AFATT is... All Football All The Time
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Here Comes The Wildcat...
Move over West Coast Offense
Patrick Tarell, September 23, 2008
Move over West Coast Offense, make
room for the Wildcat. In an NFL devoid of
innovation the Miami Dolphins brought life
back to a pro game that had gone bland
and boring. It was nothing new, the single
wing has been around since Bronco
Nagurski and the unbalanced line baffled
defensive coordinators long before Bill
Belichick donned the hoodie. Call it
gadgetry, call it a gimmick, but the truth is
NFL offenses rarely present defensive
coordinators with anything they have not
seen before, whether it be old or new.
The Dolphins may never use the
formation again this season, but what
they have done is force Defensive
Coordinators to prepare for it regardless
of whether it is used or not. Whatever
happened to coaches who could take the
talents of their players and present a
game plan that used them to the best of
their abilities? Are there no Don Shula’s
left in this league? The NFL is all about
systems, coaches all have a system.
They complain when taking over a job
that the players don’t fit their system and
therefore expect to lose until system
players are found.
Bill Walsh did not necessarily create the
West Coast Offense (WCO). He
perfected earlier techniques learned from
several mentors. How he used those
techniques is why he was considered
some kind of genius. He is credited with
the WCO because he saw what talents he
had on his team and figured out how to
best use them and then dozens of others
followed suit. Joe Montana did not have a
rifle for an arm, but he was accurate and
Jerry Rice practically invented the Yards
after Catch (YAC) category used today.
Walsh knew using a ball control passing
offense would get the most out of the
talent on his football team and so the
West Coast Offense was born. Don
Shula saw the quick release and rifle arm
of Dan Marino and knew his ball control
running game had to go. He reinvented
himself to accommodate the talent on his
football team.
Conversely, Tampa Bay coach Jon
Gruden is an example of the typical
system coach. It’s Jon’s way or the
highway. A look at the Buccaneer roster
shows a group laden with talent but a
team that never seems to distance itself
from the pack. The Gruden system is an
off-shoot of the WCO but without the
Walsh-like flexibility. Gruden continually
calls plays that, while looking good on
paper and perhaps even in practice, do
not relate to the talent on the field. A
week ago found Brian Grease throwing
the ball 67 times, nearly an NFL record
for a QB who has built a career on being
a game manager not a big time passer.
In the backfield sat an idle Ernest Graham
who is averaging a whopping six yards a
carry this season. Gruden forces his
system on the players, does not draft well
offensively for his system and does not
play to the strength of his talent and for
that reason, while being a Super Bowl
champion, he will never be a great coach.
Tony Sparano showed what can be the
makings of a great football coach. He
looked at his roster and saw that he had
two great running backs and a game
managing QB. He also knew he lacked
talent at the wide receiver position.
Watching his opponents load up the box
with eight players he knew he could not
use a straight up “I” formation running
attack. He also knew he needed to get
his best talent on the field. He asked for
help from his coaching staff and just so
happened to have last year’s Arkansas
Razorback offensive coordinator as his
QB coach. The Razorbacks had a similar
issue last year with Darren McFadden
and Felix Jones in the same backfield.
Sparano saw an opportunity to have his
best players in a position to make the
most impact and he changed his
complete system to accommodate the
talent on his team. This is coaching at its
finest.
Move over WCO, bring on the Wildcat…
because AFATT says so!
Move over West Coast Offense
Patrick Tarell, September 23, 2008
Move over West Coast Offense, make
room for the Wildcat. In an NFL devoid of
innovation the Miami Dolphins brought life
back to a pro game that had gone bland
and boring. It was nothing new, the single
wing has been around since Bronco
Nagurski and the unbalanced line baffled
defensive coordinators long before Bill
Belichick donned the hoodie. Call it
gadgetry, call it a gimmick, but the truth is
NFL offenses rarely present defensive
coordinators with anything they have not
seen before, whether it be old or new.
The Dolphins may never use the
formation again this season, but what
they have done is force Defensive
Coordinators to prepare for it regardless
of whether it is used or not. Whatever
happened to coaches who could take the
talents of their players and present a
game plan that used them to the best of
their abilities? Are there no Don Shula’s
left in this league? The NFL is all about
systems, coaches all have a system.
They complain when taking over a job
that the players don’t fit their system and
therefore expect to lose until system
players are found.
Bill Walsh did not necessarily create the
West Coast Offense (WCO). He
perfected earlier techniques learned from
several mentors. How he used those
techniques is why he was considered
some kind of genius. He is credited with
the WCO because he saw what talents he
had on his team and figured out how to
best use them and then dozens of others
followed suit. Joe Montana did not have a
rifle for an arm, but he was accurate and
Jerry Rice practically invented the Yards
after Catch (YAC) category used today.
Walsh knew using a ball control passing
offense would get the most out of the
talent on his football team and so the
West Coast Offense was born. Don
Shula saw the quick release and rifle arm
of Dan Marino and knew his ball control
running game had to go. He reinvented
himself to accommodate the talent on his
football team.
Conversely, Tampa Bay coach Jon
Gruden is an example of the typical
system coach. It’s Jon’s way or the
highway. A look at the Buccaneer roster
shows a group laden with talent but a
team that never seems to distance itself
from the pack. The Gruden system is an
off-shoot of the WCO but without the
Walsh-like flexibility. Gruden continually
calls plays that, while looking good on
paper and perhaps even in practice, do
not relate to the talent on the field. A
week ago found Brian Grease throwing
the ball 67 times, nearly an NFL record
for a QB who has built a career on being
a game manager not a big time passer.
In the backfield sat an idle Ernest Graham
who is averaging a whopping six yards a
carry this season. Gruden forces his
system on the players, does not draft well
offensively for his system and does not
play to the strength of his talent and for
that reason, while being a Super Bowl
champion, he will never be a great coach.
Tony Sparano showed what can be the
makings of a great football coach. He
looked at his roster and saw that he had
two great running backs and a game
managing QB. He also knew he lacked
talent at the wide receiver position.
Watching his opponents load up the box
with eight players he knew he could not
use a straight up “I” formation running
attack. He also knew he needed to get
his best talent on the field. He asked for
help from his coaching staff and just so
happened to have last year’s Arkansas
Razorback offensive coordinator as his
QB coach. The Razorbacks had a similar
issue last year with Darren McFadden
and Felix Jones in the same backfield.
Sparano saw an opportunity to have his
best players in a position to make the
most impact and he changed his
complete system to accommodate the
talent on his team. This is coaching at its
finest.
Move over WCO, bring on the Wildcat…
because AFATT says so!
Ownership is the Problem
Pat Tarell, September 18, 2008
Bad NFL teams are a direct result of poor
ownership. Poor ownership can be defined
in many ways because an owner who is a
good guy and willing to spend money on
his team can still be considered bad.
Wayne Huizenga is one of those owners
who loves his team and is willing to do
whatever and spend whatever he thinks
will help his club but lacks in one ultimately
important area, he doesn’t know football.
This leads to poor decisions and knee-jerk
reactions that lead to continued poor
teams.
His lack of knowledge of the game and his
lack of having people directly below him
who have that knowledge has been his
downfall. Not for the apparent reasons...
Good football teams are built by coaches
who have a scheme, a system and a
grand plan on what types of players fit into
that system. Each coach usually has a GM
who shares those views and works
together to draft players and sign players
who fit that system. It is up to the owner to
select a coach who has the ability to build
a team based on his plan and give that
coach the time to make his system work.
The Dolphins are a case study on how an
owner can destroy a team by making rapid
coaching changes with complete disregard
for the systems those coaches employ.
Jimmy Johnson was a fine coach with a
proven track record of winning and a
proven track record of building a team
from scratch into a champion. When he
took over the Dolphins he saw immediately
that Dan Marino would not fit into his
system. He made that clear and was
roundly bashed by the local media and fan
base because of the legend Dan Marino
was with the Dolphins. Wayne Huizenga
stepped in and overrode Jimmy’s decision
to trade, or otherwise allow Dan Marino to
move on. This decision undermined the
coach and the team and has had a ripple
effect that is still being felt ten years later.
Marino did not fit Johnson’s system. It did
not mean Marino was a bad player or was
anything less than a great player, it simply
meant Marino did not fit. Because Johnson
was then forced to work with a player who
didn’t fit his system he was also forced to
bring in players who didn’t fit his system
and therefore players he was not
comfortable drafting because these were
the players who would fit Marino. In the
end both Johnson and Marino went down
in the flames of a 62 to 7 playoff
whitewashing in Jacksonville.
Then Huizenga compounded the error by
listening to Johnson and hiring Dave
Wannstedt and Rick Spielman, two men
who did not have a clue how to evaluate
talent. Since the system did not change,
the players on the team brought in by
Johnson fit the scheme and there was no
need for a drastic rebuild and the team
was relatively successful. This success
was a sham however because they could
not evaluate talent and the team could not
grow. Since the Johnson drafts were so
prolific and the players fit, the team
continued to make the playoffs for a
couple years until natural attrition took its
toll and the team fell apart.
Now, on to Huizenga’s next gaff, Nick
Saban and his system. Saban had a plan
and knew what kind of players he wanted.
To get more specific, look at first round
pick Jason Allen. Jason Allen was slotted
at that 16th pick by nearly ever pre-draft
mock and was selected there by Saban.
Saban then traded for Daunte Culpepper,
a trade that was celebrated at the time but
Culpepper was never healthy and Allen
has never cracked the lineup. Saban had
several good drafts which included Ronnie
Brown, Channing Crowder, Matt Roth,
Travis Daniels and Fred Evans et al and
had begun to build the team in his image.
Then Huizenga’s own selection, Nick
Saban, decided for whatever reason, to
quit. More than likely because the players
he had inherited from Wannstedt did not
fit his disciplinarian system and he felt he
would have to completely rebuild the team
if he was to succeed. What he left was a
team in player flux, half the players fit the
Johnson system and half the players fit
the Saban system.
In steps Cam Cameron who has his own
system and he brings in players like Ted
Ginn, who many draft nicks had well
behind the more obvious selection of
Brady Quinn. He then chose John Beck,
why choose Beck instead Quinn? Because
Brady was perceived as a “me first”
player, while Beck was perceived as the
best fit in Cameron’s system. Who knows if
Cameron’s system would have worked
given enough time to get his type of
players in, the same can be said for
Saban.
But, Huizenga is way too impatient to put
up with 1-15, so out with the old and in
with another system... In the Parcells
system it looks like nearly every player
selected high in the past several regime’s
drafts except perhaps Ronnie Brown has a
bull’s eye on his back. And this is not
unusual. Bad teams are usually said to
need a talent upgrade. But he real
question is; How many bad teams remain
bad because they lose and the coach is
jettisoned and then the next coach and
the next? What comes out of it is not
necessarily bad players being selected,
but players who do not fit into the next
coach’s system. After two or three rapid
coaching changes the team ends up with
a mix of players who don’t fit into any
system.
The only fix is to get rid of the players who
don’t fit no matter the cost. Have faith in
the coaching staff and personnel people
and allow them the time to rebuild the
team to fit into their system. Hopefully
Huizenga will have faith in Parcells,
Sparano and Ireland and give them the
time it will take to rebuild, but if he does
not, the carousel will continue, unless he
is wise enough to stick with the system
when he makes the next hire.
The bottom line is that ownership must
have the football knowledge to make a
sound decision when it comes time to hire
a coach and then move out of the way and
allow that coach the time it takes to mold
the team in his image. If the team is in the
upper echelon of the league the owner
must hire a coach who has a philosophy
very similar to the coach leaving, an
assistant who has been groomed for the
job. The bottom line is there are no
saviors. If a team is bad it must be rebuilt.
If a team is good, the system should not
be changed. The owner must have
enough knowledge of football to
understand this simple logic or the end
product will be a very bad football team for
a very long time.
... because AFATT Says So!
Pat Tarell, September 18, 2008
Bad NFL teams are a direct result of poor
ownership. Poor ownership can be defined
in many ways because an owner who is a
good guy and willing to spend money on
his team can still be considered bad.
Wayne Huizenga is one of those owners
who loves his team and is willing to do
whatever and spend whatever he thinks
will help his club but lacks in one ultimately
important area, he doesn’t know football.
This leads to poor decisions and knee-jerk
reactions that lead to continued poor
teams.
His lack of knowledge of the game and his
lack of having people directly below him
who have that knowledge has been his
downfall. Not for the apparent reasons...
Good football teams are built by coaches
who have a scheme, a system and a
grand plan on what types of players fit into
that system. Each coach usually has a GM
who shares those views and works
together to draft players and sign players
who fit that system. It is up to the owner to
select a coach who has the ability to build
a team based on his plan and give that
coach the time to make his system work.
The Dolphins are a case study on how an
owner can destroy a team by making rapid
coaching changes with complete disregard
for the systems those coaches employ.
Jimmy Johnson was a fine coach with a
proven track record of winning and a
proven track record of building a team
from scratch into a champion. When he
took over the Dolphins he saw immediately
that Dan Marino would not fit into his
system. He made that clear and was
roundly bashed by the local media and fan
base because of the legend Dan Marino
was with the Dolphins. Wayne Huizenga
stepped in and overrode Jimmy’s decision
to trade, or otherwise allow Dan Marino to
move on. This decision undermined the
coach and the team and has had a ripple
effect that is still being felt ten years later.
Marino did not fit Johnson’s system. It did
not mean Marino was a bad player or was
anything less than a great player, it simply
meant Marino did not fit. Because Johnson
was then forced to work with a player who
didn’t fit his system he was also forced to
bring in players who didn’t fit his system
and therefore players he was not
comfortable drafting because these were
the players who would fit Marino. In the
end both Johnson and Marino went down
in the flames of a 62 to 7 playoff
whitewashing in Jacksonville.
Then Huizenga compounded the error by
listening to Johnson and hiring Dave
Wannstedt and Rick Spielman, two men
who did not have a clue how to evaluate
talent. Since the system did not change,
the players on the team brought in by
Johnson fit the scheme and there was no
need for a drastic rebuild and the team
was relatively successful. This success
was a sham however because they could
not evaluate talent and the team could not
grow. Since the Johnson drafts were so
prolific and the players fit, the team
continued to make the playoffs for a
couple years until natural attrition took its
toll and the team fell apart.
Now, on to Huizenga’s next gaff, Nick
Saban and his system. Saban had a plan
and knew what kind of players he wanted.
To get more specific, look at first round
pick Jason Allen. Jason Allen was slotted
at that 16th pick by nearly ever pre-draft
mock and was selected there by Saban.
Saban then traded for Daunte Culpepper,
a trade that was celebrated at the time but
Culpepper was never healthy and Allen
has never cracked the lineup. Saban had
several good drafts which included Ronnie
Brown, Channing Crowder, Matt Roth,
Travis Daniels and Fred Evans et al and
had begun to build the team in his image.
Then Huizenga’s own selection, Nick
Saban, decided for whatever reason, to
quit. More than likely because the players
he had inherited from Wannstedt did not
fit his disciplinarian system and he felt he
would have to completely rebuild the team
if he was to succeed. What he left was a
team in player flux, half the players fit the
Johnson system and half the players fit
the Saban system.
In steps Cam Cameron who has his own
system and he brings in players like Ted
Ginn, who many draft nicks had well
behind the more obvious selection of
Brady Quinn. He then chose John Beck,
why choose Beck instead Quinn? Because
Brady was perceived as a “me first”
player, while Beck was perceived as the
best fit in Cameron’s system. Who knows if
Cameron’s system would have worked
given enough time to get his type of
players in, the same can be said for
Saban.
But, Huizenga is way too impatient to put
up with 1-15, so out with the old and in
with another system... In the Parcells
system it looks like nearly every player
selected high in the past several regime’s
drafts except perhaps Ronnie Brown has a
bull’s eye on his back. And this is not
unusual. Bad teams are usually said to
need a talent upgrade. But he real
question is; How many bad teams remain
bad because they lose and the coach is
jettisoned and then the next coach and
the next? What comes out of it is not
necessarily bad players being selected,
but players who do not fit into the next
coach’s system. After two or three rapid
coaching changes the team ends up with
a mix of players who don’t fit into any
system.
The only fix is to get rid of the players who
don’t fit no matter the cost. Have faith in
the coaching staff and personnel people
and allow them the time to rebuild the
team to fit into their system. Hopefully
Huizenga will have faith in Parcells,
Sparano and Ireland and give them the
time it will take to rebuild, but if he does
not, the carousel will continue, unless he
is wise enough to stick with the system
when he makes the next hire.
The bottom line is that ownership must
have the football knowledge to make a
sound decision when it comes time to hire
a coach and then move out of the way and
allow that coach the time it takes to mold
the team in his image. If the team is in the
upper echelon of the league the owner
must hire a coach who has a philosophy
very similar to the coach leaving, an
assistant who has been groomed for the
job. The bottom line is there are no
saviors. If a team is bad it must be rebuilt.
If a team is good, the system should not
be changed. The owner must have
enough knowledge of football to
understand this simple logic or the end
product will be a very bad football team for
a very long time.
... because AFATT Says So!
2008 Eagles Preview
Rick Tarell, September 2, 2008
Everybody in the NFC East is even as we
head into the 2008 season, and that’s not
referring to their respective records. I
really mean even. The East will field the
most competitive teams in the NFC and
who wins this divisional title will come down
to who stays healthy enough to win their
respective intra-division series. The
Eagles will have to come out ready and
focused to win the early games because if
they don’t, there will be no catching up
amongst this group. The Redskins are
flying under the radar at the moment but
make no mistake- that is a solid team.
There are questions about their coaching
and if Campbell is the guy to lead them on
a consistent basis, but they are fast,
experienced and have the horses for a
balanced attack. Will Taylor help the
defense, yes but how much? We get to
find out twice. Dallas is good, no question.
But as good as their press clippings say?
They too are tough, fast and balanced.
They think there isn’t anyone in the East
to challenge them…they’ll have to prove it
against us twice. The SB champs lost
some key pieces in the off-season, but the
Giants can also boast. Well, Eli gets to
show us how confident and consistent he
is…twice! It’ll be one of the best years yet
for this division because every team has
the goods. It won’t take too long to find out
who has the guts!
The Eagle off season was excellent.
Asante Samual is here now and gives us
the turnover piece we wanted and
needed. The young LB’s look very strong,
smart and fast. The D line has shaped into
one that is quick and deep so Jim Johnson
will be expected to let the blitzes fly. We
signed Westbrook to a long term deal so
now he’s happy too. Hope that translates
into another Pro-Bowl year and that he
can stay healthy. Lito Sheppard is a
professional. He may start anyway, but will
be there to add to team strength, patiently
enduring as his agent tries to get him a
better deal. Good, I hope he gets one, but
in the meantime, he is an Eagle, so he will
play like one. Young receivers don’t
generally do well out of the gate, but
watch out for DeSean Jackson, the 2nd
round pick from Cal. Cut from the Tommy
McDonald mold – fast, tough, confident,
hands like glue and oh yea…tiny. Stay
healthy young man and you will be a star.
Last year Eagledom felt like everything
was horrible…no post-season, a mere .
500 record, last in the East – humiliating.
The taste is still there you know. All the
fans still feel it, but when you look closely,
this team is just about the same save a
few well placed additions and subtractions.
But I saw a very tough situation last year
and we came through with head up, ready
to fight again. This time around we are
going to be formidable. Don’t believe me?
Well, just ask the other NFC East players
and their coaches.
Know why? The leader of this club on the
field is as healthy and sharp and focused
as anyone has seen him yet. That’s scary!
For all you haters out there who had
already written DMac off I believe you are
about 4-5 years early. He will be back with
something to prove. Not to his Mom, or
Campbell soup or TO or anyone else
except him and a more formidable
opponent you will not find in this league.
No final standing predictions yet, but in a
week we’ll make our AFATT picks for all
teams but the Birds are in it baby and we’ll
get to prove it to our NFC East
rivals…twice each!
... because AFATT Says So!
Rick Tarell, September 2, 2008
Everybody in the NFC East is even as we
head into the 2008 season, and that’s not
referring to their respective records. I
really mean even. The East will field the
most competitive teams in the NFC and
who wins this divisional title will come down
to who stays healthy enough to win their
respective intra-division series. The
Eagles will have to come out ready and
focused to win the early games because if
they don’t, there will be no catching up
amongst this group. The Redskins are
flying under the radar at the moment but
make no mistake- that is a solid team.
There are questions about their coaching
and if Campbell is the guy to lead them on
a consistent basis, but they are fast,
experienced and have the horses for a
balanced attack. Will Taylor help the
defense, yes but how much? We get to
find out twice. Dallas is good, no question.
But as good as their press clippings say?
They too are tough, fast and balanced.
They think there isn’t anyone in the East
to challenge them…they’ll have to prove it
against us twice. The SB champs lost
some key pieces in the off-season, but the
Giants can also boast. Well, Eli gets to
show us how confident and consistent he
is…twice! It’ll be one of the best years yet
for this division because every team has
the goods. It won’t take too long to find out
who has the guts!
The Eagle off season was excellent.
Asante Samual is here now and gives us
the turnover piece we wanted and
needed. The young LB’s look very strong,
smart and fast. The D line has shaped into
one that is quick and deep so Jim Johnson
will be expected to let the blitzes fly. We
signed Westbrook to a long term deal so
now he’s happy too. Hope that translates
into another Pro-Bowl year and that he
can stay healthy. Lito Sheppard is a
professional. He may start anyway, but will
be there to add to team strength, patiently
enduring as his agent tries to get him a
better deal. Good, I hope he gets one, but
in the meantime, he is an Eagle, so he will
play like one. Young receivers don’t
generally do well out of the gate, but
watch out for DeSean Jackson, the 2nd
round pick from Cal. Cut from the Tommy
McDonald mold – fast, tough, confident,
hands like glue and oh yea…tiny. Stay
healthy young man and you will be a star.
Last year Eagledom felt like everything
was horrible…no post-season, a mere .
500 record, last in the East – humiliating.
The taste is still there you know. All the
fans still feel it, but when you look closely,
this team is just about the same save a
few well placed additions and subtractions.
But I saw a very tough situation last year
and we came through with head up, ready
to fight again. This time around we are
going to be formidable. Don’t believe me?
Well, just ask the other NFC East players
and their coaches.
Know why? The leader of this club on the
field is as healthy and sharp and focused
as anyone has seen him yet. That’s scary!
For all you haters out there who had
already written DMac off I believe you are
about 4-5 years early. He will be back with
something to prove. Not to his Mom, or
Campbell soup or TO or anyone else
except him and a more formidable
opponent you will not find in this league.
No final standing predictions yet, but in a
week we’ll make our AFATT picks for all
teams but the Birds are in it baby and we’ll
get to prove it to our NFC East
rivals…twice each!
... because AFATT Says So!