January 5, 2015 • 21 mins
Brian Billick is joined by former NFL head coach Jim Fassel to recap the Wild Card games, discuss Cam Newton's contract, what's wrong with Peyton Manning and what the Cowboys defensive scheme should be against Aaron Rodgers. Plus, they break down which road team has the best chance to win in the divisional round.
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Speaker 1 (00:04):
Hey, everybody, it's Marcus Grant here from NFL dot com Fantasy.
Before we get to the coaches show, let's have a
quick talk. Do you think fantasy football season was over?
Come on? Man? You don't have to wait till next year.
You can play more fantasy football for real cash this season.
Just go to fan duel dot com. Che got Matt
Nichols for instance, diat from Ohio turned twenty five dollars
into twenty five grand playing fantasy football on fan duel.
(00:26):
Look you can join him and the other hundreds of
thousands of users already one money. I mean, look, you
can't all be like me. You can't get the finals
of your fantasy league every single season like I do.
But with fan duel tips you to come out and
win some real bucks every single week. Fan duel dot
com it's the leader in one week fantasy football leagues
real money win entry fee starting at just a buck plus.
(00:48):
Only two weeks left to play this NFL season. You
gotta get on it right now. Go to fan duel
dot com like on the microphone in the upper right
hand corner. Used my code. Coaches sign up now plus
a new user are special bonus of up to two
d dollars on your first deposit. For every dollar you deposit,
BANDU will match it up to two hundred bucks two hulls. Folks.
(01:09):
Offers only good for the first fifty people that use
my code. Coaches don't forget code. Coaches, don't miss out
on the all fantasy football. Fantasy Football you can handle
VANDUL dot com where every week is a new season.
That's f A N d U e L dot com.
Sign up today. This is NFL dot COM's Coaches Show podcast.
(01:30):
Thirty men together, can't lose. This is why you lift
all how anybody cry that? Nobody? And now we're going
there's a glean man, there's a glean Welcome to this
addiction to the Coaches Show. I'm thrilled to have a
special guest this week joining me in, Jim Fossil and
(01:52):
Jim I can't think of a better guy to talk
to with some of the things where we're at right now.
I'm sure I'm like you. I love the divisional round
of the playoffs because the eight teams involved, I think
tell us something about where we are as a league
right now. What do you make of the teams that
are going into the divisional round right now. Well, I mean, Brian,
(02:14):
you know, we like you, there's three speeds to the NFL.
There's the preseason, there's a season, and now you're into
the playoffs season, and uh, the temple picks up quite
a bit. You know, there's some some things that go along.
I mean, the same whold things are going to happen
in this happened in the regular season. Uh. You know,
one team made it into the playoffs for the negative
(02:34):
turno oratio that turnovers are the number one factor in
determine winning. So that's that's got to be going in
And you know most of the teams have got a
good quarterbacks, so uh, it'll be interesting. You know, like
all these games in the playoffs, it just takes one
back stake back team and you lose. Yeah do we
And we it's long been made, of course that it's
a quarterback driven league. But we have three teams that
(02:58):
Seattle and Carolina and even Dallas and now Seattle and
Carol Dallas obviously have some dynamic playmakers and at a
quarterback as well. But but are we seeing a little
bit of a sea change you think where the emphasis
or the re emphasis on having that running game is
beginning to come about. Well, I think so, and I
think you know we're in a crazy past mode league
(03:21):
right now. But still, you know, the basic things are
gonna win for you, you know, and you know as
well as I do, turnover ratio, being able to stop
the run and be able to run the football offensively.
If you can run the football, then you throw a choice,
not on a necessity, and when you throw out of choice,
you're gonna be a lot more successful, and you're gonna
be in manageable third down situations. So it's a rare
(03:44):
to see a team that doesn't run the ball real well, uh,
survive this next on slot of playoffs. Yeah, and and
then you you talk about obviously a quarterback driven league
as well. The home team Seattle Green a New England
and Denver. We're talking about two Hall of famers in
Tom Brady and Peyton Manning, and then obviously possibly three.
(04:07):
I don't think it's a stretch to say Aaron Rodgers
is heading that way. And obviously what's going on in
Seattle with Russell Wilson. Let's come back to Denver to
a second. Everybody's talking about and they've re emphasized the
run over the last month and pretty good. I can't
think of anybody that is more knowledgeable and quarterback play.
Do you see anything different in the play of Peyton Manning.
(04:28):
You know, it seems to me like I I thought
his shoulder was bothering you. Uh. You know, no, no
quarterback his age don't have his fastball like he had
ten years ago. But sometimes it just looks like he
is not exactly comfortable where where the guys gonna be
the depth wise or anything like that. That just, you know,
(04:51):
just a little bit throws it off. Just a tiny
little bit throws it off. And you know the other
thing is all the great quarterbacks, you know, they got
the guts of a burgler. I mean they they'll try
to stick it in there anywhere, and they usually can
do it. But if you lose a little your fastball
and you're still trying to do that and you're not
exactly sure is that guy making a light cut, it
(05:13):
just throws off your passing game. And I think that,
you know, for them to start developed that running game
when they did, I think I think it's helped it. Yeah,
I would agree with you. It's I don't know that
the lay person could see the difference in him throwing
the ball from from one year to the next, from
one game to the next. But I agree with you,
(05:34):
it doesn't take much when you have a quarterback of
the stature of whether it be Tom Brady, whether it
be Aaron Rodgers or Peyton Manning, to take a little
bit off of what they normally are successful with and
all of a sudden it can really betray you. And
that brings us maybe to Aaron Rodgers the calf injury
that he's continued to have. Obviously they've had the week
(05:54):
off and that will make a difference. But I gotta believe,
particularly if I'm the Dallas Cowboys, I'm gonna do everything
I can. This is gonna sound odd because the last
thing you want is Aaron Rodgers running around outside the
pocket because he can kill you that way. But I'm
not sure, given the case of that calf right now,
that I don't try to orchestrate some things that maybe
force him out of the pocket a little bit. Well,
(06:15):
I think so, yeah, you could. Uh, I mean, it
sounds funny to force him out of the pocket. He
makes a lot of plays. But I think you're right.
I mean I would try it at the beginning, you know,
I get the apex going up the middle and give
him a kind of an escape one way or the
other and try to push it in his face and said,
I would test it. Now if he's he gets outside
(06:36):
and he's doing good and he's throwing it on, well
let's get back to a normal uh power rush all
at all four corners. But you know, I think you
got to kind of find that out because nobody knows,
really nobody knows how severe that is or how close
he comes to pulling that calf muscle again. Yeah, and
that's that. Obviously, he was brilliant what he did at
(06:58):
the end of the year against Detroit with the pull
calf muscle. But if it shows up early against a
team like Dallas, that obviously that's going to be an
issue for them going forward. Let's talk about Dallas. Tony
Romo has had a phenomenal year and obviously he's constantly battling. Well,
you can't win the big one. I don't know that.
There are too many positions in sport. Maybe shortstop for
the Yankees, maybe point guard for the l A Lakers.
(07:21):
I don't know that Garner more attention than the quarterback
position in Dallas. But Tony Romo with this year, do
you think he's really moved past that stigma of well,
you're only so good or you can't win the big one. Well,
I think he has, but he's had help doing that.
And uh, you know, I mean, I'm sure you'd be
telling the same thing I would have told him years ago.
(07:44):
I said this to John Ewen when I went back
to Denver. I said, John, don't try to win the
game by yourself. Everybody, you've got to play a part
in win and and and minimize the risks and work
your way into the game. And the biggest fault and
every and he knows, uh, was when they didn't have
a run game and you know the play started out bad.
(08:06):
Maybe they had a leaky's in the protection, maybe a
guy book of rout, maybe something happened. He still tried
to make a dramatic play, and you know they're paying
the guys on defense. Touit, and you know, minimize when
something doesn't go right with the beginning of the play,
you're under pressure and the guy breaks a wrong route.
Your best guy is sitting on the third row, thought
(08:28):
to him, and live another day, and he got himself
in so much proble trying to make big plays when
it would have been a dynamic big play because the
play didn't start out there. Yeah, I think you make
a great point. I think we saw, by way of example,
Drew Brees this year, from year to year, the number
of interceptions he throws really, to me is a tincture
(08:49):
of how bad is the defense he's playing with. Last
year they were better, so we didn't have to take
the chances, they didn't have to win surely outscoring people. Uh,
last year. This year they had to so ubres through
a lot more interceptions because he felt like he had
to make those plays. And I think your points will
taken about Tony Romo having to do that same thing.
Now that they're playing better on defense, they're running the
(09:10):
ball so much more effectively. That is it's obviously balanced. Well,
let me, I'm gonna put you on the spot here
a little bit on this last one, but I'll help
you a little bit in terms of my perspective. Cam
Newton obviously is a unique talent and what he's doing
beyond the fact that the success he's running the ball well,
the way Carolina has been uniquely made it into the playoffs.
They got a big decision at the end of the
(09:31):
year here whether they're going to give him one of
those hundred million dollar contracts based on where you see
Cam Newton right now, do you think he's worthy of
one of those contracts. Well, you know we probably came
from the same plot. Hundred million dollars, there's a lot
of money. I don't care how right. I mean, you
know it's really hard, but you know it's it's where
(09:53):
the game is I and I think that to me
if I'm in that building and I say, this guy
is a leader on the team, he's a hard working guy.
If he if he qualifies for all the you know,
non playing type stuff, he works hard. He's a sending player.
(10:14):
We see him getting better every day. He leads this team,
and yep, you go pay the gay. If you've got
questions about his work, epic, how he leads the team.
Is he a leader on the team? Have you got questions?
And that? Then then I'm saying whatever you might bow
back up. But then it's the same old question. If
you let him go, who are you gonna go get? Yeah,
(10:34):
that's always the other the other shoe that has to drop.
If not him, then one the concerns I have with
Cam Newton because I think he's kind of checked off
a lot of those boxes. I still worry about his
deep ball. He's got a great fastball now and he
can make some throws. A very few guys in this
league can. He can be on that left hash and
throw that deep comeback on a on a row frozen
rope to the right. But it's the touch passes, those
(10:57):
intermediate where he's got to drop it in over the
ironbacker where he's He's got the arm to be a
big ball thrower. But as you and I both know,
deep balls are are not a function of arm strength.
There are a function of timing and of touch, and
I don't know that over the years with him, now
I've seen that touch. I'd be really concerned about giving
him one of those big contracts and now you they
(11:18):
can try to give him one of the Alex Smith
type contracts or even a Colin Kaepernick type contract, but
I don't think he'll take it. Yeah, you're probably right there.
I I would agree with you. I think a lot
of quarterbacks that well. My only I agree with you
on this is that when he tries to throw the
(11:39):
ball short, he still gets a lot of movement in
his arms. Okay, a lot of movement, and it's hard
to be accurate. You need to shorten your stroke a
little bit, you know, gather yourself up. And it's like
I tell all the quarterbacks. I said, if you're ten
feet off the green and you take the pitching one
out of your bag, are you gonna take a full
(12:00):
swing at it? No, You're gonna take a little bit
back and follow through because you've got more control on
the ball and be more accurate. And when you're throwing underneath,
don't pick the wind up like you're gonna throw the
comeback on the opposite side of the field. Okay, that
that that requires a lot more movement. But when you're
gonna dump it, I mean you can just barely Bill
All she used to teach it. So I'm gonna dump
(12:22):
into the back and I'm in the pocket there, you know,
walk walk through with your right hip and it will
keep you from just a lot of movement there. And
it makes sense. Yeah. I remember Bill Walsh talking about
when he went to try out Phil Sims, someone you're
very familiar with obviously, and big strong arm quarterback in
more Head and uh, and he just kept firing the
(12:44):
ball and build at every turn and say okay, now
I want you to throw it softer. I want you
to throw it softer. I want you to throw it softer.
Phil finally said, well, I can throw it to your
underhand if you want, coach. But that idea of that
touch and developing that touch, it's so subtle. Uh, it's
it's one that concerns me with a long arm quarterback
like like Cam Newton. And I'm not sure he'll ever
get it. Yeah, I know, I mean you you can
(13:07):
do it. I did it with Kerry Collins. Harry Collins.
Everybody said he wasn't actor with the ball, and he
had a long delivery, which you know, a long delivery
is not good, and the longer the delivery, the less
accuracy you're gonna have. But it was all through the
carriage of the ball. He was carried up by his
ear and then that right there will make it a
(13:27):
longer arm action dropped the ball down. I think Aaron
Rodgers carries the ball better than anybody in the league.
And when he goes back he's very smooth or relaxed.
Um and I think that's why he's one of the
more accurate guys. And but I think some of these
guys and Newton is one of them, and when he
tries to have touch on the ball, he still has
(13:47):
a long delivery. Yeah, it's it's something that obviously they're
going to have to make a tough decision. I can't
imagine them letting him get out of Carolina, but it
would be a concern I would have going forward. I
want to gut you get away without asking some of
the bigger, bigger picture questions, Jim, because you have such
an insight to it. We're going through the and we're
all familiar with it. The coaching changes throughout the NFL
(14:10):
right now, and I don't know, maybe I just sound
like an old man, but it just seems different than
when you and I were doing this. Where what they're
looking for in a hedge coach. In my opinion, it's
become a general managers league, and they're beginning with that.
And these guys are not looking necessarily for head coaches
as much as they are some guru on the offensive
or defensive side of the ball. And we see general
(14:32):
managers piecing the coaching staff together as opposed to the
coach that they hired. You kind of see it the
same way I do. Yeah, I do. And if you
look at it, do a study on the teams that
are pretty much consistently competitive. It has to do with
ownership and front office. It really does managing the cap,
(14:52):
letting the coach be the most important guy. Okay, not
somebody saying I'm gonna pick your team for you. I'll
pick your coach, spoy yer all that. That's that's eroded this.
And you look at the teams that are consistently good,
the front office is well run and they manage it.
And you know, I don't know what your deal was.
When I went to the Giants and George Young here,
(15:13):
I think you are the best general managers. I had
the final say on fifty three. Nobody could over ruin
your general manager orner. Nobody I picked the final fifty three.
We worked together on on the scouting or the the
scouting of the players. But I just keep seeing that
sometimes young guys, I mean, and they're so anxious to
(15:35):
get a job, they'll say anything. I'll do anything you
want to. You want to hire my coaches, Yeah you are,
I won't say anything about the draft. The coach has
to be that way simply because key holds the threat
over the players. You better play well for me, because
otherwise nobody here is gonna save you. Okay, when I
decide you're not playing well, you'll be out of here,
(15:56):
and then you can get a reflection from the from
the players. Yeah, it's interesting the way it progresses, and
and we tend to go through the cycles obviously, and
the names that they're looking at now. But I agree
with you a hundred percent. And as we both know,
at the end of the day, it does have to
be a relationship whatever the structure is between the general
manager and the head coach and and however that comes about.
(16:17):
Obviously the ownership has to be a part of it,
but it does have to have that special relationship. I
want to ask you also, we talked before we got
on air here, your son John Fossil is doing a
phenomenal job in St. Louis and special teams. And I've
talked with a number of coaches and we've seen or
at least what I think that, particularly in the latter
part of the season, we've seen more block punts, more
(16:38):
block field goals. Uh, kick off returns, punt returns for touchdowns.
And when I visit with coaches, some believe it's because
with the the new rules of the Collecting Bargaining Agreement
and the limited practice time that that that's affecting of
all things special teams play. What do you think of that? Well,
I wouldn't show that thought. I mean, there's there's plenty
(17:00):
of teams that are really good on special teams. You know,
they're really good. And uh, you know the thing that
I think hurts sometimes is that it is in the
NFL that either ownership, general manager, head coach, somebody said,
you know, I don't want him playing on special teams.
(17:21):
You know, these are nickelback or something. And I think
they kind of dilute that a little bit. And uh,
and I think also because of salary cap, this uses
all that stuff. You don't keep a guy around in
his fourth year or fifth year, if he's just a
special teams guy. You can't afford it. Okay, you've got
a guaranteed contract. When he steps on the field is
(17:42):
fourth year, the money goes way up, so you're playing
with younger players. And I think that's because of salary cap.
And like you brought up a little while ago. You're
playing quarterbacks a hundred million dollars somewhere somewhere on your
team that has to be made up in dollars. And
I think sometimes it goes we don't keep a special
(18:02):
teams player, you get another guy, a young guy. Yeah,
no question about it. And I think speaking about special
teams coaches, since we're in the hiring of coaches now,
I think special teams coaches are an untapped resource that
teams ought to consider for head coaching jobs because you
think about it, One, they've got to work with everybody
on the team. Two, they've got to find that player
(18:25):
that maybe athletically doesn't fit that exact thing you want
to back up linebacker or backup tight end, but you've
got to find that part of his game that can
be functional on special teams. You're working with a bunch
of guys at the end of the day really don't
want to be doing that. They all want to be
starters on offense and defense. I think special teams coaches
in an area that managements ought to be looking at
a little bit closer for potential head coaching positions. Oh,
(18:49):
I agree with you, And uh, you know, I mean
he does deal with everybody. He's got the biggest group
the coach, and generally speaking, they only have one assistance.
You might have nine assistants on offense. And uh, but
you know it's like it's like this. John Harbill is classic,
classic about this outstanding head coach. He was a special
(19:13):
teams coordinator's career. When they had a little shake up
with Andy Reid and changing some people, he has to
go coach the secondary. He coached the secondary one year
and he's a head coach. Yeah. Now, I mean did
one year of coaching defense make a difference than No, No,
You've got leadership qualities and he understands the game. So
(19:35):
it always considered me when they said we want to
run offensive coach or defensive coach or this, and that
you're hiring a head coach exactly than just offensive defense. Yeah,
no question about it. And then it is I think
an untapped resources and teams should look at. Okay, I
can't let you off here. Before we talked about the
matchups this weekend, Let's put it this way. The home
(19:55):
team Seattle, Green Bay, New England, Denver are all favorite
of the visiting teams Carolina, Dallas, Baltimore and Indy. Is
there one team, if you had to choose one, that
you think has the best chance of getting a road
win here in the divisional round? Wow, that's a good question. Um,
(20:17):
I'm kind of thinking Baltimore because they're not afraid to
go into Foxboro. And actually, Joe Flacco, when you look
at the matchups the seven games they've played against New England,
his numbers are actually a lot better than Tom Brady.
So of the matchups I'm looking at, we know Dallas
can be very good in Green Bay. Green Bay is
a tough place to win, but I think Baltimore going
(20:38):
to New England could if there's one place that would.
Now maybe I'm biased because it's Baltimore, but but I
kind of think that. Why if I had to pick one,
that's probably the way i'd go. I couldn't disagree with you.
I couldn't. You know, they're they're they're playing pretty good
right now. And um, you know the other one that
I think is go on the road would be Indiana. Interesting, Yeah,
(20:59):
just because Andrew luck and he said what a magnificent
young quarterback that is. Oh, He'll he'll go down as
the greatest quarterback of all time. I mean the numbers
he's already put up as a young quarterback, far superior
to anybody else that came in the league in the
first four or five six years. The numbers he put up.
I mean, if he keeps on that face, whoa yeah,
(21:21):
I'm gonna be great matchup. See the way, Coach, I
can't tell you much. I appreciate taking the time to
spend with us here on the Coaches Show. We need
to do this again. Oh, anytime, Brent Love talking to
football with you sounds great.
Hey, everybody, it's Marcus Grant here from NFL dot com Fantasy.
Before we get to the coaches show, let's have a
quick talk. Do you think fantasy football season was over?
Come on? Man? You don't have to wait till next year.
You can play more fantasy football for real cash this season.
Just go to fan duel dot com. Che got Matt
Nichols for instance, diat from Ohio turned twenty five dollars
into twenty five grand playing fantasy football on fan duel.
(00:26):
Look you can join him and the other hundreds of
thousands of users already one money. I mean, look, you
can't all be like me. You can't get the finals
of your fantasy league every single season like I do.
But with fan duel tips you to come out and
win some real bucks every single week. Fan duel dot
com it's the leader in one week fantasy football leagues
real money win entry fee starting at just a buck plus.
(00:48):
Only two weeks left to play this NFL season. You
gotta get on it right now. Go to fan duel
dot com like on the microphone in the upper right
hand corner. Used my code. Coaches sign up now plus
a new user are special bonus of up to two
d dollars on your first deposit. For every dollar you deposit,
BANDU will match it up to two hundred bucks two hulls. Folks.
(01:09):
Offers only good for the first fifty people that use
my code. Coaches don't forget code. Coaches, don't miss out
on the all fantasy football. Fantasy Football you can handle
VANDUL dot com where every week is a new season.
That's f A N d U e L dot com.
Sign up today. This is NFL dot COM's Coaches Show podcast.
(01:30):
Thirty men together, can't lose. This is why you lift
all how anybody cry that? Nobody? And now we're going
there's a glean man, there's a glean Welcome to this
addiction to the Coaches Show. I'm thrilled to have a
special guest this week joining me in, Jim Fossil and
(01:52):
Jim I can't think of a better guy to talk
to with some of the things where we're at right now.
I'm sure I'm like you. I love the divisional round
of the playoffs because the eight teams involved, I think
tell us something about where we are as a league
right now. What do you make of the teams that
are going into the divisional round right now. Well, I mean, Brian,
(02:14):
you know, we like you, there's three speeds to the NFL.
There's the preseason, there's a season, and now you're into
the playoffs season, and uh, the temple picks up quite
a bit. You know, there's some some things that go along.
I mean, the same whold things are going to happen
in this happened in the regular season. Uh. You know,
one team made it into the playoffs for the negative
(02:34):
turno oratio that turnovers are the number one factor in
determine winning. So that's that's got to be going in
And you know most of the teams have got a
good quarterbacks, so uh, it'll be interesting. You know, like
all these games in the playoffs, it just takes one
back stake back team and you lose. Yeah do we
And we it's long been made, of course that it's
a quarterback driven league. But we have three teams that
(02:58):
Seattle and Carolina and even Dallas and now Seattle and
Carol Dallas obviously have some dynamic playmakers and at a
quarterback as well. But but are we seeing a little
bit of a sea change you think where the emphasis
or the re emphasis on having that running game is
beginning to come about. Well, I think so, and I
think you know we're in a crazy past mode league
(03:21):
right now. But still, you know, the basic things are
gonna win for you, you know, and you know as
well as I do, turnover ratio, being able to stop
the run and be able to run the football offensively.
If you can run the football, then you throw a choice,
not on a necessity, and when you throw out of choice,
you're gonna be a lot more successful, and you're gonna
be in manageable third down situations. So it's a rare
(03:44):
to see a team that doesn't run the ball real well, uh,
survive this next on slot of playoffs. Yeah, and and
then you you talk about obviously a quarterback driven league
as well. The home team Seattle Green a New England
and Denver. We're talking about two Hall of famers in
Tom Brady and Peyton Manning, and then obviously possibly three.
(04:07):
I don't think it's a stretch to say Aaron Rodgers
is heading that way. And obviously what's going on in
Seattle with Russell Wilson. Let's come back to Denver to
a second. Everybody's talking about and they've re emphasized the
run over the last month and pretty good. I can't
think of anybody that is more knowledgeable and quarterback play.
Do you see anything different in the play of Peyton Manning.
(04:28):
You know, it seems to me like I I thought
his shoulder was bothering you. Uh. You know, no, no
quarterback his age don't have his fastball like he had
ten years ago. But sometimes it just looks like he
is not exactly comfortable where where the guys gonna be
the depth wise or anything like that. That just, you know,
(04:51):
just a little bit throws it off. Just a tiny
little bit throws it off. And you know the other
thing is all the great quarterbacks, you know, they got
the guts of a burgler. I mean they they'll try
to stick it in there anywhere, and they usually can
do it. But if you lose a little your fastball
and you're still trying to do that and you're not
exactly sure is that guy making a light cut, it
(05:13):
just throws off your passing game. And I think that,
you know, for them to start developed that running game
when they did, I think I think it's helped it. Yeah,
I would agree with you. It's I don't know that
the lay person could see the difference in him throwing
the ball from from one year to the next, from
one game to the next. But I agree with you,
(05:34):
it doesn't take much when you have a quarterback of
the stature of whether it be Tom Brady, whether it
be Aaron Rodgers or Peyton Manning, to take a little
bit off of what they normally are successful with and
all of a sudden it can really betray you. And
that brings us maybe to Aaron Rodgers the calf injury
that he's continued to have. Obviously they've had the week
(05:54):
off and that will make a difference. But I gotta believe,
particularly if I'm the Dallas Cowboys, I'm gonna do everything
I can. This is gonna sound odd because the last
thing you want is Aaron Rodgers running around outside the
pocket because he can kill you that way. But I'm
not sure, given the case of that calf right now,
that I don't try to orchestrate some things that maybe
force him out of the pocket a little bit. Well,
(06:15):
I think so, yeah, you could. Uh, I mean, it
sounds funny to force him out of the pocket. He
makes a lot of plays. But I think you're right.
I mean I would try it at the beginning, you know,
I get the apex going up the middle and give
him a kind of an escape one way or the
other and try to push it in his face and said,
I would test it. Now if he's he gets outside
(06:36):
and he's doing good and he's throwing it on, well
let's get back to a normal uh power rush all
at all four corners. But you know, I think you
got to kind of find that out because nobody knows,
really nobody knows how severe that is or how close
he comes to pulling that calf muscle again. Yeah, and
that's that. Obviously, he was brilliant what he did at
(06:58):
the end of the year against Detroit with the pull
calf muscle. But if it shows up early against a
team like Dallas, that obviously that's going to be an
issue for them going forward. Let's talk about Dallas. Tony
Romo has had a phenomenal year and obviously he's constantly battling. Well,
you can't win the big one. I don't know that.
There are too many positions in sport. Maybe shortstop for
the Yankees, maybe point guard for the l A Lakers.
(07:21):
I don't know that Garner more attention than the quarterback
position in Dallas. But Tony Romo with this year, do
you think he's really moved past that stigma of well,
you're only so good or you can't win the big one. Well,
I think he has, but he's had help doing that.
And uh, you know, I mean, I'm sure you'd be
telling the same thing I would have told him years ago.
(07:44):
I said this to John Ewen when I went back
to Denver. I said, John, don't try to win the
game by yourself. Everybody, you've got to play a part
in win and and and minimize the risks and work
your way into the game. And the biggest fault and
every and he knows, uh, was when they didn't have
a run game and you know the play started out bad.
(08:06):
Maybe they had a leaky's in the protection, maybe a
guy book of rout, maybe something happened. He still tried
to make a dramatic play, and you know they're paying
the guys on defense. Touit, and you know, minimize when
something doesn't go right with the beginning of the play,
you're under pressure and the guy breaks a wrong route.
Your best guy is sitting on the third row, thought
(08:28):
to him, and live another day, and he got himself
in so much proble trying to make big plays when
it would have been a dynamic big play because the
play didn't start out there. Yeah, I think you make
a great point. I think we saw, by way of example,
Drew Brees this year, from year to year, the number
of interceptions he throws really, to me is a tincture
(08:49):
of how bad is the defense he's playing with. Last
year they were better, so we didn't have to take
the chances, they didn't have to win surely outscoring people. Uh,
last year. This year they had to so ubres through
a lot more interceptions because he felt like he had
to make those plays. And I think your points will
taken about Tony Romo having to do that same thing.
Now that they're playing better on defense, they're running the
(09:10):
ball so much more effectively. That is it's obviously balanced. Well,
let me, I'm gonna put you on the spot here
a little bit on this last one, but I'll help
you a little bit in terms of my perspective. Cam
Newton obviously is a unique talent and what he's doing
beyond the fact that the success he's running the ball well,
the way Carolina has been uniquely made it into the playoffs.
They got a big decision at the end of the
(09:31):
year here whether they're going to give him one of
those hundred million dollar contracts based on where you see
Cam Newton right now, do you think he's worthy of
one of those contracts. Well, you know we probably came
from the same plot. Hundred million dollars, there's a lot
of money. I don't care how right. I mean, you
know it's really hard, but you know it's it's where
(09:53):
the game is I and I think that to me
if I'm in that building and I say, this guy
is a leader on the team, he's a hard working guy.
If he if he qualifies for all the you know,
non playing type stuff, he works hard. He's a sending player.
(10:14):
We see him getting better every day. He leads this team,
and yep, you go pay the gay. If you've got
questions about his work, epic, how he leads the team.
Is he a leader on the team? Have you got questions?
And that? Then then I'm saying whatever you might bow
back up. But then it's the same old question. If
you let him go, who are you gonna go get? Yeah,
(10:34):
that's always the other the other shoe that has to drop.
If not him, then one the concerns I have with
Cam Newton because I think he's kind of checked off
a lot of those boxes. I still worry about his
deep ball. He's got a great fastball now and he
can make some throws. A very few guys in this
league can. He can be on that left hash and
throw that deep comeback on a on a row frozen
rope to the right. But it's the touch passes, those
(10:57):
intermediate where he's got to drop it in over the
ironbacker where he's He's got the arm to be a
big ball thrower. But as you and I both know,
deep balls are are not a function of arm strength.
There are a function of timing and of touch, and
I don't know that over the years with him, now
I've seen that touch. I'd be really concerned about giving
him one of those big contracts and now you they
(11:18):
can try to give him one of the Alex Smith
type contracts or even a Colin Kaepernick type contract, but
I don't think he'll take it. Yeah, you're probably right there.
I I would agree with you. I think a lot
of quarterbacks that well. My only I agree with you
on this is that when he tries to throw the
(11:39):
ball short, he still gets a lot of movement in
his arms. Okay, a lot of movement, and it's hard
to be accurate. You need to shorten your stroke a
little bit, you know, gather yourself up. And it's like
I tell all the quarterbacks. I said, if you're ten
feet off the green and you take the pitching one
out of your bag, are you gonna take a full
(12:00):
swing at it? No, You're gonna take a little bit
back and follow through because you've got more control on
the ball and be more accurate. And when you're throwing underneath,
don't pick the wind up like you're gonna throw the
comeback on the opposite side of the field. Okay, that
that that requires a lot more movement. But when you're
gonna dump it, I mean you can just barely Bill
All she used to teach it. So I'm gonna dump
(12:22):
into the back and I'm in the pocket there, you know,
walk walk through with your right hip and it will
keep you from just a lot of movement there. And
it makes sense. Yeah. I remember Bill Walsh talking about
when he went to try out Phil Sims, someone you're
very familiar with obviously, and big strong arm quarterback in
more Head and uh, and he just kept firing the
(12:44):
ball and build at every turn and say okay, now
I want you to throw it softer. I want you
to throw it softer. I want you to throw it softer.
Phil finally said, well, I can throw it to your
underhand if you want, coach. But that idea of that
touch and developing that touch, it's so subtle. Uh, it's
it's one that concerns me with a long arm quarterback
like like Cam Newton. And I'm not sure he'll ever
get it. Yeah, I know, I mean you you can
(13:07):
do it. I did it with Kerry Collins. Harry Collins.
Everybody said he wasn't actor with the ball, and he
had a long delivery, which you know, a long delivery
is not good, and the longer the delivery, the less
accuracy you're gonna have. But it was all through the
carriage of the ball. He was carried up by his
ear and then that right there will make it a
(13:27):
longer arm action dropped the ball down. I think Aaron
Rodgers carries the ball better than anybody in the league.
And when he goes back he's very smooth or relaxed.
Um and I think that's why he's one of the
more accurate guys. And but I think some of these
guys and Newton is one of them, and when he
tries to have touch on the ball, he still has
(13:47):
a long delivery. Yeah, it's it's something that obviously they're
going to have to make a tough decision. I can't
imagine them letting him get out of Carolina, but it
would be a concern I would have going forward. I
want to gut you get away without asking some of
the bigger, bigger picture questions, Jim, because you have such
an insight to it. We're going through the and we're
all familiar with it. The coaching changes throughout the NFL
(14:10):
right now, and I don't know, maybe I just sound
like an old man, but it just seems different than
when you and I were doing this. Where what they're
looking for in a hedge coach. In my opinion, it's
become a general managers league, and they're beginning with that.
And these guys are not looking necessarily for head coaches
as much as they are some guru on the offensive
or defensive side of the ball. And we see general
(14:32):
managers piecing the coaching staff together as opposed to the
coach that they hired. You kind of see it the
same way I do. Yeah, I do. And if you
look at it, do a study on the teams that
are pretty much consistently competitive. It has to do with
ownership and front office. It really does managing the cap,
(14:52):
letting the coach be the most important guy. Okay, not
somebody saying I'm gonna pick your team for you. I'll
pick your coach, spoy yer all that. That's that's eroded this.
And you look at the teams that are consistently good,
the front office is well run and they manage it.
And you know, I don't know what your deal was.
When I went to the Giants and George Young here,
(15:13):
I think you are the best general managers. I had
the final say on fifty three. Nobody could over ruin
your general manager orner. Nobody I picked the final fifty three.
We worked together on on the scouting or the the
scouting of the players. But I just keep seeing that
sometimes young guys, I mean, and they're so anxious to
(15:35):
get a job, they'll say anything. I'll do anything you
want to. You want to hire my coaches, Yeah you are,
I won't say anything about the draft. The coach has
to be that way simply because key holds the threat
over the players. You better play well for me, because
otherwise nobody here is gonna save you. Okay, when I
decide you're not playing well, you'll be out of here,
(15:56):
and then you can get a reflection from the from
the players. Yeah, it's interesting the way it progresses, and
and we tend to go through the cycles obviously, and
the names that they're looking at now. But I agree
with you a hundred percent. And as we both know,
at the end of the day, it does have to
be a relationship whatever the structure is between the general
manager and the head coach and and however that comes about.
(16:17):
Obviously the ownership has to be a part of it,
but it does have to have that special relationship. I
want to ask you also, we talked before we got
on air here, your son John Fossil is doing a
phenomenal job in St. Louis and special teams. And I've
talked with a number of coaches and we've seen or
at least what I think that, particularly in the latter
part of the season, we've seen more block punts, more
(16:38):
block field goals. Uh, kick off returns, punt returns for touchdowns.
And when I visit with coaches, some believe it's because
with the the new rules of the Collecting Bargaining Agreement
and the limited practice time that that that's affecting of
all things special teams play. What do you think of that? Well,
I wouldn't show that thought. I mean, there's there's plenty
(17:00):
of teams that are really good on special teams. You know,
they're really good. And uh, you know the thing that
I think hurts sometimes is that it is in the
NFL that either ownership, general manager, head coach, somebody said,
you know, I don't want him playing on special teams.
(17:21):
You know, these are nickelback or something. And I think
they kind of dilute that a little bit. And uh,
and I think also because of salary cap, this uses
all that stuff. You don't keep a guy around in
his fourth year or fifth year, if he's just a
special teams guy. You can't afford it. Okay, you've got
a guaranteed contract. When he steps on the field is
(17:42):
fourth year, the money goes way up, so you're playing
with younger players. And I think that's because of salary cap.
And like you brought up a little while ago. You're
playing quarterbacks a hundred million dollars somewhere somewhere on your
team that has to be made up in dollars. And
I think sometimes it goes we don't keep a special
(18:02):
teams player, you get another guy, a young guy. Yeah,
no question about it. And I think speaking about special
teams coaches, since we're in the hiring of coaches now,
I think special teams coaches are an untapped resource that
teams ought to consider for head coaching jobs because you
think about it, One, they've got to work with everybody
on the team. Two, they've got to find that player
(18:25):
that maybe athletically doesn't fit that exact thing you want
to back up linebacker or backup tight end, but you've
got to find that part of his game that can
be functional on special teams. You're working with a bunch
of guys at the end of the day really don't
want to be doing that. They all want to be
starters on offense and defense. I think special teams coaches
in an area that managements ought to be looking at
a little bit closer for potential head coaching positions. Oh,
(18:49):
I agree with you, And uh, you know, I mean
he does deal with everybody. He's got the biggest group
the coach, and generally speaking, they only have one assistance.
You might have nine assistants on offense. And uh, but
you know it's like it's like this. John Harbill is classic,
classic about this outstanding head coach. He was a special
(19:13):
teams coordinator's career. When they had a little shake up
with Andy Reid and changing some people, he has to
go coach the secondary. He coached the secondary one year
and he's a head coach. Yeah. Now, I mean did
one year of coaching defense make a difference than No, No,
You've got leadership qualities and he understands the game. So
(19:35):
it always considered me when they said we want to
run offensive coach or defensive coach or this, and that
you're hiring a head coach exactly than just offensive defense. Yeah,
no question about it. And then it is I think
an untapped resources and teams should look at. Okay, I
can't let you off here. Before we talked about the
matchups this weekend, Let's put it this way. The home
(19:55):
team Seattle, Green Bay, New England, Denver are all favorite
of the visiting teams Carolina, Dallas, Baltimore and Indy. Is
there one team, if you had to choose one, that
you think has the best chance of getting a road
win here in the divisional round? Wow, that's a good question. Um,
(20:17):
I'm kind of thinking Baltimore because they're not afraid to
go into Foxboro. And actually, Joe Flacco, when you look
at the matchups the seven games they've played against New England,
his numbers are actually a lot better than Tom Brady.
So of the matchups I'm looking at, we know Dallas
can be very good in Green Bay. Green Bay is
a tough place to win, but I think Baltimore going
(20:38):
to New England could if there's one place that would.
Now maybe I'm biased because it's Baltimore, but but I
kind of think that. Why if I had to pick one,
that's probably the way i'd go. I couldn't disagree with you.
I couldn't. You know, they're they're they're playing pretty good
right now. And um, you know the other one that
I think is go on the road would be Indiana. Interesting, Yeah,
(20:59):
just because Andrew luck and he said what a magnificent
young quarterback that is. Oh, He'll he'll go down as
the greatest quarterback of all time. I mean the numbers
he's already put up as a young quarterback, far superior
to anybody else that came in the league in the
first four or five six years. The numbers he put up.
I mean, if he keeps on that face, whoa yeah,
(21:21):
I'm gonna be great matchup. See the way, Coach, I
can't tell you much. I appreciate taking the time to
spend with us here on the Coaches Show. We need
to do this again. Oh, anytime, Brent Love talking to
football with you sounds great.
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