Cheesehead
Well-known member
- Mar 19, 2019
- 2,854
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Taylor from Story City, IA
With a new coach and new offensive playbook do the veterans play more during the preseason to see what works and what doesn't? Also with all the new defensive veteran free agents, do they play more to get comfortable with the new defense?
I think it’s natural to assume the starters on offense will play more in the preseason with the new system, and the newcomers on defense might get some extra snaps as well. But it could also be a week-by-week proposition during the preseason, depending on how the coaches feel things are going in practice, and how each game goes as well. I think it’ll be a fluid situation. The process, however, won’t be designed “to see what works and what doesn’t.” It’s the preseason, not trial-balloon season.
Scott from Lincoln City, OR
Mike, did you enjoy the Stanley Cup Finals? I'm really happy for the Blues. 52-year drought. Coach fired half way through the season while they have the worst record in the entire NHL. Interim coach steps in and the players rally around him and their rookie goaltender. That, and the fact another New England team was denied another championship.
I didn’t watch as much of the entire series as I would have liked, but I did see some. I find it remarkable the road team would win five times in a seven-game championship series. St. Louis’ story this season is what makes sports great. I just wish Binnington had gotten the shutout, for posterity’s sake, because that was a Game 7 goaltending performance for the ages.
Ralph from Elkhart Lake, WI
II, there has been a lot of discussion lately about pass rush and how it will help the secondary. The reverse is also true. Ineffective coverage will also make the pass rush look bad. These elements have a symbiotic relationship. Has anyone studied the time opposing quarterbacks had to throw last year?
Not specifically, but Pro Football Focus’s stats tell the story of why the Packers focused so much on edge rushers this offseason. PFF’s “pressures” metric combines sacks, hits and hurries, and I looked up all the numbers when Green Bay made its free-agency splash. Za’Darius Smith had 60 last year in less than 700 snaps. Preston Smith had 53. Green Bay’s highest total from an edge rusher was 30 (Matthews), and the team leaders were interior guys Clark (46) and Daniels (32), who missed a combined nine games.
Curt from Antioch, IL
With the offseason program winding down, and with a new coaching staff and a change at top of the strength and conditioning coaches, have you seen anything significantly different from the past regime (i.e., drills, emphasis, tempo and/or organization of practice time, etc.)?
The biggest difference so far was seeing two sets of team drills (11-on-11) going on at the same time at opposite ends of the field. The first units still appeared to take roughly the same amount of snaps, but with multiple groups going simultaneously, the second units on down all got a lot more reps. We’ll see if the structure stays the same for training camp.
Sonia from Fairbanks, AK
Kevin Durant’s Achilles rupture has brought to light the seriousness of that injury. Do you have any updates on MLF’s recovery? Are we likely to see him coaching from the sideline at Soldier Field for the opening of the season?
I believe that is his desire and plan. I don’t think he expects to be still wheeling around on a cart in three months. He may have to give up basketball for a year or more, but he’ll start walking on his own in a boot as soon as the docs let him.
Jake from Atlanta, GA
Do LBs and DBs practice tackling on the same kind of dummies? How long do you think it will be before someone develops a dummy that actually moves and weighs and tries to break tackles more or less like a real player?
There are prototypes out there.
David from Coeur d’Alene, ID
It seems that there is a fairly simple way to go to an 18-game season and keep both players and management happy. Just add a rule that players can only play in a maximum of 16 games per season. This would require a significant roster increase, which is also a plus to the players. Teams would need to get a little more serious about that backup QB position. Do you see any merit to this proposal?
In a word, no. Many readers have brought this up, but it’s just not feasible on several fronts. Salary cap aside, increased roster size means substantially increased costs for the owners across the board. Moreover, do you want to be the Packers fan with a ticket to a game Aaron Rodgers suddenly isn’t playing? Or a Bears fan when it’s Khalil Mack’s turn to sit? I realize injuries inherently create this risk, but artificially creating it on the paying customer would be a disastrous business model, not to mention the inside information and gambling issues it would generate, regardless of how the policy would be managed. I could go on and on. The complex web of problems this would create for the league would benefit no one.
Jon from West Des Moines, IA
Can we take a vote to have no more questions or comments about expanding the season?
Ethan from Iowa City, IA
Tim from Spokane said he’s really excited about our offense. I agree but I’m still wondering who’s gonna be second fiddle to Davante? Of our three returning rookies and Jake Kumerow, who do you think is going to see the field the most? We have great depth, but who is most likely to step up in your opinion?
As I mentioned on “Unscripted,” based on what I’ve seen the past month and how reps were divided up in practice, I see Allison and MVS entering camp in a pretty tight battle for the No. 2 job.