Last night was a good example on why you shouldnt be too aggressive.

[Redman443]

Alot of us like to attack BB for being too conservative sometimes but last night the Chargers were too aggressive and it cost them the game. If they take the points at least once on 4th and goal, they would have won the game. Plus stretching the ball out on the goal line during a running play is a terrible idea because you can get it stripped and thats exactly what happened. Overall bad coaching decisions from LA last night

 

[TheRainMaker]

Teams do dumb things when they are afraid of a team like the Chiefs.

How many times did teams do dumb things because they were afraid the game would get out of hand too quickly to the Brady Pats?

 

[sb1]

There's aggressive and then there's dumb. The Chargers were dumb last night. Harbaugh was dumb the other week going for 2 for no reason other than arrogance.

Playing conservative can also be dumb. The Pats were dumb going for that high risk low reward field goal at the end of the Bucs game.

 

[sambam94]

well, If he was playing the odds, the calls were right.

 

[PATSYLICIOUS]

I don’t think last night can really be applied for any kind of serious discussion lol. I think a majority of the aggressive thinkers would agree many of those decisions were idiotic.

 

[Rob0729]

The funny thing is the Chargers were too passive on defense early in the game and in overtime. The only time the Chiefs' offense really was clicking on all cylinders was when the Chargers were playing in a soft cover 2 zone scheme.

That is a bigger reason why this game was a disaster coaching wise. They were too aggressive in instances where they should have been conservative and too conservative when they should have been aggressive. And of course using a stupid challenge that could easily be seen that it was the right call could have bit them in the arse if they needed that time out.

 

[Patjew]

Not kicking the FG at the end of the first half was one of the worst decision these eyes have ever seen.

 

[Wax Frog]

Last night was a good example of why looking for help from incompetent franchises is an ultimately futile venture. Fortunately, BB-coached teams that reach the postseason have usually proven to be the best equipped to help themselves.

 

[Free_Pacman]

AnAlYtICZ

 

[Ring 6]

There's aggressive and then there's dumb. The Chargers were dumb last night. Harbaugh was dumb the other week going for 2 for no reason other than arrogance.

Playing conservative can also be dumb. The Pats were dumb going for that high risk low reward field goal at the end of the Bucs game.

Harbaugh went for 2 because he thought he had no chance to win in OT.

 

[brdmaverick]

well, If he was playing the odds, the calls were right.

Yes, I tend to agree. It was just an example of 'it didn't work out' but I agree that in general those plays typically work out.

Just like our own Indy 4th and 2. it didn't work and BB/Pats were crucified, but really that was the right call if we were playing the odds of the game situation.

 

[Ivan]

Situations like this are always contextual, and a coach will always be called out for taking the big chances and failing, but those are still the best coaches imo. While I will go to my grave believing that Faulk made the fourth and 2 Belichick took major sh.t for it. And when Reich took over in Indy he had them go for it on the final play early on and they lost and he got hammered for it, but he was right, and his teams have responded well to his belief in them, overall. Playing the Chiefs, when they are on offensively, is the kind of context where being aggressive is your best move, you may lose, but at least you put the pressure on them to beat you. I think Staley is a really good young head coach, and I think his team will respond positively to him being an aggressive coach, I won’t be at all surprised if the Chargers are the team to beat in the AFCW next season.

 

[Ice_Ice_Brady]

The Chargers would have lost the first game to the Chiefs had it not been for being “too aggressive.” I didn’t love all those calls, but I’m not going to selectively pick out the ones that didn’t work and ignore the ones that worked, or not get into the execution as well as the play call.

Execution-based reasons they lost last night:

• Three dropped TD passes on their first drive, after the guy was tripped up by his own teammate on the return.
• Terrible mis-throw/drop by Jared Cook at the goal line just before halftime. Wide open…almost impossible to miss that.
• Horrible situational awareness by Williams on Chargers last drive in regulation. He was wide open for a first down at the Chiefs 35. He wasn’t looking. Next down, penalty on Chargers changed the game.
• Two of the Chiefs touchdowns came on broken plays/absurdly bad tackling. Kelce in the fourth quarter on a 69-yard pass with horrendous coverage (defender fell down) and laughable tackling in the secondary. Then the dagger in OT. Three defenders around him who all completely missed.
• As always, numerous self-inflicted stuff from the Chargers. Give Kelce credit for making those plays, but not that much credit.

 

[Pape]

well, If he was playing the odds, the calls were right.

Were they though?

its never just a 1 on 1 scenario... doesn't seem like the "odds" take into consideration the totality of the game... each missed opportunity, each ceded scoring opportunity has to have ramifications later on in the game

 

[aluminum seats]

Not kicking the FG at the end of the first half was one of the worst decision these eyes have ever seen.

Well, they were on the one. I think going for it on the fourth and five and the fourth and two were worse actually

 

[Pats2000]

The Chargers would have lost the first game to the Chiefs had it not been for being “too aggressive.” I didn’t love all those calls, but I’m not going to selectively pick out the ones that didn’t work and ignore the ones that worked, or not get into the execution as well as the play call.

Execution-based reasons they lost last night:

• Three dropped TD passes on their first drive, after the guy was tripped up by his own teammate on the return.
• Terrible mis-throw/drop by Jared Cook at the goal line just before halftime. Wide open…almost impossible to miss that.
• Horrible situational awareness by Williams on Chargers last drive in regulation. He was wide open for a first down at the Chiefs 35. He wasn’t looking. Next down, penalty on Chargers changed the game.
• Two of the Chiefs touchdowns came on broken plays/absurdly bad tackling. Kelce in the fourth quarter on a 69-yard pass with horrendous coverage (defender fell down) and laughable tackling in the secondary. Then the dagger in OT. Three defenders around him who all completely missed.
• As always, numerous self-inflicted stuff from the Chargers. Give Kelce credit for making those plays, but not that much credit.

Charges could have iced that game if their receivers just stayed in bounds on two of their throws. In their go ahead TD drive in the 4th quarter. Just terrible clock management and situational awareness

 

[Patjew]

Well, they were on the one. I think going for it on the fourth and five and the fourth and two were worse actually

My feeling is the D got them back the ball, there was no “give the other team a long field” situation, and the possibility of walking away with no points after that was extremely deflating. I said it in real time and I agree with it now. The upside of 4 potential extra points was not worth it.

 

[Deus Irae]

Last night was a good example on why you shouldnt be too aggressive.​

Last night was a great example of why using analytics without also using your head is a very bad idea.

 

[Schmo]

You have to consider how your team is executing near the goaline. Usually, when it's 4th and goal, there's a reason why you haven't scored yet. Take the fg.

It's not a bad idea to go for it if you've run for 2 or 3 yards every down, and it's 4th down on the 1 yard line. Or if you've completely fooled the defense and had a fluke dropped pass.

Seemed like the Chargers were following out of context statistics.

 

[Deus Irae]

“The real football people understand that what I’m doing is playing to the strengths of our football team,” Staley said. “What I’m doing is I’m trying to make the decisions that I think are going to win us the game. And I’m ready to live with all that smoke that comes with it. And I’ve been very transparent about that. What makes football and competition so great is that there aren’t going to be perfect decisions. But you need to be able to live with the decisions, and your team needs to know why you’re making these decisions, so that they can live with them, too. So I know the way that my mindset is. I know the way that our mindset is around here. I also understand the criticism, too, and I fully understand that as well. But I think that we’re building something really special here and I’m proud of the way that we competed last night.”

Staley rejects the idea that he’s a gambler, or that he’s reckless on fourth downs, and instead says he goes for it on fourth down because it increases the Chargers’ chances of winning.

The analytics community has been nearly unanimous that Staley made the right decisions on those fourth downs, even though the Chargers failed on two key fourth-and-goal attempts. While many coaches say the analytics community doesn’t understand the nuances of football, Staley says it’s the real football people who do understand.

Brandon Staley: Real football people understand what I'm doing - ProFootballTalk