RX for next year

I’m OK with all of that. I’m not that impressed with Williams, either. But, I would also be OK with him coming back, because I do believe in continuity as a plus. I do believe that another offseason in the same system can make a big difference.

• This reply was modified 9 years, 11 months ago by Dak.

rfl wrote:

Dak wrote:
I’m OK with all of that. I’m not that impressed with Williams, either. But, I would also be OK with him coming back, because I do believe in continuity as a plus. I do believe that another offseason in the same system can make a big difference.

My friend, I’ll simply say that I distrust abstract arguments.

The league has seen many cases of a team responding to and improving from a new scheme.

And the league has seen many cases of 2nd years in a system cratering as the league figured the system out enough to cancel whatever a unit gets from continuity in a system.

And vice versa.

I don’t believe one can draw any sort of conclusion based on abstractions. One has to argue from cases.

For example, that OC that screwed up Sam’s sophomore year? It wasn’t his system. It was his witless refusal to adapt to his personnel, which lacked the firepower he needed to do as he wished.

As for Williams, my sense is that his “system” works best with a superb, veteran secondary and smart but limited DL. I don’t think he understands our personnel or how to get the most from it.

I had had some hope that he was learning. Buy the last 2 games have convinced me that he hasn’t learned a damn thing.

Everything I see convinces me that the problem is not the players learning the system. It’s Williams learning out how to use the players.

Since I have no control over who the Rams hire as their coordinator, I’m going to have to hang on to the hope that the D improves in this system, because you and I know that Fisher is not canning Williams after this season. 😉

• This reply was modified 9 years, 11 months ago by Dak.

My friend, I’ll simply say that I distrust abstract arguments.

The league has seen many cases of a team responding to and improving from a new scheme.

And it has seen many cases of the opposite, too.

So the question is, which is this.

All I can say is what I saw. And I saw this defense playing out of sync from the start, and making mistakes from the start. All along I saw it as execution issues with a young team not absorbing the scheme to the point of it being instinctive. They couldn’t play fast without thinking, yet.

And, I have to say, that’s so completely what I saw, that, I am not going to persuaded by something different. But on the other hand, I am just not that into debating every detail of it…it’s just what I saw, from the get-go.

Whether this or that coach ought to install this or that defense quickly is to ME completely abstract. I just know it didn’t work like that this time. And…I don’t care, either. It doesn’t strike me as a big deal.

I do know that younger teams don’t adapt as easily and I also know that younger teams have a particularly harder time adapting to a complex scheme. I had the exact same feeling about the offense in 2011, with McD. I know that while the 2014 Rams D at least had an off-season, the new CBA cut back how much practice time a team gets, and Wms had never instelled his D under those conditions before.

Now I can’t get anyone else to see what I saw or how I saw it, but that’s what I saw…and I was saying it from the start.

So we will live with having 2 entirely distinct views on this, eh? Cause in my case, it was so completely what I SAW that I see arguments to the contrary as just…not seeing that.

A person reaches a place like that. “Sorry it’s what I saw.” And then let’s others debate.

Could I be wrong? Sure. But if it is wrong it’s wrong with a lot of conviction.

So I will always just see us as differing on this.

And, probably won’t even discuss it much.

You and I, old friend, just stand there with a gulf between us on this one.

bnw wrote:

Perhaps Williams doesn’t have the players to run his defense?

This is all IMO. I think he has gotten a couple of guys to play inconsistently over their heads. Those would be guys who don’t fit necessarily or aren’t up to snuff but they have no choice but to play them. Either way, just an impression, but I think that’s just a couple of them.

To be honest, I would be surprised if this weren’t a consistent top 10 D next year.

InvaderRam wrote:

with the defense i think the key is that there are a bunch of young core players who have yet to reach their full potential and probably will get there within two years.

i think we’ve yet to see the best from quinn, donald, brockers, ogletree, mcdonald, gaines, joyner…

although the downside is that none of these players continue to progress. so far they’ve just been inconsistent.

but if this was a defense full of older veteran types, i’d be less optimistic.

Agree with all of this.

wv wrote:

I’ve never seen a team
blow so many assignments that
resulted in game-breakers. I dunno.
Maybe it just ‘seems’ like they
blow a lot of assignments.

w
v

Well, it sure seems like Jenkins fits that description. He’s been blowing assignments since year one. This is his 3rd coordinator, and he’s still blowing assignments.

• This reply was modified 9 years, 11 months ago by canadaram.

wv wrote:

JJ reminds me a bit of GW. There’s
something flashy and bold about him
but there’s also this…’unsoundness’
to his game. Can you win a Ring
with a guy like that? Can you count on
him through a playoff gauntlet? I dunno.

Anyway, apparently he’s an alternate
for the ProBowl. So, go figure.

w
v

I’m not sure that I remember a Rams player who has provided me with such a roller coaster of emotions. Capable of a pick six one moment, and then giving up an 80 yard TD The next. Even when he’s not making INTs he can be pretty sticky in coverage, then he gets caught looking into the backfield, or bites on a double move. Frustrating. I wonder what kind of Patriot he’d be.