09-19-2023, 04:58 PM
(09-19-2023, 01:37 PM)Sled21 Wrote: I just sit here and shake my head at some of the posts. Taylor has 5 playoff wins under his belt, two AFCCG's and a Super Bowl, and people are talking like Mike Brown is going to fire him for starting 0-2...
And apparently we are learning that Zac had to severely limit the playbook because of Burrow's injury. A lot of what people are upset about in terms of play calling was necessitated by trying to protect Burrow: limiting roll outs, no snaps under center, no long developing plays but rather quick outlet passes, etc. Taylor couldn't tell the public that because it would be alerting the opposition; he has to quietly weather the criticism.
It's a different level of magnitude, but it reminded me of the US national soccer coach who had to take criticism for years for dismissing one of his top players from the team -- because he didn't want to tell the public that that particular player was having an affair with the wife of another star player and it was disruptive to the chemistry. Only after a decade or more did one of those players tell the story and the public realized they criticized the coach for years not understanding the full story. Part of being the head of a sports team sometimes means not being able to defend yourself (i.e, openness about injuries) because it gives the opposition a competitive advantage.
