1)RCW fell out of favor with Pete Carroll. He didn't work with Nathaniel Hackett. It didn't work with Sean Payton. Three years, three coaches, three failures... and one was handpicked by Wilson himself. At some point, it's not every coach that can't coach him. To whom is Mike Tomlin most similar? I've seen him get upset on the sidelines. I've also read that he prides himself as a teacher. I really don't know but he'll have to be different than Pete, Nate and Sean for everything to magically work out. What does Mike Tomlin have that those other 3 coaches don't have? Real question here... i don't know.
2)Payton was out of line with his treatment of RCW ...if... we know everything that happened behind the scenes. But we don't. There are plenty of scenarios where a coach has run out of tools and the only way to reach a player is to call him out publicly. Maybe Payton was unfair as the article indicates. Or maybe he tried everything else and it was the last thing he could possibly do to motivate a player that was unable or unwilling to do certain things. Maybe it was Sean Payton really giving him a last chance and trying to get through that his positivity doesn't reflect his negative contribution. I could envision a scenario where every time Payton gave advice/instruction/criticism he was met with "That's great, you're great, we're great, it's going to be great... Broncos, Let's Ride" ... and he had to try something different.
3)If I was a beat reporter in Pittsburgh and needed access to the team and players, I'd be playing up every aspect I could think of to stay in their good graces every off season. I definitely wouldn't be calling out the starting QB before the season.
on the other hand...
4)Many have surmised that RCW has been humbled and will return to the form of his youth with a vengeance. That would answer #1 above... Tomlin has a better, more coachable, RCW. I wonder, however, is RCW more humbled today than he was after the loss in Seattle in his first game as a Bronco? ...more than costing his head coach his job? ... more than going viral over sandwiches, 4x4Trucks, bathrooms and high knees instead of his play? ...more than getting benched over an injury clause because there was no hope he was going to keep his job. Maybe he is. He should be. If he's not now, he never will be. I guess we'll all find out.
Agree.
Peyton did what im sure the LOB circa 2014, 2015 WISH Pete had done.
Folks seem to not factor in that by all accounts, long before he landed in Denver, Russ wasnt held accoubtable for his poor play. Pete just reasoned his way around it and made the team... the 52 guys who WERE executing the plays properly (especially the 11 who had to constantly make up for mistakes on offense) go along with it. Whats worse, is not only was Russ not held accountable, but he actually stepped into a media spotlight that fell in love with his highlight reel (oft unnecessary heroics) and reasoned that HE was the savior of a team that frequentky required his unique skill.
That bred in Russ the hyper 'Me3' dilussional self image that Russ grew into and then wore like a pinstripe suit in Denver.
That is WORSE than elitist. People have to give a guy like A Rodgers berth to be a prick and 'elitist' because (and i hate admitting it) he is arguably one of the best 3 or 4 qbs to ever play the game. So when you hear about his absurd antics and 'holier than thou' behavior, you maybe throw up in your mouth a little bit, slam him, and move on. But you know WHY the dude thinks his poop dont stink. And if you try to take out your frustration with him on the field, chances are, he will rip you a nee one.
The dressing down of Russ or whatever you want to call it ... im sure it was a calculated critique by a SP of a guy who SHOULD have been a whole lot better than he was to be carrying himself the way he did. Forget his entourage of support personnel and constant flashing of his media profile card, Russ would never even say that he WAS actually struggling to run the offense and instead, fell right back into the praise he was given by the media on those occassions when he pulled a rabbit out of his hat and won a game or two. The media wanted to say 'Russ was back'. Russ embraced it. Peyton? He was the only one being honest when he'd comment that certain games shouldnt have had to come down to heroic plays, or that heroic plays werent sustainable... nor often even necessary. - Remember the critiques of Russ's film by guys like Warner, who summed up his play with the statement - playing qb shouldnt have to be so hard [as hard as Russ often made it look]? SP watched that reality everyday with Russ and he wouldnt stand for it. And his QB wouldnt admit it.
Im sure Peyton was no more pissed and beyond fed up with the denialism Russ held on to than Sherm, ET, ADB and the rest were 10 years ago. He just had the balls and the platform to express it and ultimately do something about it.
I think a better article would be one that speculates as to what might have been if Pete, rather than creating the monster that Russ became, dished out the tough love himself and held a young Russ's feet to the fire. Maybe Russ would have learned to play the position in a more complete way. Maybe the seeds of resentment and distrust on the part of those players who felt undervalued because their coach DIDNT stand up for what was right on the 2013/14 dynasty teams never sprout.
SP wasnt the villain. He was just the leader who was forced to overcorrect for 11 years of unchecked hubris on the part of his qb making a mess of a franchise he was charged with fixing.
