148 replies to this topic

[rayzor]

I am in the group that believes that we will move on a GM first and then worry about a head coach unless Rivera is awful the rest of the way. JR wants a winner sooner than later but isn't going to rush things and botch them up. Unless he believes he knows more what to do than the GM he hires at which point he might as well keep Beane.

yeah, with all my talk about kelly, i don't believe that we'll be hiring a coach first unless they feel that the right coach is the key and you find a GM that will work well with the HC.

i do think/hope that there is real interest in kelly, though. at least not outright writing him off because he's different.

[rayzor]

You're a bigger fan of college coaches than me. I know that

I also know I'll get behind whomever we hire, whether I agree or not.

(sadly, I have a fair share of experience in that practice)

My big question: Do you believe Richardson will be open to the idea of a college coach?

That's a question that I'd have to admit right now I'm not sure of the answer to.

yeah, i don't know what JR is open to either. i just hope he's pragmatic about it and willing to look at what he's done before and willing to go another direction. that he's willing to break out of his comfort zone.

as far as being a fan of college coaches is concerned....it's the managing a whole team part that makes me think that they could do well. i think it's easier to go from college HC to pro HC than it is for coordinator to go to HC. the key with both is having an experienced staff. a coordinator has to have someone with HC experience on his staff. if he's young, he needs to have some age to the staff. if he's a college coach, he has to have a lot of pro experience on his staff.

it's not just every college coach i like, though. last time around it was only harbaugh. i thought he was ready. this time around it's only kelly. shaw has my interest, but i think he's kind of reaping the benefit of the building that harbaugh did and i'd like for him to have another year or two of HC experience before jumping to the big league. when/if he makes that jump, tho, he probably won't have to have as much pro experience on his staff as kelly, but it will still have to be there just like it was for harbaugh.

[Bwood]

To all the users saying "he's either a home run or a dumpster fire"...when was the last time we chose a "hall of fame or bust" kinda prospect to be a focal point of our team?

[rayzor]

To all the users saying "he's either a home run or a dumpster fire"...when was the last time we chose a "hall of fame or bust" kinda prospect to be a focal point of our team?

i don't think either will be a bust, but i agree about the high ceiling thing which is the huge draw and i think cam running his offense would be beyond dominant. the thought of that just gets me happy happy happy.

[MadHatter]

Man, u guys sound like all the people that were bashing Jim Harbaugh before he became an NFL coach because he was a college coach... we see how that turned out.

I understand your point. However, there are way more examples of college coaches jumping to the NFL and failing than succeeding.

You can point to Harbaugh....I will point to Saban, Spurrier, etc.

I have no idea if Kelly will make the move or be a success. But cherry picking one example to make a point without acknowledging the many examples that refute that same point is ridiculous.

[teeray]

BTW- what Chip Kelly runs as an offense is nothing like what Chud has run this year. He actually runs a read option the way you are supposed to run it.

In other words, I wouldn't be wary of Kelly because of what Chud was doing at the beginning of the year.

[Snake]

I think these days college and NFL coaches are closing the gap more than ever. Still some just suck with the way the NFL is built around the salary cap.

[Kurb]

But, can that system/offensive style be successful in the NFL? That is the real question.

Kelly is widely considered a pretty bright offensive mind. Also widely assumed he would alter his scheme pretty heavily. The main thing about his offense is tempo. Billicheat had a lot of respect.

[Strawman]

I think these days college and NFL coaches are closing the gap more than ever. Still some just suck with the way the NFL is built around the salary cap.

This. That's why so many QBs are going straight from college to starting in the NFL and having success these days. I don't see much difference from what's run on Sat, to what's run on Sun. I think as a head coach it's more about motivation, and management, which Kelly seems very good at, would like the hire.

[Bwood]

The best thing about Kelly besides the incredibly efficient offense he would bring, is just his personality and how great he is with players.

All of the guys would love Kelly and feel like he's actually part of the team as not only a coach but a leader.

It's incredible how well a team can do with a coach that everyone gets along with and are on the same page with each other. See Ron Rivera for the opposite example.

[Leeroy Jenkins PhD]

I am all for hiring Chip Kelly. I think he would be a great NFL coach. I love the idea of bringing an up tempo-speed driven philosophy to our team that seems built for it.

I am more interested in who the general manager will be. We have the talent on this team to be productive under a good head coach, we are in the salary cap dumpster though. The biggest changes will occur based on the new GM and the sacrifices he must make to get our salary cap under control.

[CatMan72]

Part of me feels like Kelly would be Spurrier 2.0

[rayzor]

I understand your point. However, there are way more examples of college coaches jumping to the NFL and failing than succeeding.

You can point to Harbaugh....I will point to Davan, Spurrier, etc.

I have no idea if Kelly will make the move or be a success. But cherry picking one example to make a point without acknowledging the many examples that refute that same point is ridiculous.

i think there's probably more coordinators failing at the next level than college HCs failing to make the transition. of course that's because the league tends towards, for lack of a better word at the moment, nepotism or cronyism in that they tend to stick to their own. the league's culture is incredibly resistant to change. they don't hire outside of the NFL generally, not because people aren't qualified, but because they aren't in the NFL 'club'. every once in a while you find coaches that the NFL wants to bring into their club. harbaugh was one. kelly is another one. schiano is one that the league didn't want, btw. they pretty much hated the guy because he was a prick to NFL people while he was a college coach.

the reason that college coaches fail at the next level isn't because of the Xs or Os...it's because of the rest of the job...the lack of control over the team compared to college, managing egos, developing relationships with the players, garnering respect, getting the players to buy in, trying to control too much of what happens...the list goes on.

saban was considered by the dolphins to be too strict and anal.
butch davis just wasn't trusted by the browns players
petrino didn't/couldn't relate to the players
spurrier was viewed as being just too bullheaded and set in his ways
carroll was too buddy-buddy with his players.

these are all things, tho, that coordinators have problem with in addition to having to learn how to manage a whole team instead of just one aspect.

basically, tho, either you've got it or you don't. it doesn't matter where you come from. if you have the right people around you, can learn the rules/regulations and have them second nature, are adaptable and flexible, and can get the players to buy into what you want to do...your vision, basically lead them and make them want to follow you and believe in you then you can pull it off.

[rayzor]

Part of me feels like Kelly would be Spurrier 2.0

¿Por qué?

[Jackofalltrades]

I think you also have to wonder if Kelly could effectively coach pro athletes, it's a different mentality than college kids.

I am not dead set against college coaches, but I just don't like Kelly. I think he's too gimmicky and despite being some offensive mastermind he has as many national championships as I do. My biggest issue with him is he has ZERO pro experience, at any level or in any capacity.

That's the reason I like Shaw, great pedigree, has made the most with less talent, has prior Pro experience and recently beat Kelly in a big game. I don't know if he'd want to leave Stanford or not, neither does anyone else. If we went the college route I'd prefer Shaw who ran a very effective and diverse offense with Luck.