Top 5 trends for NFL 2008
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Mike Florio of Yahoo.com took a look around the NFL and gives you his Top 5 Trends for the NFL for next year. Your intrepid author’s comments are in italics.
1. College coaches need not apply
The Nick Saban and Bobby Petrino experiences are all the evidence any NFL owner should need to scratch the names of all college coaches from the list of candidates for open jobs in January ‘08….
In college, the best coaches are the best recruiters. He who hoards the most talent can win without a 100-page playbook, a game plan or a well-timed time out. Pro football has a flat playing field — leveled by the salary cap and free agency. So the talent gap is small.
NFL success arises from finding a way to consistently get more out of players of, for the most part, relatively equal abilities.
Squibster: Whoa, hold on here. Don’t condemn all college coaches for Saban and Petrino. Certainly a college coach may need some learning time, but come on. Besides, owners are not this smart or we would not have the Detroit Lions.
2. It’s still a league of quarterbacks
Though talent is compressed in the NFL, the biggest differences exist at the quarterback position. There simply isn’t one capable quarterback per franchise…
The dynamic is played out most obviously in Minnesota, where young starter Tarvaris Jackson has been unable to take advantage of the eight-man fronts clogging Adrian Peterson’s running lanes…
It’s no coincidence that the best teams feature guys like Tom Brady and Peyton Manning and Tony Romo and Brett Favre. As long as they play at a high level, their teams will remain in contention for the Lombardi Trophy.
Squibster: Hey no mention of Jon Kitna? Thus the value of the JaMarcus Russell or Brady Quinn in potential. Squibster has always been a believer of the great QB theory.
3. Change is the only constant
In August, the sock puppets will begin compiling their lists of teams that will make the playoffs after the ‘08 season. And most lists will feature most (if not all) of the teams that made it this season.
The reality is only half of the teams that qualify for the postseason one year make it the next.
Squibster: We are to 3 and Mike ran out of things to say? Just kidding. Keep in mind, your intrepid author predicted the Colts last year before the season and the Patriots this year before the season. Which is a whole lot easier than predicting every playoff team. The NFL is a league of parity.
4. The rise of the elder statesmen
The hiring of 66-year-old Bill Parcells to preside over the Miami Dolphins’ front office could prompt more teams to find aging coaches and/or personnel men to oversee football operations.
It makes sense, and it’s long overdue….
Regardless of whether Parcells succeeds or fails in Miami, owners should be — and will be — thinking about hiring guys like Dick Vermeil and Marty Schottenheimer and Holmgren and Dan Reeves and Dennis Green (who turns 59 in February) to provide guidance, vision and accountability to their football operations. It’s a skill the traditional businessperson simply doesn’t comprehend.
Squibster: You mean ignore TV commentators like Matt Millen of the Lions, who is pretty much clueless? Then how would you make Lions fans suffer?
5. The running back isn’t back
Over the past few years, running backs have diminished in importance….
Indeed, the franchise tag value for running backs actually will drop in 2008, even though the NFL salary cap is otherwise going haywire….
Many league observers say the success of Minnesota’s Peterson could change all of that in 2008. Don’t count on it.
No matter how well a running back plays, he always is one play away from being forever diminished because of a serious knee injury. Peterson almost had one of those as a rookie but lucked out with only (only?) a torn LCL.
Squibster: Ouch, this one hurts, but is very true. Hey, aren’t running backs in many cases the heroes we look for and dream about on the schoolyard or field next to the house? Shouldn’t they get your due? Who ever heard of the great team without a great running back? (cough, cough, Patriots, cough).
NFL Football Fan Question What other issues do you see on the horizon?
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POSTED IN: Adrian Peterson, Brett Favre, Dallas Cowboys, Denver Broncos, Detroit Lions, Donovan McNabb, GM Matt Millen, Green Bay Packers, Indianapolis Colts, JaMarcus Russell, Jon Kitna, Kansas City Chiefs, Larry Johnson, Minnesota Vikings, NFL Football, NFL Playoffs, New England Patriots, Peyton Manning, Philadelphia Eagles, Tom Brady, Tony Romo, football injuries
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