Colts Next Banner: We Almost Had McDaniels

In Vino Vinatieri

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11 of 12 Indianapolis Coaches found to be significantly under contract

I've worked in a couple of industries (TV and law) and the accepted custom is that you are expected to mull over an offer by taking it back to the old place, but once you formally accept an offer, that's it. Going back on it is a faux pas.

That said, sometimes a faux pas may be worth it.
that seems to be mostly true in the NFL, but as you said, McDaniels going to Indy and failing to win basically ends his chances at establishing himself as a head coach in the NFL ever again. It's totally worth it in such an old-boys-network job where there are only a handful of opportunities ever.

I’m glad he’s staying and glad the Colts are getting embarrassed. But unless there’s more to the story, isn’t the bit with the assistants a fair criticism?
It absolutely is, and I would judge him for it. But at this point I simply don't really believe it absent any real evidence. All we've heard is some Colt-sourced quotes, innuendo, and people joking about it as schadenfreude. Screwing over a team, who can just hire another coach, is completely believable. Tricking people to move to Indianapolis because of you and then bailing on them is something that requires actual evidence.
 

The Needler

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I'm having a hard time believing these (mostly) unnamed assistants were buying houses or anything before the HC was even officially announced. So, some may have signed a contract or informed their previous employers. Isn't it likely the Colts would be happy to let them out of their contracts, and their current employers would take them back considering the circumstances?
 

lexrageorge

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I'm having a hard time believing these (mostly) unnamed assistants were buying houses or anything before the HC was even officially announced. So, some may have signed a contract or informed their previous employers. Isn't it likely the Colts would be happy to let them out of their contracts, and their current employers would take them back considering the circumstances?
Unless their prior employer already found a replacement.

My guess is that the assistants will be OK. They will either be working for Indy next season under a different head coach, or the Indy GM/owner will do right by them in some other fashion.
 

Jimbodandy

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It absolutely is, and I would judge him for it. But at this point I simply don't really believe it absent any real evidence. All we've heard is some Colt-sourced quotes, innuendo, and people joking about it as schadenfreude. Screwing over a team, who can just hire another coach, is completely believable. Tricking people to move to Indianapolis because of you and then bailing on them is something that requires actual evidence.
Regarding the bolded, welcome to BBtL. Speculation, innuendo, conjecture, and agenda-driven wishcasting are worth more than the public statements of team executives.
 

InstaFace

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I wasn't going to watch it live this morning, but did Ballard say anything of practical worth? Did he say anything of schadenfreude-esque worth? I assume if (say) Irsay stumbled out from behind the curtain and started quoting Jules Winnfield, we'd have seen it posted.
 

dcmissle

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I wasn't going to watch it live this morning, but did Ballard say anything of practical worth? Did he say anything of schadenfreude-esque worth? I assume if (say) Irsay stumbled out from behind the curtain and started quoting Jules Winnfield, we'd have seen it posted.
No drama, professional and cool headed. We had a deal, Josh backed out, we are disappointed and are moving on.
 

dcmissle

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Thanks. That's almost disappointing, but good for him being the bigger guy about it.
The drama has been ongoing for 11 years with pauses that refresh. If you want to take it back to the shenanigans with the two Bills, obviously longer.

 

Van Everyman

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And while I thought literally nothing could be ruled out in this upcoming draft if "the guy" is in this draft, I no longer think so. This defense is too fucked to allow for it.
Jesus Christ do you need to step away from the ledge. Have you slept since Sunday?
 

Leather

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Regarding the bolded, welcome to BBtL. Speculation, innuendo, conjecture, and agenda-driven wishcasting are worth more than the public statements of team executives.
And a seeming pathological need to make every presumption in a light least favorable to the Patriots’ front office because of the lack of information coming from them to explain themselves. The same front office that has created a culture that is lauded by many of the same posters for its ability to not release information to the press; a press those posters and then mock for making every negative inference against the Patriots because of said lack of information.
 

dcmissle

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Jesus Christ do you need to step away from the ledge. Have you slept since Sunday?
Yes, it’s actually helpful to work through this among friends while maintaining sports news blackouts otherwise. Soon enough, the game recedes to Tyree/Manningham territory — especially if they can successfully address their problems.
 

Van Everyman

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Yes, it’s actually helpful to work through this among friends while maintaining sports news blackouts otherwise. Soon enough, the game recedes to Tyree/Manningham territory — especially if they can successfully address their problems.
This game doesn’t come with any of the baggage for me that those games did. It hurt to lose but the whole season was a grind from the minute Edelman went down. Which, you know, could be a consequence of two titles in three years, on the heels of the single greatest comeback in the history of the sport and the pressures of having the three best people to ever man their roles. Keeping that up year after year is really, really hard – especially in a game with the violent attrition of football.

Back on topic, Bedard touched on one thing that hasn’t really been discussed in this thread much about McDaniels returning: his relationship with Brady. We’ve seen in Tom vs. Time that they are close – sharing film analysis, adding plays, etc. What has maybe not gotten as much attention—which Bedard pointed out—is that McDaniels has assumed a critical role in between Belichick and Brady, who have never been particularly close.

Say what you will about Kraft as an owner – that his main job is to stay out of Belichick’s way and pay the bills. But credit him here for recognizing the importance of McDaniels to Brady’s success and to getting the most out of his "twilight years" – years in which he just happens to be playing his very best football when the margin for error with a new coordinator gets smaller every year.

Given all the uncertainty and uncharacteristic drama that came with this season--the trading of Jimmy G, Patricia leaving, the SB loss, even Gronk contemplating retirement--this was a necessary move to stabilize the team's single greatest asset, but by no means an easy one. And it should make every fan feel good about where things stand going forward.
 

Jimbodandy

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And a seeming pathological need to make every presumption in a light least favorable to the Patriots’ front office because of the lack of information coming from them to explain themselves. The same front office that has created a culture that is lauded by many of the same posters for its ability to not release information to the press; a press those posters and then mock for making every negative inference against the Patriots because of said lack of information.
So despite specific, on the record statements by all relevant parties, it's their fault that we prefer media-fueled and poster theories over their expert testimony, because the latter is incomplete or incomprehensible to us. That seems reasonable.

These cats make mistakes without question, but we are spending a lot of time inventing our own reality around here lately.
 

Bobby Sprowl 2

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So, this team in Indianapolis was mortally offended and wounded that the Patriots' offense willfully let air out of their footballs and gain an unfair advantage in the AFC championship game. Everyone cried in unison that Belichick had to know it was going on and, by association even if his name didn't surface, McDaniels had to know. Cheaters. No integrity. But three years later, let's hire a guy who was in the middle of all of it.
 

Leather

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So despite specific, on the record statements by all relevant parties, it's their fault that we prefer media-fueled and poster theories over their expert testimony, because the latter is incomplete or incomprehensible to us. That seems reasonable.

These cats make mistakes without question, but we are spending a lot of time inventing our own reality around here lately.
That's, like, exactly what I'm saying, man.
 

tims4wins

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This game doesn’t come with any of the baggage for me that those games did. It hurt to lose but the whole season was a grind from the minute Edelman went down. Which, you know, could be a consequence of two titles in three years, on the heels of the single greatest comeback in the history of the sport and the pressures of having the three best people to ever man their roles. Keeping that up year after year is really, really hard – especially in a game with the violent attrition of football.
Totally agree. I am completely over it. Those games hurt so much because we didn't know if we were going to get a shot at a 4th. Now we have 5. Everything else is just gravy. On to 2018.
 

Rusty13

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The “hot takes” on Boston sports radio about McDaniels today are just brutal. They (almost in unison) are just brutalizing the guy, and the decision the made.
 

lexrageorge

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One of the funnier things I read was from Volin's column this morning, which I'll offer without further comment:

NBC analyst and former Colts coach Tony Dungy couldn’t contain his rage on Wednesday morning. Dungy is a rival and a Colt at heart, but also among the most mild-mannered people you might ever meet. He’s not an emotional guy or a hot-take artist.
 

Reverend

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So, this team in Indianapolis was mortally offended and wounded that the Patriots' offense willfully let air out of their footballs and gain an unfair advantage in the AFC championship game. Everyone cried in unison that Belichick had to know it was going on and, by association even if his name didn't surface, McDaniels had to know. Cheaters. No integrity. But three years later, let's hire a guy who was in the middle of all of it.
Who are you so wise in science?

This is a fucking fantastic observation.
 

BaseballJones

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Who are you so wise in science?

This is a fucking fantastic observation.
It is, but let's be honest. After DFG, if Belichick or Brady were available to any team in the league, is there a team that wouldn't have taken either of them? MAYYYYYBE Green Bay would stick with Rodgers, but otherwise....Every team would have taken Belichick, and virtually every one would have taken Brady.

Bottom line: Teams simply do not care about this stuff, unless they can use it against the Patriots.
 

kenneycb

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It's also a different regime running things in Indy. Sure Irsay has to sign off but I doubt he had anything to actually do with DFG outside of perhaps some sound clips.If it were Grigson making the decision things would likely be a bit different.
 

Bergs

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I don't think that has a snowball's chance in 16 hells with the closeness to the Nazi SS uniform skull and the Pats having Jewish owners.

Not that any of this is serious to begin with, but those 2 skulls look nothing alike. At all.
 

Al Zarilla

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Not that any of this is serious to begin with, but those 2 skulls look nothing alike. At all.
I know it's not anything serious but I think you're wrong. If anybody tried to associate any kind of skull logo with the Pats, it would be skuttled faster than you can say Jack Robinson. That skull logo was that infamous.

Edit, I didn't know this until just now:

Hiatt’s parents, Myra’s grandparents, were both killed during the Holocaust, along with three other members of his family.
 
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Bergs

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I know it's not anything serious but I think you're wrong. If anybody tried to associate any kind of skull logo with the Pats, it would be skuttled faster than you can say Jack Robinson. That skull logo was that infamous.
How does that make me wrong? Those 2 skulls look nothing alike. That's not really opinion so much as readily apparent observation.
 

Leather

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I mean, I don't think they'd ever use a skull image for general aesthetic reasons, not because the SS once (famously, yes) used a skull as part of its imagery.

Al Davis was Jewish, too, and I don't recall him ever bemoaning the association of skulls with his franchise.
 

dcmissle

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Bears were doubtful Josh would leave Pats, so they quickly jumped on the guy who also impressed the Colts:

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2018/02/08/bears-interviewed-mcdaniels-had-doubts-he-would-leave-the-patriots/

Mike Florio brings street smarts and legal smarts to everything he does, and because I’m prejudiced in favor of the Pats — and frankly, he is too — I love Mike Florio.

He didn’t write this piece but PFT has been consistent — Colts were rubes, asked for this trouble.
 

Bergs

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Well, I'm not changing my opinion, so the famous agree to disagree?
So you honestly think the "Pats skull" poster by InstantKarma (stylized 2-D grey profile with mandible included looking right) looks like the SS skull (realistic 3-D looking forward/left with no mandible and crossbones)? Because they really, really look nothing alike, except for the whole "hey, it looks like a skull" thing.
 

Bergs

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As someone who used to practice and teach graphic design for a living, it's a really painful stretch to connect an SS skull logo with the Patriots mockup. Let's move on.
Hey, no need to be a thread Nazi, man.
 

Reverend

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I know it's not anything serious but I think you're wrong. If anybody tried to associate any kind of skull logo with the Pats, it would be skuttled faster than you can say Jack Robinson. That skull logo was that infamous.

Edit, I didn't know this until just now:

Hiatt’s parents, Myra’s grandparents, were both killed during the Holocaust, along with three other members of his family.
I am so not prepared to concede the human skeleton to the Nazis.
 

Couperin47

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Everything I hear has me more and more certain that not only isn't Luck going to be ready next Fall, but he's never going to be anything but a shadow of what he was, in which case not only will McDaniels look prescient, but it will be fascinating to see exactly how Colts fans manage to blame it all on Kraft.