Spin Doctor
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- Sep 8, 2009
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The meandering Seahawks, the purgatory of the good, but never good enough. That is what became of the Pete Carroll Seahawks. Each year was like a case of groundhogs day, it always ended the same. When Carroll was let go, there was a collective sigh that a good portion of fans let out. New blood, new possibilities for escaping the middle. People were quick to label MM a "genius" and the hype train around Seattle was full speed ahead. The last two weeks have killed that buzz, suddenly we look ready to tar and feather MM if he puts on another display like he did in NY. The thing that people have to realize though, is there is going to be major growing pains and it was always going to be unlikely that we had a major turn around right away.
The first thing we need to establish, is Mike MacDonald has a really good record as a DC. Everywhere he's DC'd, whether it be for Michigan or The Ravens, he eventually built a number one defense. I've seen comments on MM saying "he has no record" that actually is not true. MM is young but he's coached at the highest level you can get except coordinator and everywhere he's been, defensive domination has followed. People saying "MM has no experience" quite frankly do not know what they're talking about. His credentials as a defensive coordinator are about as good as you can get.
Which leads to the second point I wanted to make. Being an HC and running a program is quite different than a coordinator. The NFL is filled with top tier coordinators and brilliant minds that couldn't hack it as head coaches. Just look at guys like Fangio and Flores. As a DC, you can't get much better, as head coaches? They were mediocre. Right now, MM is learning the ropes of being a head coach. Rather than being in charge of one aspect of the team, you need to manage EVERY asset and communicate your vision. Being a HC is more about building the culture and being a good manager of people than it is about being a brilliant football mind.
The Seahawks are in an interesting spot, because none of our guys have experience at their respective positions at the NFL level. I'd argue the results of the last two games were inevitable. We got high on beating bad passers, gloated that we were the best defense in the league. People would scoff at me when I mentioned that we faced Jacoby Brissett and Bo Nix in his first start. Against real competition, this team looked lost. This isn't necessarily a bad thing though.
The downside of having a team with no NFL experience is that they're going to have to learn while they go. We're going to have ebs and flows, we're going to have WTF moments and we're also going to put on some good games. It's not all going to come together at once, if it comes together at all. This year, I think we should just sit back, and enjoy the game and gage progress. If we end the year like we did this year, we have a problem, but if we see some progress, then this year was a success. That isn't necessarily correlated with wins, but you know it when you see it. Think Pete Carroll in his first year here. We threw some stinkers, but you could see progression from the first game to the last regular season game.
The other thing that is worth mentioning is that Mike MacDonalds system is extremely complicated. It takes at least a year to fully implement. MM does some crazy stuff with his coverages and pressure packages. In the secondary, our top three CB's only have had experience with Pete Carroll's system, which was extremely simple. Assignments were clearcut, which isn't necessarily the case here. There are a lot of moving pieces with this defense.
It's a process, especially with new coaches all around. I'd also hope that MM has a come to jesus talk with Grubb about some of his decision making lately. 7 runs, even while behind is unacceptable.
The first thing we need to establish, is Mike MacDonald has a really good record as a DC. Everywhere he's DC'd, whether it be for Michigan or The Ravens, he eventually built a number one defense. I've seen comments on MM saying "he has no record" that actually is not true. MM is young but he's coached at the highest level you can get except coordinator and everywhere he's been, defensive domination has followed. People saying "MM has no experience" quite frankly do not know what they're talking about. His credentials as a defensive coordinator are about as good as you can get.
Which leads to the second point I wanted to make. Being an HC and running a program is quite different than a coordinator. The NFL is filled with top tier coordinators and brilliant minds that couldn't hack it as head coaches. Just look at guys like Fangio and Flores. As a DC, you can't get much better, as head coaches? They were mediocre. Right now, MM is learning the ropes of being a head coach. Rather than being in charge of one aspect of the team, you need to manage EVERY asset and communicate your vision. Being a HC is more about building the culture and being a good manager of people than it is about being a brilliant football mind.
The Seahawks are in an interesting spot, because none of our guys have experience at their respective positions at the NFL level. I'd argue the results of the last two games were inevitable. We got high on beating bad passers, gloated that we were the best defense in the league. People would scoff at me when I mentioned that we faced Jacoby Brissett and Bo Nix in his first start. Against real competition, this team looked lost. This isn't necessarily a bad thing though.
The downside of having a team with no NFL experience is that they're going to have to learn while they go. We're going to have ebs and flows, we're going to have WTF moments and we're also going to put on some good games. It's not all going to come together at once, if it comes together at all. This year, I think we should just sit back, and enjoy the game and gage progress. If we end the year like we did this year, we have a problem, but if we see some progress, then this year was a success. That isn't necessarily correlated with wins, but you know it when you see it. Think Pete Carroll in his first year here. We threw some stinkers, but you could see progression from the first game to the last regular season game.
The other thing that is worth mentioning is that Mike MacDonalds system is extremely complicated. It takes at least a year to fully implement. MM does some crazy stuff with his coverages and pressure packages. In the secondary, our top three CB's only have had experience with Pete Carroll's system, which was extremely simple. Assignments were clearcut, which isn't necessarily the case here. There are a lot of moving pieces with this defense.
It's a process, especially with new coaches all around. I'd also hope that MM has a come to jesus talk with Grubb about some of his decision making lately. 7 runs, even while behind is unacceptable.