2024 NFL Season Thread

[transplant99]

I get that....im just not sure averaging 24 pts a game in the last 3 losses means the issue with WSH is their offense or his play calling....thats all.

That team hasnt played the D they were earlier in the season. 88 pts against in this 3 game slide.

Barnwell tackles this very question in todays column

Before the game and for most of the contest, there was plenty of chatter about how the Commanders were dealing with the aftereffects of hitting the "Kliff Cliff," the idea that defenses figure out Kingsbury's offenses as the season goes along, leading to impressive first halves and disappointing second halves of the season.

Is it a real thing? I wouldn't rule it out, but some of the evidence I've seen backing it up isn't sound. While there's no clear definition of what a "Kliff Cliff" would look like, most of the evidence I've seen has pointed out that both his teams at Texas Tech and with the Arizona Cardinals won more games and scored more points in the first half of seasons than they did in the second. There's a chart that looks something like this:

(Great chart in the link)


In 2019, the Cardinals actually scored more points per game during the second half of the season, so while their record declined slightly, it doesn't appear to have been an offensive issue. In 2022, they struggled throughout the season, but quarterback Kyler Murray played just one full game during the second half of the year, as he missed two games with a hamstring injury, came back and then tore his ACL early in a loss to the Patriots. It seems bizarre to include those years as evidence that teams figure out Kingsbury's offense late in the season.

Plus, in 2021, Murray missed three games at the end of the first half and the beginning of the second half. Colt McCoy went 2-1 in his absence, but a bigger issue might have been losing wideout DeAndre Hopkins to hamstring and knee injuries. Hopkins had 486 receiving yards and seven touchdowns during the first eight games of the season, but he played just two games the rest of the way. He was replaced by Antoine Wesley, a Kingsbury favorite from Texas Tech, who never played in the league again after his lone season in Arizona.

https://www.espn.com/nfl/insider/sto...troud-williams

[Erick Estrada]

I don't understand it myself but it keeps happening regardless of changing circumstances.

[Sylvanfan]

There's so many other factors that can come into play too like injuries, strength of schedule, road vs home schedules, plus rematch in Division games.

Across the NFL it's becoming pretty common that the team who runs for the most yards tends to win the game. The Commanders just played the Ravens/Steelers/Eagles who are 3 teams who allow under 100 yards per game rushing.

Commanders have Titans-Saints-Eagles-Falcons-Cowboys left. So one elite run defence and the other 3 appear to be mid..if they continue to fade there could be something to this.

[Senator Clay Davis]

Originally Posted by Sylvanfan

Considering how hated running backs have become by front offices...Derrick Henry and Saquan Barkley are the two most productive signings of the offseason. Both would get MVP consideration if voting ended today.

I'm only pointing this out for the lolz and not as some kind of hating RBs post, but the Eagles and Ravens both have worse records after 11 games this year than they did last year. My point is mostly about the complexities of trying to figure out MVP voting. Like Josh Allen is playing worse statistically this year than last (save the turnovers), but he's more likely to win MVP this year.

[Paulie Walnuts]

Herbert has some terrible accuracy.

[devo22]

Minnesota takes all your former NY 1st round quarterbacks.

https://twitter.com/user/status/1861793804178600196

[Erick Estrada]

It's not a bad move for the Vikings as Darnold's play has been slipping since the start of the season.

[Sylvanfan]

Apparently Jones had a lot of interest in the market. Even teams like the Raiders allegedly had interest.

Malik Nabers threw a lot of shade at Daboll after the game on Sunday. He insisted that Jones was not the problem everyone made him out to be.

That said the Giants front office has its share of miscues. If they don't clean house on black Monday you really have to wonder...why?

[Erick Estrada]

Yeah hearing that the Raiders had interest in Danny Dimes was another gut punch. It's like they haven't learned a thing from Garoppolo and Minshew. Fortunately Jones saved the Raiders from themselves. The ceiling is so low with Jones. He's like a lot of below average QB's where everything around him needs to be in place and even then it's highly unlikely you will win a Super Bowl.

[SuperMatt18]

For the Raiders isn't it more that Minshew is hurt and Ridder and O'Connell don't look like answers either.

Even if Raiders draft a QB early having somebody like Jones to be an interim starter for the first year to not have to rush the QB you draft as a day 1 starter is a good idea too.

[Senator Clay Davis]

I'm not saying I think there's secretly a superstar waiting to be unleashed in Jones, but I also know we keep seeing players who looked poor or underwhelming in awful situations look competent and even more in good situations (Baker, Geno, Darnold etc...). Granted the Raiders are one of the few situations possibly worse than the Giants so maybe not for them, but I wouldn't be shocked if Jones went to a well run organization that he ended up looking decent.

[devo22]

yeah. Thought he'd end up in San Francisco, but Minnesota is not a bad spot either. Smart to take a step back at a well-coached team instead of going for a starter job at another dumpster fire.

[KelVarnsen]

It's interesting that he signed as a practice squad player

[Erick Estrada]

Originally Posted by SuperMatt18

For the Raiders isn't it more that Minshew is hurt and Ridder and O'Connell don't look like answers either.

Even if Raiders draft a QB early having somebody like Jones to be an interim starter for the first year to not have to rush the QB you draft as a day 1 starter is a good idea too.

O'Connell is the best QB on the roster as he would have started most of the season if he didn't break his thumb. Props to Steichen for winning games with Minshew as IMO he's the worst Raiders QB I've seen in a long time (Matt Flynn?) and that's saying something when you consider how terrible Garoppolo was last season but the reality is they both got benched for and outplayed by AOC who's a 4th round QB with a ceiling of mid-level backup QB. AOC is on a rookie contract so I would be fine with coming back with him next season and a rookie QB with the expectation that they would be drafting top 10 again to bolster the trenches in the draft. There are no quick fixes for this organization after Gruden flushed several years of draft picks down the toilet.

[Sylvanfan]

I'm not sure Pierce will survive though. So the idea of learning the system early to be ready for next year might be like false hope.

Jones should pick a team with good coaching and a solid system and spend some time there. I'm not sure going to a bad team where he can play will really help him. He can still make another 30 million in his career as a backup. He'll have to decide if he's content being a well paid insurance guy who gets a game a year and injury fill in time. Or does he want to play more and bounce around bad teams constantly changing coaches?

[Erick Estrada]

I don't consider Pierce part of the future. He should be one of the first coaches dismissed on black Monday. He should never been hired full time and Davis (I don't believe he really wanted to hire him) was let down by the players in the locker room that campaigned (Crosby threatened to ask for a trade) for Pierce to get the gig. The player got the coach they wanted an performed poorly which is why you never let the inmates run the asylum. If a head coach needs to bring three head coaches out of retirement to be special advisors and the results are still poor, then it's a good indicator that the coach isn't ready and may never be. Davis though will probably feel pressure not to fire another coach after a short term but I'm of the opinion you keep firing coaches until you find the right one as there's too much on the line to waste a full season on a coach that hasn't got the job done to date. Hanging on to head coaches with one foot out the door an extra season usually leads to a wasted season (see Dennis Allen, Eberflus, Pederson, McCarthy, etc.).

[Sylvanfan]

The Pierce situation is nearly a repeat of when the Chiefs axed Todd Haley. Made Romeo Crennel the interim coach, won 2 of 3 games...then made him the head guy. Next year they fired him after going 2-14 with the Javon Belcher incident mixed in. The players hated Haley and loved Crennel. But he couldn't get any accountability out of that group...although Pioli likely muddled.

They were lucky Andy Reid was available and got to him first and got him before anyone else could meet with him. Don't know if there will be a Reid like proven guy on the market this year.

[Junglist]

Don’t get Jones signing with the Vikings at all.
If he returns next year he will be their #3.

[Jason14h]

Originally Posted by KelVarnsen

It's interesting that he signed as a practice squad player

Normal until they promote to active squad - he prob won’t be ready for ah day to know the playbook and no need to demote someone from the active roster to the practice squad yet

[Jason14h]

Originally Posted by Junglist

Don’t get Jones signing with the Vikings at all.
If he returns next year he will be their #3.

He won’t

He’ll be a UFA and look for a potential starter gig

This is a backup roll and chance to play with a contender and showcase himself if an injury

If he goes to the raiders , plays , and sucks - it actually makes it look worse for him like the Giants were correct

Not playing keeps the intrigue about what if - and if Darnold gets hurt Minny is a great org to step into - we’ve seen what they did for Darnold