Should Gregg Williams return as defensive coordinator in '08?

[MTK]

Keeping with yesterday's theme of whether Saunders should return, (which ended up getting sidetracked into whether Williams should return), should Gregg Williams return as d-coordinator?

[dmek25]

im not big as Williams as a head coach, but he is more then adequate coordinator. and i love the continuity thing

[irish]

I have no problems with GW staying as D coordinator. I dont want him as head coach.

[railcon56]

Originally Posted by irish

I have no problems with GW staying as D coordinator. I dont want him as head coach.

I agree with this...

[BDBohnzie]

Naturally.

Currently ranked 10th (check it out. NFC East holds down #7-10 in Defense), this defense is a shadow of last year, when it was ranked near the bottom. Plus it's being done with countless injuries. Sacks and INTs are up, and overall, the defense is playing great. It is the main reason the Skins are 7-7 right now.

[freddyg12]

GW not only should be kept as d-coordinator, he should be the successor to Gibbs as his contract stipulates ($1 mil if he's not hired as hc).

He has paid his dues & grown as a coach in DC. The 2006 debacle changed him a lot I think, humbled him & made him better for 07.

He's a perfect replacement for Gibbs; he's already here, he's learned from a hall of famer & he's hungry to succeed as a head coach, unlike somebody like Cowher who has already won it all.

Williams will certainly alienate some players, but he won't let them get over either. He's had 4 years to learn patience & temperment under Gibbs & I think he'll be a fine head coach so long as he & the Danny's egos don't collide too much.

[SmootSmack]

No. I think Greg Blache should keep his role as defensive coordinator, and Williams stays as Associate Head Coach-Defense.

Seriously though, semantics aside, if Williams gets an offer to be a head coach anywhere he should be allowed to go. Otherwise, I hope he stays. I keep hearing rumors though that Blache could be up for a college coaching job. We shall see.

[12thMan]

Originally Posted by SmootSmack

No. I think Greg Blache should keep his role as defensive coordinator, and Williams stays as Associate Head Coach-Defense.

Seriously though, semantics aside, if Williams gets an offer to be a head coach anywhere he should be allowed to go. Otherwise, I hope he stays. I keep hearing rumors though that Blache could be up for a college coaching job. We shall see.

Honestly, I think if Williams left and the rest of the staff remained would be okay.

[FRPLG]

I can't believe this site has come to the point where this question needs to be asked.

[MTK]

Originally Posted by FRPLG

I can't believe this site has come to the point where this question needs to be asked.

You know how it goes. I just wanted to make sure that the majority has their head on straight.

[Slingin Sammy 33]

Originally Posted by Mattyk72

Keeping with yesterday's theme of whether Saunders should return, (which ended up getting sidetracked into whether Williams should return), should Gregg Williams return as d-coordinator?

Didn't mean to hijack the Saunders thread

You know where I voted (it appears so far I'm a vast minority).

[MTK]

I figured this poll would run about 90/10 in favor of GW. So far I'm not surprised.

[onlydarksets]

I'm curious about the reasoning behind the 3 people (so far) who have said "no". Are you saying you think, from GW's perspective, he should go elsewhere? Or that, from the Skins' perspective, he should not be brought back?

I thought the poll was asking the second question. If it's asking the first question, I'm not sure what my answer would be.

[Slingin Sammy 33]

Originally Posted by onlydarksets

I'm curious about the reasoning behind the 3 people (so far) who have said "no". Are you saying you think, from GW's perspective, he should go elsewhere? Or that, from the Skins' perspective, he should not be brought back?

I said "no", I don't think he should be brought back. Here's why; GWs defense has done fairly well statistically, but the second half breakdowns game after game are a major concern. A stat that was shown in the game Sunday night was that Gibbs 1.0 was 2nd best in the NFL in protecting 2nd half leads from 1982-92 (Richie Petitbone). Gibbs 2.0 was either the worst or 2nd worst in the same stat since 2004 (GW). Gibbs' offensive philosopy hasn't changed dramatically, Gibbs 1.0 was constantly criticized for being "too conservative" also. So IMO this is primarily a D-Coordinator issue. What this indicates is good preparation going into the game but the ability to "think on your feet" and make in-game adjustments is poor.

2004 was amazing defensively
2005 was in the top 1/3, but didn't create many turnovers, overall good
2006 poor, set NFL record low for turnovers created
2007 average at best. 2nd half of games have been poor defensively. 26th in generating turnovers.

The trend is going down, not up. Obviously after last year there was no where to go but up. We should be seeing consistent improvement or at least a steady level of defensive play in the top 1/3 of the NFL for a guy that is one of the highest paid coordinators. Gibbs has given him whatever he has asked for (Taylor, Rogers, McIntosh, Landry, Archuletta, Fletcher, Carter). Even with injuries and Sean's death, we have at least average talent on the defensive side of the ball.

These are the 2nd half breakdowns this year.

Giants: 17-3 Skins at Half / 21-0 NYG in 2nd L
Packers: 14-7 Skins at Half / 10-0 GB in 2nd L
Cards: 14-6 Skins at Half / 13-7 Cards in 2nd W
Eagles: 12-7 Skins at Half / 26-13 Eagles in 2nd L
Dallas: 10-7 Skins at Half / 21-13 Dallas in 2nd L
Bills: 9-2 Skins at Half / 15-7 Bills in 2nd L
Bears: 7-0 Skins at Half / 17-16 Skins in 2nd W

Granted the offense hasn't performed well in the second half of some of these games, but if the D could stay even in the 2nd half of two of these games we are 9-5. Sitting back watching that Cover-2 get picked apart in the 2nd half with almost no defensive shifts or blitzing is sickening. In each of these games it appears the opponent's offense adjusts to our gameplan at halftime and GW isn't prepared.

Obviously not a popular opinion, but I stand by it and honestly hope in the long run I am proven wrong. Bottom line is we all want the same thing; for the Skins to be successful and win Superbowls again. We just don't all agree on how to get there, not that our opinions can do anything to help or hurt the franchise.

[firstdown]

Originally Posted by Slingin Sammy 33

I said "no", I don't think he should be brought back. Here's why; GWs defense has done fairly well statistically, but the second half breakdowns game after game are a major concern. A stat that was shown in the game Sunday night was that Gibbs 1.0 was 2nd best in the NFL in protecting 2nd half leads from 1982-92 (Richie Petitbone). Gibbs 2.0 was either the worst or 2nd worst in the same stat since 2004 (GW). Gibbs' offensive philosopy hasn't changed dramatically, Gibbs 1.0 was constantly criticized for being "too conservative" also. So IMO this is primarily a D-Coordinator issue. What this indicates is good preparation going into the game but the ability to "think on your feet" and make in-game adjustments is poor.

2004 was amazing defensively
2005 was in the top 1/3, but didn't create many turnovers, overall good
2006 poor, set NFL record low for turnovers created
2007 average at best. 2nd half of games have been poor defensively. 26th in generating turnovers.

The trend is going down, not up. Obviously after last year there was no where to go but up. We should be seeing consistent improvement or at least a steady level of defensive play in the top 1/3 of the NFL for a guy that is one of the highest paid coordinators. Gibbs has given him whatever he has asked for (Taylor, Rogers, McIntosh, Landry, Archuletta, Fletcher, Carter). Even with injuries and Sean's death, we have at least average talent on the defensive side of the ball.

These are the 2nd half breakdowns this year.

Giants: 17-3 Skins at Half / 21-0 NYG in 2nd L
Packers: 14-7 Skins at Half / 10-0 GB in 2nd L
Cards: 14-6 Skins at Half / 13-7 Cards in 2nd W
Eagles: 12-7 Skins at Half / 26-13 Eagles in 2nd L
Dallas: 10-7 Skins at Half / 21-13 Dallas in 2nd L
Bills: 9-2 Skins at Half / 15-7 Bills in 2nd L
Bears: 7-0 Skins at Half / 17-16 Skins in 2nd W

Granted the offense hasn't performed well in the second half of some of these games, but if the D could stay even in the 2nd half of two of these games we are 9-5. Sitting back watching that Cover-2 get picked apart in the 2nd half with almost no defensive shifts or blitzing is sickening. In each of these games it appears the opponent's offense adjusts to our gameplan at halftime and GW isn't prepared.

Obviously not a popular opinion, but I stand by it and honestly hope in the long run I am proven wrong. Bottom line is we all want the same thing; for the Skins to be successful and win Superbowls again. We just don't all agree on how to get there, not that our opinions can do anything to help or hurt the franchise.

We would also be 9 and 5 if the O could have scored 20 points in 9 games. So it goes both ways. The O has only scored 30 or more points one time.