My first concerns with this CS

I think you're right in that that's how Dorrell was trying to frame the interview. He was saying how Smith was surprised how much he had to know learn/know, but in so doing, he revealed his own philosophy and what he was demanding from the WR group. There are always going to be stresses. I'm not saying that the players should be "babied" in any way.

I'm sure that Dorrell's approach is not unique to just the Jets. I don't follow other teams, so don't really know what they do or don't do. I can also imagine that there are some things that coaches and teams learn about the players through a similar approach such as how they cope with stress, who can sort through the jumble of information and make sense of it, etc., but I think the negatives far outweigh the positives, and that this is how a lot of young football players who might otherwise be successful, contributing football players in the NFL, get washed out and fail. Let's face it, many football players (and coaches for that matter) are not the sharpest pencils in the box. In order to help them succeed, even more care and thought need to be given on how to best help them prepare and succeed, and not just do things the way they've always been done, or how things were done to them when they were young players/coaches.

Yes, ultimately, TB is responsible. He'll have to determine if Dorrell's methods are developing the young WRs or causing them to fail or struggle unnecessarily, and make the necessary changes. I just hope that it will be sooner rather than later.

I totally understand old school HCs and their closed lip manner with their teams. I think that's the smartest approach for many reasons, including not putting their feet into their mouths.

 

I'm not saying that the Jets should just limit him to doing what he did in college or that they shouldn't take advantage of his speed by playing him at different positions. I'm just saying that the way they are seeking to develop or gain that is the least likely way for that to actually happen. It's a counterproductive approach. We all know that even without having to learn multiple positions, it's a big adjustment from college to the NFL. Many players don't make that adjustment at all, and others take a year or more before the light goes on, yet others come in and succeed immediately. I'd be willing to bet the ranch that those who come in and contribute immediately or are successful from day 1 don't have the handicap of trying to learn everything Dorrell is throwing at Smith and the young WRs.

Why not start him with doing what he did in college and see how he grasps the offensive system first? Then, if he's got the offense down and looking comfortable, then add another position/layer of knowledge responsibility. Then once he has that well in hand, add another, then another. In that way, you hopefully have him able to do at least what he did in college and what he was drafted primarily to do for the Jets from day one. Anything else is then gravy. In that manner of doing things, even if it takes him his entire rookie season to learn all the different WR positions and their responsibilities and route trees, he should be able to make a contribution in one or more ways rather than sitting on the bench, never being active on game days because he is overwhelmed with too much information and has to think too much and can't just go out there and play.

 

There's more to it than that. On each play, the different WR positions have different routes and responsibilities, so for each offensive play he's having to learn 3-4 different routes and responsibilities rather than just 1. With even a playbook of 30 plays, that's around a hundred or more different things to know versus 30. Again, BIG difference.

 

I swear the level of thought in some of you is shocking and you're showing your ignorance. It's not just a matter of learning to do things he's never done in college or just learning a few basics. SMH

 

If he's confused and his head is spinning, you won't be able to evaluate anything. It's not a matter of being trained to be a one-trick pony. It's not either or. If he's so confused that he can't even contribute at his base position, he's certainly not going to be able to help at other positions. As I've said in countless responses in this thread, what I'm saying doesn't mean that you're not going to teach him the other things, just in a better, more rational progression that's more conducive to learning. I know what I'm talking about. I majored in education in college. I took several pedagogy classes in grad school. For most of my career, I've taught people in one fashion or another, be it teaching them software, good customer service and proper procedures, teaching them to sing, teaching them songs, teaching them spanish or whatever, the principles are the same.

I'm sorry, but you have no idea what you're talking about with regards to teaching and education. This isn't just a matter of opinion, but fact. If you teach him in the proper manner, there should be no difference between practice and the field in actual games. The very reason for practice is preparation and routineing of responsibilities so that the players aren't out there on the field having to think, but rather can let their talent and instincts take over. What one does in games is prepared by what one does in practice.

They already know his areas of weakness and strength. If they hadn't known that, they wouldn't have drafted him. They also know what he doesn't know in terms of the offense and other positions. They don't have to actually throw all of that at him to know that.

As for the different regimes, the previous regime did the same thing with Vlad Ducasse. His rookie season they were alternating him between OG and OT because he was struggling at OG. Adding the OT responsibilities and position didn't help him learn, it only confused him more. In his case, it probably wouldn't have mattered what they did, but with others it DOES matter. There ARE proper ways of teaching people information and there ARE bassackwards, stupid ways of doing things, and the latter is what Dorrell is using.

 

Because you're totally missing the main point. It's not that he's being asked to learn some new things. I agree that he needs to learn new things. It's HOW he is being asked to learn those new things. We all know that there is an adjustment period for rookies coming into the NFL. They have to adjust to the speed of the competition and play. Oftentimes they have to adjust to the workload and pace of practice. It's more intense. They have to learn a new offense, and adjust to new personalities, and instead of perhaps being the stars or big men on campus, they're back at square one. Oftentimes their positional technique needs refining. Oftentimes they have to work harder to get stronger or perhaps put on more weight or take weight off.

Since Smith was basically a one-trick pony at OSU, he needs to work on his route running so he can learn the entire route tree from whatever his base WR position will be. He needs to learn the offense, and make all the adjustments listed enough. That's enough to begin with, and even at that, many rookies struggle because they're having to think too much. That will keep him more than busy. The best way is to let him make those adjustments, learn what he needs to learn, and build some confidence and comfort. Then when he's showing that he has a handle on that, then add additional responsibilities or positions one at a time. What Dorrell is doing is throwing everything, including the kitchen sink, at him at one time. There is no way one human being can process and learn all that at one time.

I think Smith can be a very productive receiver for the Jets, and this season if he is handled correctly. The way Dorrell is going about things, I fear that Smith, not only won't be productive any time this season, but may never become a productive WR if his confidence takes a big hit. Maybe he's mature and intelligent enough to handle this, but many aren't at his age.

 

No, I didn't teach Special Ed., but what I said does apply to them or people with learning disabilities even more. I think football players in general have always been less academically apt than the general student population, but I think that is even more true today. Many have been pampered and passed along because they were good and there was pressure brought on teachers/professors to pass them so the school could do well on the field. Look at what has happened at UNC. Students weren't required to go to class and were given grades or were able to take things like basket weaving and fluff courses.

Yes, many HS coaches also teach something else, but most of them have had zero pedagogical training in those subject areas. I had the misfortune of having several classes in high school with coaches who were dumb as stumps. They had no clue how to teach. As far as I know, no college coaches teach anything at the collegiate level except maybe some phys ed course or exercise class. I may be mistaken, but I think most coaches don't learn how to coach in a class. They observe what their coaches do, and then when they become coaches themselves, most do what their coaches did. In all likelihood, it's only the minority who take any kind of pedagogical classes or give any serious thought to a different or better way to do things.

In the case of what Dorrell is doing, I have seen that many times over the last 30 years with the Jets with different coaches in different regimes, and it hasn't exactly worked.