You are asking how many offensive coaches believe they can score more than 1 or two FGs in any game? Everyone of them. This offense has no excuse with the D to be top 20 except the crappy coaching. There are no excuses. If it is execution, it is on coaches, if it is scheme, it is on coaches, if it is predictability it is on coaches. The talent level is just not that different across the league. LT comes here and turns into straight trash, like worst OLinemen in NFL? Might have something to do with scheme.
LeFleur clearly was not ready for the promotion to OC that Saleh gave him. After hearing Saleh wax poetic about his past years as a young coordinator, I get the feeling the promotion was based more on sentiment than qualification. In the end, MLF was overmatched trying to coordinate an entire offense instead of simply designing pass plays to get guys open. He found out the hard way that it really is a leap from Passing Game Coordinator to Offensive Coordinator. The best thing Saleh can do for his young protegé is to demote him back to his old job as a PGC and let an experienced hand come in and oversee the entire offense. Sometimes a person can be promoted before they're actually ready. I think this was the case with MLF. Got thrown into the deep end of the pool and could barely tread water.
One can dream... But seriously, I'm not banging the table for LaFleur to be fired, but he definitely has to change what he's been doing. Adding an experienced Sr. Asst. - and ensuring that assistant reports to Saleh or even Douglas - would be helpful. Said assistant would need to have success in working with young QBs in his resume of course. And also seriously, don't rule out Woody demanding his head. He looks at the failure of decades of not developing a FQB here, and seeing Geno succeed elsewhere, and the bitter disappointment of not making the playoffs after almost a decade and a half, with losing 6 straight down the stretch, all of that may add up to him wanting some blood. Given his track record of bad decisions, I hope he stays out of it all and trusts Douglas and his football people to figure this out.
I remember when the season began there were Jets fans worried about him being a bright young coaching star who would be plucked away from us. Please pluck! LOL
I get the reference, but in MLF's case he was probably just too inexperienced to get this job, especially with a young inexperienced QB to groom. I think he can grow into the job - question is can we afford to wait? I don't think we can the way we are built now.
In terms of passing play design, absolutely. Receivers are open often, usually the primary based on the defense, and the plays are designed to have an answer regardless of how the defense plays it, so long as the QB is capable of reading a defense.
And as long as there's protection to make the reads and a clean enough pocket to make the throws in time...whoops! So I'd fimly set the boundary conditions for his genious--even as you describe it--as route tree design, not passing play design because there's a lot more to a passing play than an open receiver you can see on after-the-fact film.
Im not saying he’s perfect, I’ve been advocating for his replacement. But his play designs are really outstanding. With a solid functioning offense I’m sure he’d be very good. We don’t have a solid functioning offense, and we won’t for at least the next 3 years. Fun times…
"I hear the owner wants LaFleur gone and Saleh is digging in the trenches. It will be interesting to see how this plays out. I heard the owner wants to get rid of the entire offensive staff." - Former NFL GM Michael Lombardi on the GM Shuffle Podcast.
Ownership meddling is never the right thing. Once that happens you may as well fire your staff and team. Woody doesn’t know Jack crap about football and he should stick to uniform colors.
I don't think Woody is very astute about football in general but I don't think he needs to be to recognize that last year the offense was totally ineffective and no significant changes were made to the staff and the result for this year was...an ineffective offense. Douglas oversees the coaching staff - if he allows Saleh to continue with the status quo somebody needs to get their attention. Probably the guy who signs the checks.
What is needed to know? 15 points in 3 games. Averages 11 points in the push to the playoffs. Buck stops at OC. If it doesn’t, then fire his boss, if his boss won’t do that, fire his boss. There has to be accountability.
