does anybody else think they can take the afc championship ? heck at 18 - 1 odds, thinking throwing $50 on it, or is it a waste?
San Francisco 49ers?
- Thread starter crdshrk007
- Start date
not sure
not sure
the houston gamblers look to be pretty damn tough with Jim fkn Kelly:00hour :shrug:
not sure
the houston gamblers look to be pretty damn tough with Jim fkn Kelly:00hour :shrug:
49ers offensive coordinator Jimmy Raye continues to tinker
The instant snapshot last spring revealed an older man, self-assured, having earned the right to be stubborn.
Jimmy Raye's mission was to fix the 49ers offense. Could someone so steeped in convention provide the innovation the franchise and its fans once took for granted?
A month or so into last season, his first as 49ers offensive coordinator, Raye looked like the latest failure. His offense consisted of rarely productive runs between the tackles, safe passes to average wide receivers and the occasional strike to the dynamic tight end.
The 49ers stumbled. Their fans, recalling the fireworks generated by past offenses, grumbled and braced for a year of boring without scoring.
Then we learned Raye didn't get into his 60s by being a fool.
With the blessing of head coach Mike Singletary, who hired him partly because they share a belief in the run game as a foundation, Raye made adjustments. With Alex Smith replacing Shaun Hill at quarterback and rookie wideout Michael Crabtree ending his holdout and joining the team, Raye diversified the offense and gave it more dimension.
The change occurred out of necessity. And to suit the personnel. And because Raye, 64, is not as stubborn as his snapshot.
He and the offense continue to evolve. As the 49ers this week go through organized team activities, Raye continues to tinker and expand. He is not, by implication, the ultraconservative nightmare many fans feared.
He
really, truly understands that passing the football is essential.
"Absolutely," he said Tuesday. "You have to have all phases to be productive. The passing game is eventually the thing that separates you when the fit gets tighter in terms of the defensive teams that are pretty good and the final six or eight teams in the playoff part of it."
Translation: Effective passing is the difference between offensive mediocrity and superiority in today's NFL.
Raye has been coaching since 1971, in the NFL since 1977. In 14 jobs, for 10 different teams, he has worked on the offensive side of the football. He observes, listens, learns and applies. He is both teacher and student ? and acutely aware of trends.
He took note of the postseason, saw the New York Jets ride defense and a powerful running to reach the AFC title game.
But Raye also noted the influence of quarterbacks like Arizona's Kurt Warner and Green Bay's Aaron Rodgers. Moreover, Raye knows the Super Bowl featured New Orleans and Indianapolis ? or rather Saints QB Drew Brees against Colts QB Peyton Manning.
This is not to suggest the 2010 49ers will come out slinging but to insinuate Raye believes he'll be more adequately prepared to do so, if necessary.
"There are basic fundamental parts of the game of football," he said. "That hasn't changed through the trends. And the things we do, we try to attach ourselves to those things and then have the tributaries of expression that will lead us out of that."
Translation: Though football is constantly changing, the basics rarely do, and his goal is to establish an identity without being one-dimensional.
This approach is not theoretically different from that which was taken by the late Bill Walsh. His identity was the quick passing game, utilizing angles and horizontal patterns, but his teams also gashed defenses with running backs Roger Craig and Wendell Tyler.
The 49ers have considerable work to do in the four months before the season starts. They still lack a bona fide deep threat, and their offensive line is a work in progress, but they have a diagram and more of a clue.
"We've come almost 180 degrees from a year ago," Raye said, "in terms of the basic, fundamental understanding of the words and nomenclature of the system and trying to get past that point."
Translation: So much that was so difficult last year is coming more easily.
That familiarity promotes an environment with a freer dialogue. The flexibility displayed by Raye last season, when he oversaw a dramatic change in offense, including increased use of the pass, revealed him as a willing listener, which has emboldened players to speak up.
He is not, after all, an old coach committed to old ways. He's not here to smother the creativity that was the hallmark of the 49ers under Walsh.
It's just that Raye, from the fisherman's hat pulled low over his brow to the white stubble sprouting through the fleshy ridges of his face to the professorially measured words, makes for a convenient snapshot of a football coach.
But a snapshot is nothing more than an image.
The instant snapshot last spring revealed an older man, self-assured, having earned the right to be stubborn.
Jimmy Raye's mission was to fix the 49ers offense. Could someone so steeped in convention provide the innovation the franchise and its fans once took for granted?
A month or so into last season, his first as 49ers offensive coordinator, Raye looked like the latest failure. His offense consisted of rarely productive runs between the tackles, safe passes to average wide receivers and the occasional strike to the dynamic tight end.
The 49ers stumbled. Their fans, recalling the fireworks generated by past offenses, grumbled and braced for a year of boring without scoring.
Then we learned Raye didn't get into his 60s by being a fool.
With the blessing of head coach Mike Singletary, who hired him partly because they share a belief in the run game as a foundation, Raye made adjustments. With Alex Smith replacing Shaun Hill at quarterback and rookie wideout Michael Crabtree ending his holdout and joining the team, Raye diversified the offense and gave it more dimension.
The change occurred out of necessity. And to suit the personnel. And because Raye, 64, is not as stubborn as his snapshot.
He and the offense continue to evolve. As the 49ers this week go through organized team activities, Raye continues to tinker and expand. He is not, by implication, the ultraconservative nightmare many fans feared.
He
really, truly understands that passing the football is essential.
"Absolutely," he said Tuesday. "You have to have all phases to be productive. The passing game is eventually the thing that separates you when the fit gets tighter in terms of the defensive teams that are pretty good and the final six or eight teams in the playoff part of it."
Translation: Effective passing is the difference between offensive mediocrity and superiority in today's NFL.
Raye has been coaching since 1971, in the NFL since 1977. In 14 jobs, for 10 different teams, he has worked on the offensive side of the football. He observes, listens, learns and applies. He is both teacher and student ? and acutely aware of trends.
He took note of the postseason, saw the New York Jets ride defense and a powerful running to reach the AFC title game.
But Raye also noted the influence of quarterbacks like Arizona's Kurt Warner and Green Bay's Aaron Rodgers. Moreover, Raye knows the Super Bowl featured New Orleans and Indianapolis ? or rather Saints QB Drew Brees against Colts QB Peyton Manning.
This is not to suggest the 2010 49ers will come out slinging but to insinuate Raye believes he'll be more adequately prepared to do so, if necessary.
"There are basic fundamental parts of the game of football," he said. "That hasn't changed through the trends. And the things we do, we try to attach ourselves to those things and then have the tributaries of expression that will lead us out of that."
Translation: Though football is constantly changing, the basics rarely do, and his goal is to establish an identity without being one-dimensional.
This approach is not theoretically different from that which was taken by the late Bill Walsh. His identity was the quick passing game, utilizing angles and horizontal patterns, but his teams also gashed defenses with running backs Roger Craig and Wendell Tyler.
The 49ers have considerable work to do in the four months before the season starts. They still lack a bona fide deep threat, and their offensive line is a work in progress, but they have a diagram and more of a clue.
"We've come almost 180 degrees from a year ago," Raye said, "in terms of the basic, fundamental understanding of the words and nomenclature of the system and trying to get past that point."
Translation: So much that was so difficult last year is coming more easily.
That familiarity promotes an environment with a freer dialogue. The flexibility displayed by Raye last season, when he oversaw a dramatic change in offense, including increased use of the pass, revealed him as a willing listener, which has emboldened players to speak up.
He is not, after all, an old coach committed to old ways. He's not here to smother the creativity that was the hallmark of the 49ers under Walsh.
It's just that Raye, from the fisherman's hat pulled low over his brow to the white stubble sprouting through the fleshy ridges of his face to the professorially measured words, makes for a convenient snapshot of a football coach.
But a snapshot is nothing more than an image.
