Ranking the 32 Offensive Play Callers in the NFL

[RolandDeschain]

The funny thing is that outside of Seattle, Bevell is regarded as one of the best play callers.

75% of fan bases dislike their O-Coordinator. They are the easy scapegoat for a bad offense.

Only O-Coordinator's I'd probably rather have than Bevell are: Haley, McDaniels, and Hue Jackson.

It's just as easy to lay blame everywhere but on the offensive coordinator, like some tend to do. It floors me that anyone can defend a coordinator that consistently ignores making in-game changes when his game plan is not working. For years. Being too stubborn to adjust is not a hallmark of brilliance by any definition I'd agree with.

 

[Fade]

And now the Bevell-hating thread disguised in a wig, dress and make-up has put on its high heels.

All 32 play callers are up for discussion.

 

[theENGLISHseahawk]

No they aren't.

This is simply an anti-Darrell Bevell debate masquerading as a discussion about all of the play callers. And you know it.

And the point made earlier still stands. If you actually watched the other teams with the same regularity and commitment that you watch the Seahawks, you would view many of the names on your list very, very differently.

 

[Siouxhawk]

Sorry but I can't take this list seriously. It's a fan making his own assumptions with a clear bias. Ask any Packer fan and they'd rank Mike McCarthy dead last. Does he deserve to be last, no. But they're Packer fans. Ask any Jets fan where Gailey belongs, they'll say last. As great as Andy Reid is, at times KC fans wanted him to give up his play calling duties last year when they were struggling. I have friends in NY and none of them can stand McAdoo as either a head coach or offensive coordinator.

My point is this. Most fan bases hate their O-Coordinator. The grass isn't always greener on the other side. Bevell may not be the best, but he is far from the worst. But the list just isn't good. The fact that you have Bevell behind some of the worst offenses in the NFL like the Packers, Giants, Jets, Dolphins, and Texans. Now just because those offenses that I listed are struggling doesn't necessarily make them bad O-Coordinators, but all those guys are behind Bevell IMO. Peyton Manning basically gave Gase and Mike McCoy their head coaching jobs, so I'll just throw that out there. And that brings up another point, O-Coordinators are usually only as good as their offense. Gase went from being a genious in Denver to fans in Miami wanting him gone after their poor start (although it seems like he has turned things around).

Great post. With Bevell, the Hawks have one of the best -- if not the best -- winning percentages in the league over the last 4 years. That's really all that matters big picture.

 

[Uncle Si]

Great post. With Bevell, the Hawks have one of the best -- if not the best -- winning percentages in the league over the last 4 years. That's really all that matters big picture.

Wins= great offense?

Got it.




(sigh....)

 

[theENGLISHseahawk]

Maybe wins don't = a great offense.

But the Seahawks have had a top 10 offense per DVOA for the last four years not to mention one of if not the most explosive, balanced and physical offenses since the middle of 2011.

The amount of hand-wringing that goes on about the O is baffling.

 

[mistaowen]

Sorry but I can't take this list seriously. It's a fan making his own assumptions with a clear bias. Ask any Packer fan and they'd rank Mike McCarthy dead last. Does he deserve to be last, no. But they're Packer fans. Ask any Jets fan where Gailey belongs, they'll say last. As great as Andy Reid is, at times KC fans wanted him to give up his play calling duties last year when they were struggling. I have friends in NY and none of them can stand McAdoo as either a head coach or offensive coordinator.

My point is this. Most fan bases hate their O-Coordinator. The grass isn't always greener on the other side. Bevell may not be the best, but he is far from the worst. But the list just isn't good. The fact that you have Bevell behind some of the worst offenses in the NFL like the Packers, Giants, Jets, Dolphins, and Texans. Now just because those offenses that I listed are struggling doesn't necessarily make them bad O-Coordinators, but all those guys are behind Bevell IMO. Peyton Manning basically gave Gase and Mike McCoy their head coaching jobs, so I'll just throw that out there. And that brings up another point, O-Coordinators are usually only as good as their offense. Gase went from being a genious in Denver to fans in Miami wanting him gone after their poor start (although it seems like he has turned things around).

Great post. With Jon Ryan, the Hawks have one of the best -- if not the best -- winning percentages in the league over the last 4 years. That's really all that matters big picture.

Fixed it for you. Jon Ryan for president 2020.

 

[Hawk-Lock]

Understandable.

It's definitely a conversation worth having. But there are other factors that lead to our 28th ranked offense.We obviously have a bottom tier offensive line.

They do, but the coaches told me the O-Line is ahead of where it was last year, yet they are performing worse as an offense then at this point of the season last year. Bad O-Lines, have not stopped this team from performing adequately in the past anyway, they are now horrible.

I don't know each coordinator well enough to rank them, so I won't. But I do know Bevell isn't a bottom 10 offensive coordinator.

This statement contradicts itself.
If you don't know the play-callers well enough to rank them. Then how do you know Bevell isn't bottom 10? Finally, I'm ranking play callers, not coordinators. A lot of these guys are head coaches.

Here is my other question,if Bevell is so bad, then how come we were a top 5 offense last year?[/color] It's pretty clear that the offense is struggling because of personnel issues.

3 Things happened last year for the top 5 ranking.

1. Bevell finally adjusted play calling the 2nd half of the season going with a quicker passing game, and using the middle of the field. It caught teams off guard. By the end of the year though teams adjusted. The league is waiting for Bevell to make another adjustment.

2. They ran into a string of bad / injured defenses that inflated their numbers.

3. Russell Wilson is franchise QB, and they mask a lot of woes. Wilson makes Bevell, not the other way around.

Bottom line is the league has figured Bevell out, and it's up to him to come up with some new wrinkles, and show some ingenuity, or it's going to continue to be tough sledding for the offense going forward. Rusell's lack of mobility has exposed him even more as a play caller. Because Russell Wilson scrambling, was the ingenuity of this offense. Not Bevell's schemes.

Having the worst OT tandem in the sport though isn't helping things, and is having an impact on overall offensive rankings. For that I will raise Bevell up the list.

It's not that I don't know each O-Coordinator, it is that I don't follow those teams closely enough for me to rank them. I've watched nearly every NFL game this year (condensed version) on NFL Game Pass. So i've seen all the offenses multiple times. But I'm not going to act like I'm some guru who knows all 32 offenses and play-callers. I'll leave that to Bleacher Report and ESPN. But just from knowing the league, I know Bevell isn't a bottom 10 coordinator. If he was a bottom 10 coordinator, he either would have been gone by now, or we wouldn't have had the success we've had. Teams just don't know go back to back superbowls with weak offensive coordinators. And a weak O-Coordinator would not have made a stud out of Russell Wilson, Doug Baldwin and Marshawn Lynch. Just my opinion. At some point, he has to get some credit for RW's progress in the NFL.

And I don't buy that NFL defenses have figured out Bevell. I just don't. Our offense is just a lot easier to contain when there is little to no threat of the QB making plays with his legs. IMO, the main difference between this year and the past few years is poor OLine play and Russell being banged up.

I'm done with the Bevell talk anyways. This has to be the 100th "bash on Bevell" thread since the season started. Tbh, the threads get old real fast, and repetitive. As much as some may not like Bevell and like to talk about him in a negative light, he is not going anywhere.

 

[theENGLISHseahawk]

Actually that's a good point.

If Bevell really was as bad as the OP suggests... Pete Carroll would've fired him by now.

Simple as that.

But he isn't as bad as the OP suggests.

And this is very Bleacher Report (a slideshow would've finished it off).

 

[Uncle Si]

Maybe wins don't = a great offense.

But the Seahawks have had a top 10 offense per DVOA for the last four years not to mention one of if not the most explosive, balanced and physical offenses since the middle of 2011.

The amount of hand-wringing that goes on about the O is baffling.

You're "baffled" by the hand-wringing on a message board after a 6-6 game in which the defense was on the field for 47 minutes and the offense struggled to 5 first downs in regulation?


Your use of stats is all that needs to be said in supporting the OC, as I agree. However, Sunday night was poor.

 

[theENGLISHseahawk]

Maybe wins don't = a great offense.

But the Seahawks have had a top 10 offense per DVOA for the last four years not to mention one of if not the most explosive, balanced and physical offenses since the middle of 2011.

The amount of hand-wringing that goes on about the O is baffling.

You're "baffled" by the hand-wringing on a message board after a 6-6 game in which the defense was on the field for 47 minutes and the offense struggled to 5 first downs in regulation?


Your use of stats is all that needs to be said in supporting the OC, as I agree. However, Sunday night was poor.

Sunday night was poor but a mere blemish in the midst of a legendary run which is leading this team towards dynasty status.

So yeah, I'm baffled by the hand-wringing. People should just enjoy the ride. It won't be like this forever.

 

[Uncle Si]

Maybe wins don't = a great offense.

But the Seahawks have had a top 10 offense per DVOA for the last four years not to mention one of if not the most explosive, balanced and physical offenses since the middle of 2011.

The amount of hand-wringing that goes on about the O is baffling.

You're "baffled" by the hand-wringing on a message board after a 6-6 game in which the defense was on the field for 47 minutes and the offense struggled to 5 first downs in regulation?


Your use of stats is all that needs to be said in supporting the OC, as I agree. However, Sunday night was poor.

Sunday night was poor but a mere blemish in the midst of a legendary run which is leading this team towards dynasty status.

So yeah, I'm baffled by the hand-wringing. People should just enjoy the ride. It won't be like this forever.

I don't disagree about enjoying the ride. But its a message board, and the team has struggled on offense in 3 of its 6 games. That may be a blemish when applied to the 4 year run this team is on. But its a bit more than that when applied to 6 games.

Now, whether that's the OC's fault is another matter (i think its on everyone), but it can't be denied the unit is not performing well overall.

 

[Siouxhawk]

Great post. With Bevell, the Hawks have one of the best -- if not the best -- winning percentages in the league over the last 4 years. That's really all that matters big picture.

Wins= great offense?

Got it.




(sigh....)

You needn't sigh Si, but you should admit that wins are what matters in the big picture. I love our team concept where we stick together and rely on all facets of the team to get the job done. Sunday, the special teams and defense did a Herculean effort throughout the game and the offense finished in overtime for what in most probabilities winds up being a win by a field goal. In other games this year and in the recent past, the offense has carried the load for a win. When Rawls gets back, maybe we return to form as a bruising offense. But in the meantime, we've had to go with a spread passing game that was hindered by too many holding and false start calls, inopportune drops and missed blocks that forced an already-limited Russ to just throw the ball away under pressure. But we're 4-1-1 and the best is yet to come.

 

[Fade]

Please show me why Bevell should rank above #22, and I will gladly put him there. #22 Is about right, because most of the guys above him are Head Coaches, thus making Bevell one of the better OC's in the league, if Bevell where on that level he would be a Head Coach. The ranking is reasonable, and fair.

Cry Moar.

 

[Fade]

No they aren't.

uhhhh...

The Saints have had a top 5 offense offense (ypg) every year since Sean Payton arrived in New Orleans, and they have only finished outside of the top 10 in scoring once. I am not sure what qualifies you to be #1 overall, but with results like that, I am dumfounded as to how Hue, Kyle, and Josh are ahead of him.

Norv Turner is too high...
It was clear the Vikings offense was way better in Shotgun but when AP came back Norv tries to force this 2TE 1FB IForm all day. Bridgewater with AP out actually played pretty good but then AP comes back and they go back to this old school offense and he sucks...I wonder why

Mike McCarthy, Adam Gase, Bill O'Brien, & Mike McCoy have been mentioned as well.

Try again. All 32 Play Callers are up for discussion.

 

[RolandDeschain]

Great post. With Bevell, the Hawks have one of the best -- if not the best -- winning percentages in the league over the last 4 years. That's really all that matters big picture.

I know "correlation" and "causation" are similar-looking and similar-sounding words, but I'd suggest reading up on the difference between the two.

 

[Siouxhawk]

Great post. With Bevell, the Hawks have one of the best -- if not the best -- winning percentages in the league over the last 4 years. That's really all that matters big picture.

I know "correlation" and "causation" are similar-looking and similar-sounding words, but I'd suggest reading up on the difference between the two.

As is "summation," as in the summation of the team is equal to its parts. The Hawks wouldn't be where they are and have been without ALL of their parts generating success.

 

[theENGLISHseahawk]

Please show me why Bevell should rank above #22, and I will gladly put him there. #22 Is about right, because most of the guys above him are Head Coaches, thus making Bevell one of the better OC's in the league, if Bevell where on that level he would be a Head Coach. The ranking is reasonable, and fair.

Cry Moar.

You've just done a really good job of highlighting how ridiculous your list is.

If you're saying you're automatically a better play caller if you're a Head Coach, why is Josh McDaniels at #1? Surely all of these vastly experienced, multi-year HC's should be above him?

Three of your top five are not Head Coaches.

What has Bill O'Brien shown as a play caller to warrant being 15th?

You've been given evidence why he should rank higher. Seattle has had a top-10 offense per DVOA for the last four years. The offense put up record breaking numbers in the passing game in 2015. How many of the names above him have a consistent track record like that?

You can say things like 'cry moar' as much as you like -- it won't change that this list is a piece of Bleacher Report nonsense at best and at worst just a thinly veiled anti-Bevell thread.

 

[Ozzy]

First of all props to Fade for attempting something like this. I don't agree on all of them but that doesn't make me right and its a hard list to come up with. Overall I thought it was very good.

I get the DVOA argument and I use it myself at times. But how much of it is based on Bevell and how much of it is based on a QB who is an elite generational talent? I think its almost impossible for any of us to know until we are forced to. Bevell leaves for another job, is fired, quits etc. Him landing another job doesn't look promising as he doesn't seem to be on anyone's map for a head coaching position which is odd. He works with Wilson who teams are trying to find and replicate going foward(NFL is reactive), coaches in one of only a couple of highly successful systems under Pete Carroll and has had success with a highly efficient offense. So for the pro Bevell crowd(which I have one foot in and one foot out) why with all those pluses is he not being interviewed for a head coaching job? Our defensive coaches get picked off almost annually yet after the initial first couple of years no one wants him. I can't figure it out.

Bevell could be top 5 or bottom 5 and is carried by a generational talent or is somewhere in between. I tend to think its somewhere in between but I hate that I don't know and probably won't know.

I love Rob for what its worth.

 

[Threedee]

I bet if you were invested in all 32 teams like you are the Seahawks you'd have a very different opinion.

This is just another negative Bevell thread wearing a wig, dress and makeup.

I doubt Bevell would be any better wearing a wig, dress, and makeup, but we should try it out, instead. He can reshoot that new Snickers commercial in the place of Willem Dafoe.