Props for Venturi
 

Rick Venturi

Venturi is especially valuable to the staff, bringing two decades of experience and an entirely new defense to the table.

"Rick is probably the best coach that I've ever been around," remarked Haslett of his defensive coordinator. "Obviously, we're good friends besides that. He's a great coach. He's got a great relationship with the players. He's hard on them, but they really respect him and what he does with the team. He's coached every position. He knows football. He's smart enough to know that he can put a lot of stuff in, but he's also smart enough to realize what we can't run because of what the other team is doing."







[Edited on 24/7/2003 by BillyCarpenter1]

Props for Venturi
 

To this point in his long coaching career, the only props I give Rick Venturi are ones that he would use if he were in a Broadway play. It\'s about time that he start proving people wrong and learn how to coach a defense. I don\'t think I\'ll ever be fully sold on this clown.

Props for Venturi
 

One would think that with 20 years of coaching every defensive position and being the best coach Haslett has ever been around would have had more success than he has had. He has stated that our defensive scheme last year was too complex and needed to be simplified. Our players we out of position, lined up against blatant mismatches, and running blitzes that made no sense.

Case in point....Minnesota game last December. We line up Sedrick Hodge to cover Randy Moss while Thomas corner blitzes and we don\'t even give over the top protection from the safety, in fact the safety is asked to backup coverage on Dale Carter on the far side and Knight was picking up the slot reciever.
Sedrick Hodge asked to man cover Moss?? Recipe for disaster. Learned that in 20 years?

Props for Venturi
 

Venturi has always seemed to me as a jack of all trades, and a master of none. He may be a great coach and capable of helping the team get better, but he has never shown the ability to run the show wether it be offense, defense, or special teams.

With that said, I hope he proves me wrong this year.