Based on some analysis done elsewhere, it's going to be almost impossible for the Rapids to make the playoffs. The only competition left is the USOC. What should the Rapids do now? I don't want to discuss firing anyone. I know it will be hard for people to honor that, but no one will be fired this season so it's a waste of time discussing it. There are still about 20 games remaining. This is about those games. I understand an opinion like "I don't give a shit, firing the lot of them is the only option" may be on your mind. Fair enough, but if you're planning on attending, or commenting on games, then you do give a shit and this is about those games and what the team should do. I would like to see the organization admit the current status. Sans excuses, tell the fans what we already know. At least show us that you recognize the sad state of affairs of this season. I then want to hear how they plan on playing out the rest of the season. Will they team put (who they feel are) the best 11 on the field? Will they integrate players they feel are the future of the team? How will they approach the USOC game(s)? Leave the hackneyed sports babble in the office, along with the platitudes. I would like to see the team play those they feel are the future for this team. Burling is not, Sanchez is not, Riley is not, LaBrocca is not. I also want to see Doyle, Solignac, Ramirez and Torres play enough to see if they are worth the money. I would like to see the USOC (I never thought I'd say this) be the priority when decisions about resting players must be made. I'm also going to start sending emails to Denver TV sports anchors asking them to look into the teams performance. Yeah, people are always contacting them to cover the team more, but maybe pushing the approach about how they have become the door mats of the league and setting futility records may appeal to them during the brief lull w/o any other professional sports competition. I suggest others do so as well.
Interesting how your second paragraph talks (correctly IMO) about what they won't do and then the third paragraph calls for something I won't believe they will do either. Unfortunately until that kind of "real talk" happens from the FO I don't think we can expect anything different in the last 19 games than we've seen in the first 15. What worries me the most is that I honestly question if the FO knows this season is over (and has been since the disastrous Portland game last month). I also don't think the FO realizes/cares how much damage to the die-hard fan base their complete silence is causing. Until that changes in some way everything else is rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.
I don't expect them to open up about the reality of the first part of the season. In fairness to them, it's extremely rare, maybe never, for a team to admit mid season they are effectively done. But it would be refreshing. Regarding who they play, yeah, I think they'll continue down the same path. The subject was what should they do, not what we think they will do You've said it before, as long as people pay to watch, they don't have the serious motivation to change. Maybe it's time for the supporters group to start talking about the nuclear option.
It seems to me that without communication, they are damned if they do and damned if they don't. I suspect much of last season's goalie craziness was due to them taking a look at players after we were "out". We say we won't have an issue, but the RFO and PM was grilled for those decisions. From a fans perspective, we have no idea if that is why they make the crazy decisions they seem to make. So, IF they are going to try some different things for future preparation, I would strongly suggest that they communicate it out as such. Many fans (not all) will be OK with a few losses knowing that it is for the betterment of young players who will contribute next year. Not communicating means the average fan thinks the RFO and PM are just idiots. My two cents on the topic. For now, I would say try and win as much as possible. They may not be able to sniff the playoffs, but could make some noise and save a few jobs along the way. rod.
It aint over till its over. No matter what this optimists' club in here thinks. Yogi says so. Go Rapids!
Do you know if C38 ever considers an anti owner TIFO for a nationally televised game? I can picture a grim reaper with Kroenke's name on it surrounded by tombstones with Nuggets, Avs, Rapids, and Rockies on them...not that I have been thinking about this a lot or anything...
20 years, I have never had the bag over the head........ Agree with David that the RFO knows they did not give PM the horses to score, and now that their "Savior" Doyle has arrived, they are stupidly blaming Doyle (not themselves) for his fitness. Go to Leadville and see how long it takes you to get to full speed......PM's test is next season with a full squad over the offseason to tune. These are Dan Snyder and Nugget style moves. Note two years ago the Nuggets were the #2 seed in a competitive west, and upset by Golden State in the playoffs (Curry was great, better than the 2015 Finals), so they dismantled that team for a crap team. Because we did not beat the emerging Warrior.......Yes, they do not know what to do and the money guys *think* they know soccer and basketball. Sad. Now to the USOC, which could be a priority instead of the MLS West. Interesting, as we have done well in BBVA with ties recently. Houston is more in MLS mode, so our best may beat them. OK with me to get any win (lose the bag). Looking at the West, I note that we are a few wins away from being back in the playoff race. Was it only two years ago we played Seattle in the playoffs? Lost with a bizarre Oscar starting backline??? Sigh. R
I can picture a grim reaper with Kroenke's name on it surrounded by tombstones with Nuggets, Avs, Rapids, and Rockies on them.. Gosh- what an idea!! You could even add tombstones for the Rams and Arsenal just to show how awesome KSE are. When's the next nationally televised game, the All-Star game I'm sure. I'd be totally down to do this as it'd get league attention while the Don is in town even, the plane overhead at the same time. Think they'd get the message??
Only Problem is KSE doesn't own the Rockies, the Monfort brothers do. Given all the owner issues in Denver it's not surprising everyone gets on Broncos bandwagon. EDIT: C38 needs to stay out of any "direct attacks on Ownership" we have no clue how long KSE will stay in charge and this is not the move they need to make.
Agree here. If a group of fans wants to put something together, then great. I don't think C38 as an official organization should make this stand. They may point interested parties to an organizer, but it isn't right for C38 to take on the topic themselves. rod.
The Rapids are in a position where they basically need to win three consecutive games just to get back in the race. It's not impossible, but it does seem improbable given our inability to score goals. I think it wouldn't hurt to shift primary focus towards the Open Cup, but even still it's probably not time to totally throw away the league yet. A lot can happen in four months. There are two schools of thought in C38. We have the "support the team no matter what" crowd, and the "we need to start holding them accountable" crowd. I personally fall into the latter category, and I think the former category need to quit being a bunch of pussies. However, because it is such a decisive topic, C38 will not take any drastic actions without a consensus from the group as a whole. We're still waiting for things to get worse before we go down that road. However, more subtle actions are going to start happening, such as hanging our banners upside down. Things will likely become less subtle over time if the poor performances continue. When we sit down to negotiate a new deal with the FO, we're pretty much not going to budge on any kind of price hike. Our ability sell tickets, and consequently pay the Rapids for our block, is directly correlated to the performance on the field. People tend to be a lot more interested in buying into a competitive product over basement-dwelling one.
I can appreciate the sentiment behind the "support the team no matter what" group, but I hope they know they are directly contributing to the problem. They are supporting a failed product. I suspect few would continue buying and drinking a brand of beer they didn't like simply because they like beer in general.
THIS needs to happen for sure, Both @JasonMa and you have now mentioned it and your leverage is TH precious increased STH base which I am positive includes all "seats" the SG pays for.
2 thoughts here: You are way over-simplifying the options. I am in either category and end up somewhere in the middle. Which leads me to my second point C38 is bigger than any one perspective. It doesn't seem right for C38 to take a stand that not everyone is on board with. That would lead us back to the splintered groups we once had. I am fully supportive of the small gestures you mention, but C38 should leave the big gestures to smaller groups that are singularly focused. Support those groups, absolutely, but not it on unless everyone is in agreement. It does seem like you are saying this would be C38's position, I am reiterating the point. rod.
I think that position on tickets is too generous myself. The Rapids need to convince C38 as to why they should even renew at any price, not just guarantee no price increase. But then I'm not trying to run C38, I'm just trying to pressure the Rapids.
Agreed. Professional sports rely on hard core fans to accept whatever they put on the field in return for them making the supporters feel "special". Owners treat their teams as a business. Fans should behave like consumers.
Honestly, the lack of a collective mentality is why I really hate the American form of fan support. I honestly don't know if it's just the casual mentality people have towards sports here, or if it's because of the cancerous effect college athletics has had with the "support your guys no matter what" bullshit. But the reality is that we have to take a more moderate approach. Simply walking away from buying block tickets altogether is the nuclear option. It would make the Rapids/KSE hurt for sure. However, doing that would surrender C38's leverage as a group, at least in the short term. I don't think things have deteriorated enough that this option makes sense. That being said, we absolutely should be brandishing that weapon, even if we may not be ready to use it yet.
What leverage, the ability to pay to watch a bad team in the same section? Buy beer cheaper to make watching a bad team tolerable? Unlike other business/consumer relationships, sports fans yield their leverage when they buy their tickets in support of an inferior product.
Agreed, there should never be a 'no matter what.' There is always a line and this clowncar of mismanagement has crossed it for me. My family has spent our entertainment dollar in other places and it has made this disastrous season enjoyable. I still effectively piss away two hours on the weekend watching it. But our trips to Steamboat and Nebraska came directly from our Rapids savings.
I am not saying that there shouldn't be protests. I am just saying C38 as an organization doesn't take the lead. You can't tell me everyone in C38 would agree. You also can't tell me that anyone who doesn't agree with your position is a <insert favorite derogative term here>. The beauty of our organization is that we can join like-minded groups for specific causes. Don't take my comments to be supporting the RFO.
Leverage to keep our prices lower than everybody else, to get deals with businesses that partner with the Rapids, to get early or exclusive access to stuff, and to keep security and stadium ops in line. Yeah, the team sucks balls, but C38 has more factors at risk than simply not paying to watch a crap team. I'm really not arguing with anything here. We always do what is in our best interests, and it really isn't our responsibility as to what other fans outside our group do. I don't have any plans to strong-arm the group to my position. However, I will definitely make sure people know what I think, just like everything else. It is 100% up to them whether they agree, disagree, or change their option organically over time. All major decisions about C38's direction are, and should always be, decided by the group itself. Leadership's responsibility is in the execution. Leadership is generally of the mind of going along with what the broader group wants, while being realistic and being able to preserve the group itself without having people splinter off to start some stupid new group. Any protest we would do would be for C38's interests, not for anyone else in the stadium. If others join in, great. If not, it really doesn't matter to us. P.S. I can call people whatever I want frankly, but thats really a non-issue here.