rex-n-effect

The Chiefs are a lot of fun to watch and hopefully we'll get to enjoy a lot of pouting Brady.

Without getting into the weeds you can look generally at the two teams and see how much of a difference Brady made in the performances of both teams. There is no doubt Belichick built a system that produced results (cheating or no) with the benefit of a great QB. How much Brady was a part of that will take more time to sort out. Was Brady covering for less than stellar coaching? Belichick's coordinators haven't had much success as head coaches. Was Brady covering for a declining roster? The team didn't look great even beyond Newton. The NE teams have been looking worse and worse every year for like the past decade. This isn't a team that had to sacrifice to afford to pay for a FQB. They had a lot of liberty to draft and sign good players who would want to play for a winning team. I think Belichick is a good coach who has a good system, lucked into a FQB who mysteriously didn't mind making less than he was worth, came into a strong team from the outset and made a few really important decisions and turned it into an incredible dynasty.

I'm ok with the helmets but the jerseys are kinda lousy. The blade things across the top look like straight jacket bindings. It makes the players look narrow and I wouldn't think you would want your players to look narrow, especially for a QB trying to target them. What I really don't get about it is instead of having the points come together in the middle and wrapping around they could have done the same thing on the front and back with the points meeting at the middle of the arms so they looked like a jet flying as the players run towards/away.

These are all really good reasons to keep Darnold for another year but it is fair criticism that Darnold shouldn't be making basic mistakes three years into the NFL and keeping him means both coaching him up and coaching the bad habits out. He came out of USC with a lot of bad habits. Does it make sense to have the #2 pick and want to invest in trying to knock three years of bad coaching out and coach him up when you could have a fresh start with somebody that needs to be coached up but not coached out of so many bad habits? I've said since Sanchez was with the team that the biggest failing this team (and many other teams) made and continues to make is to draft a young QB and not surround him with and entire coaching organization dedicated to his success. As much as a young QB making millions should be his best advocate for his development, the team also has a lot invested in his success.

I know other teams have the GM and HC on equal footing but this is really good news for the organization that the Johnsons realize they may not have the knowledge or skills to execute that structure. This is a degree of self-awareness the Johnsons have not shown since...ever?

Practically you wouldn't give up a FQB for a guy who at best could be a FQB with a lot of help unless there is a lot to sweeten that deal. Even if Darnold can be what he was supposed to be he needs help which means guaranteeing at least one year of rebuilding with a real risk that he still never reaches that point. Houston would need enough draft capital to draft a potential starter this year and let Darnold and the draft pick battle for the starting position. That's going to mean a high draft pick this year plus some other draft capital. Unless Houston is unreasonably high on Darnold that probably takes this year's first plus two more early picks. At that point the Jets might as well draft the best QB available at #2 and use the other two picks to fill the roster and let Darnold plus another pick battle for the starting position.

Pete Carroll loves to keep people around to fire when times are tough. This makes sense.

I don't know the actual reason but if I was a DC promoted to HC I would race to get the best offensive coaches lined up knowing I'd need to rely upon their expertise a lot more than the defensive staff. He probably also knows as a recent DC he has a lot more pull to get somebody from a team still in the playoffs from the defensive side than the offensive side.

Or neither intend to leave their current positions.

Well he'll always have those curls to comfort him.

I'm a no. He had one year of absolute success followed by a series of lackluster years. His team never seemed to have much of a plan and he failed to develop Wentz. If anything, Wentz got worse with time. The NFCE was also a terrible division all the way around during his years as HC. The next HC needs to be somebody who can develop a young QB whether it is Darnold or somebody else. Pederson has shown he isn't that coach.

Yeah why take a coordinator from a successful side of the field when you could pick a fired HC who sucked on both?

lol no He spent virtually his entire career as a special teams coach. Woody already passed on him with good reason. Great special teams coach but that's his ceiling.

The new head coach is definitely going to have feelings about whether Darnold is good and whether Darnold is good for his system. Having the option to run with a prior early draft pick or a future early draft pick is going to be tremendously important to the future of the team and whatever decision is made with the #2 pick is likely going to seal the fate of both GM and HC. The HC's opinion is going to weigh heavily on the decision and saddling a new HC with a QB he doesn't trust is hardly a good start to a rebuild.

Is this much of a story? He probably wants his kid not to be a Jet first and foremost which is completely reasonable given the last decade. He's probably also trying to create noise around the Pats moving up and taking him which also makes sense given their lousy situation at QB. I would imagine Kraft is pushing hard to get a halfway decent QB in the building.