What On Earth Is Happening?

AROS

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Let me see if I have this straight.

My good friend who is a diehard Bucs fan said, and I quote:

"Geno Smith is making Tom Brady look like a rookie having his worst day."

Pretty much. Aaron Rodgers looks old. Outside of Mahomes and Allen I am hard pressed to think of a better QB in the NFL right now than Geno Smith.

Did I really just type those words?

DK goes down. Lockett is limping along on a bum hamstring. No worries! Goodwin ends up looking like a starter, scoring two TDs and one of them certainly making SportsCenter.

And Mr. Walker III? He's a poor man's Barry Sanders and that is not a back-handed compliment. At 22-years of age, he is just beginning and boy I cannot wait to see his career unfold for us these coming years. He has IT.

I don't care if you are Team Love Pete or Team Hate Pete. If you saw that sideline moment late in the game when Geno was losing his shit, turned and walked onto the field only to have Pete shout "Geno!" Forcing Geno to turn around to find his coach move his hand from the top to the bottom of his belly as if to say "Center Thyself", you may have just witnessed a true Jedi Mind Trick.

200

The defense has done a complete 180 these past two weeks. Will someone with an actual X's and O's IQ please help me (us) understand what in the hell has changed to create such an apparent epiphany?? They don't even look like the same athletes I have watched this past month or more. I did hear from some players tonight saying it really boils down to familiarity. Many of these players were playing together for the first time and they said it took 7 games to finally start becoming familiar enough with each other to trust each other and know what each other is wanting to do on each play. I have to think there's more to it than that, but whatever it is, it's seemingly working quite well.

4-3. All alone for the moment in first place in the NFC West. Dammit, I really should have put some money down on that stupid 5.5 win line. Oh well.

Ryan is a bona fide boss. We legit have a ton of great players on defense and they are starting to show that. Our offense is flat out fun to watch.

I never thought I would live to see the day I say the following words:

I'm glad Russell Wilson is gone.
 

toffee

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The team, guys, are buying into what Pete is selling. No doubt about it. Pete is at his best when everyone is down on him and his team, he is at his best with bunch of young players. This is a team playing as one at this point, one guy down, next one just step up.

Most fun to watch team in the league, again, no doubt about it.
 

HawkRiderFan

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The D was so good. The Chargers had nothing downfield. I can only recall one long one they tried…and this is a team with Herbert,Allen, and Williams.

I can’t answer what the D was doing on the backend schematically but I can say I did not see any Chargers receivers getting open.

Ekeler did great catching passes but the Charger run was totally shut down.
 

acer1240

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Well written Aros. This whole thing is mind blowing and I think we are all trying to absorb it. I was so, so wrong about Pete. I'm a believer now. If this defense gets a tiny bit better we'd be a nightmare for any team in the playoffs. This is so fun!
 

Mick063

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Good Coaching always rises to the surface, and it starts with the head coach getting his assistants on the right track. I'm just guessing but I'm betting that this is a case of Pete coaching up his assistants and then his assistants coaching up the players. That is the only way I can explain the drastic 180-degree turnaround on defense. Saying it is the different competition isn't a compelling answer to explain such a remarkable turnaround. The defensive line is consistently getting to their gaps, penetrating, and setting the edge in the run game. The pass rush is getting push up the middle and the edge rushers are bringing heat as well. They don't even look like the same unit from three weeks ago.

Having watched Herbert against the Broncos, I could tell that his sore ribs are forcing him to habitually throw underneath to his backs ad nauseum. If I have a bone to pick, it was the linebackers letting Austin Ekeler get routinely free after the short dump offs. Ekeler was picking up too many extra yards after the catch as he was running through the linebacker tackles or making them miss. It really showed up when tight end Everett made the tackling look truly pathetic on one particular play. But they eventually started tackling well on the check downs and then the Charger offense became thoroughly stagnant.

The back end is getting better and better and better in their pass coverage. We are watching them ascend, as a unit, before our very eyes. The Charger receivers were smothered. When the opponent is in "catch up" mode, the defense can play differently, and that is when the coverage sacks started to happen.
 
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strohmin

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Unfortunately the minute there is some down turn,

and there will be,

people will revert and be screaming for Pets fire and Genos benching and more. Just the way it is!

I know I won't because I didn't expect Geno to play as good as he is playing. I was happy to win the first game and I really thought we would go 1 - 16 after that. I'm with this team all the way through end regardless of what happens.
 

seatownlowdown

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I don't care if you are Team Love Pete or Team Hate Pete. If you saw that sideline moment late in the game when Geno was losing his shit, turned and walked onto the field only to have Pete shout "Geno!" Forcing Geno to turn around to find his coach move his hand from the top to the bottom of his belly as if to say "Center Thyself", you may have just witnessed a true Jedi Mind Trick.

View attachment 55330

@Aros OP,

Pete and geno gif
 

toffee

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The back end is getting better and better and better in their pass coverage. We are watching them ascend, as a unit, before our very eyes. The Charger receivers were smothered. When the opponent is in "catch up" mode, the defense can play differently, and that is when the coverage sacks started to happen.
Hello coverage sacks, our old friend
We've come to talk about you again
Because a QB's manically looking
Left his seeds while edges closing
And the vision that was planted in his brain
Still remains
Within the sound of sacking
 
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OP
OP
AROS

AROS

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I knew you would come through seatownlowdown.
 

Lagartixa

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I don't care if you are Team Love Pete or Team Hate Pete. If you saw that sideline moment late in the game when Geno was losing his shit, turned and walked onto the field only to have Pete shout "Geno!" Forcing Geno to turn around to find his coach move his hand from the top to the bottom of his belly as if to say "Center Thyself", you may have just witnessed a true Jedi Mind Trick.

View attachment 55330

"These aren't the game-altering BS penalties you're looking for."
 

JPatera76

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Let me see if I have this straight.

My good friend who is a diehard Bucs fan said, and I quote:

"Geno Smith is making Tom Brady look like a rookie having his worst day."

Pretty much. Aaron Rodgers looks old. Outside of Mahomes and Allen I am hard pressed to think of a better QB in the NFL right now than Geno Smith.

Did I really just type those words?

DK goes down. Lockett is limping along on a bum hamstring. No worries! Goodwin ends up looking like a starter, scoring two TDs and one of them certainly making SportsCenter.

And Mr. Walker III? He's a poor man's Barry Sanders and that is not a back-handed compliment. At 22-years of age, he is just beginning and boy I cannot wait to see his career unfold for us these coming years. He has IT.

I don't care if you are Team Love Pete or Team Hate Pete. If you saw that sideline moment late in the game when Geno was losing his shit, turned and walked onto the field only to have Pete shout "Geno!" Forcing Geno to turn around to find his coach move his hand from the top to the bottom of his belly as if to say "Center Thyself", you may have just witnessed a true Jedi Mind Trick.

View attachment 55330

The defense has done a complete 180 these past two weeks. Will someone with an actual X's and O's IQ please help me (us) understand what in the hell has changed to create such an apparent epiphany?? They don't even look like the same athletes I have watched this past month or more. I did hear from some players tonight saying it really boils down to familiarity. Many of these players were playing together for the first time and they said it took 7 games to finally start becoming familiar enough with each other to trust each other and know what each other is wanting to do on each play. I have to think there's more to it than that, but whatever it is, it's seemingly working quite well.

4-3. All alone for the moment in first place in the NFC West. Dammit, I really should have put some money down on that stupid 5.5 win line. Oh well.

Ryan is a bona fide boss. We legit have a ton of great players on defense and they are starting to show that. Our offense is flat out fun to watch.

I never thought I would live to see the day I say the following words:

I'm glad Russell Wilson is gone.
I’d have to assume Bruce has helped more behind the scenes that we’re aware of. And My oh my did he set that edge really well yesterday. That’s my only X and O I got lol

And Barton … Barton doesn’t know what team he plays on. Ecklers success was due to Barton just being his own best dumbass. With blown assignments and coverages a lot.. and I believe most of them were if not all, Eckler.
 
W

Welshers

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They have been beating the refs as well! Analysis shows bad calls have been against us every game! Otherwise there is a good chance this team is 6-1 right now! (at the very least 5-2 as the Saints game was proven as conclusively stolen). If this continues it will be one of the great turnarounds in NFL history. EVERYONE wrote this team off!
 
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