dave mcbride

If he hadn't gotten injured, I firmly believe Dallas would have won the NFC East this year.

6 sacks in his last 4 playoff games. Postseason performance, baby.

I think Fields is fool's gold. Heaving it up vs. bad Clemson DBs who were regularly beaten like a drum deep is not a sign that a qb is good. Matt Barkley is excellent at the deep air ball too as long as the receiver beats his man. Fields is inaccurate and runs a super-simplified scheme. So did Payton Manning in college. It's not always the QB's fault. In the LSU game, Clemson faced a once-in-a-lifetime offensive-talent juggernaut. And on the other side, Lawrence needed to put up 50 just to have a chance in a game against a defense in which 9-10 starters were going to end up as NFL draft picks.

They have minimized it because it causes more injuries than any other play in the league.

Anything that reduces the kicker's role in the game is something I can get behind! They did it to reduce injury. The old school onside kick -- particularly the scrum tactic -- had the highest rate of injury of any play in the league. I'm not for injuries. I do think 4th and 15 is too easy. I'd make it 4th and 20.

This is not accurate. In 2012, the Texans were second in defensive DVOA. In 2014, they were 6th. In 2015, they were 7th. In 2018, they were 5th. These were all seasons in which he was an all-pro. Also, if you look at PFR's AV (approximate value) stat (akin to WAR), he was the top performer in the entire league in 2012, 2014, and 2015.

Suh had a very good season, fwiw. I still regard him as basically elite. At some point, he'll drop off, but I have no idea when that will happen. He played very well in the SB. Him at ~$6 million would be an absolute steal and a major upgrade.

You might want to do a little research. Just saying.

This is false. In 2012, the Texans were second in defensive DVOA. In 2014, they were 6th. In 2015, they were 7th. In 2018, they were 5th. These were all seasons in which he was an all-pro. Also, if you look at PFR's AV (approximate value) stat (akin to WAR), he was the top performer in the entire league in 2012, 2014, and 2015.

I get all of this, but he turned SF into a well-oiled dominator in 2019 and oversaw a great Falcons offense in that SB season. Yeah, they lost, but it wasn't as if they lost to bad teams; they were great teams. And the games were obviously extremely close. The 2016 Falcons were #1 overall in offense and the 2019 Niners' offense was #2 in points and #4 in yards. He's doing something right. And let's not forget that both of those teams blew teams out in the playoffs during those SB years. I can't get hung up on one or two plays. With regard to Kingsbury, the Cardinals' showing at the end of this season was beyond pathetic. I guarantee you that if he had done that in Buffalo, the fans on this site would have ridden him out of town on a rail.

This is hot take central, Alpa. And you know I respect you as a poster. Judge the full body of work.

What are you talking about? SF almost took the lead with less than two minutes to go. Garappolo slightly overthrew Sanders; otherwise it'd have been six. Regardless, if you're complaining about a coach losing a very close super bowl as opposed to an offensive-minded coach (Kingsbury) leading a team to 19 total points in the final two weeks of the 2020 season when the playoffs were in the Cards' grasp, I don't know what to say.

Yeah, that's not happening.

A healthy 49ers squad is a lot better than AZ. They have a far better coach, a great offensive scheme, and a better defense. They will be healthy next year. Garrapolo is pretty underrated too; he knows how to manage a team to victory (and that is not meant as a criticism). It's as if people forget he was actually excellent in just about every stat category in 2019: 69.1 completion pct WHILE averaging 8.4 ypa, 4,000 yards passing, 102.0 rating, and a 27-13 TD/INT ratio.

They are not a bad team, but if I had to predict now, I see them as a last place team next year. My rough prediction: LA: 12-4 SF: 11-5/12-4 Seattle: 10-6/11-5 AZ: 8-8/7-9

He was the most double-teamed player in the league.

He played over 90 percent of Houston's defensive snaps last season, which I think was the highest rate for any d-lineman in the league.

Yup. It’s pretty clear he’s trying to force a departure.

As I have been saying for years, you want your back up to be a guy who can get you 2-2 over a four game stretch. If Allen is out for the year, it’s basically over.

It’s getting even worse: https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2021/02/27/report-russell-wilson-thinks-pete-carroll-and-his-sons-answer-to-no-one/.

This is a GREAT interview. I strongly recommend watching it, especially regarding what he says about Dawson Knox. He basically said that he didn’t play much before coming to the NFL and just needs time. He also said that he is an athletic freak with an *extremely* bright future. Smith actually says “etch it in stone” with regard to his prediction that Knox will become elite. He says he’s uncoverable and that DBs hate tackling him.

As a Nets fan (It’s a 20 minute walk for me to their arena), I’m not ... all that angry about this!

The Bills were 6th in rushing attempts and 8th in rushing yards in 2019. How soon we forget.

The offensive lineup in 2018 was arguably the worst assembly of talent since the 1985 Bills (when Ferragamo and Mathison combined for 9 TD passes and 31 picks).

I thought Daboll did a good job in 2019. The numbers didn't show it, but the schemes were well designed and the play calling was good. They had some talent issues that year and a still-developing qb. But as opposed to Dennison, who was awful, I generally always felt that the calls weren't the issue. They just needed horses and more development from Allen, and they got that this season.