Of course he's accountable for his unit's play. But the argument is that the good of the defense has far FAR outweighed the bad. Is Pagano's defense responsible for the 4th and 29? of course they are. But their overall body of work this season has been good.
I agree with your statement. Well put; it acknowledges accountability and provides justification for staying the coarse.
They've had some good performances, but the 2nd halves in the Saints and first Broncos game were wretched. They share some of the blame for a couple of epic collapses.
In a team sport there's always enough blame to go around to each and every person/unit/coach. That's pretty much how it works. But, at the end of the day, it's Pagano's defense that's been keeping us in each and every game. The MNF Broncos game is probably the only loss I'd give a lot of fault to the defense for....and even that one is arguable considering the bad position untimely turnovers put them in and the fact that the defense provided half the scoring. 2nd half of the Saints game was bad as well.
Don't have the stats to back it up, but it seems like they've had trouble getting off the field in many games. Stats that are solid: 5th in rush yds against, 12th in points against, 20th in pass yds against, and 20th in total sacks. Not bad. Not great.
The Saints game was done once Williams made the pick-6 but of course Ingram got flagged on a shot to the chin. And then an accumulation of the worst calls I've ever seen in the NFL on the final drive. And again, if Rivers doesn't throw that INT with 5 to play, Saints wouldn't of been up a TD and we could of had the game winning drive on the last possession. But again, if we don't turn the ball over in the MNF game, our defense only gave up 21 points. So aside from the worst offensive 2nd half performance I've ever seen in my life, we still would have won, technically, 24-21..
I wouldn't want to be a HC unless I had total control over all assistants hiring. I'd also like to have verbiage in my contract that I have some percentage of weight in the draft day decisions. Norv is going to pay for all of AJ's and Deans poor decisions dating back to the hire of Teddy boy in the name of continuity. I'm not absolving Norv, just looking at the reality of his situation. You can sugar coat a turd but at the end of the day it's still a turd.
Like I said in the other thread, might make for an interesting separate thread (since I don't want to derail from the topic here), where exactly was this "continuity" it brought? Bringing in Mike Riley's OC? The Wade's DC when he was with the Bills (even though Wade was the one calling the defense when he was coaching the Bills). Cottrell you might... might be able to contend was some sort of defensive continuity (as we witnessed firsthand, it wasn't), but how exactly was Norv's Coryell-ish offense continuous from Cam and Marty's scheme which, to Cam's credit, made much better use of the seams (we saw this when Chudzinksy was back here for the limited time that he was) and holes in zone coverage than Norv's does.
I say bring back the o-line coach (WTF who is that guy anyway?).... but actually give the guy some talent to work with!
Cam was the QB coach for the Redskins 94-96 under Norv. It was also written that Cam used a "dumbed down" version of the offense as he himself was still learning it. the is the only connection I know of and as far as Teddy I believe it was just the 34 defense and nothing more than that.
http://espn.go.com/blog/afcwest/post/_/id/51747/afc-west-coaching-possibilities From Bill Williamson at ESPN. A few of note: Wade Phillips, Houston defensive coordinator: The only reason I put Phillips on this list is if Smith remains in San Diego. Smith admires Phillips from Phillips' days as the Chargers’ defensive coordinator. I think he’d be a candidate if Smith is making the choice. As I said on another thread, if this is who AJ wants to hire he should get a swift kick in the backside and thrown out the door at Chargers park. Andy Reid, Philadelphia head coach:Reid is very likely entering his last month in Philadelphia after a tenure that started in 1999. The word around the league is that he will get instant interest. If Reid doesn’t opt to take time off, I could see San Diego being a fit. He has a home in the area and he’d work well with Rivers. But would the Chargers want to replace Turner with a veteran coach who just flamed out after a long stay with a team? While I wouldn't be thrilled if he came, I wouldn't be as miserable as I was when Norv was hired. Unlike Turner, Reid has a history of success. More likely he takes some personal time off, see what happened to his son and how much he's getting his butt whopped in Philly media Rex Ryan, New York Jets head coach: It is no sure thing he will be fired, but there’s a chance. I think he could get some interest in the AFC West. He was a finalist in San Diego when Turner got the job. I think the Chiefs could also be interested. They have the makings of a good 3-4 defense -- Ryan’s specialty. Putting him in a small media market could also save Ryan from himself occasionally. If we fire Pagano and if Ryan is available, I want him hired as DC ASAP! David Shaw, Stanford University head coach: This is one of my favorites. I can really see Shaw ending up in San Diego. He was born there and may be one of the hot young coaches available. I think he’d be perfect for San Diego whether Smith is there or not. His father, Willie Shaw, was a longtime NFL assistant. David Shaw played for Bill Walsh. He worked for Al Davis. He was an assistant to Jim Harbaugh and he has coached Luck. And he has won as a head coach. If I was hiring a coach next month, I’d seriously investigate this 40-year-old. If Spanos takes the road unfamiliar for him, it could be a coup and be as successful as Coryell coming from SDSU
Top 5 coaching candidates 1. David Shaw 2. John Gruden/Jay Gruden 3. Perry Fewell 4. Chip Kelly 5. Andy Reid
The only coordinator/assistant I want to keep is the ones that the new HC wants to keep. I would be really excited to get someone like Shaw. I want new meat, not overdone.
Shaw is a nice coaching prospect, but I think there should be concern that Shaw is winning with Harbaugh's product right now. Really the offense and defense hasn't changed at all from the one that was installed with Luck as a freshman. I'd like to know that he's more of an innovative strategist than just relentless ground and pound and hope for a 17-14 victory, that he has the ability to change the game plan on the fly and spread it out and throw it. I'd like to see Shaw stay in college 1 more year, but if he comes out this year....it might be worth the risk.
Oh and for the love of football, can we please get a promise that Chow wont return?? OUT with the NORV CHOW! please.
