The Athletic Football Show: A show about the NFL What happened to the NFL's elite?
39 snips
Dec 4, 2025 
Diante Lee, a football writer and analyst at The Ringer, dives into the inconsistencies plaguing teams like the Lions, Eagles, and Ravens, pointing to issues like coordinator turnover and injury troubles. Former Kansas City Chiefs offensive tackle Mitchell Schwartz offers a technical breakdown of his team's offensive struggles, emphasizing their disjointed identity and personnel gaps. The discussion revolves around whether these former powerhouses can regain their elite status and what strategic changes are necessary for their turnaround.
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Quarterback Quality Amplifies Team Fragility
- Teams without hyper-elite quarterbacks are more vulnerable to fluctuations when structure changes or injuries occur.
- Diminished offensive lines and coordinator turnover magnify performance vacillations for those teams.
Detroit's Shotgun Drift Hurt Play-Action
- The Lions shifted into shotgun far more this year and lost the early-down identity that created consistent success in 2024.
- That increase in shotgun and coordinator change reduced play-action effectiveness and created extreme game-to-game variance.
Coordinator Brain Drain Changes Identity
- Brain drain from losing detail-oriented coordinators changed personnel usage and discipline for the Lions' offense.
- Without Ben Johnson's structure, Dan Campbell and Jared Goff face tougher early-down naming and protection decisions.