- Joined
- Sep 13, 2004
- Messages
- 22,930
- Reaction score
- 1,878
I posted something like this once before a couple years ago. BB is the greatest football coach in the history of the game. Concepts such as situational football, bend but don't break, making the system fit the players, using players in multiple positions, team before individual, one game at a time, and so on are all ideas he largely made the norm in the NFL. While some of these ideas have been around a long time, it's BB who put them all together and made them work to the point that to some degree every good team in the League mimics him.
The problem, then, I think, is that now that everyone is copying BB, he has less to offer. Come playoff time, just about every single coach uses many of BB's methods and prepares just as hard as he does, so BB does not have an edge. Furthermore, since BB is considered the greatest coach, it seems that every coach, pundit, and other expert has focused extra attention on how to defeat the Pats. In many ways, the Pats not only played the Jets, but played a host of experts who each had their own ideas of how to defeat the Pats. No other team faces anything like that to the degree the Pats do. I doubt we'll see many articles and discussions on how the Steelers can beat the Jets or vice versa.
So, what does this mean going forward? Well, BB is still the greatest coach, and the way he manages draft picks continues to give the Pats an edge, and the fact is that even our "losing" seasons are enviable and record breaking. But, I think BB is so highly respected and scrutinized that come playoff time, he puts the Pats at a disadvantage. I'm not sure what the answer is, since obviously BB is irreplaceable. Perhaps BB already has the answer: Save up enough draft picks to make our team superior not only at the top levels, but at every other level as well.
The problem, then, I think, is that now that everyone is copying BB, he has less to offer. Come playoff time, just about every single coach uses many of BB's methods and prepares just as hard as he does, so BB does not have an edge. Furthermore, since BB is considered the greatest coach, it seems that every coach, pundit, and other expert has focused extra attention on how to defeat the Pats. In many ways, the Pats not only played the Jets, but played a host of experts who each had their own ideas of how to defeat the Pats. No other team faces anything like that to the degree the Pats do. I doubt we'll see many articles and discussions on how the Steelers can beat the Jets or vice versa.
So, what does this mean going forward? Well, BB is still the greatest coach, and the way he manages draft picks continues to give the Pats an edge, and the fact is that even our "losing" seasons are enviable and record breaking. But, I think BB is so highly respected and scrutinized that come playoff time, he puts the Pats at a disadvantage. I'm not sure what the answer is, since obviously BB is irreplaceable. Perhaps BB already has the answer: Save up enough draft picks to make our team superior not only at the top levels, but at every other level as well.