NFL - Random Opinions

Well designed play by the Steelers on 3rd n 6. Empty back-field, 5 wide, Pickens clears out the backs and Freiermuth is open for 13.

 

Half - Steelers 7, Ravens 7

Fun game.

 

That first fumble recovery by the Ravans D really seemed to spark them.

 

Offenses playing like the weather.

 

My goodness... Watt down, Adams clipped his left knee. Hope he's not hurt too serious.

 

How do you like that? Johnson, 71 yard bomb from Rudolph. Marcus Williams kinda got toasted. 14-7, Steelers.

 

Austin has a big return. Good field position for the Steelers

 

Is Diontae Johnson from Toledo?

 

I see he played 4 years here... I musta been somewhere else.

 

I just finished watching the game. Fun one.

Yes, Diontae Johnson played his college ball at Toledo. Good draft pick by the Steelers. He missed a month early this season with a hamstring injury, so this has been a down year for him statistically. But he's getting close to 400 career receptions.

 

Looking at some history, its amazing how many good if not great players have come from this town and some coaches spread throughout the NFL that are decent have been here also. The University of Toledo Rockets football has had a real good program over the decades. Its odd how we are recognized by a hairy-legged Lebanese guy in a dress when there are more cooler things to be proud of.

 

The reports from late last night said Watt had a sprained MCL. Some reports this morning (CBS, Yahoo) are now saying it's torn rather than sprained.

 

Finally had a chance to catch up on posts around here, lots of good thoughts but one gem i just had to reply to.

THIS is your plan for your team at the QB position next season??

So year after year the Falcons have been picking top 10 overall in the draft and keep turning down QB's for skill position players. Player's i might add who i like but fact is if it was still a 16game season none of them have a 1,000yard season this year(Pitts isnt remotely close). The Falcons need better QB play, to get these guys the ball more. Them and the 3 FA WRs you mentioned who collectively dont even have 40 catches between them i think. And yet rather than finally get serious about the position your plan is Sam Darnold & Desmond Ridder! That is pretty fascinating.

Don't get me wrong, i've got nothing against Darnold. He did do a nice job in Carolina. And paired with those names you mentioned he could be a sneaky good addition......as a 2nd or 3rd who maybe steps in due to injuries etc and surprises people and from there who knows. But to be plan A, which means turning down a serious move at QB AGAIN? Wow.

 

Shoutout to the all-too-under-rated Derrick Brown. They just said he became the first DT to record 100 tackles in a season since 2000. Helped out by the 17th game of course but the poor guy is also playing on a Panthers team thats complete ass so he deserves a mention

 

No, not the full plan. Mainly replacing the coaching staff (the pipe dream part of it) and replacing Heinecke with Darnold. Darnold should fit within the cap savings from releasing Heinecke, and in my view he'd be an upgrade - if they fix the coaching staff. My post was that Darnold would be a contender for a starting role for whatever team might sign him. Specifically for the Falcons, fixing the offensive / QB coaching staff is the most important part. Right now they have Dave Ragone doing double duty as OC and QB coach, and he's not having much success in either role.

I've said elsewhere that I'd be all in favor of the Fields to Atlanta trade that keeps getting proposed in SI and other media outlets. If Poles moves Fields, Atlanta would be a perfect destination / system fit, the team has the resources, and GM Terry Fontenot should be willing to pull the trigger and make the move. But at this point, we don't know which way Poles will go. And it's too soon to know how the potential draft scenarios will line up. If Jayden Daniels is within reach, he'd be an ideal choice for Atlanta.

But for now, the pipe dream is Bill Musgrave and a full time QB coach such as Pat O'Hara or Ben McAdoo.

 

Im surprised at the nearly total collapse of the Jaguars team down the stretch.

 

Ditto for the Falcons. On December 3, they were 3-0 against their division rivals and had a clear path to winning the division title. Instead, they went 1-4 to finish the year and 0-3 against their division opponents the second time around.

Adios, coach.

 

Well, events seem to have overtaken this conversation a little, but congrats on getting the new coaching staff you desired. We should be so lucky...

Good to see you open to bigger moves at the position than just Darnold tho because, coaching considerations aside, you look the players spread around that unit and it does look like being a QB away from a potentially very good Offense.

 

With a new HC I’m sure the Falcons try to draft a new QB too. Possible rd one trade up.

 

It's a start... we obviously don't know yet what the new offensive coaching staff will be, but it seems clear the change is coming. And the team owner echoed my sentiments in his press conference today, noting that the performance at QB this year was subpar but that it goes far beyond just the players themselves. He specifically pointed out the play calling as an issue. I'm sure many Falcons fans were happy to hear that, because it was a huge source of frustration all year long.


The main fear now is that the new coach and his new staff will make too many changes and churn the roster all over again. Since this is the Random Opinions page, my take is that has been the team's single biggest problem for 20 years now.

My theory is that the GM / front office / personnel side of the house is essentially working a big math problem in an area sometimes called operations research. The short version is you have limited resources available each year (draft picks and cap space) to build your roster. Given those constraints, along with the limits on roster size, practice squad size, etc, your job as GM is to make the best use of those resources on a continual basis to make the roster the best it can be and maintain it at a high level for years to come.

If you use draft picks to bring in players for one coach/scheme and then release a bunch of them when you change coaches, you're throwing away resources. You then have to use yet more draft picks to plug those holes. You're moving sideways, not getting ahead, and you have less resources available to fill other roster holes as players retire, leave via free agency, get hurt or simply wash out.

The potential is there for Atlanta to get it right. That would be to leave the defensive coaching structure intact and just add the finishing touches. On offense, first and foremost decide the scheme, and then go get the right QB1 to fit that scheme. Reload the WR group, and add depth elsewhere. It's not rocket science, but the Falcons have consistently bungled it for more than a decade.