You know in the preseason when they say that "oh, well you can't really tell much because all of the teams are pretty much just running basic vanilla schemes on offense and defense"....
well, the thing is when Del Rio was here, nothing really changed on offense & defense as they advanced into the regular season. It still was just as vanilla and basic on offense and defense in September through December as it was in August... lol
.gif "Laughing")
With Bradley, you'll see more exotic scheming especially on defense, to try and generate pressure when the front four isn't providing it in base. You'll also see a more diverse offense than just ground and pound and pass on 3rd and long...
Looking back I can honestly say I don't think Del Rio was given great talent. He had a few guys but nothing sustaininable. Rasheen only played at that level for 2 years and Smith was good but not great.
Now before you say Gus hasn't had that either, I feel that Caldwell is a better evaluator than Smith and can get him guys to fit the scheme. Obviously this remains to be seen but when I see the current talent it surpasses anything previously, from a talent perspective.
Also Gus' scheme; just by its nature, looks more exotic by its design.
When Del Rio had talent they won a playoff game, was 2nd in the league in rushing, and broke franchise passing numbers. Plus our defense was formidable under him. If Jack had Caldwell in office he probably still be here coaching.
Tell Gus to do something with his "exoctic scheming" before clowning the other guy who had a trash roster the majority of the time he was here. Im skeptical of Gus and it's not hard to figure out but im in wait and see mode with him to see what he does these next couple of years.
Fisch and Bradley are definitely teasing the hell out of us, and the rest of the nfl. Showing off their new toy.
I developed an immense respect for JDR after he left and saw what happened when others were given what he had to work with. With the front office we have now, I have no doubt Jack would make this a successful team.
Kind of the perfect storm for failure. Gene wasn't hitting on his picks and JDR wasn't really that great of a HC. Both guys were handicapping this franchise (Gene more than JDR).
I think JDR was a better coach than many give him credit to be. He never had more than a serviceable QB to run his offense, and his overall roster talent during his tenure was fairly low. It was time for him to move on and let the organization hit the refresh button.
The one thing that sticks out to me about Bradley's teams are that they seem motivated to go out there and play well. Del Rio's squads had some of that due to leaders on the roster - Mike Peterson anyone? - but with this current set up, you can almost feel Bradley pulling, pushing, urging the players on and they feed off of that.
Del Rio treated his team like they were men doing a job, Bradley treats his team like they are football players playing to win a game.
Del Rio is like Muschamp. He should be banned from anything that has to do with the offense.
I have seen 4 wins against bad teams out of Bradley. Lets see more before we celebrate him.
I think it is way too early to make any definitive statement about Bradley. At the start of Del Rio's second season, it was very rosy. Up until his team laid one of the biggest (goose)eggs in franchise history against Houston and missed the playoffs.
What is weird to me is how Denver plays a pretty blitz heavy scheme. JDR was so vanilla in our 4-3 base here. It took him to get fired to change.
Quote:I developed an immense respect for JDR after he left and saw what happened when others were given what he had to work with. With the front office we have now, I have no doubt Jack would make this a successful team.
Agreed. I think Del Rio paired with a good GM probably would have been a far more effective head coach.
Quote:What is weird to me is how Denver plays a pretty blitz heavy scheme. JDR was so vanilla in our 4-3 base here. It took him to get fired to change.
Didn't he run a similar scheme in Carolina?
Maybe that's Fox and not Del Rio?
Quote:Agreed. I think Del Rio paired with a good GM probably would have been a far more effective head coach.
One thing about Del Rio's teams is they seemed to thrive at being the underdog. I'm guessing Del Rio was like that as a player. The team went into some tough environments against good teams (Philly, Green Bay, Pittsburgh, Denver, Indy) and won. Usually with an inferior roster.
But they had duds against bad Houston and Tennessee teams that kept them out of the playoffs.
Del Rio's biggest downfall was that he gave up the last few seasons. He was the last person in and the first person out. I think he got beaten down here by the aging talent and chronic QB/Pass Rush problems that were only addressed with busts that weren't replaced for 3 or 4 years.
I think the difference between Gus and Jack is one is a good coach when given talent and the other is a developmental coach, I agree the jury is still way out on Gus and the proof will definitely be on the pudding, but the book is closed on Jack, although it is very true what he got as far as talent from the magic Genie was more on the lines of the talent you find at your local car wash toweling off your car, guys he got that might have had a shimmer of hope he couldn't polish into high quality players, ie. Nelson now in Cincy
Del Rio went through different coordinators and coaches almost every year it seemed.
Quote:I think the difference between Gus and Jack is one is a good coach when given talent and the other is a developmental coach, I agree the jury is still way out on Gus and the proof will definitely be on the pudding, but the book is closed on Jack, although it is very true what he got as far as talent from the magic Genie was more on the lines of the talent you find at your local car wash toweling off your car, guys he got that might have had a shimmer of hope he couldn't polish into high quality players, ie. Nelson now in Cincy
Agreed big time.
I'd also like to add that very simply any coach can be successful with a great GM. The problem is, You'll never get to the superbowl much less win it with a subpar coach. A great GM will get you to the playoffs every year though. Vice Versa is true as well.
Quote:Agreed big time.
I'd also like to add that very simply any coach can be successful with a great GM. The problem is, You'll never get to the superbowl much less win it with a subpar coach. A great GM will get you to the playoffs every year though. Vice Versa is true as well.
I don't know about that. That's a bit extreme.