I'm also an educator, and this is something I think is absolutely true today in the NFL. Tom Brady actually remarked on exactly this, how NIL and the transfer portal are destroying programs because nobody wants to take the time to develop as a player. He had to deal with being 7th on the depth chart at Michigan. Think about that -- the consensus greatest QB to ever lace up was once SEVENTH on the depth chart. And instead of taking shots at the coaches for not seeing his greatness, he was thankful for it because it gave him time to learn all the things he needed to learn to be good at it. He specifically called out how you used to have college programs, but now you just have college teams, and they're dumbing down playbooks.Ice wrote: ↑Wed Jan 08, 2025 9:25 pmCouldn't have possibly stated it better. There are still a few around who are real hands on guys. I hate Cheatin' Jimmy Harbs' guts, but his fingerprints are all over every program he's been a part of. It's why he burns out fast and rubs GMs and ADs wrong.Steeldrama wrote: ↑Wed Jan 08, 2025 6:16 pmYeah development seems to be at an all time low and I really think it’s a league wide and college wide issue.Ice wrote: ↑Wed Jan 08, 2025 4:19 pmOur player development has sucked for a looong time, at almost every position. WR was a nice exception up until a few years ago, and they've had decent results at olb recently, but everything else?
Gotta think this might be the reason Colbert always reached for need in early rounds. If you don't get close to finished products, our coaches aren't going to get them there.
Ice, you can perhaps relate to this as a fellow educator.
The most effective teachers are those that are hands on.
Can’t be all like “Ditto” in the movie Teachers and just throw a bunch of worksheets at the kids and expect them to learn.
Model
Demonstrate how to successfully complete the task at hand.
Down here in Georgia, Kirby Smart is the ultimate snake oil salesman.
The only thing he's developed is his line of bullshit all centered around recruiting.
X’s and O’s are secondary
Player development is nothing but a gum on the shoe annoyance.
Your Steelers?
Chuck Noll was always fancied himself as a “teacher.”
Saw numerous interviews of him pontificating about how that was his favorite aspect of coaching.
Cowher always struck me as a hands on coach.
Think about the drafting philosophy back in the Cowher/Capers/Lebeau years.
Sure, there were instances when they drafted for need.
Troy Edwards a PAINFUL example of that.
In that same ‘99 draft though they landed Joey Sr and Aaron Smith who were groomed behind veteran players who similarly had to master that LeBeau defense (Man, that whole biding their time thing drove that Scunge fella crazy).
Who developed Hines Ward?
Kid was a jack of all trades type up the road in Athens.
SOMEONE on Cowher’s staff took his raw skills and transformed him into a lethal weapon at the wide receiver position.
Teachers like Noll, Cowher, and Lebeau are long gone.
Now we have Teryl Tomlin.
No Teaching
No Development
Just
A wing and a prayer
I also agree that nationally NCAAF, particularly in the big leagues, has become way more about recruiting than developing. Oregon does a great job of it, though. Hartline at tOSU (homer, I know) gets top tier talent, but there's a reason. He coaches them hard. They're finished products and self starters by the time they hit the league. Harrison and Olave were 3 stars, btw. Who was the last WR bust from tOSU? I can name a couple others from Columbus.
Bill Callahan in Tennessee coaching OL for his son, but he's old school. I'm struggling a little naming many more. B2B could probably drop a few others from the pros, but there's fewer than in college.
On our team? Nonexistent. But Ice, Beanie came in as a UDFA and he's been great! Yeah, a UDFA with like 7 years of college experience who can basically coach himself.
I really do think our vet players, guys like Watt, Cam and Minkah may be doing more and better teaching than our coaching staff.
Wow, that was a 5 paragraph essay of a post. Cheers, Drama.
Edit: I'd argue that Pitt, while not sniffing 4 or 5 star recruits, does a pretty good job of making chicken salad, as well.
I see this mentality throughout school today. Nobody wants to work to get better -- they want to know how to do it right immediately without having to practice, or they want AI to do it for them. Kids and more importantly their parents want all the success without any of the hard work.
