Jim Schwartz: 2023 NFL Asst. COY

[CBBI]

I am going to preface this once again by saying that Jim Schwartz will not be fired so there is a significant level of mental masturbation going on here. They gave Joe Woods three years, they're definitely giving Schwartz a second crack at it.

That said, I would be totally comfortable moving on from him. I understand that I’m being harsh, but it is what it is.

I’d just rather make a tough and unpopular decision too early than too late, especially in a competitive window like the Browns are currently in. Like it or not, the Browns are all in. This past season and the next several ones coming up are basically Super Bowl or bust given the strategy they've forged ahead with of borrowing against future seasons to pay for current ones.

I would be a lot more lax towards Schwartz if the defense was banged up yesterday (and this is why Stefanski and AVP get much more of a pass from me because they were dealing with so much more bullshit injury wise), but the defense was as healthy as you can expect it to be 19 weeks into a grueling NFL season. I am also hard pressed to see a scenario where the Browns have significantly more talent defensively than they did this season as guys inevitably price themselves off the roster and unproven players replace them.

I just don't trust Schwartz to be able to make the kind of schematic adjustments on the fly this team desperately needs to make defensively, both on a week-to-week basis and within games when Plan A fails. His defense basically is what it is, and if an offense can't handle it, they're screwed and if an offense can handle, we're screwed. And that obviously can work great in the regular season because you're not playing 17 playoff teams all with elite QBs in a row.

But if the Browns want to win the Super Bowl, the odds are extremely high they're gonna have to beat at least 3 really good QBs and play callers to do so. Can a Schwartz led defense do that without turnover luck (which can be very random) in 2024 and beyond? I'm not really convinced of that.

 

[Sharpner]

I am going to preface this once again by saying that Jim Schwartz will not be fired so there is a significant level of mental masturbation going on here. They gave Joe Woods three years, they're definitely giving Schwartz a second crack at it.

That said, I would be totally comfortable moving on from him. I understand that I’m being harsh, but it is what it is.

I’d just rather make a tough and unpopular decision too early than too late, especially in a competitive window like the Browns are currently in. Like it or not, the Browns are all in. This past season and the next several ones coming up are basically Super Bowl or bust given the strategy they've forged ahead with of borrowing against future seasons to pay for current ones.

I would be a lot more lax towards Schwartz if the defense was banged up yesterday (and this is why Stefanski and AVP get much more of a pass from me because they were dealing with so much more bullshit injury wise), but the defense was as healthy as you can expect it to be 19 weeks into a grueling NFL season. I am also hard pressed to see a scenario where the Browns have significantly more talent defensively than they did this season as guys inevitably price themselves off the roster and unproven players replace them.

I just don't trust Schwartz to be able to make the kind of schematic adjustments on the fly this team desperately needs to make defensively, both on a week-to-week basis and within games when Plan A fails. His defense basically is what it is, and if an offense can't handle it, they're screwed and if an offense can handle, we're screwed. And that obviously can work great in the regular season because you're not playing 17 playoff teams all with elite QBs in a row.

But if the Browns want to win the Super Bowl, the odds are extremely high they're gonna have to beat at least 3 really good QBs and play callers to do so. Can a Schwartz led defense do that without turnover luck (which can be very random) in 2024 and beyond? I'm not really convinced of that.

To do a bit of mutual masturbation here, who in your opion is someone that is available that can do what you would like to see as a DC do? I agree with you that they're not going to fire him, but I think they should sooner rather than later. The issue for me is a lot of the guys I would interview to replace him are young and unproven, like Glenn Schumann or Kris Richard for instance, although I think their philosophies present a lot of upside.

 

[The Wizard of Moz]

The optics of firing Schwartz, a highly respected coach around the league, after he turned around the defense to be the #1 unit in the NFL in a single season would be exceptionally bad

You can’t really hold a press conference and say “nooooo you don’t understand, the #1 unit feasted on Tannehill, Tune, and Pickett!!!”

It would be a bad look. The degree to which you should care about that can vary, but it at least is part of the discussion that it should make the job less attractive to top tier candidates and would result in some friction

 

[CBBI]

The optics of firing Schwartz, a highly respected coach around the league, after he turned around the defense to be the #1 unit in the NFL in a single season would be exceptionally bad

You can’t really hold a press conference and say “nooooo you don’t understand, the #1 unit feasted on Tannehill, Tune, and Pickett!!!”

It would be a bad look. The degree to which you should care about that can vary, but it at least is part of the discussion that it should make the job less attractive to top tier candidates and would result in some friction

I dont disagree with this in the slightest. At the end of the day there is still a massive human element involved in this type of decision making.

Moving on from a well liked and well respected coach after a statistically successful season isn’t really a tenable outcome and I totally get that. I’ve maintained from the jump that he won’t be fired.

I’m just not at all confident that the Browns can actually win the Super Bowl or even get to it with this rigid of a defensive scheme unless they have multiple weeks of turnover luck in their favor or an offense that’s just clicking so well they can overcome the adjustments this defense isn’t going to make.

We all expected this defense to be able to carry the offense through rough seas, but when push comes to shove, that doesn’t appear to be the case against the best QBs and play callers, aka the only teams you’ll play in the playoffs.

 

[Randolphkeys]

I don't believe one playoff game should be the basis of coaching decisions. There were some areas where Schwartz could have diversified the coverage packages. I was pretty frustrated that Bobby Slowik could confidently shift presnap until Nico Collins was matched up with Newsome. When the defense had to slam the door on third down, they seemed to do well. They were caught off guard on a few first downs. I believe that fans tend to blame a lot of execution mistakes on scheme. PFF tries to isolate execution mistakes in their grades, but there really is no perfect system to do that.

As of December 12th, Vegas had Schwartz leading all defensive assistants in his chance to be Assistant Coach of the Year. Interestingly, Bobby Slowik was fourth among offensive coordinators for the award. I expect him to end up a head NFL coach by the draft.

Schwartz had a decent outing while Slowik had a superb outing Saturday, if we want to eliminate all the other factors. I think we should spend more time examining those other factors. I would also just rather tip my hat to Slowik for finding the edge at the right times for cementing his career Saturday.

 

[adam81king]

I dont disagree with this in the slightest. At the end of the day there is still a massive human element involved in this type of decision making.

Moving on from a well liked and well respected coach after a statistically successful season isn’t really a tenable outcome and I totally get that. I’ve maintain from the jump that he won’t be fired.

I’m just not at all confident that the Browns can actually win the Super Bowl or even get to it with this rigid of a defensive scheme unless they have multiple weeks of turnover luck in their favor or an offense that’s just clicking so well they can overcome the adjustments this defense isn’t going to make.

We all expected this defense to be able to carry the offense through rough seas, but when push comes to shove, that doesn’t appear to be the case against the best QBs and play callers, aka the only teams you’ll play in the playoffs.

Even though I gave you a hard time, I don't blame you for your Schwartz stance. I respect setting a standard and keeping expectations above that. Where you lose me is the nuance/specifics of the situation. He turned a bottom 10 (correct me if Im wrong) defense into a top 3 defense in less than a year. Unless there are issues that can't be fixed, or you have someone you *know* is gonna do better, it makes no sense to look elsewhere. Going from trash to elite is a big step. Going from elite to "perfect" is a small window. Going from elite back to trash is a much larger possibility for yet another defensive coach/system. Let's see if Jim can tweak tge flaws, instead of starting over. Lest we forget there were many fans calling for Kevskis job earlier this season, , but he finished as a finalist for CoTY.

 

[bushwick_bill]

 

[FrontPageNews]

Schwartz is now a free agent. He was on a 1 year deal.

 

[CBBI]

Even though I gave you a hard time, I don't blame you for your Schwartz stance. I respect setting a standard and keeping expectations above that. Where you lose me is the nuance/specifics of the situation. He turned a bottom 10 (correct me if Im wrong) defense into a top 3 defense in less than a year. Unless there are issues that can't be fixed, or you have someone you *know* is gonna do better, it makes no sense to look elsewhere. Going from trash to elite is a big step. Going from elite to "perfect" is a small window. Going from elite back to trash is a much larger possibility for yet another defensive coach/system. Let's see if Jim can tweak tge flaws, instead of starting over. Lest we forget there were many fans calling for Kevskis job earlier this season, , but he finished as a finalist for CoTY.

There were a lot of defensive personnel changes from last year to this year though.

The defensive line outside of Myles was pretty much completely overhauled. Smith, Ogbo, Tomlinson, Harris, Hurst were all new.

Multiple new safeties were added.

Emerson made a significant year 2 leap as good prospects are supposed to do.

JOK stayed healthy for the first time and had a great season.

It’s accurate to say that that Woods underachieved significantly, but he was certainly working with a lot less as well.

 

[2 For The Brew]

There’s a HoF DC available who can redeem himself in Cleveland.

 

[adam81king]

There were a lot of defensive personnel changes from last year to this year though.

The defensive line outside of Myles was pretty much completely overhauled. Smith, Ogbo, Tomlinson, Harris, Hurst were all new.

Multiple new safeties were added.

Emerson made a significant year 2 leap as good prospects are supposed to do.

JOK stayed healthy for the first time and had a great season.

It’s accurate to say that that Woods underachieved significantly, but he was certainly working with a lot less as well.

Yup. Lots of personnel changes...

How many of those guys were considered reasons for a "bottom 10 to top 3" change before they were added? How many of those guys played all the games, or got out of the season without injury?

Rodney McLeod played how many games? Thornhill played how many? Ronnie Hickman was a UDFA rookie. DeAnthony Bell was, too.

Emerson made a leap, and also what he was asked to do changed.

JOK went from *some* saying he was unplayable to a borderline pro bowler.

Yeah, players were added, but of the additions, none of them were blockbuster *and* remained healthy.

 

[CBBI]

Yup. Lots of personnel changes...

How many of those guys were considered reasons for a "bottom 10 to top 3" change before they were added? How many of those guys played all the games, or got out of the season without injury?

Rodney McLeod played how many games? Thornhill played how many? Ronnie Hickman was a UDFA rookie. DeAnthony Bell was, too.

Emerson made a leap, and also what he was asked to do changed.

JOK went from *some* saying he was unplayable to a borderline pro bowler.

Yeah, players were added, but of the additions, none of them were blockbuster *and* remained healthy.

Depending on how much stock you put into PFF, Za'Darius Smith would be considered a blockbuster addition with his 82.6 overall grade and 87.4 pass rush grade opposite Garrett.

 

[daddywags]

To put a finer point on this, we averaged 22.3 ppg on offense at home and 24.3 away. The difference was on defense.

 

[adam81king]

Depending on how much stock you put into PFF, Za'Darius Smith would be considered a blockbuster addition with his 82.6 overall grade and 87.4 pass rush grade opposite Garrett.

I don't put much stock into PFF, but I'll agree that Z was the biggest addition. That Jadeveon Clowney has a bad year last year, and similar to Z this year, in Baltimore, is why I give Jim credit, though. Also, while Z is a great (on paper) addition, I'm not sure he's enough to take a defense from bottom 10 to top 3 on his own.

 

[Amherstcavsfan]

To put a finer point on this, we averaged 22.3 ppg on offense at home and 24.3 away. The difference was on defense.