NFL Week 1 thread

I like when Lombardi dunks on these guys. He was hypercritical of Meyer before it all went boom.

Not the best builder of teams but a good analyst in my mind.

 

The Steelers are holding out hope that TJ Watt's season isn't over. He had one exam today, but is getting two more opinions tomorrow before making a decision between rehab and surgery.

 

Is it surprising how few good HCs have come from the Belichick tree?

 

When he had a podcast on The Ringer or Grantland - can't remember which at this point -the common complaint was that he would refer back to his experience with the Raiders and Patriots too much. But, hell, I thought he at least had a distinctive perspective on things, vs. ex-players and guys like Casserly and Polian, who wouldn't ever really get into the weeds of the job.

 

Maybe a "hot take," but - Are we sure coaching trees matter at all? I think they help a guy get a job, because the NFL loves biological and networking nepotism, but I wouldn't be surprised if head coaches had almost zero effect on the development of assistants. (i.e. Belichick is probably Belichick, even if he doesn't coach with Parcells.)

 

Look at Parcels though, Belichick, Crennel, Coughlin. Just means Parcels can identify talent

 

I dunno. I covered Pats coaches who between them won nine Super Bowls (Parcells, Carroll, Belichick) plus Hall of Fame player Raymond Berry. I wasn't around them at an assistant level of course, but I'm sure I learned SOMETHING about football. Many somethings in fact. Belichick has said that the hardest thing he had to learn as a head guy was how to be himself rather than copy other coaches in the non x and o departments of the job. I'd say that's where his assistants have fallen. Being a hostile dick is great if what you're telling people helps them win. If you don't know enough to do that, you're just a hostile dick who gets tuned out.

 

Not when you realize Belichick rarely hires someone to his staff who has worked for another franchise. It's really remarkable that almost all of his staffers who have gone on to become HCs had worked only for the Patriots. They only know/knew one way to do things. I'd rather have a new HC who not only had experience under different HCs, but also had a broader base of assistant coaches they've worked with to draw on for a staff. It must be particularly challenging for those doing a "rebuild" who joined the Pats when they were already rolling and had Brady.

 

I thought it was weird that he carried on about questions he'd usually have a curt or no response for.

I watched a half for curiosity. Jones just doesn't have a pro arm. All the smarts in the world aren't going to put NFL mustard on a square-out.

 

Eh, I think it's fair to have questions about Jones, but I'm not sure if anyone could turn the chicken shit around him into chicken salad, to trot out some more Billy P. quotes.

 

Parcells went 3-12-1 his first year with Giants, with a team that couldn't hit its ass with one hand. And, he chose Scott Brunner over Phil Simms. Life isn't a straight line.