Wilks' word vs. Rhule's

[Icege]

One of the consistent endorsements of Steve Wilks has been that he is a man of his word:

From AZCentral's "Arizona Cardinals coach Steve Wilks lauded as 'great leader' by those who know him"

Quote

Ravens and Chargers safety Eric Weddle

“Coach Wilks was meant to be a head coach. He is a leader of men, loyal and honest. One of the best coaches I've ever had and even a better man.”

From Panthers.com's "Steve Wilks not a believer in 'buddy' system"

Quote

After saying earlier this week he needed stars to play better, referencing wide receiver DJ Moore and linebacker Shaq Thompson specifically in remarks after the Ravens game, Wilks said there's a difference between having honest relationships in life and trying to cozy up to the people in the locker room.

"This is me. I think with anything in life, if you establish a relationship with someone, then you can be honest with them and tell them exactly how you feel," Wilks said Wednesday. "If there's no relationship there, my words are going to be taken the wrong way. But when you build a relationship, which I have with a lot of my guys, they know I'm going to tell them the truth.

From beat writer Mike Kaye's, "Better late than never: Panthers say they’ve found their identity after win vs. Seahawks"

Quote

“I think with (Wilks) being able to be honest with us, and tell us how we’re going to play the game, and what we want to do, and not shy away from that — he said early on, even when we were losing some games, it was, ‘Hey, trust the process and trust the game plan,’” Darnold said. “If we go into a game knowing that we want to run the football, and early we get down a score or two, we’ve got to just trust it and know that that game plan is going to come to fruition. I think Coach Wilks has done a really good job of messaging that to the team.”

 

In other articles that mention Wilks' leadership style, again and again we hear about how the players appreciate his honesty.

While this has been a constant throughout his career, what do y'all think might have happened behind closed doors with Rhule and the locker room that resulted in Wilks' honesty being so refreshing and appreciated? Do y'all think that this is yet another sign of the players having not bought in to the previous regime's philosophies like Cam suggested at the end of last season? Or is it Coach Wilks just being who he has always been?

Little bit of column A w/ column B maybe?

 

Edited December 12, 2022 by Icege

[ickmule]

Wilkes is a man people want to be around, Rhule is a con man. 

[Harbingers]

Though I wonder about some of Wilks coaching decisions on the field. His game plan and locker room coaching is pro. I would not mind giving him a two year contract to see what he can do with an actual full coaching staff. I am not sold on McAdoo though. 

Edited December 12, 2022 by Harbingers

[Mr. Scot]

10 minutes ago, Icege said:

.While this has been a constant throughout his career, what do y'all think might have happened behind closed doors with Rhule and the locker room that resulted in Wilks' honesty being so refreshing and appreciated? 

Joe Brady would probably have some input on this.

[Harbingers]

Just now, Mr. Scot said:

Joe Brady would probably have some input on this.

Why Tepper didn’t fire Rhule when he was about to fire Brady I have no idea.

[Panthera onca]

The players knew Rhule was a BS artist and didn't respect him or take him seriously. They obviously respect Coach Wilks and will play hard for the man.

[CarolinaLivin]

No one is questioning his leadership. That trait is the main reason he is the interim coach. The question is how well of an offense can we realistically have under wilks.

[shaqattaq]

14 minutes ago, CarolinaLivin said:

No one is questioning his leadership. That trait is the main reason he is the interim coach. The question is how well of an offense can we realistically have under wilks.

Biggest difference between the 2 coaches that I can see is that Wilkes uses what he has and Rhule was to proud to change HIS plan to fit the players on the field. Case and point: Darnold is a mediocre QB, at best, so Wilkes brings in 2 extra linemen and runs the ball down their throat. Not even Darnold can screw up handoffs and checkdowns.

[bLACKpANTHER]

"Kingpin? You a Pen King"
-JID

[Sgt Schultz]

52 minutes ago, Panthera onca said:

The players knew Rhule was a BS artist and didn't respect him or take him seriously. They obviously respect Coach Wilks and will play hard for the man.

This. 

Rhule was nothing but words.  He preached about how The Process would lead the team to great things, even though that same process had never been tested at the NFL level.  When it didn't work, "it will if we just keep doing it."  That wears out pretty quickly at the pro level.  At the college level, the players are inexperienced enough to buy it long enough for their college careers to end before they figure it out.

Wilks talks about tangible things that need to be done, all of which have been time tested in the NFL for decades.  These are things that the veterans aren't going to say they have never, ever seen or heard of at the NFL level.  He also does not promise great things "if you just drink the Kool-Aid." 

One of those paths leads to credibility, the other leads to lack thereof.  

Then there is the whole discussion of progress you can't see.  In the NFL, almost all progress can be seen somewhere.  It may be going from being curb-stomped to being competitive in losses, but it is there.  You can't cite unseen progress when the results are going in the opposite direction.

Under Wilks, the team has shown more results (progress) in seven games than they showed in 2+ seasons under The Process.  Part of that is probably that he treats them like professionals, not mere disciples.

[CRA]

I think Wilks is a fine football coach.  But I still contend he is Ron Rivera all over again.   

I just don't think he can lead a present day NFL team to really contend in this offensive era.  To naturally risk adverse.  And when he does "mix it up"......it stuff like we saw on Sunday with 4 pass plays from the 4.   That's not good offensive game management. 

[NAS]

9 minutes ago, CRA said:

 

I think Wilks is a fine football coach.  But I still contend he is Ron Rivera all over again.   

 

Rivera team would have laid an egg after a bye week. Wilks had his team ready to go and win a tough road game against a good team. They’re not the same.

He can’t open up the pass game until two things happen:

1. He has an OC who has a better passing scheme while still being a running team

2. he has a QB who can make downfield throws consistently and not turn the ball over

Edited December 12, 2022 by NAS

[LinvilleGorge]

I honestly don't have a problem keeping Wilks unless he plans on retaining McAdoo. In that case, he gotta go.

[Mr. Scot]

2 minutes ago, LinvilleGorge said:

I honestly don't have a problem keeping Wilks unless he plans on retaining McAdoo. In that case, he gotta go.

I'd keep him as a QB coach