While Smith was a fixture on the Redskin sidelines for years, it's not that big of a deal. I liked Smith and he was very recognizable with the big wad of gum in his mouth but our special teams the last couple of years were less than stellar with several blocked FGs and a couple of blocked punts this year.
Smith is heading back home to Pittsburgh and I'm sure we'll pick up someone decent enough to run the special teams squad.
3 comments:
Danny Smith is a pretty good ST coach. To be successful as a ST coach you have to have good kickers - and he hasn't really had that. I'm not sure how much you can coach kickers - their heads and their forms are up to them. There are plenty of guys who can return the football, but you need to find guys who can block, tackle, and generally play with energy.
Actually, I think the ST coaches have to be really organized and be able to motivate players because you are dealing with so many different players throughout the year.
Dave Toub left Chicago after many years. I think he was a great ST coach and I am sure KC will now be much better in the ST department.
John Harbaugh came to Baltimore as a ST coach in Philly. He is really organized and knows how to scheme and lead men. I think teams may want to consider more ST coaches for top jobs.
I am not going to marginalize or trivialize the importance of special teams coordinators. I liked Danny Smith but our special teams units haven't been stellar over the years. They have been fine and while I would have liked to have kept Smith from a continuity standpoint, I don't have a huge problem with him leaving. Frankly, it's understandable at this point in his life/career that he would want to return home.
I can't imagine our special teams performing infinitely better or worse this year than they have over the previous years so we'll be fine.
The Deadskins should be fine. I worry about the Bears without Toub.
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