Zirakzigil
Global Moderator
I'm with you on most of what you said except for the Assistant Coach not joining because they don't think they have a chance to be the head coach.
That is something that should never cross their mind as that scenario pretty much never happens. And what I mean by that, who was the last assistant coach to take over for a sacked coach either; midseason or to be promoted at the end of a season to have a successful career?
I may be blanking out but I cant think of one......
In the past 5 years or so, I've noticed that rookies have taken a step backwards. Outside of Watt (who is a generational freak) and Highsmith who has improved?
Harris
KP
Claypool
Moore
Oks
Bush
DJ
All seemed to have promising rookie season and then they plateau or regress.
So yea I'd probably be down for gutting it, but we'll probably squander any talent that lands on this team
They will find away to win against bmore at home go 3-2 and come out of the bye with DJ back.
Cincinnati will shut down Burrow that will be 2 more wins they will get to 11 wins based on schedule
They might but what’s the point? They won’t win a playoff game even if they somehow manage to get there due to ineptitude in their schedule worse than
theirs lol…but I do congratulate you for being the most delusionally optimist fan on this board…
Why wouldn’t they win a playoff game. KC is certainly beatable Buffalo is beatable we aren’t a championship lvl team but theres no great team in the afc so far.
The 1st thing we need to do is sit 29 because he is a walking target and 1st down machine.
I have to disagree regarding Cowher, he built a Championship defense in KC and did so again in Pgh several times throughout his tenure. That's my biggest issue with Tomlin, if the defense was among the best year in and year out at least he would have one side of the ball covered.
But since Lebeau left, the D is simply relying on a stud up front to collapse the pocket. When that player is removed by injury or scheme, his defense folds. On top of that, he can't draft and develop on defense like Cowher could so his defense is also older and overpriced.
KC has no running game and no WR threat outside of Kelce they have Maholmes so they will get the benefit of the doubt
Buffalo still has its own playoff issues
We have tons of issues but a healthy Cam who should be refreshed when he is back will help our defense we just need Andy Dalton Alex Smith lvl Qb play
I am on board with giving Kenny 4 years to figure this out. Just build around him and we will find out if he can develop or not.
We do need to remember when it comes to Kenny - he was over drafted, and that isn't his fault. That's the organization's fault. WIth that being said, if he were a 2nd or 3rd round pick, the expectation to come out immediately and produce wouldn't be there. I think Kenny does some good things, and I think rather than focusing on continuity they focus on him feeling secure in his role to grow and make mistakes is far more important. I won't make a judgement on Kenny until he gets out from under this offense.
They need to change what they are doing offensively. They have to get a running game going. That is bullet point 1A in my opinion. If they can get the rush going, it will soften coverages for KP and the WRs and they should be able to get some chunks.
He went from Dom Capers to Dick Lebeau as his DC, though. Tomlin's defense was pretty f***ing good when he had Lebeau, too.
If you look at the years in between Lebeau leaving under Cowher, the defense ebbed and flowed. In terms of points, they ranked 11, 7, 12, 6, 3, 16, and 15 (average 9.9). Not all that different than Tomlin's defense since Lebeau left...11, 10, 7, 16, 5, 3, 20, 10 (average 10.3).
This is not to prop Tomin up or tear Cowher down. What I am saying is that having good coordinators matters.
I think KP was going to have some growing pains this season, regardless of the OC/scheme. But to this extent? Never thought it'd be this bad.
Let's put it like this: if KP was the QB for the 49ers, I don't think he'd have Purdy results, nor do I think he'd be as bad as Trey Lance. So he's somewhere in between those guys
The difference is that KP needs an environment where he's able to successfully navigate these growing pains. Do you think Tomlin/Canada/Sullivan are the right people to be in his ear? Hell Flores was apparently being credited for how he related to KP and he wasn't even on that side of the ball. It's crazy how terrible of a staff Tomlin has assembled.
Watch the play again, Pickett should have passed the ball way before then. I counted and there was 3-4 seconds before he spins for no damn reason. The pocket was there for him to pass the ball on a 4th and 1 where he should be looking to hit a player on a short route.
Wasn't there an audio clip last year (or year before) on Twitter on the opposing team's sideline and they kept yelling "it's the same plays"?
This article can't be surprising to anyone with half a football brain: if you know what's coming, defending is super easy even for a defense that isn't talented
Well I see it differently. He sets at the 42 around the late 2 second mark. If he plants and throws right at that moment, the defender crashing through the line splits his plant leg in half. Self preservation is very important in football at times.
