I think the learning curve on Collins is more visible with less talented players. We see it with Gibbs. his talent can overcome poor play calls or even poor decisions by other players. Collins kicks that 1st half FG if he has Butker. That’s why I keep saying the proper play call and decisions are already known in football. Collins sometimes out coaches himself. The football call on 4th down from the 13 with 10 seconds in the half and we are getting the ball coming out in the third, is to try the FG - regardless. You have to work on routine plays. In baseball you don’t play a shift with the infield because your 2nd basemen sux you play it because the batter is a dead pull hitter. Collins needs to run when it’s a running play and pass on passing plays right now. He should also kick in kicking situations. Part of development is routine, I think the coaches are mixing a personnel rebuild with a desire to win and the result is inconsistent play calling, in the moment decision making And player performance. Call basic situational calls That fit your current team, If our strength right now in this rebuild is running and we run all the way down the field is there a need to start throwing inside the 10 ? I think that’s over coaching, do what football sense and this rebuild team tells you to do, run until they stop you ! I’d say that about passing if our best play was the pass. Play to your talent. Which is more likely over time, a TD on 4th down late in the half or a FG ? Call the football play. Unless it’s a must I’d kick it every time, even with a struggling PK’er.
I don’t know if mistakes like false starts are a talent thing or not but we score from the one if we don’t have 2 in a row, a score makes the game different and the 4th quarter play calling different, was there a need to go hurry up ? Coaching inconsistency caused the false starts, unfortunately we are not yet in the mindset to change our timing on the line. Or perhaps Sims cadence turns into a different tone when he is hurrying, I don’t know. But when we changed our timing the current personnel wasn’t ready for it from a talent/mentality perspective, they will be but in a year or two but not now.
we also don’t know if Sims is picking the correct WR to throw to. He threw to a double covered guy on two long passes, one in the end zone should have been picked, the other was down the left sideline on a late possession, if that WR is double covered there was likely an open guy underneath, Sims being young wants to force the big throw, so the coaches have to take that option from him by not calling plays where WRs are streaking, late in games, I think he try’s to force it downfield because he doesn’t understand how much time he has left in the game Or the situation yet.
so yes talent can both cover up bad coaching decisions and help the coaching improve but the coaches have to rely on their basics also, either we are developing a program or we are strategizing to win one game, current talent says it can’t be both, not yet.
