Some Howard Balzer: Discussion
all posts originally from the rampager listserv; edited by zn
Anyone who thinks Fisher is getting away undervalues Kroneke IMO. This is about money. Fisher wants a job that is going to last another 16 years or that can traded up for a bigger job. This team allows him the biggest opportunity. He won't get away.
BALZER: Agree with most of this, but Fisher will be 70 years old in 16 years! I don't believe it's about money. He knows he's going to make a lot wherever he goes. He will choose the place that he feels most comfortable with and gives him the best chance to win.
my opinion is a way to lure the coach is tour the facilities, not interview him in another state
BALZER: Fisher is going to pick the team he believes has the most committed owner and gives him the best chance of winning. Most of the facilities in the NFL are very similar. If Fisher likes the Rams prospects, likes Kroenke, will likely have input on the GM, the weight room or whatever has no chance of being a dealbreaker. If Fisher at some point really wants to see the facilities, he will.
I'm sure Kroenke wanted the interview to be away from everyone in the office.
did you see the original reports from silver saying that fisher was essentially a lock to miami right after his interview? also silver made comments about fisher's supposed dislike of sam bradford.
BALZER: Silver never said Fisher was essentially a lock for Miami and he never wrote Fisher disliked Bradford.
He wrote that Fisher was impressed with Miami and that they were in the lead, but only because he hadn't met with Kroenke yet. He wrote things could change when he met with Kroenke. He also wrote that Fisher wasn't 100 percent in love with Bradford
I assume that Lloyd will not be able to follow McDaniels to the Pats, or would he
BALZER: Why not? If McDaniels can convince Belichick to sign him.
The Niners implemented a new offense through the lockout. I presume the lack of injuries on their o- line helped them succeed there. Or is it just a simpler system than Mcdaniels'?
BALZER: The 49ers offense was a somewhat basic one. Based on the run, and Alex Smith was coached to manage the game and not make mistakes, which he did well. Their line is good and stayed healthy all season, plus there were threats in Vernon Davis and a good receiver in Crabtree. Plus, their defense forced numerous turnovers and gave them good field position a lot. Still, the 49ers were second-to-last in the league on third down (29.4 percent). The Rams were last (28.1). The 49ers were also third-worst in TD percentage in the red zone. Only the Rams and Kansas City worse. The 49ers did get there more than the Rams, but I'd bet if games were studied, they got there times on turnovers.
The 49ers finished the season 26th in offensive yards, averaging 310.9 compared to the Rams' 283.6. So, it's not as if their success is linked to any superior play on offense.
They also had a very good kick returner in Ted Ginn that helped with field position.
I was listening to ESPN 101 & they were talking to some ex Packers exec who was familiar with having Favre and Rogers on the same roster. They were talking about having Manning and Luck on the same roster. Manning is apparently due a bonus, so the Colts would have to pay out a huge sum of money, and Luck would be due a large sum of money since he would be the #1 pick. They mentioned that the Colts can't trade Manning either since the bonus decision is due before trades can be made. The point is that they were saying that it is more practical at this time to let Manning walk.
BALZER: Manning could agree to delay the payment of the bonus. He could agree to restructure since he got like $26M last year for doing nothing. Will be interesting to see the way the Colts handle this.
How can Mike McCarthy and Mike Martz fail with Alex Smith but (name this years 49er OC) make him excel?
BALZER: Did he excel? Smith was 10th in passer rating, largely because he threw only five interceptions. He was coached simply not to make mistakes. His average yards per attempt ranked 16th in the NFL. The 49ers passing offense ranked 29th. There were 18 quarterbacks with more pass attempts. To say he excelled is a huge stretch.
Some more facts: McCarthy had one season with Smith when he was a rookie and the 49ers were 2-14 the season before. Martz didn't even have a year with Smith. When Martz was there in 2008. Smith missed the whole year after having shoulder surgery.
i would argue that jackson's productivity would increase with a better team because he wouldn't be the "only" focus of defensive coordinators. i shudder to think what jackson could do in an offense like the saints or the packers, with all of those speedy, downfield threats. he would never have to face 8-9 man fronts designed to stop him only.
BALZER: Personally, I was stunned (but not really stunned) when the post-game shows that week basically ignored the fact that Jackson had rushed for over 100 yards against the Steelers, had passed 9,000 yards in his career and reached 1,000 yards for the seventh straight season. Few notice when your team isn't winning games.
