Quote:
Originally Posted by Chromeburn
I have a simple question for you, did you play any football?
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Yes, but not to a level that will satisfy you. And as I’ve already stated, the questions being asked were by media, not me, so other people had concerns or at least questions about the methods. Ballard has had plenty of questions locally and nationally about the exact things I’ve brought up. I’m not pretending to have some deep insight, I had a strong belief that so far has been pretty damn accurate. I really don’t care if you agree. Hell, in some of Ballard’s quote HE agrees that he failed in areas I pointed out.
I really don’t care if you agree with WHY I think Ballard has failed. For all my supposed ignorance I do know how to read a won / loss record. I’ve watched every game of his tenure. I’ve seen how his team has performed. If you think he’s a great GM, so be it. I just hope he takes his greatness to another team. Soon. It hasn’t worked here. I know there are different team building styles even if you think there aren’t. There are different opinions on leadership and different opinions on how to develop a young QB (I agree Irsay forced the AR start).
You seem to think because I have an opinion on my favorite team, I think I’m an expert and qualified to run a team myself. It’s a ridiculous notion on your part. This is exactly what fans do. My disregarding Polians opinion is because Ballard is 9 years in, we are well past the point that I need to defer to Polian as to how Ballard will perform. Polian is a HOFer but he’s also been wrong. That’s not a knock, it’s fact. It’s pretty clear to a lot of people this is one of those times. I hope Ballard is successful in his next job. And I agree he will get another. But you can also tell from his comments that he has learned and changed some from this process. Or at least he claims he has.
The ironic thing is that you almost never see me discussing or evaluating players pre draft. The reason is because I don’t study tape and I don’t research of follow that level of player evaluation. However I do have decades of experience in leadership and team building, so I have a higher degree of opinion on that. And I do find NFL and NBA team building fascinating and have researched the assembly of different high level teams. That has colored my opinion. Not to a PHd level or anything but it is something I find fascinating. Which is why I bristle every time one of Ballard’s supporters pretends there was no other viable way to build a team other than how he has done it. I know damn well that’s not true.
There are plenty of Ballard “failures” that I don’t say anything about. Every GM is going to have a good amount of individual failures. Hell, I have a lot of experience in hiring people and know how difficult it is. I know it’s even more difficult at that level. The ones I hit Ballard on are the ones I see as systemic to his philosophy. That typically means things he has said and then we’ve seen his actions back it up. Not individual player evaluations but the repeating larger philosophy that I’ve never agreed with and believe has undermined the things I believe Ballard does do well. And I point out that I’ve been saying it for years because every Ballard supporter has done exactly what you are trying to do, but their usual tactic has been to accuse me of hindsight. Now even though I have accurately stated exactly where the team would be (mediocre, rarely bottom of the league) I’m just ignorant. So be it. I’ve already given your arrogant ass much more time than I should.
As I said, enjoy the season. I have nothing else to say to you about it.