Hot Seat?
Well it's time to put Shanahan on the Hot Seat I believe. Come on 9 years and only 2 years with playoff wins, yes those two years were Super Bowl years but with who? Elway & Davis. The Broncos have failed to win a single playoff game since Elway retired. In the 11 years total that he has coached, only 2 years with playoff wins. Whose head should we be calling for? The Broncos always start out the season great but then the league catches on to our scheme, Shanahan needs to be able to adapt to the change of the league and make changes, it's just like in the games we come out strong but then Shanahan doesn't make the changes he needs to to keep the lead.
posted by RED at 10:58 AM
4 Comments:
Good post - good topic for a kick ass debate, so lets get that rollin'.
I disagree with you for RIGHT now. I think there are a couple of variables to look at first.
1) Personnel
2) Fan base
Lets take a closer look at what I mean by the two variables, then I’ll give my final conclusion. What I mean by personnel is simply who you have to work with. Sure Bronco’s are loaded at certain positions but if you really think about it…we aren’t! QB – Plummer, average arm strength, poor decision making, ability to scramble but has endured quite a few years in a pathetic offense. I think he’s better then Griese, but obviously doesn’t rank in the top 10 QB’s this season (atleast in my eyes). RB – Droughns had 2 REALLY good games and has since died down, 2 fumbles, lost 1. WR – Smith is a true bright spot for Denver, which is sad considering he is out of his prime and near retirement. Lelie is having a better season than last, but again, that isn’t hard looking at last years stats. If Lelie is our #2 receiver, we are obviously hurting at that position. TE – well this is a committee who each contribute in their own way. But lets face it, even when Sharpe was playing as long as he was last year, he was still more productive on the field. OL – same faces really, Lepsis is hurting us playing left tackle, too many penalties and he just got owned during the Bengals game. One of the smallest, if not the smallest, lines in the NFL. Sure wish we had someone like Ogden or another pro-bowl type tackle.
In all actuality, Denver really isn’t that deep on offense or as talented as some of the top teams in the league. Sure we have more talent then say Miami, but it’s clear who is the better team there. Defensively it’s the same story. Pryce not playing has been a problem, loss of two good linebackers (Williams has been playing well though, but he is still just a rookie). Champ has played well, hard for a shut down corner to do extremely well without the help of a good safety, which we also lack. Bottom line is, our personnel isn’t as great as we want to believe. We are good, but not nearly as talented as the Bronco’s from their Super Bowl years.
Fan base – is Denver losing season ticket holders? Is Denver not selling out of home games? This is a huge factor in determining whether or not a coach should be let go. Shanahan has only 2 years with playoffs wins, but his overall record is 104-68, with a 7-3 post season record. That’s not bad!!!! Sometimes for a coach, you have to take what you are given and try to win with it. Arizona wasn’t that successful with Plummer because of bad coaching, bad offense scheme, whatever, but coming to Denver, better system which has allowed him to have better stats overall.
I don’t believe Shanahan deserves to be on the hot seat right now. After this season I think it should be evaluated and possibly then, put him on the hot seat. This should only be true on two conditions
1) We don’t win the AFC West AND
2) We don’t win a playoff game
I can agree with that, but in the NFL it's What have you done lately? Not what did you do. I agree with the part that we need the two factors to put him on the hot seat. We did face two tough teams our last few playoff apearances against the SB team Ravens and the high powerd Colts. The way it has been in the NFL besides the 1st Broncos championship season, the team with home field makes it to the Super Bowl. That needs to be a priority for Mike to stay off the hot seat.
Well, I would have to agree with Steve's comment. Shanny is a very bright and well-respected coach in the league. A good coach makes things happen, but a great coach makes things work. Although the Broncos no longer have Elway, Sharpe, and Davis- they have played well enough to be a highly competetive team.
As long as there is no discourse between the players and each other or the players against the coaches- and everyone is playing to their level- I doubt Shanny will be in any hotseat. You're still above .500- and as long as you're above .500 with an average QB at the helm- it's not the coaches fault.
Good comments Cosmic, couldn't agree with you more. Shanahan in my eyes is a great coach, can take a average group of athletes and transform them to make a working unit that is in contention for the playoffs year after year. Sure we aren't as successful, but that will come with time or new personnel. I never once thought Plummer would be the QB to bring Denver back to the Super Bowl. Plummer is very capable of taking this team to the playoffs, possibly even winning a couple of playoff games, but he'll need more of a supporting cast to get over that hump. Droughns has the possibility within the Denver running system, but without good depth at any wideout position, teams can really focus on stopping the run.
When it all boils down to it, depth is the key. If your backups are just as capaable as your starters, then you can go a long way. Plus, as a decent team in the league you really are at a disadvantage during the draft. Think about it, the Bronco's have average players playing great as a team, not super bowl caliber, but playoff caliber. Usually takes just 1 great player to get them there, most of them are found within the first 10 draft choices. Which Denver will never see as long as are above .500
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