I'm over creativity as a factor.
I mean, we all go around thinking that unpredictability is the big decider of offensive success, but what is it that the football greats always say in interviews? "Everyone knows exactly what we're gonna do, and we dare you to try to stop it."
Being an OC is about getting good execution out of your guys. All the players you ever hear, active or retired, will say that as well. I think back to Red Bryant: "It's no puzzle. You just go out and execute."
I know the announcers are out there talking about conservatism in play calling, but those guys have what, 30 seconds to diagnose a play? I remember DK Metcalf getting praised by Cris Collins worth on a route he ran for a big play and he said later, "I just ran a go route." That sort of thing happens all the time, announcers operating off canned narratives culled from some ESPN blogger and focus grouped to confirm social media spreadability. Yet people are taking their cues from those announcers when they form game narratives. Throw a swing pass once and you're called conservative. 100% of NFL teams run swing passes.
I see Kubiak as just another OC. Super Bowls are regularly won with Just Another OC. We all know now that Belichick wasn't the magic in New England.
I mean, no, you can't run too limited a set of plays and you have to be able to adapt.
But I didn't see a failure of creativity against the Colts, I saw failure of execution. I saw Laiatu Latu blowing up plays, I saw Charbs getting targeted in pass pro because teams know he's bad there, I saw inaccurate passes from Darnold, and I saw dropped balls. Yet it's all placed on the predictability factor. Why? I don't get that. Call Kubiak out for the dropped passes, the triggers not pulled, and the excessive 3rd and longs we face because the run game ain't working. Predictability? Meh. I've seen too many players talking about execution trumping predictability. Just go out there and execute.