Haley finally Gone! Thank you! > ESPN
mcmillenandwife Administrator ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 20,478 Joined: Jan 1970 |
01-21-2018, 12:06 AM
(01-20-2018, 09:37 PM)Rollers Wrote:(01-20-2018, 06:29 PM)mcmillenandwife Wrote: Well, first... let's be clear, Ben threw some flippin' AMAZING borderline miracle 4th down passes (36 yds on 4th and 11 to Bryant, 43 yds to Brown on 4th and 5), so Haley gets ZERO credit for those 14 points because they came after his play calls on downs 1 through 3 had FAILED. The final TD came in garbage time and was frankly STUPID... we should've kicked a FG the moment we got in range and it was evident a quick TD wasn't going to happen, then tried another onside kick. I'm also not giving Haley credit for Ben's improvisational lateral to Bell. That was CLASSIC Big Ben improv and the exact thing Haley has been trying to choke out of Ben since he's been here. I think you have short-term memory loss, rollers. Down the stretch, the defense struggled, yes... especially once Shazier went down. And it got especially bad when we were missing both Shazier and Haden. You and I agree in that respect. But the defense is why we were winning during the first half of the season. They weren't great... but they were pretty damn good. In 9 out of the first 10 games, that defense held opponents to 18 points or less (including the J-Ville game, in which 2 of the Jags' TDs were defensive) which was important, because our supposedly explosive offense was NOT scoring points. Not coincidentally, our record during that time was 8-2. You can say, "They were pretty bad opponents." Well, they were NFL teams, every one of them... 4 of the teams we played during that stretch made the playoffs, we beat 3 of them and 2 of them are still playing. Therefore, I think what's "pretty bad" is your memory. ![]() I do agree with you that Butler and Tomlin failed with the defense down the stretch. You are right when you say they were "garbage" when it mattered most, particularly in that disgusting playoff game. So the question is: What do we need to do to get back to the defense of those first 10 games? #1, the young linebackers MUST progress and we need someone to fill the void left by Shazier (God bless him). There's lots of secondary bashing, but our defensive problems late in the year were front 7-related and really, it was the linebackers. Not bad players necessarily, but definitely poor communication, players out of position, guys either not knowing what to do or just failing to fill their gaps. Our style of defense needs a Polamalu. Not necessarily at safety, but we need that guy who flies around and makes instinctual plays, and Ryan Shazier was our Polamalu. Barring a miracle (never say never), Shazier won't be back. So I guess we know where a lot of our draft focus should go. We need an impact linebacker (multiple impact linebackers, actually) and some safety help. Maybe a solid vet at LB or DB via free agency? We "should" still be in a position to make a run next year. Offensively, we're incredibly stacked if Bell behaves like an adult (big if, but it could happen). Even without Bell, we'll be formidable on offense. My gut is that Tomlin views starting over with a new D-coordinator costs us time. He's betting that they can right the ship enough to get us over the hump next year. Didn't work this year, so... we'll see. And while Butler is secure this year, I do expect some assistant coach changes before next season. |
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bbbooger Hall of Famer ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 1,090 Joined: Dec 2017 |
01-21-2018, 02:34 AM
Coach Butler, Coach Peezy, Coach Lake... more of the same equals more of the same. Their unit has had "communication" issues for 2+ years now, blaming same for everything from big plays given up to lost games. That responsibility falls squarely on them. They consistently fail to develop young talent, and we end up talking about how this guy or that is a "bust". Cowher, for all his faults, was outstanding at developing young talent, he had to be with all the free-agent losses. This group has shown little such ability.
As for the sacks record: a quarter of the sacks total came against the Clowns... take those away and the total is really rather pedestrian.
(This post was last modified: 01-21-2018, 02:37 AM by bbbooger.)
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