sure we know that now, but we didnt then. My point was at the time we were drafting oline was our major issue. we lost our LT. were unproven at TG our RT was moving to LT and was unproven there leaving a hole at RT. If you are thinking long term you roll the dice with Clabo and Martin at tackles (Signing Clabo) and draft a guy that has huge upside but would take time. not saying Lane Johnson would have been great, saying the approach. As far as the draft goes, when you trade up to #3 you are looking for the future yes but also immediate contribution. We expected it from a qb last year, why not a LT this year? We got immediate contribution from Long in 08. Dion Jordan was thought to be a guy that would provide some help but would take time to be an every down player, especially coming off injury.
As I detailed in another thread, I think a big reason for it is that Dion is not 100%. I have no proof of that, but with the way Miami's media policies are, you will never hear the true reason why he hasn't been playing. This staff showed last year with Tannehill, Martin, and Vernon that they weren't afraid to play young guys. Honestly though, would it be so bad if the coaches just came out and said "Look, we are limiting his snaps because he reinjured his shoulder against Cleveland and isn't 100%. The numbers do not back up their meme that he isn't playing because he isn't playing well against the run. Maybe he isn't playing well against the run, but the numbers show in a small sample size that he's playing at least as well as Olivier Vernon, who is the guy getting the majority of the snaps. The best run defending end on the team by far is Derrick Shelby.
I would love to have that conversation with him, that's for sure. Have to remember though, this is only his 8th year in college football. This dude hasn't been coaching college for 20 years like some guys. He was a high school coach for 15 years. And I doubt he plans on going back to being a high school football coach. So he's been permanently dislodged from the level where he had established his longest tenure and most comfort. And he's also been dislodged from his home. He's from Arkansas. He graduated high school in Arkansas, walked on as a football player at University of Arkansas before transferring to Henderson State which is in Arkansas. He coached Hughes in Arkansas, Shiloh Christian in Arkansas, Springdale in Arkansas...went straight to University of Arkansas again under Houston Nutt in 2006. But he's not in Arkansas anymore. He and Nutt didn't get along so he went to Tulsa in Oklahoma for two years. Then he went to Alabama for three years. He briefly went back to Arkansas at Arkansas State but that only lasted one year before he got his chance to take over at Auburn. I think that yes, there's a Nick Saban danger here. If he is having a hard time in the pros and the University of Arkansas coaching position opens up, he may say screw it and leave the NFL, go back home to what may be his dream job. But if he's succeeding in the pro? Just look at the history there. He's looked for the step up in competition every chance he's gotten. He started at Huges (2A). He moved to Shiloh Christian (5A). Then he moved to Springdale (7A). Then he moved to the college game as OC/WR Coach. Houston Nutt was an a-hole so he left to coach under his buddy Todd Graham at Tulsa as the OC. But he wasn't satisfied with that, he wanted a bigger stage so he moved to Auburn as OC. He wasn't satisfied with just being an assistant anymore, and even though he was already a nationally famous coach and a big time opportunity would have been forthcoming if he'd just stayed patient, he went ahead and took a job as the head coach of a Sun Belt Conference school. And rather than stay there for a while, he went back to Auburn as head coach. This guy keeps actively ratcheting up his challenge. I think he wants to be a legend. He kind of already is but I think he'd be open to the idea of going pro. I guess it depends on whether or not he feels satisfied with what he's done at the college level. HE was not the head coach when they won the championship in 2010...but I think everyone knows damn well he had more to do with that championship than Gene Chizik.
I honestly don't remember. They do seem to have this thing where they either have a ton of offense, or they stink. There doesn't seem to be mucn in-between there.
Part of the reason Lane Johnson has struggled has been putting him at right tackle. He'd grown more comfortable at left tackle. But Michael Vick is a lefty so he was protecting his blind side. I think Lane would be doing better on the left side protecting the blind side of a right hander. Johnson has been a good run blocker for them and his pass protection is getting better the more he plays. He hasn't let up a single pressure on the quarterback in the last two games. If he continues like this would it really be a shocker if a rookie had to switch sides, took a while to get used to it, had a rough first 8 games but then improved tremendously by his last 8 games? Would that really be a shocking storyline?
Maybe not on here, but friends in Chicago & Florida immediately act like the two are the same. That picture KB put up shows they look a ton alike, IMO anyways.
I've just never heard the two compared, ever. They bear a resemblence I suppose. They're both black. But outside of that there's almost zero comparison as coaches. It seemed like your premise was that Kevin Sumlin's public standing is benefiting from his being compared with Mike Tomlin. I was saying, this is not actually a thing that is happening. IMO.
Let's see what happens if he beats Alabama in a few weeks. That could radically change his perception around the league and his own ideas on what he's ready to do. Beating Alabama is the equivalent of winning the Superbowl.
