Quote:Yeah, you're right. I should just put aside logic and pick up a pitch fork. Works for you, right?
At least you finally admit I'm right.
Quote:Despite their rankings in 2014, the defense appeared to be headed in the right direction when that season ended. There was no way Babich was going to be fired after getting what he did from the defense despite a lack of legitimate pass rushers.
The step back this year on defense is what cost Babich his job. Gus had little reason to fire his DC based on how the 2014 season ended. The expectation was that the team would find pass rush help in the draft, and that things would continue to improve this year. Nobody expected to lose our best defensive lineman and the rookie who was supposed to be your pass rush guy. The issue this year was that no matter how they tried to scheme it, guys like Andre Branch didn't rise to the challenge similarly to what we saw in 2014. Clemons was a non-factor. Losing Marks was a pain point, but at least Roy Miller stepped up and did his job well.
The defense took a step back as a unit in 2015. Young players didn't really show the kind of improvement that should have been expected. Too often we saw guys completely out of position, taking themselves out of plays, taking bad angles, not tackling effectively. The end result was the coordinator getting the boot, and rightly so this year.
Gus has clearly shown he can set personal opinions aside and make the necessary business decisions to help the team. He fired Fisch last year and upgraded that spot. The hope is we see similar improvement with the coaching change this year. Remember, almost no one here cheered for the Olson hire last year. That worked out pretty well for the team. If Gus gets it right this time, the defense should show similar improvement. If that happens, this team will very quickly rise up and become relevant again.
Despite their rankings? That's not how this works. Headed in the right direction? That's not what I would call it.
In 2012 they allowed 27.8 PPG. In 2013, his first year, they allowed 28.1 PPG, in 2014 they allowed 25.8 PPG, in 2015 they allowed 28 PPG. Do you think going from 28.1 PPG to 25.8 PPG enough improvement?
As far as yards go: 2012 they allowed 380.5 yards per game, 2013 they allowed 379.4, in 2014 they allowed 370.8, in 2015 they allowed 375. Do you consider going from 379.4 to 370.8 is enough improvement?
In 2012 this team had 20 sacks, 2013 they had 31 , 2014 they had 45, 2015 they had 36.
2012 had 12 INTs, 2013 had 11 , 2014 had 6, 2015 had 9.
Yes, no way could we fire a guy after all that improvement. Oh wait, despite the rankings. The things that matter.
I see it as Gus has struggled to hire assistants and fire them after the fact. Babich never should have been here to begin with. That was a poor hire as DC.
Fisch was a horrible hire as OC. We got stuck with him for two years.
We're going to have to agree to disagree here.
Quote:Based on the improvements we saw with the defense in 2014 as the season progressed, there was nothing to indicate that would not continue in 2015. They somehow managed to manufacture a pass rush in 2014 with almost no legitimate pass rush guys on the roster. So, to say Babich was a "consistently BAD" coordinator is a load of crap. In fact, it's funny because many here were critical of Babich in 2014 because they had to scheme to get a pass rush,and they made significant improvements in that regard that season compared to 2013. Apparently, coaching to get to the QB by calling plays that worked to the strengths of his guys in 2014 was a bad thing. But, when they did the same thing this past season to try to get a pass rush, and it didn't net the same results in 2015, it was once again a bad thing, and a lack of decent coaching.
It's amazing how folks like you can pretty much play both sides of the fence to complain about coaches...or players...or front office personnel...or the owner...or the stadium....or anything else you complain about because you know better. Why is it that none of you are actually working for a team in the league with this overabundance of football brilliance? You should really consider compiling your body of work from this message board, crafting a resume, and sending it out to all 32 teams.
It is not a load of crap. It is fact. I don't care if they got a lot of sacks. Sacks are an empty stat if the rest of the stats don't correlate with them. If the sacks don't come with consistent pressure, they don't mean "crap" to me.
How in the world am I playing both sides of anything? You're the one notorious for that around here.
I know you're lost when you have to resort for that last argument. If you can call it an argument. NFL coaches, GMs, owners, are wrong ALL THE TIME. Fans are wrong and they are wrong a lot. They are also right at times. Many wanted Gene Smith gone well before others (myself included) came along on that. There are many other examples on this board.
I don't get paid millions to be right like they do. We offer our opinion, on a messageboard, and it's not our fault you can't handle it.
I don't know why I wasted my time.
