“I believe it’s about the players, not the scheme." - Adam Gase

[foozool13]

The MMQB: You’ve gotten a reputation of forming your offense around the players you have, not vice versa. Was that an important part in your getting this job?

Gase: “I believe it’s about the players, not the scheme. Doing what’s best for the players, developing the players, developing the team. For me, that goes back to being with [former Denver coach] Josh McDaniels, on that staff. Every week was a different week. The time I spent with Josh, that’s where it really hit me that it’s always about what’s best for this week, winning this game with this group of players—whatever you have to do. That is the fun part of coaching. You get to create, and I love the creativity part of the profession. You can create the foundation, but then I want to coach a team that’s fluid, to put guys in the best position possible to win every week. I’m pretty sure that’s a big reason why the guy who’s been on top of the division for so long [New England’s Bill Belichick] stays there.”

http://www.finheaven.com/showthread.php?372800-MMQB-Three-questions-with-Adam-Gase

This might be the single most impressive thing I have heard Adam Gase say so far. I have been beating the drum about wanting a coach that can adapt to his players and not the other way around. ALL teams in the NFL have talent and you need to adapt your scheme to that talent! There are so many schemes that a coach can choose from. Why not use the best one for your current roster?!?!

Belicheck has been doing this for years and it is exactly why his teams are so damn good. They change the identity of their offense and defense all the time. While it’s still built around Brady, the offense they run seems like it changes yearly. This is why teams have so much trouble game planning. Just when you think you know what they are going to do, they change the entire thing up and run the ball 35 times in a game.

Of course some of our former coaches have said this before, but I don’t think using those words. Most have a system they run and want to players to adapt. Failbin was the epitome of that. From the small sample size that Gase has provided with Tebow and Cutler, I feel like Gase might actually hold true to this. While I’m not discounting the year Manning had with Gase, Manning is an all-time great, so it’s hard to judge how much Gase helped (Manning did have his most ridiculous statistical year ever with Gase at OC).

I just hope this isn’t coaches speak and that it actually translates to the field. I truly hope that it does, because if so, we may have stumbled onto a damn good HC.

I’m cautiously optimistic.

 

[mahmacoat]

its about success vs ego right. Don Shula would say "well duh!!!"

 

[FinHopeful]

I have not believed this statement from any of our previous coaches. It is hard for me to believe the statement from Coach Gase, but He clearly made adjustments this year in Chicago. I will be cautiously optimistic with you.

 

[ANUFan]

But this does beg the question. How do you make it all fit under one offense scheme? Doesn't it mean you have to pick players to some degree to fit a certain scheme? For example lets say L.Miller can't catch and runs best out of I-form. But TE C.Jordan can't block but can catch etc.

How do you mesh players with different strengths into a cohesive scheme?

 

[roy_miami]

Belicheck has been doing this for years and it is exactly why his teams are so damn good. .

Thats the reason huh? Why did McDaniels team suck while employing the same strategy then?

 

[roy_miami]

Belicheck has been doing this for years and it is exactly why his teams are so damn good. .

Thats the reason huh? Why did McDaniels team suck while employing the same strategy then?

 

[foozool13]

But this does beg the question. How do you make it all fit under one offense scheme? Doesn't it mean you have to pick players to some degree to fit a certain scheme? For example lets say L.Miller can't catch and runs best out of I-form. But TE C.Jordan can't block but can catch etc.

How do you mesh players with different strengths into a cohesive scheme?

If I could answer that I would be the HC of this team..lol

There probably isn't one single offense that matches perfectly, but you look at the strengths of your team and you do your best to scheme for that. Maybe you have to use multiple schemes. I'm not an NFL head coach, so I cant tell you the answer. Obviously it sounds easier than it is, but they are the ones paid to figure that out. Paid handsomely might I add.

My point is, I don't want a coach who says "I like the west coast offense, so everyone here figure out how u fit into that."

Evaluate your players and adjust to their strengths. Every person on every NFL team has strength and weaknesses. It is just as important to minimize those weaknesses as it is to maximize your strengths. Find the best scheme to accomplish that. ADAPT.

 

[LANGER72]

Once the Fins offense can run the ball, then the options become available. It all starts with the ability to outmuscle the defense in front of you.
Adjusting the scheme to the players is all fine and dandy, but what if your players are nothing special?
I am solidly skeptical of this coach until the rest of the staff is hired. He is going to need A LOT of help.
Gase is not going to fool Belichick. BB is going to school Gase.
The only way you beat the Pats and the AFCE is with stout run defense, and QB pressure. On offense, run the ball to set up the pass.
Winning chess games against BB is really hard to do. We have to smash the board and kick them in the nuts.
If Gase is not going to do that, then we are going nowhere.

 

[Scotty P]

Building a team around your players should be what every coach does. Can't believe we've had soooo many dum dums forcing the square peg into round holes.

I'm not a fan of the Gase hiring because of experience.......but this is far beyond the thinking of the previous coaches, so I'm a little bit more on board I guess.

 

[Philbin's Polo]

This is good to hear.

Good coaches are able to coach to the strengths of their personnel. Any coach who is totally married to a scheme cannot have sustained success, or if the pieces aren't there for his scheme right away, any success.

 

[josephreese]

Winning chess games against BB is really hard to do.

I agree, and it's why the game we used the wildcat against them still makes me smile. I don't care that it wasn't a lasting way to run the offense. That day BB was unprepared for our O, and he got schooled hard. It was beautiful.

 

[andyahs]

Thats the reason huh? Why did McDaniels team suck while employing the same strategy then?

Because McDaniels sucked.

 

[miamiron]

But this does beg the question. How do you make it all fit under one offense scheme? Doesn't it mean you have to pick players to some degree to fit a certain scheme? For example lets say L.Miller can't catch and runs best out of I-form. But TE C.Jordan can't block but can catch etc.

How do you mesh players with different strengths into a cohesive scheme?

Ask Bill Belicheck who has plug and play running backs and a rag tag offensive line
with 3 undrafted free agents starting at times this season. Edelman only played 47% of the teams offensive snaps
Lafell 59% of the offensive snaps,Amendola 51% yet they won the AFC east again

 

[NorthernFin]

But this does beg the question. How do you make it all fit under one offense scheme? Doesn't it mean you have to pick players to some degree to fit a certain scheme? For example lets say L.Miller can't catch and runs best out of I-form. But TE C.Jordan can't block but can catch etc.

How do you mesh players with different strengths into a cohesive scheme?

He will look at at what the team strengths are now, and then add to it. I'm assuming he will tell Grier I want this type of LB, this type of CB, Guard, etc Now go get them.

 

[Fin Thirteen]

I think three different traits are getting mixed up here.

One is, not being a slave to a scheme in terms of making your players fit the scheme rather than shaping a scheme that accommodates the abilities of your players. Obviously, as someone said, you can't have no inside running game, just because you don't have an RB who averages more that 2.5yds on inside runs. BUt presumably that guy is on your roster because he's great on outside runs or receiving or blocking, so you build your playing style to accommodate that. Over time, presumably you train guys to be more complete or you churn the roster, but all the time trying to accentuate the positive of what your various players can do really well.

The second is adapting your "scheme" or playing style heavily to tackle each opponent every week. This is seemingly Gase's calling card. To do that, you need adaptable players, so this coaching trait influences the first one. Given we just had to dumb down our defense because players thought it was too complicated, I'm interested to see how the roster adapts to a HC who throws a new "scheme" at them every week.

Thirdly is in-game adjustments to your playing style. I think this is where guys like Belichick and Payton and Carroll really stand out from the crowd. Sure, they vary their gameplan from opponent to opponent - making them harder to read and attacking opponent's weaknesses. But in-game they are masters of varying it too.

Gase has said he wants to make the scheme fit the players. Music to the ears of most of us on here, but it doesn't mean much in terms of W:L ratio unless you have a roster where players can do a lot of things well.
Gase's modus operandi is fastidious preparation for opponents and varying the gameplan. A separate trait that is also welcome, but it also doesn't mean much if your players can't handle the complexity of the week-to-week changes. Miami has some previous here in rejecting complexity.
The sample size of how Gase adjusts in-game to opponents is small and limited to a team with a lot of injuries. But, we could certainly say there's no evidence he's at the Belichick level of tactical manipulation in-game.

So cautious optimism seems about right. But in order to play to players' strengths , they have to have some strengths to start with. Guys like Thomas, Fox, Damien Williams, Walt Aikens, Michael Thomas, Brice McCain, Kelvin Sheppard don't have many strengths to start with and a whole other bunch of guys are using all their strengths just to be acceptable NFL roster players.

Then, you still have to play the game. How Gase adjusts in-game and at halftime will probably be the making or breaking of this roster, imo.