Great article, great thread.
Something no one seems willing to address is the horrible, ridiculously poor play of the secondary. Regardless of how bad the offense is and how bad Mularkey is, the secondary has been just as bad.
Maybe I'm wrong, but I assume Saban had input on whom his new O-cooridnator might be. Why would you pick Mularkey? It's not like he's been great or even good with the Bills. Linehan was awesome, is there any reason you wouldn't pick someone in the same mold? Big mistake there.
That secondary is as poorly prepared game in and game out as any I've ever seen. The secondary is Sabans area of expertise. It's where he played and supposedly the area he's the best judge of talent in. Why doesn't anyone criticize him about his lack of preparation week in and week out.
Everyone makes mistakes and I still think Saban is smart/good enough to overcome them. But he needs to start being accountible and taking responsibility for how poorly he prepared his team.
Someone said he's not a media darling? I haven't heard one reporter ask him why he focuses on positives that didn't exist until the Chicago game. I haven't heard a reporter ask how the area of his team that he's the most directly responsible for has been so bad this season and what progress they made up until the Chicago game. He's not hated by the media, he's the most left alone coach I've ever seen.
How many times in a 1 and 6 season when you finished 6 and 0 the season before can you suggest there has been progress?
My biggest knock on the guy is he focuses on positives that don't exist and then diffuses responsiblity every time he's forced to talk about who's accountible or responsible. An answer like this shifts the blame away from himself. "No matter how I answer this question I can't win. So I'll assume full blame." That's basically saying, because I can't win no matter how I answer I'll just answer this way. Not because it's true but because he can't win no matter how he answers.
He's supposedly cut from the same mold as Bellichick. Bellichick doesn't say much to the media but when he does, he focuses more on the things that need work and his own shortcomings than he does on positives. If the game has no positives he's the first to admit it and first to claim responsibility.
It doesn't matter how poorly Saban prepares the team. If he takes responsibility he'll maintain the fans respect and the respect of his players. Unfortunately, the best preparatory coach on the team so far has been JT. It's not his job but he's taken over since Saban can't seem to handle it.
