Relative intelligence

[saX man]

Nicely put Scot. 

Rivera is and has always been a solid coach, good guy, but it's abundantly clear what he's not at this point and you have to think it's why many teams passed on him prior. 

He doesn't project out, play into scenarios, have any nuance to his week-to-week strategies against varying teams, stubborn with veteran talent and gameplans & lastly has wildly inconsistent in-game management/decision making.  

You want that type who will be quick to react after he sees what another team is bringing.  Not an overreactor but a methodical coach who is willing to adjust and avoid playing into the opposing team's hands.  Rivera is and has even admitted in his career a few times that he will remain steadfast in his blueprint.  Not even just for individual games but for the season.  And he only abandons it and certain starters once a season is lost.  Then we end up playing best under him once we're at that point (minus when Cam went ham in 2015 and 2013.   

It is clear 95%+ of fans are done with him at this point. 

Hurney is Hurney and can go as well.  I honestly don't even think he expects to be here much longer.  He's having fun being a GM again but will probably walk away at the end of the season for Tepper to go out and find his own guy. 

[tiger7_88]

OH LAWD!

[PhillyB]

agreed in principle, but i will say i think ron called a very, very good game today. if slye makes that kick he absolutely comes out of new orleans having outfoxed one of the best.

[Car123]

7 minutes ago, Mr. Scot said:

Similarly, Hurney is said to be a "year by year" thinker.

What does this even mean? What moves does Hurney make to make you believe that he is a year by year thinker?

 

[Mr. Scot]

1 minute ago, PhillyB said:

agreed in principle, but i will say i think ron called a very, very good game today. if slye makes that kick he absolutely comes out of new orleans having outfoxed one of the best.

Wouldn't argue that.

I think you'd also have to agree that we've lost to our division rivals waaaayyy too often though.

[raleigh-panther]

49 minutes ago, Khyber53 said:

Might want to look at that injury report. It's foolish to evaluate results without considering conditions.

Every team in the nfl. Some prepare, some don’t 

Ron’s Pat excuse every year is injuries. His job is to make sure the next man up, is really the next man up

[Mr. Scot]

6 minutes ago, tiger7_88 said:

OH LAWD!

You okay, dude?

[raleigh-panther]

5 minutes ago, PhillyB said:

, agreed in principle, but i will say i think ron called a very, very good game today. if slye makes that kick he absolutely comes out of new orleans having outfoxed one of the best.

You honestly believe, that even if Slye makes that kick, with  that much time left that Brees and Payton would not have marched  down that field and scored a TD?
 

is that what you believe?
 

[tiger7_88]

21 minutes ago, Mr. Scot said:

You okay, dude?

No.

All my favorite teams are ruining my enjoyment of football.

I am NOT ok.

 

[Seltzer]

13 minutes ago, Mr. Scot said:

Wouldn't argue that.

I think you'd also have to agree that we've lost to our division rivals waaaayyy too often though.

Both those things can be true.  I'm perfectly ok with Ron being let go after this season.  Nine years is a long time, and even though I like Ron, we haven't been able to bounce back after the Super Bowl in a meaningful way.

I'm also not naive or arrogant enough to believe he won't have success elsewhere.

I like the idea that Tepper wants us to escape mediocrity, b/c that's what the NFL tries to create year in and year out with the way the draft, scheduling, etc. is structured.  The only teams that escape that cycle are the ones with franchise QB's and Top 5 to Top 10 coaches.

It's simply not as easy as the casual fan wants to make it.  I'm certainly ok with pulling the plug on Rivera and giving it a shot, but this lazy narrative that Ron is the only thing holding this team back from unbridled success is nuts.

This division has 2 elite QB's in Brees & Ryan, a top 5 coach (as much as I hate his guys in Payton), and an erratic but talented QB in Winston and highly-thought of coach in Arians.  Oh yeah, and another coach in Quinn that like Rivera has taken his team to the SB and now fallen on harder times.  This is not a cakewalk division where a competent guy can come in and instantly be 2nd best like what has happened with Sean McDermott in Buffalo with the AFC East.

I believe David Tepper is an incredibly intelligent individual, and obviously able to put together a long-term winning strategy.  He has made an almost unfathomable amount of money in an industry, that much like football, makes it hard to beat the average year in and year out.

But this task is somewhat equal to his hedge fund days.  While it is embarrassing that after 25 years we don't have back-to-back winning seasons, it's not like we have been devoid of success.

And as much as it's natural to complain, this franchise has not had idiots running the show the whole time.  The idea that a guy is floating around that can come in here next year and mop the floor with the rest of the teams and coaches in the NFC South on an ongoing basis is absurd.

I'm excited to see what the long-term plan Tepper has is going to be.  I don't question his commitment to his vision.  I just know this is going to be a risk, just like anything else.  And there is no guarantee the result is going to be better.

[ickmule]

1 hour ago, Mr. Scot said:

It's actually based in a very simple, and factual standard.

We don't beat good teams.

That didn’t just start with Rivera.  It’s been happening for pretty much all of 25 seasons.  

[trueblade]

26 minutes ago, raleigh-panther said:

You honestly believe, that even if Slye makes that kick, with  that much time left that Brees and Payton would not have marched  down that field and scored a TD?
 

is that what you believe?
 

Reminder : Panthers had the Saints at 1st and 25 on the game winning field goal drive. The Saints converted.

Even if all the Saints did was tie on that drive , what's your confidence the Panthers win it in overtime. 

[Navy_football]

Mr. Scot I think you hit the nail on the head. But to me it goes beyond personnel decisions - though that's a serious problem in itself. My concern is this team is constantly outcoached even with all the "missed opportunities". Hell, you don't think opponents have "missed opportunities" during the game as well? 

Rivera is a defensive coach. He prides himself on it and even boasts/admits that he doesn't interfere with the offensive side of the ball. The Saints average 23.8 points a game. They just scored 34 today. A full 10 points over their average. The 31 points this offense put up today should have been enough to win the game. But once again Ron's defense, the one that get's the lion's share of offseason attention falls short again. 

We got a glimpse of it last week when the Falcons were able to constantly get the matchups they wanted when it mattered. The Saints were constantly able to find or create the matchups they wanted - over and over again. That's just being way too predictable and inflexible. NFL playcallers can obviously create a gameplan based on past tendencies to set him up every time. It's so frustrating to watch receivers running wide open all over the field, or the huge holes in the running lanes, and it's ridiculous how this defense constantly gives up huge chunks on 1st/3rd and 15+ yards. 

In my opinion, he needs a competent defensive playcaller and gameplanner to help. This ain't just individuals getting beat or not doing their jobs. This is a defensive unit being outschemed. 

[MHS831]

I have a story.

I am a professor who teaches education leadership in graduate school.  The Huddle is my place to speak my mind, instead of acting professional all the time.  You guys are my therapy--where I go to be an ass if I feel like using a fake name.  I am not a domino, by the way.  That is a disguise.   Here is what I tell future school principals--

There are three phases of development as a leader.  First, there is the knowing.  Second, there is the doing.  Finally, there is the becoming.  You must know the content.  You must do things that are related to the content.  and finally, you must go somewhere with the first two.  So knowing and doing are not enough.