Mr. Scot

Sad to say I'm starting to get that feeling as well. The way Dianna Russini talked about Frank Reich's situation made it sound like Tepper and Fitterer were on the same page. She also pointed out (rightly) that defense and special teams haven't been a problem, just offense. So if Tepper feels okay about the roster in those areas, it would indicate he might not have a problem with his GM or front office.

Always believed that was Staley and Reich both...

I think it's fairly safe to say McCown wanted Stroud, but I don't know if that has anything to do with his firing. Staley? No idea who he wanted, or if he even had a preference.

I don't know that Reich would have worked out, but it's not fair to force a guy into a decision he didn't want to make and then blame him for the results.

I don't believe this was Tepper's decision. Mind you, that doesn't necessarily mean it's a good decision.

Was never a case of not wanting Young so much as wanting Stroud more.

Holder has also said that Reich wanted Stroud. So did the others mentioned above as well as Adam Schefter back during the draft.

Of Reich, definitely. His depth chart decisions have been one of my big criticisms of him.

Florio, Eisen, Patrick, Holder and others have all echoed the idea.

I gave you the tweet for one of Holder's statements in another thread. Is exact words there were that it's an "open secret around the league" that Tepper heavily influenced the quarterback choice.

I don't go by stats. I go by what I see. What I've seen is that when he was used, Blackshear looked good. Keeping him inactive in favor of Miles Sanders hasn't exactly looked like a solid decision.

I know per his own words that Thomas Brown is the guy who actually wrote the playbook, but he also admits to being influenced by both Reich and McVay. What's weird about that though is that while Reich and McVay both run WCO style attacks, they have a lot of differences when it comes to some things (like motion, for example). Despite all the accolades, I'm not really sure Thomas Brown was ready for an OC job. Jim Caldwell playing an advisory role also makes me wonder.

Marty didn't get fired until after year one of Matt Rhule.

Blackshear is the leading kick returner in the league. Sitting him this past Sunday was criticized by even Darin Gantt. I think you'd also find a lot of people saying he's been underused this year. When he's played, he's done pretty well.

Stephen Holder is one who sounds pretty sure that Reich wanted Stroud. I wouldn't necessarily say he was the "lone voice" though. One of the other probable "voices" just got fired along with him.

Well if Mike Garafalo or somebody else says so, I will Joe Person and Mike Kaye both seem to think he'll go, but Dianna Russini talks about him as if he and Tepper are on the same page.

No, but he a has about 20 years of it as a quarterback, and the last few teams he played for as a backup indicated that he acted as a coach for their starters.

Yeah, I don't think he's gonna do that. Someone else might. There is such a thing as being too nice as an NFL coach. That might be a valid criticism of Reich.

Most of the sources saying that are quoting what the team has said, which is pretty much what you'd expect the team to say. I'm generally willing to believe what someone says unless there's reason or evidence to doubt it. In this case, there's plenty of that.

That's not really a hard thing to imagine. Hard to see personality being an issue with McCown though.

Howe confirmed Tepper's reputation alone was enough to do that last year. What's it going to be like this year?

If Young wasn't who he wanted, that's a pretty big deal. Stephen Holder, Dan Patrick and others have all said that Tepper heavily influenced the choice of Young. That said, having Stroud wouldn't have made the offensive line mismatch or the depth chart decisions any better.

Also by the lack of a salary cap and a really dumb Vikings GM...

Riiiiight. I think I've seen this movie.