I mean, depends on point of view really. I see it as an indictment of his intelligence. Daniel Jones sucks. He's going to revert and everyone knows it. You can call it an indictment if you like--I prefer to not wallow in misery and focus on what's next.
This is the core disconnect between us on this stuff. It’s not misery, it’s not about negative feelings. “What’s next” as you put it is massively informed by what came before: I like to evaluate that fairly. It’s just about measuring the organization’s success based on, well…success. Like good franchises do.
We hope to join those ranks after catching a mere sniff of success in 2024, no? Critically looking at what we’re doing and why, and the downstream effects of that, is part of that for me. I have no power to hold this organization accountable. But I sure as hell will do so on a message board. I get no value as a fan from avoiding harsh truths or sugar-coating things. I want to see games won and legacies made. I WANT a a reason to be a homer, man. I want studs to argue as the best in the league. I want players fighting for records. I want to jaw off about playoff games. I blame the organization when, after enough evidence in regards to process has been gathered, success doesn’t follow.
I spent my whole life living in hope of the successful offseason, the offseason is still an absolute blast to me. But I won’t live for it anymore at the expense of actually seeing us succeed longterm. Life is too short. Would it be more fun to blindly hope that AP is a top-3 GM in the league? Not when the results don’t back it up. I still hope he gets there, though. Because the results will be fun if that happens. I have no ego wrapped up in it, I want to be wrong and I want to see us win.
By framing it this way (“I prefer not to wallow in misery”) you are pretty much confirming my point (and I think KDawg’s point) that you are choosing to give the benefit of the doubt, and we are not. Hence the difference in perception.
Consider the source:
But it's not overtly damning for a receiver to go to a runner up MVP coming off a Super Bowl appearance, to be the #1 target. That's more an indictment of the 25 offseason--which everyone pretty much agrees was complacent arrogance.
So what are we even disagreeing about then? My entire point is that these things all impact each other. It’s not just our efforts this offseason that matter, it this org’s past failures lead us to continue to fail now. Our disaster 2025 offseason (and season) trickling down and negatively impacting our current 2026 perception with FA’s (and coaching candidates) is half of what KDawg and I at least are talking about! There’s more to our failure to sign some of these players than just destiny and how much money we did or didn’t offer. That’s a big part of the point.
You have repeatedly stated how you're already out on this staff and were almost out on Peters and the FO. You've made up your mind. Again, we still signed several very good players: Konk, Cross, Oweh, Chenal being the biggest ones--so something went right. White and Ford are more important than people realize.
I have not made up my mind, I critically evaluate what they do and as the evidence mounts, my opinion crystallizes. In this case, it’s leading to criticism, sure. I applauded all the positive moves they made when they made them. I waited with bated breath with everyone else on the moves that didn’t happen. I don’t think the positive outweighs the negative yet from this operation, having observed them the last 2.5-3 years or whatever.
This offseason was largely successful, unless one chooses to focus on the overtly negative to bolster their already-formed opinion.
We have very different criteria for successful vs unsuccessful, obviously. And it has nothing to do with having my mind made up. There’s a lot more to this offseason than just half a dozen good players signed to good contracts, plus some depth. I was very vocal about my thought processes all through the coaching staff turnover saga. As it fades in the rear view maybe people are just treating it as normal or even exciting, but I was there describing it for what I saw it as, at the time. Desperate, destined to have a negative impact on our appeal to outside players and coaches, delaying a reset out of stubbornness—all my opinions, of course. Fine that not everyone agrees. I hope they succeed. This offseason has had some individual signings and hires I’ve liked, but overall is looking like another step towards the unemployment line for this current iteration of the org in my opinion. Yes, that’s what I think, despite rooting for the opposite.
Not because I’ve made up my mind or I’m biased. Because I’ve evaluated each step of the way and see more negative than positive. The opposite of willing hope is not “you’re biased against anything they do”. It’s skepticism. Unearned belief and support does nothing for me as a fan at this stage of my life. I want to see them succeed.
I want to root for a professional org that sustainably operates at the top of the league in as many ways as possible, leading to sustained on-field success and hopefully championships, although those are hard to come by. This current operation is not making strides towards that as consistently as I’d like, and I’m skeptical it can happen under this leadership. But the bones of a real franchise are in place and I do have hope that if this staff is not the one, the next one MAY be. If not them, then maybe the one after that. That’s what freedom from Snyder brought us, that’s what I could never actually have hope for until he sold, and that’s what I take comfort in when this current group lets me down. I’m loyal to the franchise, not the people that make up the franchise. They have to earn that. I want them to. They haven’t yet.
Missing out on Dobbs and Pierce hurt, but we still have the draft as well as viable options, even if stopgaps again. We end up with Carnell Tate across from McLaurin, this discussion is much different, re-sign Deebo for the slot for a year, and let LMC and Lane compete for that slot position. That's not bad. We end up with Makai Lemon, hypothetically, and put Jennings on the outside.
Okay, and if none of these things happen? How far down your list of contingency plans are you willing to watch the org go and still not question their ability to succeed? If we’re looking at a forced pick of a developmental 3rd round WR and Aiyuk in August or whatever, do you start to question the process and results?
And if it doesn’t go well this season, next offseason is your takeaway “hey they tried as hard as they could in FA, sometimes that’s the way the cookie crumbles, and then the board didn’t fall their way in the draft, it happens sometimes, they’ll get it right this offseason!” or do you start to question if these are the guys to build a playoff roster worthy of a potential franchise QB and worthy of unquestioned support.
If so, then maybe being a little more cynical I just end up a little earlier than you on the same opinions. If not, maybe you have to start wondering what this org would have to do to lose your belief and support. We both want the same things. I’m just not sure this current group is the one to get us those things, and my crime is that I may have built a case to arrive at that opinion a little earlier than someone else? And that is apparently “wallowing in misery”? I don’t think so
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then there's nothing to hope for.
