, UDFA, and late round draft pics...Apparently some feel that every player should go from college to playing like seasoned vets in a period of months instead of 2-3 years... This team was just about the level of an expansion team after Caldwell tore it apart...You can't expect fruit to taste good before it's ripe, and you can't expect a team to light the world on fire until they get the experience...My biggest worry now is having to learn another new offense...

 

JDR did the best with what he had too.  Probably had the team overperforming with the talent (or lackof) he had.

Quote:Gus Bradley's defense with the Seahawks made a huge turn-around in year three. Hopefully this team does the same.

 

How do we know it's Bradley's defense?  The Hawks have only gotten better since his departure.

Quote:JDR did the best with what he had too.  Probably had the team overperforming with the talent (or lackof) he had.

JDR was a stubborn old school smash mouth style coach...he refused to evolve...he stated many times he did not care how many men they put in the box, we were going to run the ball...he refused to play anything but "double chin strap" power football...He could easily have had a better record if he would have come off the run only double chin starp smash mouth football and throw the ball...when every team stacked the box to stop the run, he could have thrown just over the linebackers and made them back off but again, he refused...had he come out of his caveman mentality he could have done much better here

Seattle hasn't quite fully recovered since the loss of Gus Bradley 2 years ago.

He good.