I say there is ample evidence to be highly critical of Mike McCarthy.
Of course I want him to succeed, and I truly believe he does many things right.
I'm with Non on this one. I don't recall if Non is advocating any kind of coaching change mid-season--I don't think so--if he is, we are parting company on that one.
The players handing Mike a game ball is a good thing, of course. I don't think anyone has ever doubted Mike's "X's and o's" abilities. Some of us have some serious reservations about which "x's and o" decisions he makes as the situation unfolds.
I think that fans do that with every head coach in this league, at least at times.
I don't like the way Mike goes about the business of inspiration.
That's right, I am critical of his (to me) lack of inspirational skills. If he talks to his players the way he talks to (us), well, the player will no doubt come away with the how to do something, but just might miss out on the why. The penalties, the missed assignments, all those mental errors...
I was reading a post game blog from another site the other day. Just as Pack93z likes to concentrate on the DL and linebacker play as a game goes on, this blogger did something a little bit different than the traditional watching of the whole picture that most of us do.
He was at the game. He watched all the principals subsequent to a penalty. The offending player, the position coach, and of course Mike.
No one ever said shit to anyone after those penalties...not once. This on a team that was getting BOO'd for those penalties by it's own fans, for very good reasons.
Maybe there is a carryover bunker mentality in that locker room, and maybe they have a cohesiveness borne from the fiasco or something..this is possible, and the presentation of that game ball is evidence that the players like and respect Mike. I don't think that was ever in doubt.
He can love those guys (which I think he does) and they can love him (which I think they do) but when you are trying to lead a group of young millionaires into (the sports equivalent of) battle, a nice healthy dose of fear instilled into those people is almost a requirement. I read Winston Moss' interview on the JSOnline this week. It was refreshing, because he was quite candid about the fact that several (he named 'em, too) players were put on notice that their jobs were on the line. This is about the first time I can recall reading something like that.
Those same players are the same ones that we are now praising for their stellar play this week.
Imagine that.
So I'm agreeing with Non, but with a completely different set of "requirements" as to what I feel is lacking from Mike.
He is (overall) a very good coach in a technical sense.
His leadership skills are too persuasive in nature (this is a legitimate methodology for leadership--"persuasive") and not authoritarian enough in nature. ("authoritarian" is the flip-side of persuasive).
The best leaders combine the two methodologies as circumstances dictate. Mike does not do this well, imo.
When done just right, his players would love him, just as I suspect they do now.
When done right, they would also fear him, just the right amount. They might now, a little, but not enough... Not nearly enough.