I'm not close enough to say one way or another if there is a weak link that needs to be fired. It's all about communication and accountability. Coach Gundy is the CEO and the buck stops with him. The expectations for his coaches comes from him and accountability if they don't get it done has to come from him as well. From the outside looking in, he can't be happy with his offensive staff the last several years. This includes recruiting, player development, scheme, and player performance. If you were Gundy how would you rate the following considering the good with the bad. Consider the last 3/4 years.
overall offense - D (offense in decline for a number of years, schemes predictable, energy low, recruiting ok, need to develop an attitude of physicality/trust/toughness)
QB - C (love sanders but if things were good he wouldn't be leaving, needed to engage and prepare backups at a higher level, development and recruiting good)
OL - D- (problem for too long, no toughness, no run game, recruiting and keeping players an issue, Development an issue, injuries are systemic and not occasional)
Cowboy backs - F (obviously they aren't blocking, not getting much on receiving end, poor recruiting, poor development, poor results)
Receivers - A- (these guys have been good, Dunn needs credit recruiting and developing this group, carried this team for years, currently young but lots of talent, a visible difference in decreased blocking and winning 50-50 balls since Dunn has been elevated to OC)
Running backs - C- (we've been very dependent on transfers bailing us out, recruiting misses more often then wins, love Ollie hope he gets going, average blockers, our toughest back just transferred, with our history we should have the top talent wanting to come here, not close to where it's been)
Just my grades so don't take it personal. Just the way I'd grade the performance and direction. My opinion is Coach needs some adjustments in staff or to gather some butt and let folks know there better be vast improvement.
If I'm Gundy for a day,
I'm giving up on the Cowboy back experiment. Decide what you want to do and recruit bigger receivers that can block (doing this) and fullbacks. Don't need a coach to get the results we are getting.
Secondly, I need Dunn more focused on receivers. Co-coordinator passing game with emphasis on this group.
Hire a play caller. Someone with some moxie that gets kids excited. Has imagination and schemes opponents. Gundy needs to lose the attitude of "this is what we do regardless". People have figured it out.
Ol and RB coaches need to be put on notice. Vast improvement or they are gone. I have no problem replacing them but I'm ok with Gundy raising the bar and giving them a chance to turn it around. I see a movement for tougher players in recruiting this class. Maybe a plan is in place.
Remember this is just opinion. Just an exercise of total fiction. Obviously we don't know what Gundy knows. We don't see the problems and successes daily. Give him a chance to fix this. He has earned the right.
I am concerned with the stoic attitude of Gundy. I want to see as much fire on the field as he has with reporters. It was a dumb question but he let him know what he thought. I look at the coaches in this league and see passion, balls to the wall game day energy, players excited to play for them. We need to find this energy and excitement. In the era of transfers and NIL. I think this may be even more important. I think kids want their coach to get fired up. New day, different type of kid. Let loose a little coach. I'd rather go down swinging then the total boring display of offense we watched this year.