OT - Patriots, again- say it aint so Bill

[brockd15]

Originally Posted by unterhausen

so far it hasn't been a very good post season. Curious how the Super Bowl turns out. I predict a boring game. Too bad I don't have a TV in the shop that I can watch it on. Might have to go with netflix

Definitely not a boring game! I'm really happy to see the Pats win another one, especially Brady.

[Dave B]

This is the best day to be a Pats fan living in Indiana! Looking forward to going to work and enjoying the reactions. Best Monday in a long time.

[wc1934]

Just couldn't resist:

http://boston.cbslocal.com/2017/02/1...s-clown-shirt/

Rogers feelings got hurt.

[MattTuck]

Originally Posted by MattTuck

I think he has a lot of bluster, but is a half-way decent coach. Plus, I liked his cameo in "That's my Boy" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZzvwyMqO2ak

Don't get me wrong, I'm not a huge fan of his. But I do have a soft spot in my heart for the Bills. A small market team that plays in an open air stadium in upstate NY, in the same division as the Patriots.

My point was more about how firing head coaches is such a knee jerk reaction to a bad season (and 7-9 is not a terrible season, IMO), and I don't like to see people treated unfairly. That kind of over-reaction doesn't make sense from an organizational stand point. You have a football organization that is made up of the management, the coaches and the players. Doug Whaley, the Bill's GM has been there since 2013, and earlier than that in dealing with personnel decisions. Does some of the blame not lie at his feet as well?

There is a gestation period for head coaches to build the systems around them. It doesn't happen with a snap of the fingers. Is two years enough time? Maybe. But then the decision is, "who are the available head coaches right now that we could hire? and how much better would they be than who we have now?" Also, remember that a head coaching change is a very disruptive force. First year that Belichick coached the Patriots, they went 5-11. First year that Bill Walsh coached the 49ers, they were 2-14! Second year, they were 6-10. Two coaches that went on to become legends.

Bringing in all new coaching staff probably is going to cost you 1 or 2 games (at a minimum) compared to the continuity of an existing staff. Which means (for the Bills) you probably can only lose 4 other games the whole season, if you're hoping to finish 10-6. Not an easy task if your measure for success is making it to the play-offs.

Look at the Cleveland Browns and how often they have turned over their head coaches. It is insane. It stems from a complete misunderstanding of how teams win football games. Is it possible that EVERY coach that they pick turns out to be a disaster? Yes, it is statistically probable. But perhaps the other factors around the head coach, the players, the GM, the way the contracts are structured, etc. make it difficult to make the right long term decisions for a team. It is like CEO who knows that Wall Street is going to judge them on their quarterly results. They are going to do things that maximize short term results (possibly) at the expense of long term success. If that CEO won't be around in 2 years, what is their incentive to build the team for the future? In trying to mitigate the risks of having a head coach (ie. losing in the short term), owners cripple the coach's ability to build for the future and essentially reinforce the negative feedback loop.

A team like the Bills needs to make a long term commitment to a coach (not necessarily saying Ryan is the right one) who is the very best available talent. And give him the latitude and autonomy to make decisions and build a team over several years. I question whether Doug Whaley (their current GM) is the right guy for that position, but maybe he is... hopefully he and the new head coach work well together and have a shared vision.

And, in a move that surprises no one... Doug Whaley has been fired.
http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/1...eneral-manager

[djg21]

On the way to Superbowl #6.

[cadence90]

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[Louis]

Originally Posted by djg21

On the way to Superbowl #6.

KC looked good, but I think it's a bit early to give them a free pass to the Big Game.

[verticaldoug]

Originally Posted by wc1934

Just couldn't resist:

http://boston.cbslocal.com/2017/02/1...s-clown-shirt/

Rogers feelings got hurt.

Washington Post has a perspective article saying 'Only Roger Goodell could turn Ezekiel Elliot into a sympathetic figure'

The clown shirts are awesome

[Jeff N.]

KC's for real, I'm afraid.

[makoti]

Originally Posted by Jeff N.

KC's for real, I'm afraid.

I think so too, I'm happy to say.
That was a very pleasant way to spend a Thursday evening. Except for Berry, of course. Why can we have nice things??

[MattTuck]

Kareem Hunt and Tyreek Hill looked pretty much unstoppable last night. But it was hard to tell if they were making the Patriots D look foolish, or if the Patriot's D was making them look super-human.

That visualization they did about where he'd have finished the 200m in the last olympics was pretty eye-opening.

[GunnarDude]

My money is on the Jets taking the Super Bowl this year. They'll have a tough time in the AFC championship game against the Browns, but if they can make it past that, definite Super Bowl championship.

[Jeff N.]

Originally Posted by makoti

I think so too, I'm happy to say.
That was a very pleasant way to spend a Thursday evening. Except for Berry, of course. Why can we have nice things??

You bet! I mean, aren't we all kinda burnt out on the Pats? They been kickin' azzes for so long, 'bout time they got THEIR's kicked.

[cadence90]

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[jtbadge]

This game was fun to watch. Always love to see my Chiefs make a statement on the national stage.

Originally Posted by cadence90

I am neither a Patriots nor a Chiefs fan, but NE has proven over and over again: never count them out.

Gotta agree with this.

The Chiefs embarrassed the Pats at Arrowhead in a similar fashion in 2014, we all know how that season turned out.