Inside the mind of Kyle Shanahan

Were you interested in Kyle Shanahan's feelings? Well, Tom Pelissero of USA Today figured you were. It sounded like an interesting idea, but the Atlanta Falcons offensive coordinator sure did not give up many good quotes about offensive improvements.

The sum up? Shanahan feels bad about his mistakes but stands by his decisions. Come on Tom, give me something here.

There are a few interesting things from this pieces.

"‘It is the right thing to call it. Call it.’ You have to think that way. There is pressure in this game, and if you get encompassed by the pressure, that’ll affect your outcome."

Well sure, it is easy to get caught up in the results. But fans probably get caught up in seeing the same results on the same plays. Hopefully we see that change in 2016, as it sounds like Shanahan is tired of the criticism that has followed him around the last few five years.

This is why you don’t listen to talk radio anymore, the morning after wins or losses. If you need that to make yourself feel good, you’ll feel that much worse when it’s bad. You listen to reggae instead, grab a cup of coffee, put on another tape, start preparing for this moment all over again.

This must mean he gets all of his news from places like the Falcoholic?

The article points out that Shanahan typically ends up pretty high in some offensive stats but struggled last season in the red zone. I might suggest that zone blocking schemes are good for empty yardage and struggle to score points, or that this has been Shanahan's M.O. for the better part of a decade. Either way, he clearly has some good football knowledge.

"The No. 1 (misconception) is that he’s stubborn or hardheaded. Because he’s not," Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan said of Shanahan. "You need to know what you’re talking about. He’s open to the best option, but you better have reasons for why you think it’s the best option, there’s no doubt about that."

Thanks Ryan. I have a bunch of reasons why I'd like to see you play in more no-huddle, uptempo drives and why every play that puts you on the move should be burned to ashes and shot into space. It certainly seems like Shanahan is stubborn and refuses to alter from his scheme, and Shanahan has already said they won't be running more no-huddle in 2016.

"Those things haunt you," Shanahan said, "and that’s why the next time I go into a game where I think it’s going to be that situation and I do think that it’s the right thing to throw the ball, I better make sure I have a talk with myself before that game starts. Because if not, my scars will take over.

If you didn't read the article, it was a whole lot of this. It is kind of a bizarre piece and I'm struggling to pull too much from it. He's a heavily-criticized offensive coordinator. After the offensive collapse last season, I would consider the criticism justified. Instead of talking about how the offense will change, or how the scheme won't fall to pieces, Shanahan is talking about how tough it is to be him.

This does not fill me with optimism for 2016.