Quote:
Originally Posted by Dam8610
Both are huge right now. Being 8-3-1 going into Houston should they beat Miami and Jacksonville instead of 7-5 would give them a shot at the division lead in that game no matter what else happened. Still surprised you guys didn't lambaste Reich for that 4th down decision, but I guess you're in the honeymoon phase.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Chaka
He wasn’t lambasted because it was an understandable decision for an aggressive coach who wants to build a winning mentality.
If you criticize him for that decision, you’d also have to criticize his other aggressive decisions like going for it on other 4th down situations (most of which have been successful) or, most recently, his decision to go for 2 in the third quarter of the JAX game when we were ahead by 14 - a decision which worked and ultimately preserved our 3 point lead at the end of the game, ensuring that JAX could not win by just getting a FG - and probably impacting their decision making on the last pivotal drive.
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o
I don't think that those critiques are necessarily mutually inclusive and/or exclusive.
I have made it clear on numerous occasions that I love Reich and the magnificent improvement over the Colts' previous coach (Chuck Pagano) while simultaneously asserting that that specific decision to go for it on 4th down with only 29 seconds left to play in overtime was not prudent, particularly that early in the season when it is (was) not yet clear as to whether or not the team would be vying for a playoff berth.
Being aggressive throughout the first 55 to 59 minutes of a game (and for the first 13 and-a-half-to-14 and-a-half minutes of an overtime period) does not preclude a coach from accepting the reality of a situation in the closing seconds of the 4th quarter (and/or overtime), and making a prudent decision because of that reality.
Overall, I am thrilled with Reich, particularly with the non-predictive nature of the play-calling on offense (which is the antithesis of what we saw during the Pagano regime from 2013 through 2017.)
o