David Blough and the Offensive Staffing Thread

[SkinsInSATX]

The key is, with all these young minds getting hired, is to go into next year with low expectations. You know, so we're not hurting as bad as we were this year as a fan base lol.

 

[KDawg]

Massive amounts of cope happening in this thread, and I’m not even a big Harbaugh guy on the whole

Massive.

I’m telling you, if we rehired Zorn or Spurrier people would convince themselves it’s a great move.

Back on topic… Blough needs to get a high quality OL coach. Shake every tree. Ask every high end collegiate and pro coach. Ask retired guys. Shake every tree.

 

[Conn]

Massive turn in this thread. Let's see if we can get it back on topic.

What exactly is there to talk about on Blough? He has zero history and zero work product to look at, all we have are fluffy pieces talking about his reputation. The organization is literally just asking people to roll with hope on this one. And to their credit, many are.

Understandable that people got distracted by a division rival putting in more apparent effort to make their own team more competitive.

 

[Riggo44]

I'd take Tracy over Croskey-Merritt, too. With Skattebo its mostly his college tape. And lol maybe I am biased based on that and I happened to watch his games against KC and Philly where he was really good and that's stuck in my head. I think he had bad coordinators who didn't have a feel for how to use him in the passing game.

As KDawg said and I agree, Croskey-Merritt is just a guy. I don't think anyone around the league craves someone like Croskey-Merritt. He's OK. There are plenty of backs like that. He seems to excel out of 11 personnel. In short when teams are expecting a pass. When teams locked down on the running game post Jayden injury for a spell of games, Merritt disappeared. And look I was pushing for him before that draft. And for a 7th rounder, its a good pick. But he's not anything special IMO. Inconsistent runner, with some nice moments, zero factor in the passing game, bad pass protector.

But yeah post injury i don't know. But I follow the clippings some about the Giants, and Skattebo is sort of a culture-tone setter over there. Even with his injury, if you gave me a choice as to having him over Croskey-Merritt, I'd go Skattebo. I'd go Tracy, too.

Sorry, and I rarely disagree with both you and KDawg, but this feels like Reverse Ashburn Syndrome--where everyone outside of Ashburn is better than what we have. Tracy's long is 45 yards, in his career. Bill topped that twice this year, at least. Looking at his game logs, he disappeared too. I don't see how Tracy isn't a JAG either. Likewise, PFF has JCM as a far better pass blocker than Tracy. I feel like the Giants backs are nothing special, at all. Not saying C-Rod or Bill are either, but they are far more explosive. They were also underused by Kingsbury.

 

[Riggo44]

I’m telling you, if we rehired Zorn or Spurrier people would convince themselves it’s a great move.

And if the Giants hired Zorn or Spurrier, it would be seen as a great move by some, simply because it's one of our rivals making the call. Daboll and Schoen were supposed to turn that franchise around, right?

 

[Conn]

I like JCM, he was a good find in the 7th round. He can be a good rotational piece who can spot start if a better guy is hurt, on a competitive team. Like most RB’s who are talented enough, he could rush for 1100 yards in the right scheme given the right usage and health. He’s pretty good but needs to round out his skill set. People think this means he could be really good, because our RB room outside of mercenary vets has been extremely untalented for a very long time.

He and Skattebo have both been in the league the same single year. Is it really that surprising that many people prefer the RB they would have drafted in the 3rd round, four rounds higher than JCM? Many of us here wanted Skattebo before that draft.

His injury issues are real. But if Skattebo was here instead of in NY he would be many people’s favorite player and considered a culture and tone-setter on an otherwise soft team.

 

[Conn]

And if the Giants hired Zorn or Spurrier, it would be seen as a great move by some, simply because it's one of our rivals making the call. Daboll and Schoen were supposed to turn that franchise around, right?

Disingenuous as hell, man.

 

[KDawg]

And if the Giants hired Zorn or Spurrier, it would be seen as a great move by some, simply because it's one of our rivals making the call. Daboll and Schoen were supposed to turn that franchise around, right?

Most of the time, every time our rivals make a move, our fanbase likes to shit on it.

And it’s the same vice versa.

The Giants getting Harbaugh is a good hire for them. If they hired a 30 year old to call plays and then they hired a QB coach with more experience than our OC we’d all be having a real laugh at how dumb they are.

Back to the topic at hand: Blough needs a good OL coach to offset things a bit. The OL makes the offense move. Getting a strong OL coach can mask some things while Blough gets up to speed.

Tunsil needs to be signed, asap. Can’t have his status linger. If it does, we need to replace and trade - for which we will get repressed trade value.

 

[Riggo44]

Disingenuous as hell, man.

How so?

Every year the Giants get propped up as the next big thing, only to continually lose. They have the 4th worst winning percentage in the league since Eli's Magical Mystery tour--worse than the Commanders, and this includes the dying days of Snyder when he didn't spend anything on the team and we had a buffoon drafting first rounders who aren't in the league anymore. People are tripping over themselves to denigrate every aspect of this team with a same old Redskins mentality, but are ready to jump at the Giants suddenly turning it around?

Harbaugh was a great coach with the Ravens. Let me know when he has success with the Giants. I'll happily credit him then--until then, it's still the Giants run by John Mara and Joe Schoen. The same Joe Schoen who paid Darious Slayton more than he was willing to pay Saquon Barkley.

 

[Riggo44]

Most of the time, every time our rivals make a move, our fanbase likes to shit on it.

And it’s the same vice versa.

The Giants getting Harbaugh is a good hire for them. If they hired a 30 year old to call plays and then they hired a QB coach with more experience than our OC we’d all be having a real laugh at how dumb they are.

Back to the topic at hand: Blough needs a good OL coach to offset things a bit. The OL makes the offense move. Getting a strong OL coach can mask some things while Blough gets up to speed.

Tunsil needs to be signed, asap. Can’t have his status linger. If it does, we need to replace and trade - for which we will get repressed trade value.

Harbaugh is a great hire--but so was Daboll. Likewise, NFL history is not kind to long-term coaches like Harbaugh in their second stint. The only successful such coach I can think of in Andy Reid. And no coach has ever won a super bowl with two different teams. Sure, it makes the Giants better. But then again, that's an extremely low bar.

As for Blough--I fully expect growing pains, and I am not real wild about it--but others, including Keim and national media types (who love to shit on this team, lets be honest) are praising him as an up-and-comer. "The Detroit interest was very real." So maybe it works out. Maybe Harbaugh turns that franchise around. We'll see. I am not putting out of the question. But I find it funny how quickly anything we do is dismissed and denigrated, but a poorly run Giants franchise has such a better roster, and have now leapfrogged us? They've won 7 games the last 2 years, and lost the 4th most games over the last decade plus. Tell me how that makes sense.

 

[DixieFlatline]

What exactly is there to talk about on Blough? He has zero history and zero work product to look at, all we have are fluffy pieces talking about his reputation. The organization is literally just asking people to roll with hope on this one. And to their credit, many are.

Understandable that people got distracted by a division rival putting in more apparent effort to make their own team more competitive.

There may not be much to talk about him and certainly discussion on the Giants is warranted, but we should have that in a specific thread so it's easier for people to find and if someone does want to talk about Blough they don't have to scroll through pages of unrelated content.

 

[Riggo44]

I'd rather have Blough...

 

[KDawg]

Harbaugh is a great hire--but so was Daboll. Likewise, NFL history is not kind to long-term coaches like Harbaugh in their second stint. The only successful such coach I can think of in Andy Reid. And no coach has ever won a super bowl with two different teams. Sure, it makes the Giants better. But then again, that's an extremely low bar.

As for Blough--I fully expect growing pains, and I am not real wild about it--but others, including Keim and national media types (who love to shit on this team, lets be honest) are praising him as an up-and-comer. "The Detroit interest was very real." So maybe it works out. Maybe Harbaugh turns that franchise around. We'll see. I am not putting out of the question. But I find it funny how quickly anything we do is dismissed and denigrated, but a poorly run Giants franchise has such a better roster, and have now leapfrogged us? They've won 7 games the last 2 years, and lost the 4th most games over the last decade plus. Tell me how that makes sense.

I’d agree that Blough seems to be an up and comer. That’s not in debate at all, with me at least.

The problem is throwing an up and comer into the fire without an extinguisher.

 

[Riggo44]

I’d agree that Blough seems to be an up and comer. That’s not in debate at all, with me at least.

The problem is throwing an up and comer into the fire without an extinguisher.

He does have Johnson and Lynn to rely on--and Lynn has been a HC. I wouldn't want either calling plays, and I am higher on Johnson than others, but he does have guard rails and experienced help. I would love to see an experienced OL hire.

Last thing I'll say about Harbaugh: It feels very 2010 Redskins with Shanahan/Allen. Mara isn't Snyder--no one is--but if his name wasn't "Mara" he'd be considered one of the worst in the league. Schoen keeping his job is very questionable.

 

[Conn]

How so?

Every year the Giants get propped up as the next big thing, only to continually lose. They have the 4th worst winning percentage in the league since Eli's Magical Mystery tour--worse than the Commanders, and this includes the dying days of Snyder when he didn't spend anything on the team and we had a buffoon drafting first rounders who aren't in the league anymore. People are tripping over themselves to denigrate every aspect of this team with a same old Redskins mentality, but are ready to jump at the Giants suddenly turning it around?

Harbaugh was a great coach with the Ravens. Let me know when he has success with the Giants. I'll happily credit him then--until then, it's still the Giants run by John Mara and Joe Schoen. The same Joe Schoen who paid Darious Slayton more than he was willing to pay Saquon Barkley.

I need to explain why comparing Harbaugh to Zorn is disingenuous? lol

A lot of people have a point but then because they’re blinded by the bias and cope involved with talking about a rival, go too far. That’s where you’re currently situated.

Daboll ended up a miss. That happens sometimes when you try to hire a OC to take over the whole operation. Didn’t stop people here from wanting him to become our OC before we hired Blough, so you can see how that hire happened in NY as well. People here wanted Schoen as well when the Bills FO was considered one worth pillaging. Things change as you gain more information, shocker. At the time, the Daboll/Schoen combo was very coveted by people on ES who wished we could pair a younger OC playcaller with a GM from a solid org. It happens. It doesn’t have to be spin, you’re biased.

Again, I’m not even a huge Harbaugh guy. Wouldn’t want him to copy + paste his BAL coaching staff here like he’s doing in NY, even though it’s likely better than what we have, because I’d rather aim higher and shoot for a more innovative situation. But for the Giants, he’ll get their operations right and get everything in that building to a better place. He won’t waste talent. He’ll give them a baseline competence and competitiveness that they’ve lacked for a long time, and Schoen will have zero power.

I don’t think they’ll become an elite team. I don’t think they’ll win a SB. I don’t think what he did in Baltimore will suddenly work better in NY with a worse QB talent. They do have a better roster, they likely will have a better coaching staff, they have a much worse QB imo, which is the main thing.

Not really hard to talk about these things in an unbiased manner imo.

We’d be laughing at the Giants if they pulled this Blough/nepo baby QB coach maneuver btw. It wouldn’t suddenly be genius because the Giants did it.

 

[Riggo44]

I need to explain why comparing Harbaugh to Zorn is disingenuous? lol

I never compared Harbaugh to Zorn. I was responding to KDawg's statement that people would defend a Spurrier/Zorn hire here. I also repeatedly said Harbaugh was a great coach with the Ravens. I also said repeatedly he may well turn that franchise around. I am skeptical because the Giants are not a good organization, and they haven't been since Mara's daddy hired Coughlin.

We’d be laughing at the Giants if they pulled this Blough/nepo baby QB coach maneuver btw. It wouldn’t suddenly be genius because the Giants did it.

I'm also pretty sure I said I am not wilde about Blough, repeatedly, as well as said there is going to be a steep learning curve. However, just dismissing him entirely despite other organizations being very interested in him is rather disingenuous, as is calling Williams a "nepo-baby" like there is no way he could have earned the job on his merits.

 

[skinzplay]

I’d agree that Blough seems to be an up and comer. That’s not in debate at all, with me at least.

The problem is throwing an up and comer into the fire without an extinguisher.

I really hope they're keeping Brian Johnson, for experience sake. He officially has one of those Assistant HC for Offensive Wizardry titles, so the new QB coach wouldn't infringe on his status. I don't understand the Williams hire unless, in practical terms, he's going to work under or with someone else with our QBs. Entrusting JD5's development to Williams.........

 

[Conn]

I never compared Harbaugh to Zorn. I was responding to KDawg's statement that people would defend a Spurrier/Zorn hire here. I also repeatedly said Harbaugh was a great coach with the Ravens. I also said repeatedly he may well turn that franchise around. I am skeptical because the Giants are not a good organization, and they haven't been since Mara's daddy hired Coughlin.


I'm also pretty sure I said I am not wilde about Blough, repeatedly, as well as said there is going to be a steep learning curve. However, just dismissing him entirely despite other organizations being very interested in him is rather disingenuous, as is calling Williams a "nepo-baby" like there is no way he could have earned the job on his merits.

Fair enough, I might’ve mis-categorized some of your arguments, apologies. I still maintain that the idea that people here would glamorize anything the Giants do is incorrect and vastly overstated.

On the Williams QB coach point though, I will not budge. He may be a good QB coach. By definition he did not earn anything on his own merits, he never would’ve gotten his NFL coaching opportunities to begin with, without his father. If he turns out to be great and eventually becomes a good OC, then he can point to the part of his resume that he started to earn. I don’t like those guys until they prove they’re studs and I have to, and even then there’s some resentment over the way they got their opportunities. I felt the same way about Kyle Shanahan. He proved to be a stud, he still had a massive leg up and initially benefited from nepotism. Most of these guys are not Kyle Shanahan, they usually are mediocre at best and hang around the league for a long time, taking away opportunities over and over again from actual deserving candidates who worked their asses off for every scrap of experience on their resume. Shit is infuriating.

 

[DixieFlatline]

Have they had a press conference announcing the hire? I'm guessing not since I haven't seen any videos of people asking Blough questions.

 

[Riggo44]

I still maintain that the idea that people here would glamorize anything the Giants do is incorrect and vastly overstated.

Really? People are heaping praise on their roster, despite the fact they've won 7 games the last two years. 7. Two more than we won in this godawful season.

I don’t like those guys until they prove they’re studs and I have to, and even then there’s some resentment over the way they got their opportunities.

So you're biased.