My uneducated opinion on our Rams and McVay

[RamUK]

McVay is great, hall of famer already AND he's maddeningly consistent in his deficiencies.

Very few coaches I'd want instead of him in todays NFL.

Who would you rather have?

Reid could never get over the hump until he had the best QB in the league.

I'm not saying Reid isn't a better coach or there isn't anybody, but if you consider his recent drafts and the great people he brings in, I'm struggling to think of anybody.

I would imagine that all the greats have/had quirks and stubborn spots that bugged fans who watched the team week in week out.

Often the very nature of being successful means you have a certain sense of tunnel vision and arrogance.

 

[WestCoastRam]

Who would you rather have?

Reid could never get over the hump until he had the best QB in the league.

I'm not saying Reid isn't a better coach or there isn't anybody, but if you consider his recent drafts and the great people he brings in, I'm struggling to think of anybody.

I would imagine that all the greats have/had quirks and stubborn spots that bugged fans who watched the team week in week out.

Often the very nature of being successful means you have a certain sense of tunnel vision and arrogance.

Reid for sure, yes I get he's got the best QB in the league but he propped up substandard QBs for years, even McVay can only be competitive with an average QB. I think Reid runs a better program top to bottom. Gun to my head I'm probably picking both Harbaughs and LaFleur right now (and I hate myself for saying this but Asshole Face is a hell of a coach and is up there though I don't think I'd pick him above McVay).

None of this is an indictment of McVay, dudes top 5. The quibbles are very minor with him (though many that have consistently shown up showed up during the Pats game).

 

[Kupped]

Reid for sure, yes I get he's got the best QB in the league but he propped up substandard QBs for years, even McVay can only be competitive with an average QB. I think Reid runs a better program top to bottom. Gun to my head I'm probably picking both Harbaughs and LaFleur right now (and I hate myself for saying this but Asshole Face is a hell of a coach and is up there though I don't think I'd pick him above McVay).

None of this is an indictment of McVay, dudes top 5. The quibbles are very minor with him (though many that have consistently shown up showed up during the Pats game).

I can understand where you're coming from, but I'd disagree some.

John Harbaugh? Is he an excellent coach or is Baltimore just an incredible organization? He's got the 2 time MVP at QB and hasn't been able to make a single Super Bowl with him.
Jim? I think he's an incredible football coach.. but he still needs to win a SB.
LaFleur is excellent.. but not even making a SB bumps him below McVay, for sure.

Reid I won't argue with.

In addition to all his success.. it's also important to remember McVay is still one of the youngest coaches in the NFL.

 

[DzRams]

McVay is great, hall of famer already AND he's maddeningly consistent in his deficiencies.

Very few coaches I'd want instead of him in todays NFL.

This might be the best summary I've seen of McVay. I wonder if he'll ever be able to address his deficiencies.

 

[DzRams]

Who would you rather have?

Reid could never get over the hump until he had the best QB in the league.

I'm not saying Reid isn't a better coach or there isn't anybody, but if you consider his recent drafts and the great people he brings in, I'm struggling to think of anybody.

I would imagine that all the greats have/had quirks and stubborn spots that bugged fans who watched the team week in week out.

Often the very nature of being successful means you have a certain sense of tunnel vision and arrogance.

I think we have to separate the ability to coach and lead the team from the ability to acquire talent. Reid may not have a GM as talented as Snead who is a master at acquiring talent a variety of ways.

 

[Kupped]

I think we have to separate the ability to coach and lead the team from the ability to acquire talent. Reid may not have a GM as talented as Snead who is a master at acquiring talent a variety of ways.

I think most of the personnel issues have to do with teams on different timelines.. and I feel like the Rams are building toward a more sustainable model.

But..

Will they be able to find their next QB without breaking the bank in $$ or draft capital or both?

 

[Ellard80]

Never fails to see the fanatical fans complain about the fans who are not like them, like this: "but some of those posters aren't really Rams fans." lol! Always good to see two sides of the same coin go after each other.

Second - It is nice to see opinions on a message board.

Yeah, but some people are incessantly negative.

I learned after about age 25 that if you post like that you look like a jackass and if you actually do make a good point, it's lost on people because they don't take you serious anymore.

 

[Ellard80]

People love to bring up Reid.

Took him 20 years to win a superbowl.

 

[WestCoastRam]

I think most of the personnel issues have to do with teams on different timelines.. and I feel like the Rams are building toward a more sustainable model.

But..

Will they be able to find their next QB without breaking the bank in $$ or draft capital or both?

I lay awake thinking we won't have Stafford next year, they have to get at least one more year with him or two. Next years QB class is terrible and the following one will need some surprises to be good

 

[Allen2McVay]

I lay awake thinking we won't have Stafford next year,

I lay awake at night thinking about cake.

It used to be about hot, young women. Then it was hot, young women with cake.

Now, it's mostly just the cake ... sometimes donuts.

 

[WestCoastRam]

I lay awake at night thinking about cake.

It used to be about hot, young women. Then it was hot, young women with cake.

Now, it's mostly just the cake ... sometimes donuts.

oh man, now I'm thinking about Is It Cake
thanks

 

[RamsOfCastamere]

I can understand where you're coming from, but I'd disagree some.

John Harbaugh? Is he an excellent coach or is Baltimore just an incredible organization? He's got the 2 time MVP at QB and hasn't been able to make a single Super Bowl with him.
Jim? I think he's an incredible football coach.. but he still needs to win a SB.
LaFleur is excellent.. but not even making a SB bumps him below McVay, for sure.

Reid I won't argue with.

In addition to all his success.. it's also important to remember McVay is still one of the youngest coaches in the NFL.

John Harbaugh is an excellent coach. Even though he hasn't gotten past Mahomes yet, he won a Superbowl with Joe Flacco and beat Brady and the Patriots in the playoffs. When that era was over, he had the balls to trade up for Lamar Jackson when every single team passed on him, and developed an offense that maximized strengths. He convinced the league that you can win with a running qb. If Lamar was drafted to another team, he probably would have been forced to play in a system that wasn't for him and might not have won any MVPs.

 

[Kupped]

John Harbaugh is an excellent coach. Even though he hasn't gotten past Mahomes yet, he won a Superbowl with Joe Flacco and beat Brady and the Patriots in the playoffs. When that era was over, he had the balls to trade up for Lamar Jackson when every single team passed on him, and developed an offense that maximized strengths. He convinced the league that you can win with a running qb. If Lamar was drafted to another team, he probably would have been forced to play in a system that wasn't for him and might not have won any MVPs.

And I’d put McVay above him.

 

[Memento]

Going by age, production, intelligence, charisma, and potential, there's not a coach in this league I'd take over McVay.

 

[Allen2McVay]

John Harbaugh is an excellent coach. ... he won a Superbowl with Joe Flacco and beat Brady and the Patriots in the playoffs. When that era was over, he had the balls to trade up for Lamar Jackson when every single team passed on him,

I agree completely on Harbaugh. Think he is a terrific head coach. And I am sure he was on-board with the trade-up for and selection of Lamar Jackson. However, I'm pretty sure it was Ozzie Newsome and Eric DeCosta who drove that move.

 

[Merlin]

I think all play callers are human so they all have periods where they do stupid shit. Or straight up outsmart themselves like calling a screen on first down when the rush isn't coming. But there's so many wrinkles to a play that doesn't work.

Players need to execute. One guy not executing can sink the play's chances of success, depending on who it is. This includes whether the QB is checking into the best play option for that look. Or whether the protection calls are good up front.

Opposing players make plays. Sometimes that guy on the other side is straight whooping your ass. Anyone who has played any sport knows this feeling.

Coaches might play the wrong combination of players for what they want to accomplish. This seems to happen quite a bit with the Rams, who trust their internal hierarchy even over actual play on the field at times. But all coaches make these mistakes.

Gameplan might not be good enough. And this is directly relational to the opposing gameplan. Are you anticipating the other coach's desires and setting up your gameplan ideally to take advantage. Seems like this season we have been losing a lot in this, as proven by slow starts then getting into the game via adjustments.

So I try not to get into criticizing play calls, even though there are times where Coach will do something that is so stupid that the only way he isn't gonna get shit about it is if it works. But that's the thing to me. If you're gonna criticize plays that don't work then you should also criticize the plays that work. And that isn't any fun. So I find it is always preferable to just throw something at the TV instead and resume hopeful viewing of the game.

 

[RamUK]

If you don't like the GDT, join the chat room!!

Chill vibes there

I didn't know there was one!

I shall he next time we get a sensible kick off time

So what did you want him to do? We were down by 11. If we kick the FG there, 4 seconds go off the clock and we're down 8. If we try for the TD more probably goes off the clock. Significantly more if we don't get it in 1 play from the 12. But I am curious....if the long odds of recovering an onside kick is part of your reasoning for questioning the call, WTF is the difference whether we go for 3 or 7? To me this is a classic case of damned if he did, damned if he didn't and complaining simply to complain.


You know the player is "not playing to a certain level" and needs to be taken out, so I assume you also know the player that would be inserted would be an improvement? How? I can understand, "I think it would be better with so-in-so in there" but I don't buy a fan "knowing". And it's a lot of things. Is the replacement actually a better option? Is the replacement 100% healthy. For instance, Witherspoon seems to be sucking. Wallace would probably be his replacement but he was dinged vs Seattle and his snaps have gone down significantly since. Yesterday he had zero defensive snaps.

Face we (or you) don't really know what's best personnel-wise. We may think we do but we don't. Because we're not privvy to what goes on in meetings, on the practice field, or his level of health, etc.

I'm with you, it's infuriating.

Way too many people don't know the difference between I' know' (stating a fact) and I believe (offering an opinion).

It's not just football either.

 

[Merlin]

Reid could never get over the hump until he had the best QB in the league.

I have the highest regard for Reid. Also I think one of his biggest advantages is he doesn't require a top end OL coach, which is one of your holy trio of coaching positions that need to be filled to succeed long term at this level. That holy trio to my eye at least are a Head Coach who is an expert on one side of the ball (locks up an OC position as an "expert"), an expert coordinator opposite him (ideally that coordinator is someone owners would not want to poach either, like Spags or Flores), and an expert OL coach. Reid locks up two of those things I think, and he has DC locked down too with Spags. Plus he has Mahomes.

McVay has only the HC/OC combo locked down, and in comparison has been checked largely by his OL quality and has gone through OL coaches as a result. And that isn't just on gameday either. It's also been how they identify talent and strategize adding it. Over time we have seen their strategy shift, as their previous methodology was not working out.

As it pertains to DC, I think one of these offseasons McVay needs to time things so he can hire that DC who just got axed from his HC gig and who carries enough owner dislike that they won't touch him for a while. I.e. find his own Spags. I think this is important because his staff gets poached so badly by owners.

 

[RamUK]

I think all play callers are human so they all have periods where they do stupid shit. Or straight up outsmart themselves like calling a screen on first down when the rush isn't coming. But there's so many wrinkles to a play that doesn't work.

Players need to execute. One guy not executing can sink the play's chances of success, depending on who it is. This includes whether the QB is checking into the best play option for that look. Or whether the protection calls are good up front.

Opposing players make plays. Sometimes that guy on the other side is straight whooping your ass. Anyone who has played any sport knows this feeling.

Coaches might play the wrong combination of players for what they want to accomplish. This seems to happen quite a bit with the Rams, who trust their internal hierarchy even over actual play on the field at times. But all coaches make these mistakes.

Gameplan might not be good enough. And this is directly relational to the opposing gameplan. Are you anticipating the other coach's desires and setting up your gameplan ideally to take advantage. Seems like this season we have been losing a lot in this, as proven by slow starts then getting into the game via adjustments.

So I try not to get into criticizing play calls, even though there are times where Coach will do something that is so stupid that the only way he isn't gonna get shit about it is if it works. But that's the thing to me. If you're gonna criticize plays that don't work then you should also criticize the plays that work. And that isn't any fun. So I find it is always preferable to just throw something at the TV instead and resume hopeful viewing of the game.

I find hurling a cat at the TV works best.

It's a cross between kicking the cat and hurling the remote, but with less damage to the TV. And you don't have to get down on your hands and knees to look for the batteries.

Maybe don't do it if you have a very fat cat. You'll put your back out.

 

[Memento]

I find hurling a cat at the TV works best.

It's a cross between kicking the cat and hurling the remote, but with less damage to the TV. And you don't have to get down on your hands and knees to look for the batteries.

Maybe don't do it if you have a very fat cat. You'll put your back out.

Well, you could hurl the remote at the couch like a smart person who doesn't have enough money to buy a second TV (seriously, have you seen how much damage a cat could do to a television, even accidentally?).