Barry Jackson: Delving into Ross' feelings on Ireland

I agree. A 6-10/7-9 would keep Ireland an Sparano would be the lamb. A 3-13 and they will all go to slaughter.

 

I'm a fan of Ireland, but I don't really care if he goes or not. I do see the glaring holes he has on this roster.

We're in full Suck for Luck mode. New coaching staff, new Front Office, and new QB. I wonder if we bring in Cowher, could we also bring in Kevin Colbert?

 

So we're left to assume that Ireland wasn't making the calls for the 2010 draft?

 

To be fair, this was Ireland's first draft where he had full control.

And it looks like he did a damn fine job with the guys he picked.... Pouncy is good and so is Daniel Thomas.

 

if they want a "big" name coach in the offseason, he is gone...i don't think ireland is anything special, but then again, look what we have to compare him with...ugh

 

Only big name coaches I'm interested in is Jeff Fisher and Andy Reid.. I think they actually have something to prove, and they want to coach. They're not looking for TV jobs, they want to be in the locker room, conference rooms, on the field, etc, going over game plans and teaching their players.

Gruden seems to be enjoying himself as an analyst and so is Cowher. I think they're done with the grind that the NFL brings and I don't blame them. They get paid pretty well and I'm sure it's a fantastic career having first class everything and being able to travel to watch different teams. Seems like a dream job for me.

 

Thanks ck that really explains alot as to Ross and his Ireland feelings.

 

GMs contracts run through the following years draft ,although due to Irelands contract extension he would most likely be exposed to a buyout if Ross has a mind to hire someone else.

If his contract is not bought out it will probably means Ireland will be in charge of selecting our next draft picks...hopefully a QB and not another OL
This would put us in an uncomfortable situation where a lame duck GM would be making the picks for new regime in an year where we finally get a real chance at a franchise QB.

This whole situation reminds me of Rick Speilman trying to convince Wayne H that he was not responsible for the bad picks showing all the while some impressive charts to make his point.Ultimately he was fired.Its difficult to escape the stench of a losing regime.

 

The concern on my part with this is that Jeff will somehow brown nose Ross just enough to get him to ensure that he stays GM, and as a result, some of the better coaching candidates (Gruden) may not take the job and work with him. Lord knows what will happen if Jeff is choosing the next head coach. He can't seem to do anything without getting people he is familiar with. What ex Cowboy would he bring in?

 

This is horrifying, quite frankly. Our only hope is that the continued losing by this "ultra talented team" that Ireland has assembled (except for all the players who suck who were picked by somebody else) will cause Ross to simply fumigate the entire place.

We are in full "Suck for Luck" mode. Just don't screw it up, Ireland. Garrard is too expensive for your tastes. Bring in Trent Edwards. That's the ticket.

 

I wonder if Jeff is telling Steven that the reason the secondary isn't good is because Bill forced him to draft big, physical defensive backs and ignored ball skills? This is definitely sounding like Jeff is throwing Bill Parcells under the bus and blaming him for all the bad personnel moves that have been made under his watch. I guess Parcells was calling the shots on all the poor free agent signees this team has made outside of Randy Starks. Jeff must have pushed for that one.

 

Baffling how someone could consider hiring a head coach before GM.

 

He did just this thing to get Daniel Thomas. To the other points, I am really happy to see Ross going to the players, the GM and getting their opinions for some of his decisions.....ultimatley it comes down to him, and they all know that, but as players, to have your owner come and ask your opinion on a HC or a big decision will keep them happy, and want to play here imo.

Another big thing is "tony gives them the best chance to beat the jets"

Ok........then what?

So is that the writing on the wall, if we lose to the jets, Tony is swimming with the fishes?

 

I delved deep into my feelings on Ireland, as well. And then I farted. Seemed very appropriate.

 

Please don't ever mention Andy Reid again as a potential candidate. I live in Philly, I hear his press conferences, this fan base would go crazy if you heard how this guy acted. He is above everyone, his system "works" and he isn't willing to change it or make adjustments mid-game. The reason why Reid gets so much praise around the league is b/c of his Win/Loss record. Unfortunately for the Eagles, they have been so successful against the mediocre to bad teams and have done so poorly against the good ones. Reid consistently gets out-coached whenever he faces a team that is wiling to make adjustments (see Harbaugh this past weekend). He also promoted his offensive line coach to D coordinator. I guy that never called defensive plays in his life. He's got experience with defense, just shouldn't have been promoted to a coordinator position and it's all based on an inside relationship Reid and Castillo have.

NO ANDY REID. PLEASE.

 

How special Ireland is, or isn't, depends what he is compared to. When it comes to the person making the final calls on drafting college talent, IMO, you'd have to go back to Bobby Beathard to find anyone better at it while employed by the Dolphins. Then again, that ain't saying much.
Shula's drafts, after Beathard and George Young left went significantly downhill. JJ while employed by the Dolphins, could draft defense, and couldn't draft offense to save his soul. Wanny? Forget about it. Spielman? Same. Saban? Same. Mueller and CamCam? Blah. Compared to that group, I'd take Ireland running the draft over any of them in a heartbeat. Even Ireland with the Tuna looking over his shoulder like 2008-2010. That's not to say, there isn't anyone better out there. Hiring them though may be another problem. The good talent scouts are seldom unemployed.

When it comes to pro personnel, it's another problem and if Ireland is retained, IMO, he may want to look at replacing Brian Gaine and the pro scouts, Dwayne Joseph and Nate Sullivan. Ireland has been getting some bad input from that bunch, or so it appears to me.

 

How do we separate a GM from his philosophies and his ability to pick players when determining how good they are? Here's what I mean, say you have a GM who believes in old-school football philosophies but he's really good at finding that elite running back and the elite defensive lineman. Everyone could say, "sure he's finding really good offensive guards and really good fullbacks, but the NFL isn't a place where the elite guard or fullback is actually all that valuable." That guy, despite making good pickups, still isn't good enough

My concern with Ireland is his inability to find good players coupled with his belief in old-school football theories. I don't ever again want my team to draft a center in the first round, I don't care if that center is Dwight Stephenson 2.0. Mike Pouncey, in a vacuum, is a good pickup. Ireland should be congratulated for selecting a player who's playing very well in his first year (well for a rookie at least). That being said, I'm super pissed at him for taking that dude and not a player that would actually have helped this season.

Miami will need a GM who's both good at picking players AND forward thinking.

And by the way, your avatar is both hilarious and horrifying.

 

I didn't read it as Jeff throwing Parcells under a bus. Remember that Ross was in the "War Room" when the picks were selected. I'm sure he has insight on who picked the players and the conversation in the room even if he wasn't there the whole time.

That's what it seems like.

I agree. He may want to replace his pro people.

 

Who is that in your Avatar?
And why is he shirtless with a weird afro?

 

Yeah... Or drafting Odrick > Dez. **** like that pisses me off to no end.

 

Looks like Nick Cage. It's frightening.

 

Not sure I understand your point. Are you criticizing Ireland for failing to overpay for players?

I think the Packers, Colts, Patriots & Steelers all have similar philosophies when it comes to player acquisition.

 

Like who?

 

I'm not sure that's an accurate equation. He used a 2nd rounder to grab Marshall and passed on Bryant/E Thomas to recoup 1 of the 2nd rounders before taking Odrick and Misi. He then traded back into the 2nd round this year to take D Thomas.

Bryant is a dynamic player who I'd love to have on the team I just don't think its fair to say that the choice came down to him vs Odrick.

 

Great find as always ck...kinda a lurker here. Have to ask the question though, what is the nature of this ownership that makes it "unfathomable" to hire a coach without a mustache?? Dont get me wrong I love Cower... but ever since Wanny....ugh!! Maybe the facial hair requirement was what kept Harbough out of South Florida. The article does say Ireland is a bit inflexible when it comes to contract negotiations.

 

IMO Ireland has a good eye for talent. My concern is whether he has deviated from Parcells' specific position guidelines. Parcells had always favored tackling in DBs over ball skills. He favored blocking in TEs over receiving skills. In today's NFL, the successful GM will adjust those priorities. Has Ireland adjusted? I see no problem with blaming the past drafts on Parcells since he was in charge. It is also well known that Ireland was in charge of the scouting that produced Wake and Bess. I liked some of what Ireland did this past year. I like the philosophy of not over paying. I think it's what the good organizations do. I liked the Pouncey, Thomas and Gates picks right from the beginning as they were good evaluations and balanced the team. People want to criticize taking a 1st round center, but I see that as one of those adjustments in thinking that a good GM has to do. The position has become critical to handle the big NTs and all the A-gap blitzing. I did not like how he ignored the TE position. I wanted Sproles above Bush. I like how he did not over pay for average vet QB talent and did not over evaluate and reach for the QBs in the draft. I don't like how Ireland seems to be a jerk. I think that impacts our ability to attract FAs. So there's good and bad there.

 

I think I can smell it...did you have a hotdog for lunch?

 

Not yet, but that's a good idea!

 

Good, balanced, well-reasoned critique.

I'm a firm believer that it's not black-and-white. Any GM has pros & cons.
I'd grade Ireland overall as a "B" grade. He's not perfect, but all things considered, I think he's done a fine job. And hopefully he'll continue to learn/improve with more experience going forward. Even the best GMs strike out on draft picks & FAs (a lot more often than most realize). It's an inexact science.

It's easy to take the "grass is always greener" stance, when you only have some abstract ideal GM to compare him to. Maybe 5-7 GMs in the NFL are clearly "A" grade GMs. The other 25 GMs all have various grades, and their own set of pros/cons.
Be careful what you wish for, a replacement GM may indeed turn out to be worse (or at least no better).

 

Ryan Mallett.

Actually, I was really hoping we would've traded down out of the #15 spot. That was my preference all along, but it just didn't happen that way. Sometimes you can't move no matter how much you want to. I get that. I guess if I had to pick at #15, I probably would've opted for Ryan Kerrigan instead. I know most of us were hoping for more playmakers on offense, but he's a playmaker on defense, and Lord knows we still need those.

Having said all that, I don't necessarily have a problem with the Pouncey pick. He filled a need. And, while #15 may have been a tad high, he wouldn't have been there for our next pick. So, I'm OK with it...I think.

 

This article seems to be white washing Ireland a bit. All the mistakes are Parcell's or Sparano's? So who's call was on the nickle back fiasco in week 1 after the Pats game?

 

Agreed. One of the guys I think of as an elite GM in the league is Ozzie Newsome, and he whiffed hard on Kyle Boller early in his career. He's rebounded nicely.

 

He whiffed on Boller, but it wasn't early in his career. It was after he had already drafted guys like Ray Lewis, Ed Reed, Peter Boulware, Jamal Lewis, Jonathan Ogden, Terrell Suggs, and Todd Heap to name a few.

Jeff Ireland doesn't come close to a drafting record that productive, IMO.

 

Who is that in your avatar? And, what does he have in his mouth?

 

Maybe beans and wienies. He seems to have an obsession with farts anyway.

 

I tend to regard the GM position in much the same way as I do the QB position: Unless you have a very good one, go and try to find a very good one. Ireland hasn't been horrible; but he hasn't been very good either. I certainly wouldn't fire him just for the sake of having him fired, but I certainly would explore options like Russ Ball. Yeah, there's always a chance that you're going to end up worse - much like there's a chance that Andrew Luck goes busto.