The #Vikings have fired defensive coordinator Ed Donatell. He leaves after one season in Minnesota.
— Jason B. Hirschhorn (@by_JBH) January 19, 2023
Donatell previous served as the #Packers' DC from 2000-03.
@Chongo posted:The #Vikings have fired defensive coordinator Ed Donatell. He leaves after one season in Minnesota.
— Jason B. Hirschhorn (@by_JBH) January 19, 2023
Donatell previous served as the #Packers' DC from 2000-03.
Am I the only one here that liked Donatell ? Not just for the 4th and 26.
Donatell seems to be in a middle tier of coaches/coordinators that tend to be boom-or-bust. When everything comes together, his defenses can be good. But when it doesn't, the implosions can be catastrophic.
I think he likely did what he could with what they had, but to say the Vikes defense is lacking talent is an understatement.
@The Grinder posted:Am I the only one here that liked Donatell ? Not just for the 4th and 26.
If I remember correctly many on here like "Easy Ed" in the 1st couple of years as DC. But as the seasons progressed he was called out for his lack of progression and unable to improve once his scheme was figured out.
Struck me as a bit of a puzzling hire (like Joe Barry).
#Vikings Patrick Peterson on podcast on Cousins on 4th down: “When I saw it the only thing I could think of... (was) ‘He must have didn’t know what down it was’ ... On the sideline, it just took me back because I was just shocked that we threw the ball 3 yards when we needed 8."
— Chris Tomasson (@christomasson) January 19, 2023
What’s funny is you could see the Donatell firing coming from a mile away. No way would the new head coach or GM be held accountable when the bottom line is that roster on defense isn’t very good and a number of their guys on offense are either getting old or their skills are declining.
Signing Z turned out to be a disaster, but that shouldn’t be a surprise because he isn’t 100% committed.
@Tschmack posted:What’s funny is you could see the Donatell firing coming from a mile away. No way would the new head coach or GM be held accountable when the bottom line is that roster on defense isn’t very good and a number of their guys on offense are either getting old or their skills are declining.
Signing Z turned out to be a disaster, but that shouldn’t be a surprise because he isn’t 100% committed.
When they signed Zerodarias and looked at the schedule I thought one thing: They will get 1 good game out of him, Game 1. Then he would fade into the sunset. He did get 10 sacks on the year but he wasn't a wrecking ball anymore. Just a wreck.
@ammo posted:If I remember correctly many on here like "Easy Ed" in the 1st couple of years as DC. But as the seasons progressed he was called out for his lack of progression and unable to improve once his scheme was figured out.
He is a mediocre coach, but Sherman blew it bigtime when he fired him after 4th and 26. He hired Bob Slowik, who made Donatell look like a defensive mastermind. Donatell's defenses mostly good until Butler suffered that career ending injury against the Falcons. Sherman's incompetence at GM failed to replenish the defense with fresh talent.
There was a very interesting article in the Athletic this week relevant to discussions of how "good" or "bad" DCs are. It's behind a paywall (here's the link). The Athletic has some outstanding articles of this type across many sports that are really thought provoking and take deeper dives into subjects.
https://theathletic.com/410504...ystem-disparity-nfl/
The basis of the article is that when you look at the guys that made the All-NFL teams this year, that the defensive guys (especially DL) are much more likely to have been 4 or 5 star recruits in high school than offensive guys. It then goes on to argue that successful defenses are more about talent while offense is much more about how you fit in a system. The simplified version is having guys like Reggie White or Aaron Donald will make any DC look good no matter what the system, while you still need a good scheme no matter what your offensive talent looks like. It's an oversimplification but it's an interesting point to start a debate with.
Here's a short excerpt.
“My theory: You can disguise a good player on offense and also uplift and over-evaluate a player with an unbelievable supporting cast,” said former NFL scout Daniel Jeremiah, a draft analyst with NFL Network. “With defensive guys, it’s more, ‘Did you beat the guy in front of you?’ And when it comes to D-linemen, there’s only so many of those guys. It’s like with cornerbacks: There are physical requirements for those positions. You can play with a 4.6 wide receiver. You can’t play with a 4.6 cornerback.”
@Pack-Man posted:He is a mediocre coach, but Sherman blew it bigtime when he fired him after 4th and 26. He hired Bob Slowik, who made Donatell look like a defensive mastermind. Donatell's defenses mostly good until Butler suffered that career ending injury against the Falcons. Sherman's incompetence at GM failed to replenish the defense with fresh talent.
"aggressive" bob slowick was a disaster
@PackLandVA posted:^^^ queue the Kiel grammar commentary
The thing that always strikes me is these guys are (supposed to be) college-educated. Although basic language use should be learned before high school, one can always improve language skills.
As if collage football players goal is to graduate
@Packiderm posted:When they signed Zerodarias and looked at the schedule I thought one thing: They will get 1 good game out of him, Game 1. Then he would fade into the sunset. He did get 10 sacks on the year but he wasn't a wrecking ball anymore. Just a wreck.
Yes! Gute definitely kept the best Smith. I'd much rather have Preston on our squad than Zadarious, especially this past season.
@mrtundra posted:Yes! Gute definitely kept the best Smith. I'd much rather have Preston on our squad than Zadarious, especially this past season.
Preston is a very good run defender. Zadarious thinks he gets paid to tee off and rush the passer regardless of what his assignment is.
The #Vikings have requested permission to speak with #Steelers senior defensive assistant and LBs coach Brian Flores for their newly vacant DC job, source said. Coach Kevin O’Connell and Flores overlapped in New England for a year.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 21, 2023
Would be a significant upgrade.
Vikings crap-hole stadium voted the ugliest venue on this planet.
Film at 11
Waiting for Vikes to go thru motions before declaring their D consultant Mike Pettine aka Angry Bald Man as new DC.
I mean don’t you have to be an ex-Packer to really excite the Vikes?
Just breezed through the Rube Shat divisional game thread. Mostly fighting among themselves and bitching that their team sucks!
@Packiderm posted:Just breezed through the Rube Shat divisional game thread. Mostly fighting among themselves and bitching that their team sucks!
The Queens lost, at home, in the playoffs to the 3rd place team in the NFC East.
In so doing, they made Danny Dimes look like a legitimate playoff QB.
Last night Philly obliterated the NY, for the third time this season, to such an extent that Giants fans no longer want to re-sign Jones to a new contract.
As delicious as it is to revel in the purple tears, and it is D E L I C I O U S, it is also a bit sobering to think our Packers finished 3rd in the pathetic NFC North this season.
Many are also saying to dump Z Smith since he's a liability and his production fell off the cliff in the second half of the season. MN's defense is old and slow and they are $16 million over the cap. Patrick Peterson, H. Smith, Hunter, etc., are all getting up there. Out of all teams this year, MN also got close to the bottom production from their rookie class. They are in a world of hurt on D.
If the Vikings cut Z, he signs with the Bears so he can play “those guys” 4 times a year.
Apparently Zerodarius has taken down his instagram account after being criticized for his poor play and "disappearing act" in the second half of the season. This is the same thing he did last year with Green Bay. Looking like his annual meltdown followed by being released is coming......
Now Viking fans are bitching that announcers favor the Packers and not the Vikings!
@Packiderm posted:Now Viking fans are bitching that announcers favor the Packers and not the Vikings!
None of our posters would never do that.
@13X posted:Apparently Zerodarius has taken down his instagram account after being criticized for his poor play and "disappearing act" in the second half of the season. This is the same thing he did last year with Green Bay. Looking like his annual meltdown followed by being released is coming......
He's burnt toast and he knows it. He has to find a new team to trick into paying him for a year.
I'd consider taking him back on the Packers with a bargain 1-year deal. He could be a part-time, 3rd down pass specialist. And that's about it.
Fuck Z
He quit on the team last year (ie he was “injured”) but the reality is he was pissed at the FO for not extending him so he basically stole money.
Whaddya know he plays great in game 1 against the Packers and then disappears for 80% of the rest of the season for Minnesota.
That’s who he is.
@Tschmack posted:Fuck Z
He quit on the team last year (ie he was “injured”) but the reality is he was pissed at the FO for not extending him so he basically stole money.
Whaddya know he plays great in game 1 against the Packers and then disappears for 80% of the rest of the season for Minnesota.
That’s who he is.
Actually he tried for half the season.
He had 9.5 sacks the first 9 games he played, and then 0.5 in his last eight.
A soft schedule, that everybody saw, except for the Vikings and their fans, coupled with going one and done plus their salary cap issues leads to this:
When they didn't resign Z last offseason, I thought it was a good move considering any DL/EDGE with a back issue approaching 30 was not going to return to form in any consistent way. Thought I was wrong over the first half of the season, then thought I was right over the last half.
Packers aren't the only ones in cap hell:
The #Vikings are interviewing Mike Pettine, the former #Packers DC and current assistant head coach, for their vacant DC job, source said. Brian Flores, the #Steelers senior defensive assistant and LBs coach, has his Minnesota interview tomorrow.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 25, 2023
@mrtundra posted:A soft schedule, that everybody saw, except for the Vikings and their fans, coupled with going one and done plus their salary cap issues leads to this:
It is almost unfair that the Queens First Place schedule has them playing all 4 of the teams in this week's conference championship games.
We play Pittsburgh, the NY Giants , and the LA Rams while the Queens get Cincy, Philly, and SF in 2023.
Skol.
