This is a very unique situation we are in where none of us really know what Warren and Poles are planning, or thinking of doing with the staff, with Fields, the draft etc. There are so many scenarios that could play out this offseason, and all of which have their own risks and potential rewards.
Run it all back, keep Flus, Getsy, Fields, et al. Possibly add a DC (Riviera?) that knows the cover 2 scheme. Trade the #1 overall pick and either target MHJ or see what hall you can get for the pick to build around Fields, and upgrade both lines. Maintain continuity and see if next year with added talent and another year in the system puts us where we want to be. The risk being the potential to miss out on better coaches to get more out of the talent we have, and possibly watching a QB or two we pass on becoming the next big thing.
Keep Flus, fire Getsy, trade fields, draft QB #1 overall or even trade down a spot or two but still take QB with our top pick. This would be a soft reset on the offensive side of the ball. We use our remaining draft capitol and FA to build around the young QB. OC choice would be critical, and would need to be someone who can develop an offensive system around the new QB. Also targeting a solid vet QB in FA would be key as well to help mentor the rookie. We enter next season knowing the offense will likely struggle early.
Clean house. Flus gone, Getsy gone, etc. Hire new HC, who brings in his own DC, and based on whether he thinks can get the full potential out of Fields or wants to draft a new QB means we either trade the #1 pick or use it on a QB. This would likely either be decided based on who the new HC has in mind for the OC or who he brings in as the OC.
As deflating as yesterday's loss was, there has been growth this season as a team. Is it enough to run it all back next year and give this group one last chance to either prove they can take the next steps and get us over the hump? Three things were obvious to my eyes watching that game. One was on defense, there was no aggressiveness in the play calling or scheme, we didn't attack the line of scrimmage and we played soft in the back end. We made Jordan Love's job easy and made him look like an All Star QB (which of course the broadcasters spared now time in gushing over him). There were WR's and TE's running free all over for easy pitch and catch all day. Two Getsy reverted to bad play calling, trying to be cute (example 4th and 1 starting in shotgun then running to the line to nearly botch a QB sneak that we probably made by the thickness of a credit card). He has been too inconsistent all season long. The majority of the season he's been playing checkers against DC's playing 3D Chess. The players themselves didn't show up. Defensively we didn't cover well, we didn't tackle, we didn't get after Love, we didn't stop the run. Offensively.... what offense? The effort wasn't there. We coached and played like a team whose head was already in the offseason and didn't really care if we won or lost. Contrast to GB who played like a team whose post season was on the line. They came to play, and we didn't.
Where do we go from here who the hell knows. The positive is we have options, we have the #1 and I believe the #9 in the first round. So we have two top 10 picks that we can either use or trade to increase our draft capital to put us in a position to really shape this team for the foreseeable future. We have a roster that has a lot of good talent on it young and old. This would be a coveted landing spot for a HC to come into. With this roster, draft position, and cap space, this is a team that could see a sustainable jump to become a perennial playoff caliber team if done right.