Does Size Really Matter?

ESPN and a bunch of other talking heads were cracking jokes about the size of Minnesota Vikings offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave's play sheet. It's really more a card than a sheet. Sean Payton and many of the other self- and media-appointed offensive geniuses strut the sideline with a sheet of color-coded plays. Some are about the size of a poster. Most are about the size of a place mat. None are as small as the little card that Musgrave palms. His is color-coded too. Despite the size, you can clearly see the colors on TV. Those that are poking fun are making the assumption that the size of the card or sheet is directly related to the number of plays in the arsenal. That's quite an assumption to make.

Bill Musgrave made it clear from about the day that Leslie Frazier hired him to be the Vikings offensive coordinator that he's not a big fan of the cumbersome play calls associated with most, if not all, versions of your typical west coast offense. His offense would consist of brief, easily understood play calls. I thought that this was a terrific idea. While it's a hoot to listen to some of these coaches and ex-coaches, Jon Gruden in particular, rattle off these long string of disconnected words, I always thought that it was a bit excessive. A shorter, more easily understood play call simply has less room for error. The more easily understood the play call, the more easily executed the play. At least that's what I always thought. Musgrave seems to have the very same view. A handful of your typical west coast offense plays might look more like an essay. Musgrave's plays look more like a handful of sentences. He doesn't need a big ol' sheet to list all of his plays. An itty bitty card will do. I think that those supposed football experts would be better served saving some of those laughs while they explain that Musgrave's brief play calls might play a role in the size of his card.

Now, my defense of Musgrave's little card doesn't necessarily mean that I'm thrilled with his play calling. There are a lot of problems with the Vikings offense right now. The play calling is a part of it. Everyone has to execute better. The coaches and the players. I just think that the size of Bill Musgrave's card has little to do with any of it.