ESPN front page website blasting Nathaniel Hackett

[Sgt. Largent]

There was also no reason to believe that the Broncos would see consecutive forced fumbles inside the five.

Russ could have run the play. His players were looking at him, waiting for him to snap the ball. He had a play. Formation was set. His players looked as confused as he was. And he was getting them set before and after the 15 second cutoff when the headset goes out.

You think Russ had the power to go against his HC and run a play at the end instead of kicking the FG?

Now you guys are just making stuff up. Turn on the TV and go to all the major sports outlets, they're ALL roasting Hackett.

Sure there's some "was Russell really worth the trade", but no one and I mean NO ONE is saying it was Russell's fault last night. He played well, and certainly well enough to trust on 4th and 5 with 50 seconds and 2 TO's.

 

[keasley45]

Because his coach told him he wanted to kick the FG instead of going for it.

And when do you think he told him that? if you know you're going to let the clock wind down, you either walk casually, without urgency up to the line and generally stand and wait for the clock to run down, OR you line up and fake the snap to try to pick up a few more yards. Denver SHOULD have done either if the directive was simply to kick the FG. You can see teams across the league do either of those things when winding down to a game winning field goal. What Russ did was in no way in keeping with a set call to pick up a few yards and then try the FG.

Maybe you're right, but if that was the play all along, it was about as odd a way to get to the TO as there's ever been.

It in no way looked like the strategy.

 

[GemCity]

What a Rackett. Should’ve Hussell’d more.

 

[scutterhawk]

Because his coach told him he wanted to kick the FG instead of going for it.

Yep, Hackett had seen enough, and that TRUST in Wilson's ability to get that first down against the Seahawks Kick Butt Defense had obviously crept in.
I guess Wilson's freedom to fully take charge of the Donkos Offense isn't yet an absolute.

 

[keasley45]

You think Russ had the power to go against his HC and run a play at the end instead of kicking the FG?

Now you guys are just making stuff up. Turn on the TV and go to all the major sports outlets, they're ALL roasting Hackett.

Sure there's some "was Russell really worth the trade", but no one and I mean NO ONE is saying it was Russell's fault last night. He played well, and certainly well enough to trust on 4th and 5 with 50 seconds and 2 TO's.

He played well, and was the beneficiary of 2 dropped INTs. gifts, and one that could have been, but went through a rookie CB's hands and resulted in his only TD. Had those INTs been caught, entirely changes the narrative. Russ had some help. He wasn't as 'workman' as his stats looked.

Not taking credit away, because the dude showed the ability to hit outlets and run screens in a way he never did here. But to say he was supremely confident? He had yards, but he also knew that he also got lucky.

 

[toffee]

Yep, Hackett had seen enough, and that TRUST in Wilson's ability to get that first down against the Seahawks Kick Butt Defense had obviously crept in.
I guess Wilson's freedom to fully take charge of the Donkos Offense isn't yet an absolute.

Hackett and Wilson do not have a coach and player relationship, they are partners, sounded like equal?

 

[Sgt. Largent]

Yep, Hackett had seen enough, and that TRUST in Wilson's ability to get that first down against the Seahawks Kick Butt Defense had obviously crept in.
I guess Wilson's freedom to fully take charge of the Donkos Offense isn't yet an absolute.

Had nothing to do with not trusting Russell, as I've said now three times there was nothing in Wilson's performance last night that would lead you to think that, he played well.

This was a rookie coach panicking and making the wrong decision.

The End, any other narratives you guys are throwing out is emotional speculation and bias.

 

[bigskydoc]

Going back in my mind to what I thought when I watched it live.

Denver breaks the huddle, I yell at the TV, "He's going to try to draw you offsides here."

Denver lines up, Russ reads the defense, I think wow, he actually called a play in the huddle, after all, and they are likely going to try to draw offsides, then run the play if unsuccessful.

Russ doesn't get under center. I think, ok he doesn't like the defensive alignment vs the called play, but he doesn't have time to audible out of it.

He calls time out. I'm still surprised he didn't try to draw them offsides, but he saw something he didn't like, and didn't want to cost his team 5 yards on a false start or delay of game.

I assumed there wasn't enough time to pull whatever they had called to draw the Hawks offsides.

A time out is a good call there.

I fully expect to see video of Wilson huddled with his coach and coordinator, going over the next play call, instead, Wilson is standing there, with his helmet off, not talking to his coach or coordinator, and the kicker is running onto the field.

I think, "Tricky. Use their kicker to draw them offsides, or hope the Hawks will call a time out, then they will run their offense back out onto the field."

Pete calls a time out. Wilson continues to stand there, not trying to convince his coach to change his mind.

They actually attempt a kick.

Me. "WTF?"

It's inexplicable. You just went out and mortgaged the future to get a guy to make plays like that, and you don't let him try to make that play, and he doesn't seem to be bothered by it.

Just WTF on so many levels.

 

[Lagartixa]

Because you said you thought it was Russell, and there's no evidence whatsoever that Russell's play wouldn't = a better chance at converting a 4th and 5 over attempting an impossible kick.

Yes, but the important thing for Wilson is that if they kick and they lose, he isn't involved in the final play. It's better for his brand.
Given that all the pro-Wilson media pieces (part of Wilson and Mark Rodgers's media smear campaign against the Seahawks) agreed that Wilson leaving the Seahawks "wasn't about the money," but was about "control." And they agree that he got that "control" from the Broncos. You may have seen some of the things saying that the relationship between Hackett and Wilson isn't coach-player, but "partners." So Wilson absolutely could have run a play. If you look at images while the clock was winding down, the Broncos' linemen appear to be waiting for the signal and snap, so it really looks like a play had been sent in. If they had been trying to draw the Seahawks offside, Wilson would have been using the "hard count," but that didn't happen.

For Wilson, the risk for his brand is much lower if he lets the clock run down, the Broncos take the time out, and then they kick. If the kick is good and the Broncos win, then Wilson is declared the winner in his "revenge game," and that's all the media are talking about today. If they lose, well, Wilson wasn't involved in the final play, and the coach takes all the heat for even attempting a kick that would have been tied for the second-longest field goal ever.

Classic Wilson. I wonder if buyer's remorse is starting to set in for the Broncos front office.

 

[bigskydoc]

And yes, it is entirely possible that Russ was seething inside, but was doing his level best to show support for his rookie coach. That was just what I thought when I saw it live.

It is also entirely possible that they did huddle, and I missed it. I was at a bar with friends, and I may have been distracted during the shot.

 

[toffee]

Going back in my mind to what I thought when I watched it live.

Denver breaks the huddle, I yell at the TV, "He's going to try to draw you offsides here."

Denver lines up, Russ reads the defense, I think wow, he actually called a play in the huddle, after all, and they are likely going to try to draw offsides, then run the play if unsuccessful.

Russ doesn't get under center. I think, ok he doesn't like the defensive alignment vs the called play, but he doesn't have time to audible out of it.

He calls time out. I'm still surprised he didn't try to draw them offsides, but he saw something he didn't like, and didn't want to cost his team 5 yards on a false start or delay of game.

I assumed there wasn't enough time to pull whatever they had called to draw the Hawks offsides.

A time out is a good call there.

I fully expect to see video of Wilson huddled with his coach and coordinator, going over the next play call, instead, Wilson is standing there, with his helmet off, not talking to his coach or coordinator, and the kicker is running onto the field.

I think, "Tricky. Use their kicker to draw them offsides, or hope the Hawks will call a time out, then they will run their offense back out onto the field."

Pete calls a time out. Wilson continues to stand there, not trying to convince his coach to change his mind.

They actually attempt a kick.

Me. "WTF?"

It's inexplicable. You just went out and mortgaged the future to get a guy to make plays like that, and you don't let him try to make that play, and he doesn't seem to be bothered by it.

Just WTF on so many levels.

back to back time out to think it over.

 

[keasley45]

Listening to Russ's presser, the only mention of a decision to kick was his reference to a discussion before the drive when they determined that their kicker's outside range was 'the 46, left hash' . I think Russ had the ability to run a play before the time out and didn't. He saw where they were, weighed the chances and called timeout. Whatever he and Hackett discussed during the TO ... remains a mystery. But the way that series unfolded before the TO. I'm not buying for a second that the strategy was to sit tight and kick. If that was the case. Hackett wouldn't have sent a play in. they wouldn't have huddled, then broke the huddle and then had players looking at Russ, wondering what was going on. Hackett would have said in Russ's ear - we have the range - lets run the clock down and kick it. Or ... we're in range, lets see if we can get them to jump.

I get that everyone is jumping on Hackett, but they all jumped on Pete after our SB loss, and zero criticism rolled Russ's way, nor did he shoulder any responsibility. So do i expect him to say ' yeah, i had a play but didnt like what i saw so we called a TO and then we decided to kick..' ? No way.

 

[sc85sis]

What’s odd is that they waited so long for the time out. Don’t like the play once you see the D alignment? Call an audible or take a time out immediately. But they just stood there looking out of sorts. Then finally a timeout and an inexplicable FG attempt. Whacky. Good for us, but whacky, and a total breakdown in communication and play calling as far as I can tell.

 

[Bear-Hawk]

Hackett called a play. RCW was trying to read the D and let the clock go to 0 ...again. RCW has as much control of that offense as he wants. He went to the bench on his own, no disagreement. If you want to blame Hackett, blame him for giving RCW enough control to pull himself out. Blame him for selling the farm for the RCW trade. But there's no reasonable chain of events where RCW doesn't have every chance to run a play. They're lined up with a minute left and Russ choked. Yes, that's why you traded for Russell. ...to make those plays to win games. Hackett didn't pull Russ out. Watch it again if there's any doubt in your mind.

Hackett did mess up in the end, but I thought he had good play calls otherwise. They took what the defense allowed all night.

 

[Mike D in 332]

I’m stunned that no one is saying Russ should have called timeout as soon as the previous play ended. You save the time on the clock and then discuss your plan, IMO.
Do you think Denver feared The Seahawks offense in a last minute FG drive?

 

[keasley45]

Had nothing to do with not trusting Russell, as I've said now three times there was nothing in Wilson's performance last night that would lead you to think that, he played well.

This was a rookie coach panicking and making the wrong decision.

The End, any other narratives you guys are throwing out is emotional speculation and bias.

The end? emotional speculation? You act as though every single piece of evidence doesn't contradict the notion that the plan was always to kick and it was Hackett's. He may have made the final decision, so in that sense, he's to blame. But the evidence does not suggest that that's the entire story.

 

[IndyHawk]

It's the same as here..QB creates mess and coach takes the blame.
At least you can't use Pete as the scapegoat anymore.

 

[toffee]

Had nothing to do with not trusting Russell, as I've said now three times there was nothing in Wilson's performance last night that would lead you to think that, he played well.

This was a rookie coach panicking and making the wrong decision.

The End, any other narratives you guys are throwing out is emotional speculation and bias.

On the other hand, the time outs, two of them, plenty of time to talk it over. I guess we have to accept that Russ OK that call.

 

[sc85sis]

USC fans refer to Nathaniel’s dad as “Paul Can’t Hackett” or simply “He who must not be named” because he was such a bad head coach. It’s only one game, but that game ending is an inauspicious start for the younger Mr. Hackett.

 

[Sgt. Largent]

On the other hand, the time outs, two of them, plenty of time to talk it over. I guess we have to accept that Russ OK that call.

It wasn't Russ's call to OK.

Not sure where you guys got the idea Russell was going to a team where he could usurp his head coaches on field decisions. That's not how it works, anywhere.

Yeah, he could have called a time out and went over to argue his case to Hackett to go for it, but in the end it was Hackett's decision, and he messed up. Royally.