For those who don't blame Slocum for ST failures

[adambr2]

Maybe you will now...

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.co...rgeted-packers-brad-jones-on-fake-field-goal/

Robert Klemko of TheMMQB.com reports that Seattle decided it would run a fake field goal when it studied tape of Green Bay’s field goal block team and noticed that Jones always rushed straight inside from his edge position, leaving a huge opening to the outside. The Seahawks’ plan was so dependent on Jones’s tendencies that Seattle was going to scrap the fake field goal entirely if the Jones hadn’t been on the field.

This is as damning of evidence of failure on Slocum's part as you'll find. You can absolutely excuse Slocum for Bostick making a split-second decision to not do his job. You cannot excuse Slocum for somehow not correcting Brad Jones after Jones had put enough film on himself out to actually allow another team to run a fake field goal completely predicated on his tendencies.

Think about that. It's obvious that at no point did Slocum ever take Brad Jones aside this season and say, "You're selling out on the FG's. It's going to get us burned on a fake. We need to correct this."

Things like this are why many of us have long been calling for Slocum's head. It was always possible that it would come down to something like this. And now it did. It cost us a trip to the Super Bowl. We'll never know if we had had something as simple as a different special teams coordinator, if this game would have turned out differently.

 

[scotscheese]

unfortunately it's one of those thing that may have been noticed, but as it hadn't hurt us before it was let slide. i bet that ST coaches will be on top of this from now on. it doesn't help us now, obviously, but it is where an improvement will hopefully be seen

 

[Deleted member 6794]

unfortunately it's one of those thing that may have been noticed, but as it hadn't hurt us before it was let slide. i bet that ST coaches will be on top of this from now on. it doesn't help us now, obviously, but it is where an improvement will hopefully be seen

Seven blocked kicks, two huge blunders in the NFCCG and an overall terrible unit (aside of punt returns) should get Slocum fired.

 

[adambr2]

unfortunately it's one of those thing that may have been noticed, but as it hadn't hurt us before it was let slide. i bet that ST coaches will be on top of this from now on. it doesn't help us now, obviously, but it is where an improvement will hopefully be seen

Excellent that they'll correct this. Now if they can just invent a time machine and go back and correct it before it's too late and potentially costs us a Super Bowl, we'll be all set.

 

[Packerlifer]

How many times this season did teams successfully run a fake field goal on the Packers? Before Sunday none that I can immediately recall. Maybe the "tell" on Jones wasn't so obvious to the Packers as to Seattle. They were looking for that, the Packers weren't.

When studying film of an opponent I'm sure teams can find many tendencies and tells they will try to exploit. Like the Packers noticing Dallas dt Jethro Pugh's high stance that set him up for the classic block by Kramer and Bowman to win the Ice Bowl. But I've never heard any one complain that the Cowboys didn't tell Pugh to get shorter.

The Packers may, in hindsight, have been smarter to play the possibility of a fake and concede the field goal instead of going for the block. How much difference does a field goal make in a 16-0 game in the third quarter?

 

[adambr2]

Maybe the "tell" on Jones wasn't so obvious to the Packers as to Seattle. They were looking for that, the Packers weren't.

If only we had a member of our coaching staff whose job it is to look for these kinds of things on special teams plays....

When studying film of an opponent I'm sure teams can find many tendencies and tells they will try to exploit.

Yes, they will try, as Seattle tried. And the ones that get successfully exploited in extremely crucial situations, as Slocum did, generally head to the unemployment line.

 

[Deleted member 6794]

How many times this season did teams successfully run a fake field goal on the Packers? Before Sunday none that I can immediately recall. Maybe the "tell" on Jones wasn't so obvious to the Packers as to Seattle. They were looking for that, the Packers weren't.

When studying film of an opponent I'm sure teams can find many tendencies and tells they will try to exploit. Like the Packers noticing Dallas dt Jethro Pugh's high stance that set him up for the classic block by Kramer and Bowman to win the Ice Bowl. But I've never heard any one complain that the Cowboys didn't tell Pugh to get shorter.

The Packers may, in hindsight, have been smarter to play the possibility of a fake and concede the field goal instead of going for the block. How much difference does a field goal make in a 16-0 game in the third quarter?

It is Slocum´s job to identify such tendencies and correct them. He failed miserably.

 

[adambr2]

Against Dallas in their divisional game, he lined up on the left side three times and once on the right, and on one attempt tried to leap over a blocker only to get stonewalled.

So with only five minutes left in the third quarter and Seattle still trailing 16-0, Carroll gave Ryan the go-ahead to execute a fake running play specifically designed for this game. Ryan had two options:

1. Take the snap and roll out to Jones’ side with either Garry Gilliam (left side) or Luke Willson (right) as a receiving option. If the linebacker covers the receiver, run. If not, throw it.
2. If Jones isn’t on the field, take a delay of game penalty and then kick the field goal.

“Kickers are head-jobs anyway,” Ryan said within earshot of Hauschka, “so you don’t want to screw them around.”
Jones showed up on the left side, which meant undrafted rookie tackle Garry Gilliam would get the throw if necessary. Gilliam, a converted tight end out of Penn State, hadn’t caught a touchdown since high school.

“I broke the huddle like, Please be on my side, please be on my side,” Gilliam says. “And then he was.”

Essentially, they are laughing at our special teams, and deservedly so.

 

[Luca]

One play never should get a coach fired! However this isn't the first mistake special teams made this year. This was one of the many mistakes. Our special team units have been horrible all year. And there was no excuse this year, because we have never been healthier.

Generally I am not a big fan of the fire coach x crowd. But I do believe that special teams can improve with a different special teams coach.

 

[Mondio]

Go back to the year we won the super bowl. I remember them interviewing players after when we had to kick off after scoring and the offensive players were all a bit nervous for the kick off because special teams had been so erratic all year. Thankfully our defense was able to close it out.

Not much has changed over the years. From a chronic problem of having extra points and field goals blocked this year, to not having a team even clued into a fake when everyone else thought it was a good possibility to other problems throughout the years, poor blocking, poor coverage, poor everything at one time or another.

 

[DaveRoller]

But Slocum means so much to McCarthy personally, wouldn't it be hard for the head coach to fire one of his buddies?

Letting the defensive coaches he inherited go in 2008 is one thing but firing a loyal assistant after so many years would be a very difficult thing for coach McCarthy to do.

 

[adambr2]

But Slocum means so much to McCarthy personally, wouldn't it be hard for the head coach to fire one of his buddies?

Letting the defensive coaches he inherited go in 2008 is one thing but firing a loyal assistant after so many years would be a very difficult thing for coach McCarthy to do.

I think Mike Stock was "his" guy originally (predecessor to Slocum). I don't think he inherited him.

 

[7thFloorRA]

You don't have to "fire" him....you just have to "kevin greene" him. These guys except dom are on 1 yr renewable deals IIRC. He just has to not return for whatever reason he thinks saves him face. Not sure I want Zooker replacing him though. He needs to take some heat too. How the hell do 2 coaches not correct the Blocked Kicks and the Brad Jones undisciplined rushing.

 

[deggyfresh]

Let's be realistic here and stop pointing blame on individual players, the entire team played bad. McCarthy never even got his foot on the gas. As a Packers fan for life I am tired of seeing "playing to not lose" games. We should be blowing these guys out just like the Pats did to the Colts. There is no excuse for what happened on Sunday. Worst Packers lost I've seen in my 28 years of watching them.

 

[adambr2]

Let's be realistic here and stop pointing blame on individual players, the entire team played bad. McCarthy never even got his foot on the gas. As a Packers fan for life I am tired of seeing "playing to not lose" games. We should be blowing these guys out just like the Pats did to the Colts. There is no excuse for what happened on Sunday. Worst Packers lost I've seen in my 28 years of watching them.

I don't think anyone is denying that the entire team played bad in the last few minutes. This thread has nothing to do with that, there are plenty of other threads for that. Nor is this thread blaming any individual players.

 

[King of Jeans]

Slocum MUST be let go.

 

[7thFloorRA]

Slocum should not have been retained had they won the super bowl this year. His unit's appear to be poorly coached on a very consistent basis. The same mistakes repeat themselves.

 

[BigBayBlues]

Outcoached....this reminds me of Kam Chancellor getting over Carolina's field goal unit line twice in a row in their playoff game because Seattle had studied tape that showed the Panthers always snapped the ball on field goals at the exact same time on the play clock. No substitution for good coaching...we need good ST coaching.

 

[Circa1919]

After a horrid special teams year this year, I would not lose sleep is Slocum were fired. We can rightfully put blame on Brad Jones, but that's what coaches are for. To teach and coach. That's the whole methodology behind TTs "draft and develop" mantra. If you don't coach, you don't develop.

 

[pacmaniac]

Why would we think anybody will be fired? Did you see MM in the press conference? He acted like no bad decisions were made, that Seattle just made some plays to win the game.

 

[Mondio]

I have blamed Bjones for a lot over the year, but who's to say he wasn't doing exactly what he was coached to do? Can't blame a guy for doing his job. They should have been ready for a fake, it was about the only thing that would have gotten Seattle back in the game at that point. They obviously weren't prepared, nor expecting it at all.

 

[Mondio]

Why would we think anybody will be fired? Did you see MM in the press conference? He acted like no bad decisions were made, that Seattle just made some plays to win the game.

I don't think he believes no "bad" decisions were made, I think he's irritated by the media and no-nothing fans that think every play that doesn't work is a result of a poor coaching decision. I happen to agree with him in this case. You can 2nd guess the calls all day long, but the fact of the matter remains, they didn't even have to execute them all, just 1 or 2 of any 10 plays over the final few minutes and we're going to the super bowl. He's right.

 

[King of Jeans]

mike mccarthy is f****ing delusional

 

[adambr2]

I understand McCarthy's frustrations, but I was really disappointed by his excuse that it was really important to him to hit 20 carries in the second half. Football is a situational game, and you're going to try to tell us that in crunch time, hitting an arbitrary number of running plays was important to you. Mike, I know you'll be back next year, so you better wake up from that. This is not a game won on paper by previous numbers. Just because you are 39-0 when you hit X amount of carries in the 2nd half does not mean you're going to have success on the 40th try.

Studying trends is important, but for statistical noise to dictate your playcalling in crunch time, Mike, I've got to say, I'm really disappointed.

http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com...ke-woods-packers-made-many-mistakes/22035025/

I couldn't disagree with anything here.

 

[pacmaniac]

MM is extremely stubborn. An old dog won't learn new tricks.