Stallions musings after last night
For background - I’ve followed this team since the USFL reboot and have been to nearly all the home games. I’m an avid football fan (primarily college - Clemson) and have watched most of the USFL/XFL/UFL games.
This is obvious to regular football fans, but the Stallions are poorly coached. The offense and defensive schemes are bland and the play calling is all over the place. The first offensive play they put 81 in motion and rolled DTR out and I thought maybe they were adjusting the O to DTR‘s strengths, but they didn’t move the pocket again until the end of the game. On D, they telegraph the blitzes and the coverages. When they finally brought a blitz that wasn’t just a LB running into the middle of the line, they got a huge sack. Special teams had two stupid penalties that are just the result of poor practice habits.
I don’t have any inside info, but based on watching the players on the sidelines and some of the things said during player interviews I get the impression these guys are mostly coaching/leading themselves. DTR has made a huge difference with his energy and leadership as much as his play. AJ clearly wasn’t motivating the players. Such a difference from Skip Holtz.
Obviously, I’m happy for the W and I think we have a great shot at making the playoffs with our remaining schedule, but I don’t see how the Stallions beat DC or STL in a first round game. The talent is there, but they will thoroughly outcoached in either of those matchups (or with Louisville or ORL).