I'm torn on my desire to have JBC back or not. On one hand.....Stafford likes having him and cooter has definitely helped Matts decision making. I think we all agree upon that.
Where JBC struggled in the past two years is the running game and play calling. Do we need a new RB....probably. However, AA is NOT the biggest problem. Scheme, play design and play calling pattern is bad. I don't care who your back is, if he is constantly having to avoid people 2,3 and even 4 yards in the backfield you're not going to have a successful running game. We run way too much on obvious running downs. We run way too much in obvious running formations. We leave too many people unblocked and are vNOT ery good blocking at the point of attack. All of that leads to the worst running game in the NFL. That is the only thing that the Lions have been remarkably consistent in the last three years.
As far as playcalling goes. I think the playcalling in the second half of the year was much more aggressive. I liked that a lot. It really gives Golden Tate a lot more space to run his underneath routes. I think our screen game is terrible. I don't think we use Ebron the right way. We aren't creative at all in the red zone. I get so frustrated when I watch other games and see some very good, creative play calling inside the 10. We don't do anything like that. The only creative play call I saw this year was the throwback to Stafford in game 16 when it didn't mean a fucking thing.
To me, all of this equals Jim Bob Cooter as a very good quarterback coach, not yet a good offensive coordinator. If Patricia keeps him around and we do not sign some sort of running game Coordinator to help JBC out, we are going to see an offense an awful lot like 2017's.
