(01-07-2018, 05:28 AM)e D6 Wrote: (01-06-2018, 10:00 PM)Bullseye Wrote: What did you think of the Lions firing Caldwell?
I'm not sure that was the right move, but you follow the Lions far more closely than I, so you would be the guy to ask.
Now that he has been fired, who do you want to replace him?
Bullseye, I am against the decision but I understand Bob Quinn should have the opportunity to hire his own HC if he believes that it's necessary for the Lions to get to the pinnacle. Quinn believes the Lions should have done better than 9-7 in both 2016 and 2017. He's willing to put his own neck on the line, which shows guts. It remains to be seen if turns out to be a decision that leads the Lions to the Super Bowl in the next few seasons.
Looking at the Lions roster, when factoring in injuries, including relative health of both the Lions and opponents, I don't think the Lions underachieved in each of the last 2 seasons compared to most NFL teams. The Lions probably won 1 more game this season than the team should have, when factoring in everything. What proved very costly for Jim Caldwell was the both the December losses at Baltimore and Cincinnati and the Lions overall record against teams with winning records at the end of seasons under Caldwell. The Bengals game was an exception to the Lions losing to a team with a losing record. With 3 starters on the Offensive Line though against a very good Bengals Defensive Line, matchups were a huge problem. Another reason why Caldwell was let go is in all 4 of his seasons as HC, the Lions running game was amongst the worst in the NFL. Even with that and the pounding Matthew Stafford took, it's remarkable how effective Stafford was. Caldwell deserves a huge amount of credit for Stafford becoming one of the best QBs in the NFL, especially in hiring Jim Bob Cooter first as QB Coach and then promoting him to Offensive Coordinator in the middle of the 2015 season.
As a HC, Caldwell has a noticeably higher floor than most HCs. However, his ceiling isn't as high as some coaches. In essence, if he has a championship caliber roster that's healthy enough, he would give a team a good chance of going all the way. Yet, if he has an 8-8 roster, he probably will go around 9-7. Based on this. I would have kept Caldwell, knowing that the Lions primary issue is the need to have more relatively healthy talent.
Though the vast majority of Lions fans disagree with my preference to have kept Caldwell and now for Teryl Austin to be promoted from Defensive Coordinator to HC, I prefer continuity. Austin reminds me a lot of Caldwell in terms of leadership and communication skills. Austin is a high caliber Def. Coordinator, who had major talent limitations the last 3 seasons. The Bengals interviewed Austin for their Defensive Coordinator position the other day. The Packers were denied permission, which is a good decision by Quinn.
If the Lions as expected go out of the organization for a HC, Patriots Defensive Coordinator Matt Patricia is my preference. Patricia has coached on both sides of the ball, gets more out of Defensive talent than one would think possible ( points allowed stat speaks volume, he's learned under Bill Belichick, and worked with Bob Quinn in New England for over a decade. Patricia seems to be the favorite and there's a report that a verbal agreement between the Lions and Patricia is expected. The Giants and Cardinals also interviewed him, hence there's potential competition. Right now, my gut feeling is Patricia will be the Lions next HC. With Texans DC Mike Vrabel the 2nd most likely HC.
As an outsider looking in, I have no real basis for disagreement.
I think your analysis of Caldwell is spot on. He doesn't strike me as a particularly domineering personality, and his understated persona would seem to preclude the Denny Green, Jim Mora, or Bill Cowher type outburst. I think that hurts the perception of him regarding his effectiveness.
We are also in agreement regarding the value of continuity. When you support a team that is not performing up to expectations, advocating continuity can be a tough sell. Again, as an outsider looking in, the Lions are not far from contention. If you look at the marquee positions that are typically valued most by teams, the Lions have them. Stafford fits the mold as a franchise QB, though he hasn't had the post season success. I think Taylor Decker will be the blindside LT for a decade for you guys. Ziggy Ansah exceeded all of my expectations of him to become a very good pass rusher at RDE, and Darius Slay, while not a dominant, shut down corner IMO, is good enough to say that a position that was once a long time weakness has been solidified. With those things in place, if a coaching change is to be made, I would think promoting Austin would be in the team's best interest. He could keep the defensive system in place and still use the players in place in the best way. Bringing in a guy from outside may or may not accomplish that. There is always the risk he would purge good players to get people to fit his system. Were the Lions a dumpster fire, I could understand wanting to completely scrap everything. The way I see it, if you kept the same or similar systems, you'd need a bigger stud every down back on offense who can pound it in between the tackles and get tough yardage, maybe another young DT and DB on defense. I would be interested in your evaluation on those needs.
Patricia is certainly smart enough to be a head coach. It's my understanding he is literally a rocket scientist. As a coordinator, he has done quite well under Belichick. Of course, I wonder about the lack of success that Belichick assistance have had, BO'B notwithstanding.
Worst to 1st. Curse Reversed!
