I agree, they do a good job of that but I think it IS a talented roster.psjordan wrote:Have you REALLY looked at who NE is putting on the field this year? I'm with Texas on this one, Bellichick and his staff are the poster boys for "coaching up" players that a LOT of teams discard or ignore as "not that talented".
For some reason I get the odd feeling that you believe "player talent" is a constant - when a player joins a team he is say a "7 of 10" and the coaches have no influence on that player turning into a 5 or a 9.
I can see why you might get that impression but I assure you, I don't view it that way at all. I absolutely think coaching can have a significant influence on a player's development.Every player you listed above is very talented and they were talented, accomplished players before they got to the NFL. I think good coaching (and in some cases, very beneficial situations) has helped them to become even better and to excel in the pros but in terms of "raw talent", they provided those coaches with plenty to work with...I happen to believe coaches have a HUGE influence on what folks perceive of as "player talent". Examples abound. From Brady to Blount to Russell Wilson to Jordy Nelson to Tamba Hali to Keenan Allen.
I'm not trying to undermine the importance of coaching. I just see a lot of magical thinking associated with the job. As I wrote above, I think coaches can have a real influence on a player's development but I also believe players have a lot to do with their own development. I don't view talent as a measurable constant but I don't view players as raw material to be molded into whatever a coach can make of them either. Some players are clearly more talented, better students, more instinctive, etc. than others. Some respond much better to coaching than others. All of them have limitations.
Obviously... but I never suggested anything to the contrary. There are clearly coaches who develop the talent they're given but that doesn't diminish the significance of that talent.So there are absolutely coaches out there - and they are almost always successful - that develop the talent they are given. Fans are hoping for that type of coach for our team, obviously.
As for the stuff about Frazier...all I'll say is that you and I both know your idea of what Frazier and his staff would have done with an apparently substantial list of successful players on other teams is nothing more than a guess. You're perfectly entitled to your views on that subject but Frazier and his staff didn't coach those players so we don't know how they would have done.
Does not Like Zimmer.
Heck, they basically used that game plan to get into the playoffs in 2012!