Conservative coaching almost cost us game!

When we got the ball back from the Pats following Crabs game winner and another near disaster that was Ted Ginn trying to field punts tonight I told everyone in the room we would run 3 times and give the ball back to Brady with ample time on the clock. And we did. Lucky for us the defense showed up for the second straight series. Kaep was on fire throwing the ball tonight, very few mistakes or off target throws. Granted, he had plenty of mistakes with the snaps, but you have to take a snap to hand it off too. Yet once again with the game on the line Harbaugh and Roman choose to take it out of the QB's (same case as with Alex) hands and put the ultimate pressure on our defense to win a game - tired, cold, spent, in Foxboro against Tom Brady in December. I'm sorry, but I don't see that as playing the percentages. If Kaep is the guy to win us a SB, put the ball in his hands and let him win us games. Let him kick teams while they are down and end the fight before it begins. This is why this is a QB driven league, not because you need to throw the ball all the time - I love our balance - but when the game is on the line, the best QBs close it out like Brian Wilson in November. I think Kaep has that killer instinct in him. Roman just needs to quit tying his hands behind his back and let him unleash it.

Originally posted by SneakySniper:
The Saints game did not need to be close either, but apparently you want to ignore that.

The point I am trying to make is that the play-calling in the second half was too conservative.

And by the way, Smith got those stats playing until the end. If Kaep had the chance to score more with more passing play calls, he would have had 6 touchdowns and 500 yards, lets not count the dropped passes.

I wasn't turning this thread into a quarterback thread, I simply answered a question that didn't need to be asked in the first place.

This is a thread about coaching. If you don't know how to stay topical, then you don't need to be in the discussion.

Playcalling and execution was dreadful for most of the 2nd half.

We had a string of three consecutive 3-and-outs that let NE back in the game. The coaches applied the brakes too soon. There was still 25 minutes left in the ball game when we went up 4 scores.

Collinsworth pointed out that we switched from man to zone coverage in the 2nd half, which he didn't understand because our man coverage was so effective in the 1st. The switch to zone allowed Brady to get in a rhythm, and before you could blink it was a tie game.

It was a great win. The coaches and players deserve a ton of credit. Nobody goes to Foxborough in December and wins. Except we did. Hopefully this will be a learning experience for both players and coaches on how to put a team away when you should. This game never should have been close.

Originally posted by SofaKing:
Playcalling and execution was dreadful for most of the 2nd half.

We had a string of three consecutive 3-and-outs that let NE back in the game. The coaches applied the brakes too soon. There was still 25 minutes left in the ball game when we went up 4 scores.

Collinsworth pointed out that we switched from man to zone coverage in the 2nd half, which he didn't understand because our man coverage was so effective in the 1st. The switch to zone allowed Brady to get in a rhythm, and before you could blink it was a tie game.

It was a great win. The coaches and players deserve a ton of credit. Nobody goes to Foxborough in December and wins. Except we did. Hopefully this will be a learning experience for both players and coaches on how to put a team away when you should. This game never should have been close.

.

up to the 31-3 lead, we ran it 27 times and passed 19 times. After that until NE tied it at 31, we ran it 5 times, passed 4 times and were sacked once. But the difference is we stopped going for big plays in the passing game. That's what our O did great and really depended on tonight. Coaches must learn going forward not to abandon that just because we have a big lead.

Originally posted by kingairta:
Offense did its job.

The d not getting pressure on Brady on those drives kept the d on the field.

Was the offense's job to get three straight three and outs in the second half? Really? That's doing the job. Brady just no huddled our D into exhaustion. The only defense we had against that were long sustained offensive drives.

We adjusted too late when the Pats changed their game plan. They went from a mix of runs and passes to straight passing. When they did that we should of changed from attacking the 'A' gaps (like we always do) and charged from the sides. Also Brady and Co. would mostly run short 3 step routes and Brady was finding the sides all day.

Adjustment would have been tight man coverage with 2 safety net on top. Also Willis was getting burned on the drag route where he should have been playing middle zone and the rest was in man.

Agreed with all...it's been a constant concern for almost 2 years now. Very very conservative in the RZ. I genuinely think we only have 1 pass play (very low percentage too) for passes IN the EZ inside the RZ...that stupid fade to our outside WR (it's worked once with Alex/Crabtree). All other passes are well short hoping for RAC into the EZ. Can you remember a single pass IN the EZ to a TE, RB, slant, to the slot man, etc.? Ever?

Originally posted by ForeverYoung:
It's amazing how often this happens in sports. Not just football, but baseball, hockey, basketball, etc. A team jumps out to a huge lead and they become unsure of how to coach, play, etc. I've seen it happen so many times in my lifetime, but that doesn't mean it doesn't still shock the hell out of me whenever I see it happen.

One of the only teams that does it correctly is the team the 49ers just beat. The Patriots jump out to a big lead and more often than not,
they crush the other team. Belichick doesn't sit on leads ever. He lights up the scoreboard. Why? because he's not bound to conventional
thinking. Get a big lead, sit on it and run the clock out. The Patriots and Packers just keep scoring points ALL DAY LONG. Thats what we should have kept doing.
But they got scared like coaches normally do and said let's just bleed out the clock and not take too many chances. I'm happy we won but it was embarrassing
to give up a 28 point lead. I don't care who was quarterbacking, I don't care who was coaching. It's not acceptable to allow that to happen.

As for the three run plays people forget Gore was getting big runs all night. Why not let him pound it?

How many runs over 10 yards did the team get last night?

I think Niner fans should keep in mind that this was the Patriots and they are a unique team. Yes, the coaches got conservative with a 28 point lead, but that is usually the right way to go. The Patriots are one of the few teams that can really sting you quickly like that if you get conservative. I think usually, with a 28 point lead, it really is a sound policy to lay back and make sure nobody gets behind you. The only way the Niners will see the Patriots again is if both teams make it to the Superbowl and I'm guessing that on a neutral field and in similar circumstances, Niners coaches will not make the same mistake.

Originally posted by vaden:
up to the 31-3 lead, we ran it 27 times and passed 19 times. After that until NE tied it at 31, we ran it 5 times, passed 4 times and were sacked once. But the difference is we stopped going for big plays in the passing game. That's what our O did great and really depended on tonight. Coaches must learn going forward not to abandon that just because we have a big lead.

I don't understand. Obviously New England made some adjustments but it seems that mid 3rd quarter, they went away from pretty much EVERYTHING that had gotten them the big lead. It was totally mind-boggling.

Great win!

Also a great opportunity for our coaches to learn. When you have a high-caliber team down - crush them and NEVER let up.

LMJ played a very good game.

RJF also played well.

Originally posted by Norwalks_Best:
GINN almost cost us the Game! CUT HIM!!

We still need him, plus the refs ruled he didnt touch the ball

I know LMJ looked strong returning kicks , but chalk it up as a bad game for Teddy , cutting him would blow up in our faces, we need to ride it out with the guys on the roster the rest of the way

I would be all for cutting him if he, lets say, was trashing the team on some social media site