I have a feeling many people are expecting us to win very few games next year. But many people are overlooking some very important factors in this process.
We won 7 games with an injury depleted team that had the worst defense we have ever fielded (statistically). We experienced subpar play calling and scheming on both sides of the ball. Our QB play was average at best. Yet, we won 7 games and were in several others.
The D is quietly a few easy fixes away from being a playoff defense. Rebuild the DL and a new DC and this defense can hang with any non-playoff team and keep us in the game against a playoff team.
Rebuild the OL and get a competent play caller with a balanced offense and we can score 20 - 30pts easily. And we can get that done with Fales or Falk at QB. Because I believe RT and BO are gone as soon as the draft. My point is we have talent. Maybe not elite talent, but we have competitive talent.
Are we ELITE? NO.
Do we need a rebuild? YES.
Are we completely devoid of talent? NO.
We have a very solid and young base. In the NFL, very little separates most teams. Step back from the ledge. Re-evaluate some things. There are losing teams. There are winning teams. There are playoff teams. There are contending teams. And then there is the best team.
We have fans thinking 1, 2, 3 wins next season. You're looking at this without taking into account what we have. Remember, Grier has drafted most of these players on rookie contracts. For the most part, those guys are staying. We don't have to immediately replace them. We have some vets that won't be retained. But we are not going to completely gut and purge. Anyone thinking that has overlooked the fact Grier has been here the whole time. Had we replaced Grier and started over, then yes I agree we would be looking at a 3 or 4 win season. But we aren't. So, many of these young guys will stick.
We won 7 games with a sham offense and a joke of a defense. You mean to tell me we are going to win less games with DL and OL upgrades along with better coaches? Nope. Not happening. We will take some lumps to learn new schemes and get cohesion, but we have the talent to keep us competitive.
You don't need elite QBs to be a winning team. You don't need elite anything to be a winning team. Scheme and coaching can get you close to .500. Players like Tunsil, X, Minkah, Baker, Drake, Wilson, Grant and Stills will keep us above .500 while we rebuild.
If we draft 2 or 3 legit starters for the DL and OL this year, we will be in playoff contention. And I suspect we will be drafting in a similar position next year. So, if you are expecting to tank... it would have to be a willful decision made by coaches. We simply have too much talent for BETTER coaches to lose.