Jump to content

  • Welcome!

    Register and log in easily with Twitter or Google accounts!

    Or simply create a new Huddle account. 

    Members receive fewer ads , access our dark theme, and the ability to join the discussion!

     

How to fix it (Special Teams)

Mr. Scot

By Mr. Scot,
in Carolina Panthers

Recommended Posts

Khyber53 Grand Master

Khyber53

Posted
Posted

I remember early on when people marvelled at how much thought and time Fox put into good special teams. He's the first coach I remember ever bringing it up that one quarter of a typical game is on the special teams and that they were important. And other coaches in the league took note and worked on their special teams as well.

We kept people on our team just to play special teams, like Karl Hankton. And we were proud to have a good long snapper in Jason Kyle. (Well, as proud as a long snapper could make us, I guess).

And we took our best weapon, Steve Smith, and got him to return punts. "He can make plays in space," I remember them saying. "We want to put the ball in his hands as much as we can."

Now, we don't have specialists on the special teams (beyond the kickers). We've got the scrubs we could afford, or project players. We don't have Shane Burtons barreling down the field to knock someone's lights out. We don't have Gamble and Hankton gunning it at the edges to lay out a punt returner.

We look for who CAN take a punt or a kick off, instead of the guy who WANTS to take those kicks. A guy who wants to be on the team bad enough to dodge kamikazes. We need some tough, punk kid that wants to prove his manhood out there like Smitty used to do.

We need special teamers that look at that 25% of the game and take ownership of it.

And a special teams coach that can turn a group of scrubs into shield-chewing berserkers.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
jramsey4 Newbie

jramsey4

Posted
Posted

When you have overpaid starters, shitty ST is what you get. 21 of 22 starters returning, sound familiar anyone?

You can look back I am almost sure I never once said or thought that was a good thing. Our D looked like crap so instead of letting pep walk and upgrading the entire D we keep him and even cut a starter (Lucas wasn't as bad as everyone said Godfrey lack of deep help exposed him and he is a very big reason he is gone, I wanted him gone before that just saying).

We were weakest, in order, at DTs, FS, CB, DE. Yet this front office would rather have a guy that gets paid more then P. Manning and at best may win you one game on his own (hadn't even done that in a while). I said it then and I will say it again Pep is the reason Hurney and Fox will be looking for work shortly.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Mesmer Newbie

Mesmer

Posted
Posted

If you think special teams is about having awesome guys out there then you are an idiot.

If there is one thing in this league that is closest to 100% coaching, it's special teams. Kick coverage, punt coverage, kick return, punt return.. it's all positional and fundamental coaching.

These guys are all scrubs. Everyone starts out on special teams in the NFL, pretty much. If you can't run and tackle, then you probably shouldn't be in the NFL (with some obvious exceptions of course).

This isn't about getting the Ray Lewis of special teams. This is about coaching. Once that's fixed, you'll see guys emerge as special teams beasts.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Mr. Scot Grand Master

Mr. Scot

Posted
  • Author
Posted

If you think special teams is about having awesome guys out there then you are an idiot.

If there is one thing in this league that is closest to 100% coaching, it's special teams. Kick coverage, punt coverage, kick return, punt return.. it's all positional and fundamental coaching.

These guys are all scrubs. Everyone starts out on special teams in the NFL, pretty much. If you can't run and tackle, then you probably shouldn't be in the NFL (with some obvious exceptions of course).

This isn't about getting the Ray Lewis of special teams. This is about coaching. Once that's fixed, you'll see guys emerge as special teams beasts.

I'd agree in part. You do have to have guys with something of a "kamikaze" mentality though.

Given our general lack of toughness overall, where do you find that guy?

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Mesmer Newbie

Mesmer

Posted
Posted

I'd agree in part. You do have to have guys with something of a "kamikaze" mentality though.

Given our general lack of toughness overall, where do you find that guy?

Rounds 5-7 and/or the undrafted FA pool.:D

Young hungry guys like Jeremy Lehman... there's a lot of those guys out there. We just can't get them because we have a kickoff specialist and Dwayne Jarrett... among other wastes of roster spots.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
guyinchesapeake Newbie

guyinchesapeake

Posted
Posted

Other teams don't fear our speical teams. They know they will not see anything out of the ordinary from them. We don't try to block punts, we don't try any reverses on kick off returns, we don't do SQUAT except pray that our own punts aren't blocked. We are an easy team to prepare for in alll facets of the game, and given the personnel we have, I just don't get that! I really don't..

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Mr. Scot Grand Master

Mr. Scot

Posted
  • Author
Posted

Other teams don't fear our speical teams. They know they will not see anything out of the ordinary from them. We don't try to block punts, we don't try any reverses on kick off returns, we don't do SQUAT except pray that our own punts aren't blocked. We are an easy team to prepare for in alll facets of the game, and given the personnel we have, I just don't get that! I really don't..

We did try that one thing in Minnesota a while back... :(

Link to comment
Share on other sites
guyinchesapeake Newbie

guyinchesapeake

Posted
Posted

We did try that one thing in Minnesota a while back... :(

Yeah, every several seasons, we'll try something ONCE, and that's the end of it. I'm not saying do something ever game, but several times a season would be nice. Even if they don't work, they give the other guys something to think about, and devote some time to anticipating and preparing for, which takes away from preparing for something else! It's common sense..

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing
×
×
  • Create New...