SCO96

I could except the reasoning of the Christensen pick if you had taken a LT in the 1st or 2nd round and taken him to play guard in then 3rd. The way things played out, we could have taken Slater in the 1st at LT, Creed Humphrey at center in the 2nd, and Brady to play guard in the 3rd round. That would have been a sound investment in the oline . Even it didn’t work out in the long run we couldn’t have criticized them because on paper it those moves are legitimate.

Nothing was wrong with winning that game last season. We dropped a few spots, but at #8, but it doesn’t appear that the franchise was set back for years to come by not getting Wilson or Fields. We don’t have enough tape on Lance, but he isn’t a sure bet to be a success either. As you pointed out, LT is almost as important as QB. After dropping to #8, we still had a shot at The left tackle Slater. We also passed on several tackles and interior lineman in round 2. I don’t know what happened internally, but We could have kept Bridgewater another season to see how he would do with an improved oline, a healthy CMAC, and another year in Brady’s system and plan to move on for him by drafting a successor in 2022 which was the last year of his deal.

I agree with your post for the most part. However, at the time I had no problem taking Horn in round one. We only had one CB on the team that got an INT in 2020…Donte Jackson. JC has the potential to be a top 5 corner in the NFL and we know those guys don’t grow on trees. But, I would have had no issues with taking a legitimate LT like Slater. My problem was passing on 6 tackles and 3 interior lineman after two trade-downs which resulted in the TMJ selection in round 2. DJ and Robbie both had over 1000 yards receiving in 2020. Did we really need to draft a third receiving option in the 2nd round? Now, after drafting Marshall we gave the guy I thought he was replacing a contract extension. If we had followed your line of thought in round 1 and mine in round 2, we’d have 2 solid starters to pair with Moton and our greatest team weakness, the oline would be significantly better.

We’ve only scored 17 points offensively in the third quarter in our last eleven games. That goes back to last season. We said we were going to emphasize the run last weeks, but had less than 20 rushing attempts the entire game. I’m not saying I would fire Brady now. But I could see the rationale. Personally, I hope he moves on to greener pastures next year and we bring in a seasoned OC. If Brady does stick around, then we have to bring in a QB who doesn’t have the flaws of Brigdewater and Darnold that you so aptly laid out in the above post

I think the announcers said yesterday that we had EIGHT 3 and out drives yesterday. That’s terrible when you consider team average about 12 possessions a game. Our defense is on the field too long. They are having to support an offense that literally cannot score points in the 3rd quarter. It’s too early to go into a full panic mode, but getting rid of our OC would be a justifiable move at this point. Thing is, I don’t think we have another viable option on the staff right now.

Passing on Fields isn’t what is hurting this team. He wouldn’t have made us better. Ohio State quarterback have never panned out in the NFL. Field’s 5 turnover performance yesterday appears to be a continuance of that trend. He and Fitz passed on some solid offensive line prospects in the 2nd round in favor of two questionable FA acquisitions. Now, we’ve traded away a lot of draft capital heading into the 2022 draft. We’d have to give up everything to acquire Watson: first round picks in 2022, 2023, and 2024…and probably 2nd round picks in 2023 and 2024. How on earth would we fix the holes at LT, LG, RG, C, LB, FS with no high draft choices for or the next three season. I hope the Dolphins are the ones who give up everything to get him instead of us.

Year three isn’t always a “the year” for a head coach, but there is some historical precedent for the statement. Bill Walsh took over the 49ers in 1979. He started with a 2-14 season. By the end of the 1981 season they won the first of their four Super Bowls in the 1980s. Jimmy Johnson took over the Cowboys in 1989. He started 1-15. In his third year they had their first winning season and made the playoffs. They won back to back titles in 1992-1993 and third title in 1995. Walsh and Johnson’s teams were so good that the last titles their teams won were done so without either guy coaching the team. Walsh resigned and George Seifert took over. Jimmy was “let go” and replaced by Barry Switzer. The problem seems to be that Rhule doesn’t really seem (at least so far) to be a great HC like the above 2 guys. Bill Walsh was an offensive genius. Jimmy could spot talent a mile away and figured out pretty quickly that physically imposing offensive lines win games in the NFL. His biggest blunder was the 2nd round of the 2021 draft. He and Fitterer passed on 6 offensive tackles and 3 interior lineman to draft a WR who has not made us any better, even though the oline was a weak link on the team. I think we traded down over 20 slots to pick TMJ when either of the guys we passed would have made our OLine better immediately. Then we draft a LT in the 3rd round that he views as a 2nd round guard LG in the NFL. If you’re that sure he’s a guard, then you should have drafted a tackle or a center( the best center in the draft was on the board before we moved down) in round 2 and picked BC in round 3. You’d have at least improved 40% of the line in two rounds.

We didnt’ score any points in the 3rd quarter….AGAIN. The offense has scored a total 17 points in the last (11) 3rd quarters. We can’t count the seven 3rd quarter points last week because they were the result of a special teams play that resulted in a touchdown. If Brady returns as OC coordinator in 2022 I think I’m going to have a lot of free Sundays next year. In fact, I’m close on turning this off now. The defense gives up 12 points thru three quarters and this game still feels like a potential blow out loss.

I wholeheartedly agree with you guys on the LT issue. I had no problems passing on Fields in round one. I just can't get excited about ANY QB from Ohio State. I don't think we're gonna end up regretting getting Horn who could potentially end up being a top 5 cornerback in the NFL. My problem was trading back in round 2. We passed on six tackles and 3 interior lineman guards to draft a WR who is currently number 3 on our depth chart. I pull for everyone we draft, but I would have taken a Tackle or Interior lineman over Marshall because they would have had a greater impact this season. The silver lining to all of this is that the FO and Rhule realize the O-line has to be fixed in the off season. A failure to do so would be a justification for hiring new people to get this done.

Your post made me realize a typo in my post. We lost 11 games during the 2020 season. Tampa whopped us pretty good both times we played. The Saints destroyed us in the last game of the season. The other 8 losses were all by 8 pts or less, meaning one extra TD and 2 pts conversion would have won or tied all of those games. This season we lost by our games by 8 pts (Dallas) 3 pts (Philadelphia), and 6 pts (Minnesota). Once again one extra TD and 2 pt conversion would have tied the Dallas game and won the last won games against Philly and Minnesota. In our last 10 games, the offense has scored 17 points in the 3rd quarter. That's why we're losing all of these close games. If we could simply address/fix the 3rd quarter meltdowns we could make the playoffs THIS SEASON. I know Rhule has made some mistakes, but he isn't stupid. He has to realize it. I'd be shocked if this isn't fixed before the end of the season.

We've all heard the saying "Rome wasn't built in the day". Well, neither are championship football teams in the NFL. Like some of the other guys have posted, I didn't expect us to make the playoffs this year. I just want to see us show improvement. I figured we'd challenge for a wild card this year but far short. Make the playoffs in year 3, and be a legitimate SB threat by year 4. It took Bill Walsh 3 seasons to get the 49ers to a SB after starting 2-14 in his first year. Jimmy Johnson was 1-15 in his first season with Dallas. in year 3 they were a playoff team. By year 4 the Cowboys were on the verge of Back to Back titles. Our defense isn't a finished product but we're progressing. If we can can 1 or 2 more pieces we could be a top 10 defense. We've accumulated some talented parts on offense at the skill positions. We all know the O-line is the week spot holding us back. I'm pretty sure that'll be addressed this off-season. Darnold has potential. Even if he isn't "the guy" we can afford to ride with him one more year until the O-line is fixed. I'd hate to have a rookie QB playing behind our current offensive line. I'm disappointed by the losing streak, but we're still competitive. We lost 11 games last season and 3 games this season by a a score or less. And , we've played some good teams over that stretch. We're not an easy out. Once we learn how to score in the 3rd quarter and close out games we should/could be a perennial playoff team.

Our past rush did absolutely nothing this game. Did we even manage to sack Cousins today? To be fair, our putrid offensive performance during the first 3 quarters of the game resulted in the defense being on the field too long. Still, I just don't see our DT's impacting the pass rush. If out ends don't get home we ain't getting a sack. We still need a pass rushing DT.

I bet Brian Burns is feeling like the world has been lifted off of his shoulders.

Sam hasn't played that well, but those dropped throws certainly haven't helped. He's not a quitter and he's got some spunk. Both of those 4th down throws were clutch. If we get him an offensive line and a good OC coordinator I think he can win some games for us.

Ian Thomas?

I actually agree with you. I think he's not comfortable dropping back because he knows his pass blocking won't hold up. The offensive line is just plain bad. Even if we figure out that Sam isn't the guy, we can't expect anyone to succeed at QB until we get it fixed. Building a formidable offense line has got to be the top priority this off-season.

Sam seems to have come back to Earth after the 3-0 start. Franchise QB are paid to bring teams back. I can deal with losing this game if Sam can at least make this a close game. If we keep playing like this the FO has to consider a different option heading into 2023 and beyond. I'd keep Sam for 2022 just so we can use this off-season to fix our woeful O-line. We can't start next season with the current group of guys. Whoever we have starting in 2023 and beyond won't be successful with pass blocking this bad.

I was thinking the same thing. Keith Taylor is looking good. When we get Horn back we'd have Horn, Henderson, and Taylor on multi-year deals and they're all under 25. AJ (age 31) has 1 year left on his deal. So we'd be set at that position even if we lost Gilmore and Jackson. The latter two are at the end of their contracts. Do we really think we can resign both them? Maybe Fitz is thinking about getting comp picks for 2023. The ideal situation would be for is to move one to FS to help out Chinn. I don't know if any of our CBs are capable (or willing) to do that.

Unfortunately, having a top rate secondary means nothing if the offense can't score. We scored 7 pts on a blocked punt in the 2nd half so far. The offense has done nothing. Over the last 10 games the offense has scored 17 points in 3rd quarter. You can't compete for a playoff spot year in and year out with offense that bad unless you're scoring 10 pts a quarter in 1st, ,2nd, and 4rh quarters...which we can't seem to do against good teams.

We didn't get worse by letting him go and we really wouldn't be any better if were still here. The move worked out great for both parties. He didn't suck dollars from our cap and He got a boat load of money by switching teams.

Here's the scary thing, that kid isn't even 25 yet! He's only going to get better throwing the ball.

I agree with you, but I do understand the logic. If that kick was made I think the 10 point lead would've been too much for the Ravens to overcome with less than 5:00 to play. After seeing the quality of kicking this year, I'd try to score a TD every time I had the ball if I were coaching in the NFL

A loss like that can ruin an entire season. The Colts did what we did yesterday. They snatched defeat from the hands of victory.

I told you guys he wasn't going to make that kick!

The way this game has gone I'm expecting a miss or another block.