GaryPinC

I'll say this, Mahomes did his share of audibling out of plays, which I don't usually see in a system offense. I'm not a crusader but I do think that mentally he will be able to handle NFL decision making. Whether he can grow out of his happy feet is a different story.

Winning is a process not a final score. A system of habit, focus, passion, and talent. This is why many people take note of how our coach goes about his business. It starts now.

I hope Romo does leave the game. Being ok with his benching, just seeing him and his quotes, how he's been in no hurry to get out of Dallas, I don't think he has a passion to compete in the NFL any more. His experiences and skill set doesn't matter if he's not going to exploit it.

Yea, maybe a bit fantastic but I would bet teams really wanting to move up in the draft contact the appropriate teams before the draft and make their intentions known. That may be the jist of it until the draft actually unfolds but I could see it going one step further and working out terms then just need a phone call confirmation as the spot comes up. That way the team willing to trade back knows what they have in their pocket.

Seems like we could work out the terms and retain the choice to execute it after pick 9 on draft day. Seems to me a lot of draft day trades are "last minute".

Sure, Pegula was ultimately responsible, and Whaley had justification to avoid the situation because of that. But to those saying Whaley should be given more power, here was a vacuum for him to step up and show some leadership skills. Fail. Many companies don't promote and then see how you handle the new responsibility of the position. They give you some of those "new" responsibilities or judge how you step up to situations beyond your current responsibilities before deciding on the promotion.

If memory serves he called Buddy Nix being hired which was about a month before Fitzpatrick arrived. Any criticisms about how press conferences were conducted seemed to draw a bit of a personal response so I kind of felt he is/was in that communications group.

I was curious how you learned that about NGU?

I wasn't that impressed with Mahomes until I watched his game films, even in losses. Mentally, this guy is at an entirely different level that separates him from the rest. Yes, he's a little overactive back there and his delivery is more like a pitcher's stride because that's what he used to be. Accuracy is decent, but not great. This guy's head seldom stops scanning on downfield throws. He throws people open and sees the field very well. He does little things well like ball fakes and faking a rushing defender left to open a throwing lane to the right. He's very passionate and motivated to win. Good pocket feel and seldom gets sacked. Very much in command on the field. Toughest thing is if his style can mesh with the NFL through coaching. Probably not a 10 pick but I could see first round. I don't think Watson will be able to handle the mental rigors of the NFL and I know KIzer won't. That guy's EJ Manuel slow. Trubisky maybe a Chad Pennington type ceiling. But I do feel Mahome's overall speed of play has separated him from the rest. Trubisky would be my number 2. It is a poor QB draft.

Yea, I know Coughlin has rubbed a lot of people the wrong way in his career so maybe he's looking to pay it forward by mentoring Marrone but I just see his head exploding over it eventually.

That's fantastic, thanks for posting it. On one hand he admits he made mistakes, which is respectable, then on the other he shows he's still a classless douche. I also think him and Coughlin will have an epic crash and burn at some point. Great stuff.

Thanks, my source was out of date. Williams was a pretty good quarterback for NC though.

Who the hell is discounting his final season at Wisconsin??? It was the best football decision Wilson ever made as it got to really show his potential. No way the guy gets drafted 3rd round without that Wisconsin season. What I am saying ignore his final season at Wisconsin and look at his career at NC State and how poorly he played against "quality" opponents. Reduces the weight of quality/ranked opponents IMO. At NC, Trubisky backed up Marquise Williams, a 4 year starter and currently with the Green Bay Packers. NC played 5 ranked opponents in 2016, which I don't think is that bad. I just don't think you put that much weight on schedule, the ACC is tough enough to judge and NC does not recruit the same quality of talent as Clemson, FSU, SEC, PAC and Big 10 top teams.

I do get it, and I understand that NC's schedule strength is a concern. I just think that in terms of judging a QB, the ACC is competitive enough to do so even if they have less top 25 ranked teams than the bigger conferences. Alabama and OSU have 2 of the premiere college football programs. How many of their QB's are starting in the NFL? I'm just saying it's not as simple as looking at W/L or quality of opponents. Just look at Russel Wilson's stats against quality opponents when he was at NC State. More terrible than good there. Other than his great season with Wisconsin, he looked like a middling QB at NC State, which arguably had lower quality opponents.

You really should dig more into some of these QB's records. While Trubisky was 8-5 this year, they went 11-3 in 2015 though Trubisky didn't start/play all those. Beyond Russel Wilson's 11-3 Wisconsin season, look at the W-L while he was with NC State. His first 2 years were really pathetic. Individual stats sucked too, completion % below 60 while he was there. Going to Wisconsin for a year was just the best decision he ever made. Dak Prescott, 2013 record, 7-6. 9-4 his last season, big difference between his and Trubisky's 8-5. Sorry, I don't buy in to the win-loss argument unless the guy barely ever won his entire career. Trubisky's career completion % of 68 and his overall rating of 158 compare very favorably with NFL starters from college and match Deshaun Watson's. Tom Brady's was 62% and 135, Drew Brees 61% and 133. For me, watching Trubisky's decision making and reads compared to Watson's have me favoring Trubisky. Watson played tougher opponents but also had far better receivers and overall team.

Great points, thanks for the post. I think of it another way, franchises like ours preach about turning around the culture of losing then end up repeatedly tearing down their roster because it's not good enough. That's really supposed to foster winning? Yep, the losing culture starts at the top. If Whaley were smart he would realize his best bet is to keep Tyrod and keep building forward. Otherwise he's gone after this coming season unless CJ has a miracle year. Good luck with that.

There's nothing wrong with it and it should be normal, I agree with you. My point was that after Whaley brought these players in the coaches took a look at them in action and decided on a role different than what Whaley had in mind. And instead of trusting his coach's judgement, I think it bothered Whaley and created problems.

Sounds collaborative but he has given the distinct impression that he's trying to dictate to the coaches which players should be out on the field. The offensive linemen with Marrone, EJ Manuel, and lately the rumor to have Cardale start the last 4 games in 2016. I realize some or all of these my be untrue rumors but things like this keep popping up. Sounds like Whaley brings talent in and has a distinct opinion of where and how much that player's role should be, Hope it's not true because it's the most worrysome thing about Whaley. Makes me question how collaborative he truly is. Let the coaches set their lineups.

So sorry to hear about your tragedy. My thoughts and prayers are with you and your family. As a parent, it would be a horrible scenario to deal with, please try and stay strong. Your son was obviously a fighter and any parent would be proud of that.

Being a Penn state fan, Hackenberg doesn't have the intelligence to be an NFL QB. I'd be utterly shocked if he did, considering how obvious it was at PSU. We are far better off finding a franchise guy in Cardale. I have a lot of doubts about Watson's football IQ too. He has a ton of athletic ability but stares down his target almost every time. Not a lot of decision making there, very scripted by the OC until the play breaks down. Mahomes is a gamer but man, his footwork is awful and throws some real EJ-style stinkers at times. Out of the three, Trubisky has the weakest arm and needs some better footwork at times. But he throws a good ball and definitely reads the field including progressions. Not the best QB draft year but out of the 3 he'd be my choice second round.

Hey, but c'mon. She is probably the "most qualified candidate ever" to run a government pay-for-play scheme. Your average Haitian is still wondering exactly where all their humanitarian donations went.

For me, I consider Matt Cassel, Jimmy Garoppolo, and Jacoby Brissett. I consider how their aerial attack revolves around a big TE and a bunch of quick, smart white guys. How New England rarely drafts big name skill position players. Yet they maintain success. They don't always have dominant running backs or #1 receivers but when they do, they take advantage. You look at all their success, beyond Brady, has it been a good number of supremely talented players on both sides of the ball like most dynasty franchises? I would say no and that's the mark of a great coach. The system and discipline he coaches are supreme. His cheating truly diminishes his legacy but I think he's still the best of all time.

How many examples of this have you ever heard of? What agents actually say "Hey, you got benched on the eve of getting a huge payday. Even though you will be able to get an opportunity with another team next year, go ahead and reach out to the new coach and head up to Buffalo to meet him." Would agents feel this helps his negotiating position with the Bills? I would think it's more of a negative. TT has consistently shown to be a leader and classy person of high character. He came here for the opportunity at the expense of at least one higher offer. He took a team friendly contract and bet on himself. He signed a second initial team friendly contract and the Bills stupidly assumed he would complete his development in its first year. Anthony Lynn talked about having him another offseason to work on his deficits. It implies to me that was not done properly by Lee. Get a QB coach who should be able to help TT. Renegotiate his contract to pay him well for what he is right now plus incentives. Work out terms of a new contract that will provide for him being rewarded as a franchise QB without hamstringing us should he fail. Tyrod has never shown the ego of a bloated sense of worth. To the contrary he has seemed very open to earning his way up the salary ladder. Bring him back because in a worst case scenario we desperately need a transition QB that can keep this team together and improving. He's still the key to the next level, up or down.

Being articulate is one form or facet of intelligence. There is a huge diversity in the label of "intelligence". It's breadth can also be very narrow or wide. For Pegula to have built where he is now, I feel most people would agree takes intelligence. Many people can take risks, work hard and have unwavering persistence. To do that unintelligently will not build you a fortune.

Great discussion, thanks. What to do about TT?: We rank near the bottom of the league in YAC both in 2016 and 2015, according to: https://www.sportingcharts.com/nfl/stats/team-yards-after-catch-statistics/2016/ In 2015 our YAC was 4.40, 2016 it is 4.26. So as an offense our passing has regressed a bit this year. I look at YAC, because in my mind the lack of YAC are largely due to QB choice of where and when to throw the ball. Check downs and late/inaccurate delivery. Also, according to PFF TT's completion % is down by 2 this year: http://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/T/TaylTy00.htm Great job David Lee! Reminiscent of your work with Fitzy! From the article, look at this video and Sammy Watkins at the bottom of the screen: https://videos.files.wordpress.com/zNNRe3jK/ttvid4_dvd.mp4 Do you think Brady makes the same choice as TT or does he key on and hit Sammy in stride the moment he gets a step on the DB? I was at the Browns game and saw this same play, watched Sammy get open but TT never saw/looked at him, as in this Miami instance. But is this TT's fault? He does make decisions and try to see the field, but his abilities have not developed this year IMO. The big issue could be coaching, and I thought Anthony Lynn saying that he hopes he gets TT for an offseason is very telling. I think he's intimating Lee et all have failed to address TT's issues. That is not surprising because my impression of Lee is that of a technique expert, not a decision-making coach like TT would need. To bring it home, I think TT's development will take more time and if he quickens his decision-making, especially pre-snap reads, he could be a good starting quarterback. We should restructure his contract to give him a reasonable raise next year but push most of the guaranteed money back a year and maybe throw in a bit more since we were stupid enough to assume he would develop into a starting QB this year. Obviously we keep our flexibility if he doesn't develop after another year.