Thank god we finally get to see the guys play a game. As the eloquent Allen Iverson has famously pointed out, practice is one thing, but games are a whole different level. This is only the preseason. Winning and losing isn't important. You always prefer to see the Eagles come out on top, but the Lions went 4-0 last summer. How'd that work out for them?
The preseason works like this:
The opener is a game for the starter to play a quarter or so. They get loose and hopefully have some good moments. The 2nd stringers play quite a bit. This game is important for them to show where they are. The 3rd stringers get the 4th quarter. You just hope to find a couple of guys who look like NFL players. The opener is often a sloppy affair. Coaches and players aren't used to game situations. There can be confusion on the sidelines as well as on the field. This is a time for everyone to knock of the rust and get back in the flow of games.
The second game involves the starters playing a half. The backups each get a quarter or so. This game needs to be more polished. Players must work on the mistakes they made in the opener.
The third game is a dress rehearsal for the regular season. Starters play into the 3rd quarter. The backups finish the game. 3rd stringers may play a little or not at all. This game is when the team needs to really look good.
The finale has no starters (unless there are special circumstances). Some guys have already been cut. The backups have to play a lot of snaps because of the situation, but they also get a chance to shine. Players can win or lose a roster spot based on this game. Priest Holmes was going to get cut by the Ravens in 1997, but had a really good showing in the final preseason game and made the roster. The rest is history.
With that in mind, don't expect anything great tonight. Focus on individual players and specific units. This game is important to some players. That can bring out the best in them or cause them to fold under pressure. And if you can't handle this kind of pressure, you probably aren't meant for the NFL.
Some of what I'm looking for:
OL --- The area that we’ll all be focusing on is the offensive line. We won’t get to see the projected starting group, but there is still plenty to watch. New left tackle Jason Peters makes his Eagles debut. Keep the expectations realistic. Peters could be a bit rusty because he’s been in and out of practice this summer due to injury. The first two games are his trial and error period. Week 3 is the dress rehearsal for the season and that is when Peters needs to play well.
Todd Herremans is out due to an injury. Max Jean-Gilles will take his place in the starting lineup. Jamaal Jackson and Nick Cole are back as the center and right guard. We know what those guys can do. There is nothing special to look for from them.
Winston Justice will man the right tackle spot. This is a huge game for him. He has been all over the map. He went from promising prospect to bust to forgotten in the span of a couple of years. Now Justice finds himself in the starting lineup. He’s there for a couple of reasons. First, injuries have kept the Andrews brothers from playing much this summer. That created an opportunity. The second part of the equation is that Justice has played pretty well. He took advantage of the opening.
Now comes a huge test for Justice. He’s not just fighting for a spot on the Eagles. He is auditioning for all 32 NFL teams. People don’t remember Justice playing almost all of the 2007 season finale against Buffalo. All they remember is the disaster against the Giants. Starting against the Patriots gives Justice a chance to show what he can do. Or not do. Playing well at Lehigh does not guarantee that he’ll play well in a game. A good showing would be a big boost to Justice’s confidence in himself, as well as the rest of the team’s confidence in him. Good games will get people’s attention.
Justice doesn't have a lot of fudge room. A bad showing will really hurt him. A good showing won't solidify anything, but will help. That may not be fair, but that's reality after the last 3 years. One interesting aspect is that Justice is going against the Pats 3-4 defense. We all know Winston is athletic. The problems we have him him are brains and toughness. If he can run block well against a 3-4 DE that will help sell me the idea that he really has made significant improvement. On the other hand, if he gets shoved around like a rag doll...it is like nothing really changed.
There is one backup lineman that I’m really interested to see. King Dunlap is a second year left tackle who is fighting for a roster spot. He showed good potential last year. I’m curious to see what kind of progress he’s made since then. Rookies can get by with showing potential. Guys in their second or third year have to show improvement. If a young fringe player isn’t getting better then he’s probably not worth keeping around. We’ll get to see whether Dunlap is improving or just treading water.
The other young guys will be interesting. I expect Mike McGlynn to play well. Dallas Reynolds is the rookie I'm most excited to watch.
RB --- The offensive player I’m most excited to watch is running back LeSean McCoy. He should be on the field with the starters since Brian Westbrook is still sidelined. McCoy had a terrific showing at training camp. He looks to be the best rookie running back since Correll Buckhalter in 2001. (Westbrook was the number three back when he was a rookie and didn’t really emerge until the next season).
McCoy has stood out as a runner, receiver, and blocker. Rookies normally don’t handle all three areas so well. That is very encouraging. Now we get a chance to see what McCoy can do in a game. I’m sure that the coaches will feed him the ball so that we can see how he performs. You can also bet that the Patriots will blitz. That will give us a chance to see his blocking. As far as his running goes, I’m going to focus on whether McCoy gets directly up the field or tries to go wide a lot. We want to see him stay north-south as much as possible. Taking too many runs to the outside is a common rookie problem.
The other running back I’m curious about is Eldra Buckley. I want to know if he’s got a legitimate shot at making the team. I know Buckley is tough and will run hard between the tackles. I want to see how athletic he is. I’m also interested to see how he does as a receiver. Buckley has been around the league for a couple of years. He just doesn’t have much game experience.
Leonard Weaver probably won't get mixed in too much. I get the feeling the coaches will want to use him creatively in the season. He'll mostly be a blocker in this game. Kyle Eckel hasn't had a great summer. He needs to pick up the pace to help his cause. Rookie Marcus Mailei is worth watching. He caught the ball well in college and at TC. I want to see how he blocks against NFL defenders.
TE --- We all know what Celek can do. Eugene Bright and Rob Myers are giant mysteries. I just hope those guys are functional. Bright should be the better blocker. Myers is more athletic and should be the better pass catcher. The realistic question with these guys is whether they are worthy of a Practice Squad spot.
WR --- I'm not too worried about Curtis, Avant, or Baskett. I do want to see if DeSean looks as good as all the reports have made it sound. Reggie Brown ought to also be interesting. He was a starter in TC in 2006 and '07. He missed last year with injury. Now he finds himself a backup. Reggie should be able to clearly get the best of backup DBs. That needs to happen.
I know many people are going to be focused on Jeremy Maclin, this year’s first round pick. It will be fun to see what he can do. Maclin is going to play with the backup offense and may see some snaps with the first unit. Last summer we could immediately see how good DeSean Jackson was. We hadn’t seen a rookie quite like that. I’m not sure that Maclin will be at that level yet, but it will be good to find out how he compares to Jackson.
Danny Amendola and Brandon Gibson are new to the Eagles and guys that should be fun to watch. Both run great routes and have very good hands. Danny is small, but quick. Brandon is big.
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DL --- There aren’t any starting defensive linemen that have major questions to answer in this game. We know what the guys can do. There are some backups I’m interested in. Reportedly defensive end Chris Clemons has had a terrific training camp. I want to see if he plays like that in a game. Clemons really got better as the season went along last year. He started slow because he had trouble adjusting to the scheme and also had been hospitalized due to dehydration. This year there were no issues. Clemons played well and looked fast and athletic. Let’s hope that carries over to the games. Clemons could be a key backup for us this year.
Bryan Smith was a third round pick in 2008. I’ve heard all kinds of things about him this summer. Some were good, some were bad. I want to see how Smith looks in a game. Some guys don’t practice as well as they play in a game. Smith was really good in the preseason finale against the Jets last year. I’d love to see him look anything like that.
LDE Jason Babin is a guy that came to camp late, but played really tough, intense football once he got there. I have no idea what to expect of him. Is he just a camp body or could he be a diamond in the rough, so to speak? Babin was a 1st round pick several years ago, but never found his niche. Maybe his career flashed before his eyes and he's focused now. Or maybe he just had fresh legs for a couple of days and now that they're gone he will fade away quietly.
Rookie Josh Gaines has had an interesting spring and summer. He wasn’t drafted. Gaines lacks the ideal size and athletic ability. He’s tough and a hard worker, but that stuff will only get you so far in the NFL. He came to the Eagles as a defensive end, which is what he played for the Nittany Lions. At some point Gaines was given a shot to move inside to tackle. He’s played pretty well in there. Gaines is now listed as a backup defensive tackle on the depth chart. I’m looking forward to seeing how Gaines does as a backup tackle. He is undersized, but his level of quickness and athleticism are more likely to be effective on the inside.
I thought Dan Klecko was a lock for #4 DT. Not so. Dan has been up and down. Gaines and Willie Williams each have a legit shot to challenge for the spot. Dan needs to play really well in the games to get back to the front of the pack.
LB --- My focus on defense will be middle linebacker Joe Mays. I think most people will be checking him out. We all want to see if he can fill Stewart Bradley’s shoes as the starter in the middle. Mays looked great in last year’s preseason games. We need to see what kind of progress Mays has made. His game needs to be polished. He needs to be in the right place. You don’t want the middle linebacker overrunning plays and being too aggressive.
The Patriots hopefully will mix in a good deal of passes. That would help us to get a feel for Mays’ coverage skills. That is the one area where he is a bit of a mystery. No one expects Mays to show the cover skills of William Thomas or Seth Joyner. We do need him to be better than Barry Gardner.
The other linebacker I want to check out is rookie Moise Fokou. He started off on the weakside, but has been promoted to the backup SAM. The coaches obviously like what they are seeing from him. If Fokou plays well on defense and special teams he could win a roster spot. I was projecting him as more of a practice squad type. It is always good when guys overachieve as rookies.
Akeem Jordan and Omar Gaither are still battling for the WIL job. I hope Akeem plays well and stays ahead in that race. Matt Wilhelm has a chance to be the backup MLB. I've heard good and bad things about him so far. Last year Rocky Boiman was a major disappointment in the games. Will Wilhelm follow a similar path?
DB --- There is a pair of defensive backs that I’ll be checking out closely. The one player on the starting defense aside from Joe Mays that will get the most attention is Quintin Demps, our new free safety. Demps has played well up at Lehigh. Now it is time to see how he does in a game. Demps made great strides last year with his hitting and tackling. Hopefully he’ll be even better this year. Demps will be the fastest guy we’ve had at safety in a long time. I’d like to see him show good range.
Jack Ikegwuonu is the other defensive back I’m curious about. He missed all of last year while recovering from a terrible knee injury. He reportedly had a solid training camp. This will be Ikegwounu’s first chance to face another NFL team. I want to see how his knee looks. Is he still fast and athletic? Ikegwuonu is in a tough roster battle with Dmitri Patterson for the final cornerback spot. Ikegwuonu needs to play well. At Wisconsin he was a tough, physical, and very confident cover guy. That’s the guy I want to see on the field for us.
It should be interesting to see how Ellis Hobbs looks. He is the true backup on the outside. I hope he plays well and looks like a starting caliber CB. I'm cautiously optimistic.
Sean Jones ought to be fired up. He'll want to come out and play well to push for the starting FS job. The only way Sean gets it is if he plays so well they feel they must get him on the field. Demps was picked by our team. They see him as the long term answer. Sean has to steal the job if he wants it. That could happen. He is very talented.
Macho Harris started off great, but his sprained ankle has slowed him considerably.
RS --- I am interested to see the rotation. Will Maclin get time at PR and KOR? What other backups will have a shot at returning?
I just have to say, I HATE that the Eagles signed Vick. I don't think I've ever been more disappointed with the Eagles' FO. And I just don't get it at all.
1. He was never that good of a QB
2. He's stupid, so how's he going to pick up a new system
3. And football aside, he's an a-hole
Is this more a commentary on Kolb? Not just the injury but what they see in him?
Sloppy game. The coaches knew the OL was a makeshift group and ran the offense accordingly. That limited the number of receivers that went out on pass plays. The offense was very conservative and struggled at times. I know a lot of people are going to focus on Red Zone struggles. I'll be worried about that if it carries over to the next couple of weeks.
The defense got little pass rush. That is a concern, but we were without Trent Cole, our best pass rusher. Still, I hoped to see more pressure put on Brady and their QBs. I thought our tackling was solid. I didn't see too many blown coverages or missed assignments. Sean McDermott was pretty conservative from what I could tell. That's fine with me. Some teams go crazy with blitzes in the preseason, but I'm not sure that's the way to go.
STs was sloppy, but that is normally the case in the preseason opener. Teams don't go "live" on STs in practice for fear of injuries. The first game is always an adjustment from TC.
Penalties were an issue. They cost us a TD or two and gave up big chunks of yardage. We didn't have any turnovers.
I was pleased with what I saw for the most part. My focus was on seeing the veterans play a little and checking out the young guys. The key newbies did well. That's very encouraging. We have a lot of weapons on offense. If we can just get that line up to shape we'll be pretty good. There were no glaring disappointments in what I saw. My biggest concern was seeing Brent Celek leave the field due to an injured shoulder.
I'm not going to make a lot of comments about every veteran player. The focus will be on key guys, new guys, and young players. STs notes are down at the bottom. I list them separately.
QB
MCNABB - Okay game. Underthrew deep ball on first play. Looked sloppy early on. The ball was coming out late or was simply off target. Got better once he started moving around and got loose. That seemed to "wake him up". Did throw a good deep ball to Maclin. They didn't connect, but it was very close and a good throw.
KOLB - DNP.
FEELEY - Great game. Moved the offense up and down the field. Led the team to 19 points. Was accurate and smart.
DIMICHELE - DNP.
RB
WESTY - 36 - DNP.
MCCOY - 29 - Very good game. The big concerns with him were about blocking and not dancing with the ball. LeSean had a solid game as a pass blocker. He was confident in taking on his targets. There wasn't indecision or confusion. More impressive was the fact that he ran N-S and ran hard. No Fred Astaire problems at all. He was willing to go charging up the middle on inside run plays where there wasn't a ton of room. Great sign. Showed a good burst when he did get a hole to hit.
Ran hard up the middle early on. Had a good chip block on early 3rd down. That forced the DE to go inside and allowed Donovan to scramble out wide. Great gain of 19 on a screen pass. Good block on LB on pass play. Went backward on another screen pass and lost yds. Play was covered. Had a very good gain on a run to the right. Good burst. Still swings the ball too much.
BUCKLEY - 25 - MVP? Very good game. Ran hard. This guy really hits the hole. Had a short TD run for our first score. Got good blocking, but also ran through an arm tackle. Missed a cutback lane on another GL series. Ran hard and straight, but a couple of steps to the left was wide open. Caught a short TD pass on 3rd/GL late in the 3rd Qtr. Caught a couple of short dump-off passes over the middle and then fought for extra yards. That was important. Buckley needed to show that he could be at least an adequate receiver. Finished the game with 6 catches. He was just what the offense needed.
LOBO - 34 - Made a big catch on a sideline throw that helped to set up a TD. LoBo went up and made an acrobatic grab. He had to turn his body to be the ball and then tapped his feet to make sure he was in bounds. I was very impressed and the play went for 25 yards. That was his best play as an Eagle. Had 3 runs for 13 yards. Last year LoBo had a good Camp, but then struggled in the preseason. Maybe the presence of Buckley and McCoy got his attention. I'd put Buckley ahead of him on my depth chart, but it was at least good to see LoBo do something.
FB
WEAVER - 43 - Good game. Good catch over short middle. Looked athletic with the ball. Got 10 yards on the play. Ran for a 1st down from a 3rd/short play. Made a nice block on a pass play when a DE got by the initial blocker. They said on the broadcast that his nickname is The Bishop. I like that. Good showing and a cool nickname.
ECKEL - 32 - Didn't do much to help his cause. Had an okay pass block on the pass to LoBo. Had 1 catch and 1 run. Didn't stand out as a blocker.
MAILEI - 41 - Solid debut. Blocked okay (lead blocker). Made a good catch on a short pass route. Solid blitz pickup on 4th Qtr pass. Played well on STs.
TE
CELEK - 87 - Solid game, but left with an injury. Caught a couple of passes, both over the middle.
SCHOBEL - 89 - DNP.
BRIGHT - 82 - Just looks a bit stiff when he's out on a route. Screwed up on a 3rd/3 play. Was slow off the ball and unsure what to do. The RB ran into him and got tackled. Caught a pass and fought for 8 yards over the middle. Had a short pass come his way. Extended for the ball, but a defender was able to knock it out of Bright's hands. Had a good block of a DE on a GL running play. Didn't get movement, but stalemated the guy.
MYERS - 85 - Had a good seal block on Buckley's first TD run. Had one pass thrown his way, but wasn't able to get to it.
WR
DESEAN - 10 - Got behind CB on first throw. Was called for PI on the play. He did push off. Caught a pass on 3rd/3 to move the chains. Had an unbelievable run on an End Around. Started to the right. The play was cut off so DJax reversed his field and went to the left. He weaved around guys and used his speed to get 10 yards on the play. Words don't do the run justice.
CURTIS - 80 - Had one throw come his way when McNabb went to him along the sideline in the Red Zone. KC was covered tightly and the ball fell incomplete.
AVANT - 81 - Made a great catch late in the half. Really went up for the ball.
BROWN - 86 - Caught a medium pass along the right sideline.
BASKETT - 84 - Caught the ball well. Mostly used on short routes.
MACLIN - 18 - Jeremy got off to a slow start. He looked anxious. Once he got his legs under him and just played you could see why the coaches are so excited about this guy. Finished with 2 catches for 44 yards. Had a deep ball come his way to open the 2nd Qtr. Wasn't able to make the catch. Showed good RAC skills. Gained 28 yards on a quick pass. Feeley got him the ball in a hurry and Maclin made something from nothing. Drew a PI call late in the 3rd Qtr. Got behind the DB with speed, but under control. Didn't do a good job of locating the ball. Andy was yelling at him about this. Jeremy looked back, but was slow in looking up for the ball. Very talented player. I'm excited to see what kind of progress he makes between now and the next game.
GIBSON - 19 - Very good game. Made a good catch along the right sideline. Had to extend for the ball. Almost made a great catch on the right sideline a couple of plays later. Andy could have challenged, but there didn't seem to be a great TV replay angle. Made a sliding catch over the middle that put us inside the 5 and set up the first TD. Great block on DB late in game. Buckley had caught pass and was running downfield. Gibson blindsided a DB, cleanly, and decleated the guy. Got some playing time with the 1s. Looked like he belonged out there.
AMENDOLA - 11 - Caught a pass on a crossing route. Looked quick and smooth.
MCBRIDE - 17 - Dropped a pass on 3rd/2 inside the RZ. Bad drop. Made up for it with a couple of impressive grabs in the 4th Qtr.
OL
PETERS - 71 - Sloppy game. You could see he was rusty. Limited time in TC caught up with him. Did have some good moments in pass pro. His run blocking was up and down, but it was fun to see a LT who actually showed signs of hope that he could be a big help on run plays. Jason was beaten by Banta-Cain for a sack. BC lined up really wide on the play. Jason was half a beat slow getting off the ball and couldn't cleanly get to BC. The announcers tried to pin another sack on him, but that wasn't the case.
HERREMANS - 79 - DNP.
JACKSON - 67 - Had a solid block on LeSean's screen. Got his LB, but didn't put the guy on the ground and that player was able to get in on the tackle. Got called for holding on a pass play.
STACY - 76 - DNP.
SHAWN - 73 - DNP.
MAX - 62 - Started at RG. Was mostly solid in pass pro, but did get driven backward on one play. Got off balance a couple of times. Fell on one play, but didn't let his guy by him. Managed to put a DL on the ground on one play.
COLE - 59 - Okay game. Had a good block on LeSean's screen pass. Gave up a sack to Myron Pryor in the 2nd Qtr. Pryor lined up sorta wide and got a good burst off the ball. Nick got a piece of him, but couldn't get his hands on him.
JUSTICE - 74 - Started at RT. This is the best I've ever seen Justice play. That said, he still has some issues. Needs to play stronger with his hands. Susceptible to inside moves. There is still something funny about the way he struggles to move his feet and use his hands at the same time. Good block on a tackle trap play. Engaged Seymour and occupied him as McCoy ran by. Drew a holding call on a pass play. The DE took a hard inside slant. Winston never got control of the DE. He worked hard to stay with the block, but got his arm wrapped around the guy's neck. I did appreciate the effort not to give up. Whiffed on a run block on a LB. Came off the ball well, but just missed the guy. Had a great block on 3rd/3 play. Exploded off the ball and sealed a DL. The RB was supposed to hit that hole. Unfortunately Bright was standing there and the play was stuffed. Really impressive play by Justice was wasted.
DUNLAP - 65 - Played LT with the #1 offense for one series. Held his own. Stayed at LT with the 2nd team. Has to engage defenders and sustain blocks better. King will mirror defenders pretty well, but he needs to get his hands on the guy to control him. OL need to beat up on DL when they can. Moved to RT in the 4th Qtr. That was a smart move by the coaching staff. We need to know if Dunlap can play the right side and be a swing tackle off the bench. Surprisingly, I thought he looked pretty natural on the right side.
MCGLYNN - 77 - Played C on the #2 OL. Had a good block on a LB on a draw play. Solid game. Held his own in pass pro. Feisty run blocker.
GIBSON - 61 - Played RG on the #2 OL. Didn't particularly stand out, good or bad.
REYNOLDS - 66 - Played C on the #3 OL. Didn't move his feet as well as I hoped. Seemed to reach more than you want an OL to. Does use his hands well when he's able to get to a defender. Still looks like Practice Squad material.
PATRICK - 64 - Played RT on the #2 OL. Chris is okay on the right side. He just lacks the footwork to be a good NFL OT. He will battle on every snap. Played LT on the #3 group. Struggled at LT. He's just not meant to take on edge rushers on the left side.
TUPOU - 78 - Played LG on the #2 OL. Didn't start off very well. Failed to block a DT on a pass play and the guy pressured AJ. Got beaten by a DT on the next play and had to hold. Didn't sustain a 4th Qtr run block at all. Disappointing start to his Eagle career.
FANAIKA - 63 - RG on #3. Beaten by DT on pass play and AJ took a big hit. I didn't think he was a good pass blocker in college. Didn't look like much had changed last night.
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A note about the defense...1st team D didn't get all that many snaps.
DE
COLE - 58 - DNP.
PARKER - 75 - Started at LDE in the base. Played some DT in the Nickel. Nothing special.
CLEMONS - 91 - I was hoping to see more from Chris. He was still fast and had an okay burst, but didn't get much pressure on the passer. I was expecting to see a better showing.
VA - 95 - DNP.
HOWARD - 90 - Started at RDE. Okay showing. Had one tackle.
B SMITH - 63 - Up and down game. I was impressed with his motor, but he didn't look very quick off the ball. Only got real good pressure on one play that I saw and that was when he was offsides. Dropped into coverage on a couple of zone blitzes. Did an excellent job in pursuit. Chased a running play from behind and stopped it for little gain. Finished with 2 tackles. He runs well and hustles. That's nice, but he was drafted to rush the passer. We need to see more pressure off the edge.
J BABIN - 94 - Good game. Had a TFL and sack. Picked off a pass, but was clearly out of bounds. The sack came when he drove a TE backward and then fell on the QB. Did a good job of getting off blocks. The TFL came when Wilhelm got penetration and Jason just finished off the RB. Had 3 tackles. Babin is a veteran player with some ability. He was supposed to look good against backup blockers. I didn't see so much from him that I'm thinking he'll make the team, but he did show me something. I am intrigued.
DT
PATTERSON - 98 - Played the run well. No push on passing plays.
BUNKLEY - 97 - See above.
LAWS - 93 - DNP.
KLECKO - 68 - Got pressure on a pass play. Probably should have drawn a holding call. Dan had a pretty quiet night aside from that. Didn't really flash.
GAINES - 65 - Solid game. Good hustle on WR screen. Got in on the tackle. Fought to hold his ground against a double-team, but got turned sideways and moved off the ball. Got off the ball quickly on 4th/short run. Got penetration and made initial contact with the runner. Finished with a couple of tackles.
W. WILLIAMS - 64 - Good job on 4th/short run. Controlled his OL and allowed other guys to get to the ball. I was told the Eagles like his strength and toughness. You can see that he's got potential, but is more of a Practice Squad type than roster target. Had 1 tackle.
LB
JORDAN - 56 - I only saw him in on one tackle. Looked okay in coverage on a couple of plays, but also got burned for a TD. TE Chris Baker caught him flat-footed and Jordan leaned the wrong way. Baker cut outside and was wide open for an easy score. That is far too sloppy for the Red Zone.
GOCONG - 57 - Played the run well. Had 1 tackle.
MAYS - 51 - He wasn't on the field enough for me to get a strong feel for where he's at right now. Had 1 tackle according to the Gamebook. I think the starting defense was in for 13 plays, about 1/5 of a normal game. I didn't see anything that got me too worried. Joe got out of position a couple of times by being too aggressive, but that is true of veteran LBs at times. Took a bad angle and left a running lane open on a play to his left. Joe should have been more patient on the play. He got nosy. Bit hard on a play fake on the pass to Moss over the middle.
GAITHER - 96 -
WILHELM - 59 - Okay showing. Had a couple of stops. Good tackle on short pass over middle. Helped to stuff a run on 3rd/short. Did a good job of finding the ball and getting to the RB on the play. Got penetration on a run play and blew it up for a loss. Didn't make the tackle, but made the play. Didn't do anything to hurt his bid to be our backup MLB.
FUKOU - 53 - Backup SAM. Solid game. Missed a TFL when he got overaggressive and took a sloppy angle. Hit a WR on a short throw in the flat and broke up the pass. Fought to get off blocks. Good effort, but technique needs work. Tackled a RB from behind on a 3rd/2 run. Stopped him short. Got in on tackle of RB on 4th/short. Blitzed off the edge and drove his blocker backward. That flushed the QB. Called for Hands to Face penalty on the play.
WHITE - 54 - #2 WLB. Made a good tackle on draw play late in 3rd Qtr. Had a couple of tackles, but didn't stand out on defense.
HUGHES - 52 -
DANIELS - 50 -
CB
** The starting CBs didn't do anything to stand out aside from Sheldon making a nice INT of a downfield pass to Moss. The ball hung up in the air and Sheldon made a good catch.
I have to go back and re-watch the backup CBs carefully. They didn't show many close-ups or replays during the game. None of our guys was getting burned. No one looked brutally stiff or slow. I just want to have more of an informed opinion to offer on Ike, Hobbs, Patterson, and the guys.
S
MIKELL - Good tackle on screen to Edelman. Q tackled well.
DEMPS - 39 - Good tackle of Moss on pass over middle.
JONES - 26 - So-so game. Solid tackle on a 3rd down draw play. He is good in the box. The Pats completed a TD pass to a TE over the middle. I'm not sure if Jones was responsible for him or not. I watched the play a few times, but couldn't tell who was at fault. Did have 2 tackles.
BAKER - 30 - Led the team with 4 tackles. Didn't particularly stand out. I was expecting a veteran like him to be more noticeable.
HARRIS - 35 - Timed a blitz perfectly and got a good shot on the QB. Forced an incompletion with that play. Also had a tackle. Good young player. His ankle is slowing him down, but the Eagles got a real good player in Macho.
LANGFORD - 42 - Good tackle in run support early in the 4th. Held the runner to no gain. I need to check more carefully to see how he did in coverage.
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STs
ROCCA - 1st punt was a shank. Got better after that. Did a pretty good job of pinning guys along the sideline.
AKERS - Busy night. Was 4 of 6 on FGs. Had one blocked at the end of the half. Missed a kick at the end of the game. The Pats got real good pressure off the edge. I'm sure that had to affect Akers. Still, you hate to see him miss a game winner. And it was a 43-yd'er. David was superb for most of last year, but some people are still nervous about him on kicks of 40 +.
KOR ---
* Maclin struggled early on, but got more and more comfortable as the game move along. Looked natural on KOs in the 2nd half. Averaged 25 yards a KOR. Had a long of 31.
* Amendola returned a KO early in the 4th. He got it out past the 30.
PR ---
* Maclin muffed the opening punt. Hanson recovered. He had a 21 yard PR on his next try.
MISC STs ---
* Dimitri Patterson had good coverage on the 2nd punt. He forced a FC.
* Gocong made a good tackle on the 2nd KO.
* Leonard Weaver made a tackle in punt coverage. Penalty negated the play. Next kick was the TD.
* Sean Jones made a sloppy tackle attempt on Edelman on the TD. Terrible effort, if you can call it that.
* Macho Harris was called for holding on a KOR.
* Mailei was good on KO covg. He had a couple of tackles. Reid likes his FB to be a good STer.
BROADCAST
I thought Herm Edwards, Hugh Douglas, and Kevin Reilly did a poor job in the booth. They had no chemistry. They got plays wrong. It was painful at times. I'm hoping they improve for the next game since this was their first time together.
Very, very sloppy game. Andy actually called it embarrassing in his PC. I liked some of what I saw from young players and select veterans, but the team as a whole was out of sync and made some really stupid mistakes. This looked like a Week 1 PS game. You'd think our guys had new systems in place or something like that. I won't cover every screw-up, but here are some major gaffes:
* 3rd/2 - Either Avant or Curtis runs the wrong route and Donovan's throw falls incomplete.
* We gave up a long TD pass due to a blown coverage.
* We had 3 illegal formation penalties.
* AJ had a bizarre situation at the end of the half. He drove us down into FG range. We had no timeouts and 11 seconds on the clock. AJ hits Buckley over the middle for a short game. The clock runs out and that's it. I wondered if one of the hits AJ took gave him a concussion. What the hell was that?
* Gave up another long PR. That is 2 in 2 weeks. Not good, Ted Daisher.
* We had guys trip and fall at bad times.
* We had several fumbles.
* We had several dropped passes.
These mistakes have nothing to do with talent. They are purely due to the team playing sloppy. Did someone spike the Gatorade with Nyquil?
I don't care about winning or losing. I want players to do well individually. I want the guys to stay healthy. And I want the team to come together a little more each week. We took a step back in this game. Odd, very odd.
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QB
MCNABB - Solid showing. Was 5 of 7 for 77 yds. Threw a very good deep ball to DJax for a 39-yd TD. Also threw a good slant to McCoy. Hooked up with McCoy on a good screen. That may sound strange, but the QB and RB have to be in rhythm on the screen pass. Took a sack and fumbled the ball in the Red Zone. I don't fault Donnie too much on that play. Dunlap made an ole' block.
FEELEY - Up and down game. Took some big hits early on and did some odd things, most notably his final play of the 1st half. Put up good stats: 16-20-136.
DIMICHELE - Welcome to the NFL. DiMichele had a good game. He lacks functional arm strength for the NFL, but I enjoyed watching him get out there and compete. He played with a lot of spirit and that can be infectious with backup players. Adam is a good athlete and that showed as he ran around and made some plays with his legs. His passes lacked zip and while some were spirals, too many were wobblers.
RB
MCCOY - 29 - Up and down game. Had 5 carries for only 4 yards. Did have 3 catches for 31 yards. Lined up out wide on one play. McNabb threw a slant to him, but LeSean dropped it. We ran Flip 90 to him and got nothing on the play. LeSean had a small running lane, but got greedy and tried to go real wide. The Colts flew up in pursuit and got him for a short gain. Best play of the game was a screen pass that he caught and turned into a 14-yd gain. Showed excellent burst on the play. Had a sloppy pass block. Blitzer came off the edge and McCoy got to him, but didn't control the defender. The guy looped wider and got to AJ. Had a screen on 3rd/long that got about 12 yards. Looked good.
After 2 weeks we can see that LeSean is the real deal. His mistakes are due to inexperience. He plays hard. He knows the playbook. And he certainly has NFL talent. We might have finally gotten a RB pick right.
BUCKLEY - 34 - Up and down game. Mostly did good things, but guys like him can't have too many errors. The 2 big mistakes were a dropped pass and a fumble. Did more right than wrong and he did play with the #2 offense, a good sign in my book.
Only had 2 carries, but got 10 yds. Caught 4 passes for 16 yds. Best run was a 6-yard play to the right side. Gained almost 20 yards on a screen, but the play was wiped out due to a penalty. Ran a quick hitter up the middle for a few yards. Dropped a short pass over the middle. Easy pass. Good chip block on DE on downfield pass to Reggie. Caught a pass in the left flat. Fumbled as he got gang tackled and someone knocked the ball loose. Had a couple of catches late in the game.
LOBO - 25 - Followed up last week's good game with a stinker. Took over in the 3rd Qtr. Hesitated on his first carry and got tackled for loss. Good chip block on pass play. Caught a pass on the right side and got some RAC yds. Got stopped too easily on 2nd/3 run. Failed to get the 1st down on 4th/inches. Doesn't run hard. Doesn't run behind his pads. I know he's small, but that doesn't excuse him tip-toeing around the LOS. Sometimes you forget about big plays and just fight for a foot or two. Dropped a pass in the left flat. Led all runners with 7 carries, but only got 8 yds. Did catch 4 passes for 31 yds.
FB
WEAVER - 43 - Left early w/ a knee injury. Luckily it's not that serious.
ECKEL - 32 - Got extra PT because of Weaver's injury. Didn't take advantage of it. Had an early run play in the 1-back set. Got stuffed for a loss. Had a good block on a screen pass. Had a pass thrown his way late in the 1st half, but was slow to get his head around and look for the ball. Andy got on him about that. Tripped on air after catching a short pass in the flat. I don't think he's got much of a shot at making the roster this year.
MAILEI - 41 - Didn't play much on offense. Mostly played on STs. I hoped Eckel playing earlier than expected would lead to more snaps for Marcus, but that didn't seem to be the case. I do like what I see from Mailei. He just needs work. Good PS candidate.
TE
SCHOBEL - 89 - Starting TE, but Martha didn't do much.
BRIGHT - 82 - Had a solid pass block on play where we were trapped at our own 2. Did okay as a blocker overall. I didn't see any passes go his way.
MYERS - 85 - Good game. We found a guy who looks like a legit TE prospect. Caught a short pass from McNabb over the middle. Used a subtle push off to get open and looked smooth in making the catch. Caught a short pass over the middle and took a solid hit. No problems. Looked quick in getting into his routes. Caught a short pass and turned it into a gain of 17. Caught a pass over the middle and took a hit from about 30 Colts defenders. Finished with 4 catches for 44 yds. Looks like an NFL player.
WR
DESEAN - 10 - Had a gorgeous 39-yd TD catch. Split the Safeties with his speed and then looked smooth as he reached up and hauled in the pass.
CURTIS - 80 - Caught 1 pass for 12 yds.
AVANT - 81 - Caught a short pass in the left flat. The Colts committed a penalty on the play and we took the free 1st down. Had a good chip block on early pass play on scoring drive.
BROWN - 86 - 1 catch. Hauled in a pass from AJ for 27 yds.
BASKETT - 84 - Couple of good grabs. Caught a short pass on 3rd down and fought for the 1st. Caught a downfield pass from AJ for gain of 23. Finished with 3-36.
MACLIN - 18 - Caught a pass from AJ along the right sideline. Wasn't a great throw, but Mac did a good job of hauling it in. Caught several other short passes. Finished 4-26. Didn't look nearly as good as last week. Was never able to get in space and take off.
GIBSON - 19 - Solid game. Had 4 catches for 49 yds and a TD. Didn't get behind CB on early deep ball and it was almost picked off. Dropped a 3rd down slant pass from AJ. Made a tough catch along the right sideline. The TD was sorta easy. His CB had underneath coverage and the S was slow to get over. 21 yd TD.
AMENDOLA - 11 - Caught a short pass from Adam. Got 5 yds.
MCBRIDE - 17 - His best catch came on a crossing route. Turned upfield, but was only able to get 8 yds. You could see his lack of top speed on that play. DJax or JMac would have been gone for a big gainer.
OL
JACKSON - 67 - Only true starter in place. Had a good block on McCoy's screen pass. Had a good block on the next screen pass. Got called for holding on a screen pass to Buckley. Looked like a bogus call to me.
MAX - 62 - RG. Pass blocking was solid. Didn't get movement on his run blocks. Good block on screen to McCoy.
COLE - 59 - Starting LG. Poor game. Bad block on a trap play. His DT tackled McCoy for little gain. Got called for tripping. Nick fell and his leg came up. Not sure about intent. Didn't get a clean block on DT on pass play and his guy got a big hit on AJ. Weird play. Nick just gave up on the block. Almost seemed confused.
JUSTICE - 74 - Coming off a good game last week I wanted to see Justice play even better. Didn't happen. He was okay, but didn't make me any more confident that he's truly turned the corner and is ready to play. Run blocking is still an issue. Doesn't get into his guys quickly and doesn't get push. Had a sloppy pass block late in the 2nd Q and his guy pressured AJ. Winston ducked his head for some reason. Didn't have to face a top DE and that helped him out.
DUNLAP - 65 - Starting LT. Dunlap was okay. Generally did a good job of staying focused and sticking with his blocks. Moved his feet pretty well. Played with good pad level. Let's the defender come to him too much. Gave up a sack and FF to Freeney. Dwight used a great spin move on the play, but King would have slowed him down if he just used his hands. This has been a continual problem for King. Use your long arms, dude. You're driving me crazy. Fringe guy, but I lean toward keeping him at this point. Does look like a LT at times.
MCGLYNN - 77 - Got driven back on 4th/inches play. The DT just got the better of him. Very effective when he gets his hands on the defender. Has good pop and does a good job of controlling his guy. Also played LG and RT. I think the Eagles want him to be a key backup and are trying to get him snaps at as many places as possible. He looked best at C. Mike is strictly an effort guy at RT.
GIBSON - 61 - Backup RG. Moved to LG w/ 3rd string. Okay game. Got a nice shot on a DE who tried to take an inside angle. Got a shot on a LB downfield on a run. Hasn't played badly, but guys like him need to shine if they want to make the roster or PS.
PATRICK - 64 - Backup RT. Struggled in pass pro. Beaten badly to the inside and AJ took a big shot. Played some at LT late in the game.
TUPOU - 78 - Backup LG. Improved from last week where he looked sorta lost. Had a feel for what was going on this time around and looked much better. Did okay at LG. Didn't stand out. Moved to LT. Actually had okay footwork. Showed his natural power when he knocked a blitzing LB to the ground. Anchored well in pass pro. Poor pass block on early 4th Qtr pass. Gave up on the block too easily. Got some push on a draw play to his side.
REYNOLDS - 66 - Played C on the 3rd offense. Solid game. We didn't run much. Dallas played at BYU so he knows how to pass block. Used his hands well.
FANAIKA - 63 - RG on the #3 team. Didn't stand out to me. Tupou showed improvement from game 1 to 2. Fanaika looked similar to last week. Paul is meant to be a run blocker. Having him in for a bunch of pass plays isn't going to give him a chance to shine.
___________________________________
DE
PARKER - 75 - Started at LDE. Also got a couple of snaps at LDT.
CLEMONS - 91 - Backup DE. Better game than last week. Got pressure on a RZ pass play. Good tackle on a draw play. Got to the QB on a busted play. Got pressure on Tracy White's INT.
VA - 95 - Didn't start, but played a lot at LDE and DT. Covered a TE on a bootleg play. Played the run well. Had a terrific play on a run that came his way. Stuffed the TE and wouldn't let the RB get wide. Limited the play to minimal yardage. Didn't have many standard pass plays on which to rush the passer. Indy ran quite a few WR screens. They also threw several bootlegs. I did think VA looked agile and athletic. Okay showing for first game of the year.
J BABIN - 94 - Wow. I liked Jason a lot coming out of college and I'm starting to remember why. Terrific game. Got the start at RDE and played very well. Got good pressure on early 3rd/10 pass. Babin fired off the ball and used his hands to get by the OT. Didn't sack Manning, but got to him and hurried the throw. Impressed me on a draw play. Fired upfield, changed his direction, and got in on the tackle of the RB. He was quick, agile, and hustled. Good combo. Beat the LT for a sack of Manning. Used a good burst and also used his hands well to get around the edge. Used a hard inside move to get pressure and hit Manning. Got a TFL when the Colts ran a draw on 3rd/26. Babin read it quickly and got to the ball in a hurry. Had a TFL on a draw play. Hit the QB on a RZ pass play. Beat the OT with an inside move.
Jason isn't just making plays. He's showing excellent quickness off the ball and a great motor. That's what you want in a backup DL. One more game like this and he's going to be on the inside looking out.
DT
PATTERSON - 98 - Got penetration on a couple of pass plays. Showed good quickness off the ball.
BUNKLEY - 97 - Had a TFL on a screen pass. Read it well and got to the RB quickly.
LAWS - 93 - First game action for Trevor. Looked rusty, but had some okay moments. Read a draw play quickly and got the RB as he started up the middle. Good tackle. Looked quick off the ball on some snaps. Had another tackle. Didn't wow me or anything, but did okay.
KLECKO - 68 - Backup DT. Played much better this week. Dan had a really good game. Stood out on tape. Was disruptive on quite a few plays. Timed his get-off perfectly on a screen pass and forced an early throw. Chased QB and hurried a throw on a play where the QB had been flushed. Disrupted a running play to his side. The stat sheet only shows a couple of tackles, but Dan spent a lot of time in the backfield and created plays for his teammates.
GAINES - 65 - Played mostly RDE. Got a TFL on a run play. Klecko blew it up, but Josh got to the runner. Had a TFL on another run where Klecko blew up the play with penetration. Doesn't have the athletic ability for DE. Just an effort guy out there.
W. WILLIAMS - 64 - Got into the backfield on a 3rd Qtr pass play. Tackled a RB on a run up the middle. 1/2 a TFL on a run. Was credited with 4 stops. Willie has shown potential in both games. Could be a PS guy.
LB
JORDAN - 56 - Solid game. Had a couple of tackles. Blitzed off the edge on an early play and got pressure. Peyton was able to get the throw off. TE got behind him on play-action pass, but Jordan recovered and was able to get a hand on the ball and break it up. Recovered a fumble after Babin's sack. Had a solid tackle of TE after short catch across middle. Was able to blitz a few times, but
GOCONG - 57 - Made a good tackle on a running play that came to his side. Shed the block and got the RB as he tried to get by Gocong. Got burned by TE on the next play. Chris was a step slow in getting into coverage. He bought Peyton's fake. Chris recovered well and made the tackle. Hustled to get in on a tackle on a WR screen.
MAYS - 51 - So-so game. Had a poor play on the opening drive. Indy ran right. Mays read the play well. He got to the correct gap. He crossed in front of the G and had good position. Then he missed the tackle. The Colts ran the same play later and Joe did a better job. He and the DE combined on the tackle. Timed a blitz well and got a shot in on Manning. Had solid coverage on Addai on short throw. The thing that Mays has to learn is that being close to the guy isn't enough. Joe never saw the ball or was able to try and stop it. He's got to locate the ball so he can make a play on it.
Based on 2 weeks it looks like Mays is going to be a work-in-progress kind of player. He's a bit over-aggressive right now, but some of that will go away as he's on the field for 50-60 snaps. He seems to learn from mistakes. That's always a good sign. Joe isn't Stewart Bradley, but he can still be an effective starter.
WILHELM - 59 - Disappointing game. Matt is a former starter. He should look good against 3rd string players, but I didn't see that. Only had a couple of tackle assists. I don't know if he was taking the right gaps and the ball just going elsewhere or what, but I expected him to be getting to the RB more, especially late in the game. Blitzed up the middle and pressured the QB on a pass play. Wasn't able to get a hand on him, though.
FUKOU - 53 - Another solid game. Led the team with 6 tackles, including 2 TFLs. Got some pressure when he came through the line on a blitz. Drew a coverage penalty early in the 4th Qtr. Panicked and made contact with the receiver. Had a TFL when he got upfield on an outside run play. Got penetration and hit a RB in the backfield to disrupt a play. That forced a FG. Had a TFL on a run to his side.
WHITE - 54 - Backup WLB. Solid game. Got some pressure on a blitz. Unfortunately White got turned around while trying to get off the block and let the QB get the pass out. Made a good tackle of TE out in flat after quick pass. Made a terrific INT on a pass down the seam. Hurt himself while coming down with the ball. Tracy needed a good game to help his cause of making the team.
DANIELS - 50 - Mainly played LDE. 1/2 a TFL on a run where he slipped his block.
HUGHES - 52 - Played some SAM. Got floored by a blocker on one play.
CB
SAMUEL - 22 - Busy game. Had quite a few passes come his way. Gave up completions and a TD. Broke up a pass in the endzone. The ball should have been picked off. Samuel knocked it into the air, but couldn't hang on as it fell. The TD came on a fade pass to the outside. Great throw by Manning and catch by Gonzalez. Made a quick break on a pass and just missed breaking it up. The receiver did catch it and gain some yards.
HOBBS - 31 - Started at RCB. Bad game. Sloppy tackle attempt on TE after dump off. Took a bad angle when covering Reggie Wayne. You don't mind Wayne making the catch, but Hobbs should stop him quickly. Instead he took a sloppy angle and let Wayne circle out wide and get 10 more yards. Did okay in getting in on a tackle on a WR screen to his side. Gave up the long TD because of a blown coverage.
HANSON - 21 - Blitzed off the edge and forced Manning to throw a pass out quickly. Broke up a pass to the TE in the flat. Had 4 tackles. Indy seemed to throw in his area a lot.
IKE - 33 - Had okay coverage on WR in the 4th Qtr. The ball was incomplete. Jack looked solid on that snap. Had the catch been made he was in position to tackle the guy easily. Still isn't standing out in a way that makes you want to definitely give him a roster spot.
PATTERSON - 23 - Played in the slot with the backups. Got in good position to pick off a pass on one play, but the WR was able to deflect the ball. Got a FF when he hit Simpson in the back the ball came out. Read a play where the pass when to Jack's WR. Tried to jump the route. Couldn't get to the pass, but showed good recognition and also good quickness on the play.
T WILLIAMS - 37 - Had a couple of tackles. Didn't really catch my eye.
S
MIKELL - Made good tackle of WR after Samuel missed a PBU.
DEMPS - 39 - Good game. Tackled pretty well. Finished with 4 stops. Made a quick tackle on a WR screen. Held the play to no gain. Fought to get to the ball on a WR screen. That's the kind of thing we need to see from Q. Stuck his nose in aggressively on a screen pass. RB was in the middle of a couple of guys and Q went in low to get under an OL and to the ball. Well done.
JONES - 26 - Helped to break up a pass on a bootleg play. Hit with authority on multiple plays. You can see his talent. My only complaint is that I'm not seeing him do enough to take Demps' job away from him.
MACHO - 35 - Another solid showing. Made a good tackle on pass over the middle. Made a good tackle of TE after a short catch. Hit Simpson aggressively on screen, but didn't wrap up. Got a sack when he blitzed. Came from 10 yds back and timed it well. Didn't cleanly get the QB down, but got enough of him that the QB fell on his own.
LANGFORD - 42 -
Harrison -
________________________________
SPECIAL TEAMS
ROCCA - Great first punt. Ball was placed at the 4. Sav kicked it out of bounds. Averaged 51.1 per punt. That's good.
AKERS - Quiet night. Had a poor onside kick, but that was a real basic kick and setup. You save the good stuff for the regular season.
KOR ---
* Demps had one KOR. Got 30 yards and looked fast.
* Hobbs had one KOR. It went for 35 yards.
* Maclin fumbled a KOR after taking a hit. Standard hit too. Wasn't like some crazy kill shot.
* Maclin's long KOR was 28 yds.
* Amendola fumbled a KOR, but recovered it as the ball bounced right back to him.
PR ---
* Maclin had 2 returns for 9 yds. Must quit swinging the ball on his returns, both KO and PR.
MISC STs ---
* Akeem had a couple of good tackles on KOs.
* Mailei and Fokou helped Jordan on the 2nd tackle.
* Jack I. wasn't impressive when blocking gunners on punt returns. He's got to play well on STs.
Big win. That's the kind of exciting finish and great team effort that can propel a team to go win the SB.
I'm joking, of course. Winning was nice, but I hated seeing another slopfest. That bugs me. Missed tackles and dropped passes weren't a problem, as with last week. We did get penalized too much and still made plenty of mental mistakes. I guess that is progress.
The Red Zone is still a problem. There are some legitimate excuses for poor execution (backup OL, backup FB, backup RB, etc), but the bottom line is that I don't like what I see in terms of plays, players, or execution. This could all magically go away on Sept. 13th, but it sure as heck makes me nervous.
There was a lot to be happy about. Several guys came back from injuries. Other guys stepped their game up. And seeing Green Akers kick a winning FG was good. He missed the one vs NE, probably due to tremendous pressure by their rushers. This time out everything went well and he nailed the kick.
This was an unusual game. Here are a couple of plays that stood out and needed discussion:
Asante puts a big hit on WR as he's trying to get into the endzone. The ball comes loose and falls onto the 1-foot line. Hanson has run by the ball and never saw it come loose. Sammie doesn't see it either. Torry Holt is in the endzone and sees it. He steps forward and grabs hold of it. TD. Very odd.
Oddball play. 3rd/9. We lined up a bunch of guys at the LOS, but everyone was standing. We rushed 6 guys. Others dropped back. JAX ran a screen. Good call. Macho Harris dove for the RB, but missed. Hanson over ran the play and left a massive cutback area to the middle of the field. Gain of 45. Ouch.
Even more bizarre. 1st/GL from the 2. Donovan throws a backward pass to McCoy. The ball hits LeSean in the head and falls to the ground. LB picks it up and runs for 90 yd TD. Horrible play call. Poor throw. Bad catch. No hustle to go for the ball when it first hit the ground. Complete disaster.
I have to note that the NFL Network re-air was missing 6 minutes in the 2nd Qtr - 13:24 to 7:29.
I stayed up late to get the review done. Some players that have limited notes either did nothing (good or bad) to stand out or I need to go back and study them more carefully. Some DBs and backup OL take time to study.
____________________________
QB
MCNABB - Up and down game. Threw for 244 yds and had some really good moments. Ran around and made a few plays. That's the good part. Made some bone-headed throws and sloppy mistakes. Had a couple of short passes batted. Looked very casual on those and took too much time. Missed a wide open Kevin Curtis on a downfield pass. Would have been a gain of 25. Donnie was pressured, but it wasn't a good throw. Threw a bad INT. The pass was all arm and he threw into double coverage. Shouldn't have thrown the ball, but if you're going to force a pass into coverage you should step into the throw to get really good velocity on the throw.
Donnie's best passes came to Avant and DeSean. He threw some beautiful balls. And he threw well on the move. Scrambled to his right and found Avant for big gain. My favorite play of the night was a bootleg to the right where he connected with DeSean. I'd love to see us run that play once a game...or more.
KOLB - Finally got on the field after missing the first couple of PS games. Kevin played well, after a shaky start. First play was a pass from our 9-yd line. The Jags blitzed a LB off the edge. He came free and Kevin backed into the endzone and threw the ball to his right. Incomplete grounding...safety. Dumb play, but it was his first game action in a long time. Pretty solid after that. Hit Baskett with a good pass, but Hank dropped it. Hit Reggie with a slant for a TD. The ball was a little behind Reggie, but almost had to be there to avoid the DB on the front side. Hit Eugene Bright over the middle for a good gain on the winning drive. His passes had a bit of zip and were accurate. Made pretty good reads. Worked the sidelines as well as the middle of the field. Finished 10-18-102 and a TD. Led the team on a winning drive late in the game. Looked poised and comfortable in that situation.
VICK - Solid showing. He got in and knocked off some rust. The team got an idea how things might work with him. Actually looked better throwing the ball than he did running. That sorta surprised me. Didn't get out into space where he could really cut loose and show us what kind of speed he has. Played QB and slot rcvr. Lined up with and without Donnie in the game. Best pass was a downfield throw to Hank for 13. The pass was a laser. Vick's arm still works fine. Looked good executing a shovel pass to McCoy. Finished 4-4-19. Ran once for 1 yd.
RB
MCCOY - 29 - Okay game. Ran N-S early on and then started bouncing plays wide. Took a short toss play to the left on 3rd/2 and got 2.0000001 yds. Needed to stretch for the 1st to make the play easier. Screwed up on an early screen pass. Had a short gain and could have gotten more if he attacked upfield. Got greedy and tried to go wide. Only got 2 yds. Busted a play way out wide to score a short TD early in the 3rd Qtr. Showed great burst on the play. Had an impressive play when he caught a short pass and then fought for the 1st down. Ran 11 times for 31 yds. Caught 5 balls for 17 yds. I was hoping to see him really get loose on some play, but it never happened. His speed on the TD run was impressive. That can be helpful in the regular season. Defenses have to be careful about his ability to go wide in those situations because of his burst.
BUCKLEY - 25 - Didn't play as much this week. Had 3 carries for 8 yds and 3 catches for 17. Ran hard, as always. May have screwed up on Kolb's safety. Buckley released into his route as a checkdown receiver. Normally those guys need to look for blitzers before releasing. Juggled one catch for half a second before getting upfield. Played well on STs. Still my preference for the #3 RB spot.
LOBO - 34 - Played some early in the game, but only in oddball sets. I wondered if that meant the coaches were back to being happy with him. Never lined up regularly as the RB, though. Didn't have any touches. That is very unusual.
FB
ECKEL - 32 - Started at FB. Blocking was okay. He does attack. The problem is that he's beein in the league for several years, but his blocking is still very raw. Caught a short pass and fumbled, setting up a FG for them.
MAILEI - 41 - Good tackle after an INT. Needs to work on his blocking. Effort is okay, but has to get better at identifying his targets and making decisive blocks. Caught a short pass for a TD. Has good hands. Natural receiver. Had to stretch to break the plane for the TD. Missed a LB on an outside run play.
TE
CELEK - 87 - Caught 2 passes for 20 yds and looked good. First catch came on 3rd down play, but wasn't able to get the 1st. Mixed results as a blocker. Got driven back in pass pro on early 3rd down. Had a holding call on McCoy run. Solid block on McCoy's TD run. Got pushed back with ease by 90 on a run to his side. The play could have been a nice gainer if Brent could have held the block or at least not given up the inside position. Brent has good effort as a blocker, but he simply lacks the strength to handle physical DEs when he's the frontside blocker.
SCHOBEL - 89 - Played according the gamebook, but never caught my eye.
BRIGHT - 82 - Best game of his NFL career. Caught 2 passes for 38 yds on the winning drive. Had a 28 yd play and a 10 yd'er. Caught the ball well both times and showed some burst after the catch. That's the kind of showing that could get him some Practice Squad talk.
MYERS - 85 - Disappointing game. Didn't catch any passes. Didn't have any thrown his way. I'm not sure if he was getting open or not. Showed a good burst off the line. Struggled to block DE on pass play. Too upright and got overpowered. Good effort. Needed to build on last week's game, but that didn't happen.
WR
DESEAN - 10 - Started slow, but then got going in a hurry. Caught 4 balls for 47 yds. Best catch came late in the half. Sold his route well, plucked the ball, and stepped out to stop the clock. Looked great on an End Around. So fast and so smooth. Got 15 yards on the run and made it look effortless.
CURTIS - 80 - Caught 1 pass for 14 yds. Good catch. Had to come back for the ball.
AVANT - 81 - Terrific game. Had 5 catches for 92 yds and he also blocked really well. McNabb's first 2 throws came his way, but both were off target. Excellent block on Maclin screen play. Got a pass on broken play along sideline. Got some RAC yds. Caught a crossing route and took the ball down to the 2. If he just had a bit more speed, would have been a TD. Great catch down the left seam. Went up in traffic to get the ball in the middle of a couple of defenders.
BROWN - 86 - Played late. Good catch along right sideline. Caught a TD on a slant. Finished 3-38 and a score.
BASKETT - 84 - Snared a Vick pass for a gain of 13 early in the game. Excellent catch. Had a jump ball type pass come to him in the endzone, but couldn't make the catch.
MACLIN - 18 - Bounced back from last week's game. Had 4 catches for 53 yds and played well. Early catch on WR screen. Caught a pass over the middle after a Donnie scramble. Smooth catch and got a few RAC yds. Caught a sideline pass from McNabb, fought off the CB, and got the 1st down. Caught a deep pass over the middle to set up 1st/goal. Took a good shot on the play. One thing that must get fixed is the fact he's still swinging the ball wildly when he runs. That will be fumble city in the regular season.
GIBSON - 19 - Quiet game. Had 1 catch, but it was an impressive sideline grab. Great concentration and body control.
OL
PETERS - 71 - Solid game. Hugh Douglas is a flat out idiot. Hugh kept trying to point out Jason's struggles, but the highlights never matched what Hugh was talking about. JAX did zone blitz to his side a lot, but the zone blitz is done to confuse the QB and all the blockers, not to pick on an OT. The goal is to not have the QB notice a blitzer because that is his backside. Jason still isn't in top form, but he played better than in the opener. He looked solid as a run blocker. His pass blocking was up and down. Jason likes to use his hands to get shots on the rusher. He needs to be careful about that. Jason hasn't played with a mobile QB like Donnie. You really need to engage the defender and try to sustain the block since you don't know where the QB will be. Pushing the guy really wide is fine with a stationary pocket passer. Good cut block on 2nd series on a run play. Later had a sloppy cut block on blitzing LB. That can be dangerous. DeMarcus Ware jumps over you if you try that with him.
JACKSON - 67 - I didn't pay much attention to JJ. He didn't get a lot of push on the run blocks I watched.
STACY - 76 - Starting RG. Got good movement in the run game. Was driven back on a pass play early on. His pass blocking was solid after that. Played into the 2nd Qtr, but not as long as the other starters. Moved around pretty well. Had a nice pull on the shovel pass. I was impressed with Stacy's first game.
COLE - 59 - Started at LG. Buried a DE that Peters was blocking on a pass play. Nick hit him from the side and put the guy on the ground.
JUSTICE - 74 - RT. Up and down, again. Good run block on LB on McCoy run to his side. Whiffed while trying to block a DE on a pass play. The guy pressured Donnie into throwing the ball away. Winston did show me something. He didn't quit on the play. He hit the guy from behind. In the past Winston would sometimes compound a missed block by watching his mistake. Got called for an alignment penalty, but I didn't think he was that far off the ball. Effort on run blocks is okay, but doesn't get movement when taking on DL. Got beaten by an edge rusher with a shoulder dip and the guy pressured Donnie.
MAX - 62 - Backup RG. Took over for Stacy in the 2nd Qtr. Solid game.
DUNLAP - 65 - Backup LT. Good block on LB on run. Looked good in pass pro. Moved his feet and seemed to be better about using his hands. I thought that was King's best showing of the year. Played some with the 1's as well as the 2's.
MCGLYNN - 68 - Backup C. Solid game.
PATRICK - 64 - Backup RT. Had his best game so far. Looked okay in pass pro, normally not his strength. Moved his feet and showed some agility.
COLE - 58 - Starting RDE. Good game. Looked healthy. Disruptive. Got pressure with spin move. Drew holding call on early pass play. Used a good inside move to hit the QB and force a pass that was almost an INT. Hit Garrard on another play, but it was a quick pass to the RB and Trent missed the sack. Crashed down the LOS and got to a RB on a run up the middle.
PARKER - 75 - Starting LDE. Good bull rush. Got a nice hit on Bouman after VA flushed him with pressure up the middle. Played some DT. Exploded off the ball on one inside snap.
CLEMONS - 91 - Made some hustle plays in pursuit. Didn't stand out as a pass rusher.
VA - 95 - Played LDE, DT, and NT. Solid game. Got a big shot on Garrard on early pass play from NT. Just fired upfield and got around the blocker. Knocked DG out of the game on that play. Did the same thing on another pass play and really pressured Bouman. Got pressure up the middle on a snap from DT in the Nickel set.
B SMITH - 63 - Played RDE in the 4th. Picked off a pass where the ball was batted into the air. Had a very dumb roughing the passer penalty. Very stupid to hit the QB that late. Got pressure on one play where he came free due to a blitz. Nothing special.
J BABIN - 94 - Backup RDE. Tackled RB for no gain after Bunk disrupted the play. Didn't get as much pressure on the QBs as the first couple of games, but still had a solid showing. 2nd on the team with 4 tackles.
DT
PATTERSON - 98 - Solid game. Hustled to chase down a screen.
BUNKLEY - 97 - Good game. I'm hoping he pushes for the Pro Bowl this year. Blew up a run play. Shed his blocker and just tackled the RB. Stuffed a run and forced a fumble on an early play in the 2nd half. We got the ball. Disrupted a GL running play. Disrupted another run play.
LAWS - 93 - Played some at LDE in our 3-man lines (some Nickel, Dime sets). Looked okay out there. Also was a backup DT. Quick off the ball. Had 1 TFL.
KLECKO - 68 - Another solid game. Hustled on a screen pass to chase the play down from behind and make the tackle. Wasn't in the backfield as much as last week, but was quick off the ball and disruptive on some plays.
GAINES - 65 - Played LDE. Had a TFL late in the game when he was unblocked.
W. WILLIAMS - 64 - Backup DT played late. Didn't stand out.
LB
JORDAN - 56 - Good game. Hit Garrard up high when blitzing on early pass play. Looked fast and agile moving around. Hustled on a run play to chase the RB down from behind after a moderate gain. Subtle moment ... hits TE on a pass play as the guy is trying to release into his route. The hit throws him off. The TE catches the pass, but Jordan and Samuel are able to push him out of bounds for a loss. Blew up a FB on a lead run that came his way. Made a good play on a run to his side. Shed an OL and then stuffed the runner for little gain. Had 2 tackles.
GOCONG - 57 - Solid game. Played fast. Had a good hit on TE in the flat.
MAYS - 51 - Disappointing. Has some plays where he looks good, but he looks half a step slow to me, as if he's unsure or afraid to attack. Not playing confident, aggressive football right now. Getting stuck on blocks more than you like. Doesn't lack talent, but something is just off a bit.
Hit QB on early blitz. Closing speed could be better. Got pressure on another blitz up the middle. Missed a tackle of MJD on pass. Got stuck on the other side of a blocker at first. Got around the OL and got his hands on Drew, but couldn't wrap him up. Finished with a couple of tackles.
WILHELM - 59 - Played backup SAM and looked comfortable out there. Broke up a pass over the middle. Switched to MLB late in the game. I liked him better at SAM.
FUKOU - 53 - Backup MLB. Solid game. Led the team with 6 tackles. Came into the game in the late 3rd. First noticeable play was when he got called for jumping on a pile. Made a nice play vs the run. Attacked the blocker, shed him, and got the RB. Made a good tackle of TE after short catch over the middle. Shows a nose for the ball. Crashed down the LOS on a run and got the RB from behind. Moved out to SAM late in the game. Looked fine out there as well as in the middle.
DANIELS - 50 - Backup WLB. Stuffed a run that came at him.
CB
SAMUEL - 22 - Great game. Always seemed to be making something happen. Just missed an INT late in the 1st. Couldn't quite get to the ball before it hit the ground. Forced a fumble with a good hit on a WR at the goal line, but Torry Holt grabbed it as it laid on the ground. Weird TD. Picked off a pass going to Holt by jumping the route and plucking the ball. Hit a WR just after the ball got there and knocked it loose. Just missed being a fumble.
HOBBS - 31 - Starting RCB. Rebounded from his poor showing last week to have a good game. Good, quick tackle of Holt after short catch. Broke up early 3rd down pass. Blew up a running play by taking out pulling OL. Stopped RB on a draw play. Had good coverage on deep ball to Williamson. Showed good feet and speed on the play. Had good coverage on a short sideline throw to Williamson.
HANSON - 21 - Burned for a TD by rookie Jarrett Dillard. Stumbled out of his break. Broke up a pass in the 4th Qtr.
IKE - 33 - Looked better. Played faster, more confident. Broke up a short pass and knocked the ball into the air where it was picked off by a DL.
PATTERSON - 23 - Looked really good in the slot. Had 1 tackle in the game.
S
MIKELL - Good game. Deflected a pass while blitzing. Came up quickly on a run play to tackle the RB for only a short gain. Blitzed off the edge and forced a quick throw, but it was completed. Tackled well and was around the ball a lot.
DEMPS - 39 - Up and down game. Finished off RB on a draw play where Hobbs had stopped progress. Missed tackle on run play to his right side. Q got to the ball quickly, but whiffed. Looked good on a play that didn't count. Scooped up the ball after Asante's near FF. Demps ran it back about 20 yards. I liked the fact he was so fast and decisive on the play, even if it didn't count. Early in the 2nd half he scooped up a fumble from a RB and ran it back to set up a TD. Tried to lateral the ball at the end of his run, but was out of bounds. Very dumb idea. Made a poor tackle attempt on TE after a catch over the middle. Didn't wrap up or explode through the target.
HARRIS - 35 - Got some snaps with the starting defense at FS. I need to go back and re-watch him closely to see when he's in and what happened. Didn't have any tackles. I'm glad the coaches think enough of Macho to want to give him a chance to play with the starters. That also is a hint to Demps that they aren't happy with some part of his game.
JONES - 26 - Didn't stand out to me at all.
LANGFORD - 42 - Strong, physical tackler. Played the run well. The gamebook only has him with a couple of tackles, but he seemed to be around the ball more than that.
________________________________
STs
ROCCA - Solid game. 4-186 - 46.5.
AKERS - Hit the winning kick, this time.
KOR ---
* Hobbs good KOR.
* Demps good KOR.
* Maclin had 1 KOR and it only went 17 yds.
PR ---
* Maclin had 1 for -1 yds. Ugh. He is catching the ball and dancing. JM must get going upfield.
* Danny Amendola had a 40-yd PR. That certainly helps his cause to make the PS.
MISC STs ---
* Buckley had a good tackle in KO coverage.
* Tank missed a tackle which led to a long return.
* Fokou hustled to chase down a KOR on a long return.
* Buckley had a good tackle on KO late in the 3rd.
* LoBo made a tackle in punt covg. I almost did a double take.
* Jack I. was in on a couple of STs tackles. I wish he looked more solid and aggressive on those tackles.
The highlight of the game was watching tiny Danny Amendola hold back huge King Dunlap after a shoving match near the goal line. That is a good metaphor for a very, very strange preseason. I can't recall any year with so much odd stuff happening. Anyway...onto the game.
Ugly, sloppy affair. We led 24-14 at one point. The Jets reeled off 137 straight points. At least it seemed that way. I'm not too concerned with the sloppy game. A good portion of the guys who played in this game won't be on the roster as of Saturday. The guys who did play are mostly role players and young guys to develop. The guys played hard and we had some key players do well. Those were the important things for me.
I'm only going to cover players worth noting. For instance, guys like AJ Feeley, Reggie Brown, and Hank Baskett all played some, but there isn't anything to mention about veterans like that in the 4th preseason game.
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QB
KOLB - Solid game. He was 8-16-110, 1TD. I thought he threw the ball well and showed some arm strength. Kolb was up and down with how he handled pressure. At times he was too jittery. Kevin missed on a couple of key throws. The missed TC/PS time hasn't helped him.
Threw a deep ball to Maclin down the left side. Ball went 48 yds in the air. The throw was pretty accurate, but Maclin was interfered with by Lito Sheppard and it drew a flag. Threw high to Mailei in the left flat. Made a solid throw to Gibson for a gain of 18. Put the ball up high, but had to do that to get it over a defender. Had Gibson open on a corner route and threw the ball too "flat". Gibson wasn't able to locate it and make the catch. Ball needed more touch. Had a couple of sloppy throws on crossing routes. The ball needs to be in front of the receivers.
VICK - Very up and down game. He executed the option well and ran for a TD. That was nice. He looked good running Wildcat type plays. That's all well and good, but his time as the QB was brutal. Very rusty. Mike was slow to make reads. He wasn't accurate or on time with the ball. He didn't handle pressure well. He seemed indecisive. His QB rating of 29.7 didn't even take into account his 2 fumbles.
Listen, I expected some of this. Donovan looks rusty when he goes from mid-June to Training Camp without playing. Vick hadn't played true QB for a couple of years. My problem is just that Vick looked worse than I expected. He completed 7 passes. 4 of them went to RBs. All of his completions were thrown to targets less than 5 yards down the field. He did mix in some deep balls. One was picked and the other probably should have been. The deep ball to Maclin was inside where the CB could play it. You have to go long or outside with the ball.
Mike showed poor pocket presence. Had one disastrous play. Dropped back and eluded initial pressure. Turned away from the defender. Then had another guy near him so he went backward again. This time he got hit and fumbled inside our 5-yd line. Mike did recover, but that was an ugly play. Mike has to realize that he's not the guy from 2006 and play accordingly. A veteran QB has to see things prior to the snap. Vick was never a polished QB, but he's been around the block enough that he should notice when LBs start cheating up to the line and things like that. He was facing Jets backups, not the '85 Bears. The blocking certainly didn't help him, but some of those blitzes were obvious.
Back to the running. Vick did get loose a couple of times. He lacks his old burst, but did show quickness and some speed. He's still elusive. He did run for at least 3 first downs. I liked the TD run. The OL gave him a crease and Vick bulled his way into the endzone. Not every run can be out in space where Mike can use athletic ability. We needed to see that kind of toughness.
His role here is mostly going to be as a Wildcat QB, something he can handle at this point. I'd be lying, though, if I didn't say I was disappointed by what I saw of him at QB.
RB
MCCOY - 29 - Had a 1-yd TD run. Lowered his shoulder and ran up the middle. That's the kind of thing we needed to see from LeSean. Only had 3 carries in the game. One of his pass blocks was sloppier than I would have liked.
BUCKLEY - 34 - Good game. Ran hard. Converted a couple of 3rd/short situations. Might lack great talent, size, or speed, but he's got heart. E-Buck isn't going to have anyone play harder than him. Had 9 carries for 36 yds. Caught one pass.
LOBO - 25 - Great news. Sheriff LoBo won't be getting re-elected. Bad game. Sucked on STs. Didn't do much as a runner or receiver. Had 13 touches for 36 yds. Doesn't make guys miss. Doesn't break tackles. I was WRONG about Booker. Very wrong. I watched him as a college player and Dolphin and thought we got a very good role player. I don't know what happened to the guy I watched, but he never showed up in an actual Eagles game. Hasta la vista, baby.
FB
ECKEL - 32 - Sloppy game. Good lead block on Booker run in 2nd half. Missed a blitz pickup in the 2nd half and Vick got sacked by the LB. Gone, baby, gone.
MAILEI - 41 - Whiffed on blitz pickup on 3rd/4. His guy disrupted the play. Shows promise as a lead blocker. Aggressive. Has some pop. Looked like he missed a block in pass pro that led to a sack. Had a couple of passes thrown his way, but no catches. Showed enough potential that I hope we keep him on the Practice Squad. Has raw ability, but needs time to develop.
TE
CURTIS - 83 - Good game. Caught 4 passes for 40 yds and a TD. I'd love him as our #3 TE. If we can't work out a trade I might be able to live with him as our backup. That's certainly not ideal, but Tony is big and has blocking ability. He looked good as a receiver vs the Jets. Able to adjust to the ball. Didn't look too gimpy out there despite the ankle injury. Caught the ball over the middle and outside. Looked comfortable in traffic. Blocking was okay. Didn't drive guys off the ball every snap, but didn't get moved back. Held his ground.
BRIGHT - 82 - Couldn't haul in a Kolb pass along the sideline. Shows a lot of potential as a blocker. Has good size and is willing to do the dirty work. Simply needs more time to learn technique and how to play TE.
MYERS - 85 - Quiet game. Really disappeared after a good showing against the Colts. Does have potential as a receiver.
WR
MACLIN - 18 - Okay game. Got 6 yds on an early WR screen. Had a couple of deep balls thrown his way. One drew a PI call on Lito Sheppard. The other was picked off. Both times Maclin was trying to play the ball. I was hoping to see him get more touches. Has talent, but still needs work.
GIBSON - 19 - Good game. Caught 4 balls for 45 yds. Doesn't play like a rookie. Polished player. If only he were a bit more athletic. Best catch came on a post where he went up and got the ball. Good hands. Tough. Made an impressive catch on a crossing route. The ball was behind him, but was able to turn and grab it, then get RAC yards. Gain of 15. Almost made a great TD catch. Vick hit him along the sideline, but put the ball too far outside and Brandon couldn't get his feet both in.
AMENDOLA - 11 - Good game. Had a 31-yd reception. 28 yds of that came after the catch. Dropped a sure TD from Kolb. Danny has to make that play if he's pushing for a roster spot. Had 3 rushes for 21 yds. He's quick and elusive. Runs hard. Showed some strength as he broke tackles. I know Erik Coleman was surprised as hell when he hit Danny and the result was Danny bouncing off the hit and Erik ending up on the ground. Danny has one problem. Lacks speed and that will likely keep him off any rosters for this year. He's quick and has some burst, but lacks deep speed.
OL
JUSTICE - 74 - Played a series and then got hurt.
DUNLAP - 65 - LT. Sloppy game. Gave up a sack. Made the initial block on Gholston, but couldn't sustain it. Was part of another sack. His DE took an inside slant. The DT stunted and looped around the DE. King got too far inside w/ the DE and didn't get to the DT. Mailei was there to block him, but released into a route at the last minute. Sack. King has shown progress. He is more physical now. He uses his hands. He still needs work, but should probably make the roster.
MCGLYNN - 68 - Started at C, but also played RT. Quick transition from snap to block. Had a very good run block on short GL run by McCoy. RT was somewhat of an adventure. A for effort. Did his best every snap, but isn't meant to play out there in the NFL. The coaches have to love the way he does whatever is asked and plays so hard.
GIBSON - 61 - Starting LG. Pulled well and made good cut block on LB. Not a powerful run blocker, but a good effort guy. Solid on double teams. Shifted over to RG some in the 2nd half. Didn't show the kind of progress this summer than I hoped to see.
REYNOLDS - 66 - Solid rookies. Played C for most of the game. Got some push on a few runs. Helped to open a hole for Vick on his TD. Good effort guy. Uses his hands well. Good with angles.
TUPOU - 78 - Played LG in the 2nd half. So-so. Has the size to be a good run blocker. At times he will flash serious potential. Must get better with his hands.
FANAIKA - 63 - Starting RG. Got driven back on early inside run. Good block on McCoy's TD run. Has definite potential as a run blocker. Gets off the ball and gets after it. Too upright in pass pro. Got driven back to the QB a time or two. Has to anchor better and be less stiff.
___________________________________
DE
J BABIN - 94 - Solid game. Took an inside move and got good pressure on a play where the QB was bobbling the ball. We recovered the fumble. Had a sack late in the half. Wasn't as consistently disruptive as other games. Exploded off the ball on a run play and threw the play off. Led to a TFL. I think Jason has played his way onto the roster.
GAINES - LDE. Tackled QB by chasing him from behind. Recovered a fumble. Had a couple of tackles and played hard. Lacks the burst to be an NFL DE.
B SMITH - 63 - Really needed a good showing. That didn't happen. Played RDE in the 2nd half. Had a couple of tackles. Showed no burst whatsoever. Last year against the Jets this guy played great and got us all excited that he might develop into a player. What happened? I think Smith needs to play LB. This has nothing to do with size. I just think Smith looks at his best on the run. Try him at SAM or trade him to a 3-4 team. The Eagles might keep him around another year to see if the light goes on, but he was a major disappointment this summer.
DT
LAWS - 93 - Missed a sack. QB ran to him because Trevor had stumbled. Got his hands on the guy, but couldn't bring him down. Excellent hustle. Chase the ball all over the field. Very quick off the ball on a pass late in the half. Babin beat him to the QB. Solid showing, but I was hoping Trevor would stand out more in the game.
KLECKO - 68 - Solid showing. TFL. Quick off the ball. Pressured QB on a 3rd down play. Finished with 3 tackles. Probably on the outside looking in. Had some good moments this summer, but he's sort of a one-trick pony. He beats you with initial quickness or gets blocked and is ineffective.
W. WILLIAMS - 64 - Played in the 2nd half. Somewhat quiet game. Recovered a fumble. Didn't have any tackles. Could be a PS candidate.
LB
MAYS - 51 - Disappointing. I hoped the pressure of not being the #1 MLB would relax him and get him to play faster. Didn't happen. Had 3 tackles, but didn't play well. Out of position on Woodhead's 55-yd TD run. Still looked tentative.
WILHELM - 59 - Bad game. Missed tackle of Woodhead on short TD run. Didn't play with any sense of urgency.
FUKOU - 53 - SLB. Played fast. Tackled very well. Led the team with 9 stops. Solid showing. Got beaten by Keller for catch down the middle. Got off blocks and to the ball.
DANIELS - 50 - WLB. Poor run D on early run to his side. Had 3 tackles, but failed to stand out.
CB
IKE - 33 - Up and down game. Seemed to be quicker to the ball in this game than the first couple. Had 4 tackles and an INT. Gave up a long TD to WR in the 4th. Picked off a bobbled ball. Returned it inside the 5. Might have gotten lucky because of Dmitri Patterson's injury. Gave up a short TD in the 3rd Qtr. Coverage wasn't bad, but he's got to learn that being close isn't good enough in the NFL. Had solid downfield covg on early 4th Qtr throw. The long TD wasn't due to physical issues. He was sloppy with technique and watched the QB too much.
PATTERSON - 23 - Left with some kind of ankle injury. Gave up a downfield completion, but the ball was underthrown and the receiver made a good adjustment on it. Looked okay in the game.
T WILLIAMS - 37 - Had several passes completed on him. Doesn't stand out in coverage. Sloppy tackler. Looked like he blew covg of a TE on GL pass, but I can't be sure of that.
S
DEMPS - 39 - Weird game. Didn't have any chances to really shine. Made 3 tackles, but none was impressive. Hustled to chase down Woodhead on long run in 2nd half. Didn't seem to make any critical mistakes. I just wish he'd have been around the ball more or done somethign to stand out.
JONES - 26 - Didn't impress me at all. Had 1 tackle. Hit hard all game long, but was always late to the ball. Didn't look good in coverage at all. Sean is a better player than he's showing this summer.
HARRIS - 35 - Good game. Flew upfield on a run play and took out a pulling OL. That helped to contain the run. Good tackle of RB on a screen pass. Good tackle of WR on a quick pass. Broke up a short pass in the early 4th. Played fast and looked confident.
LANGFORD - 42 - Bad game. Was out of position and got burned by Woodhead on long run in 2nd half. Came up too quickly and got burned on another play. Whiffed on Woodhead on a run where Reshard was in the correct position. I wonder if he was trying to do too much to impress the coaches and that led to the mistakes. Normally Langford is a good run defender and smart player. Could be a PS candidate.
________________________________
STs
ROCCA - Awful game. Didn't kick well at all. 38.5 per punt. Couple of shanks hurt us.
AKERS - Nailed a 48-yd FG.
KOR ---
* Maclin once again failed to impress as a KOR. He has yet to show he understands in the NFL that you run full speed and make slight cuts. This isn't college where you can go slow and wait for holes to develop. I don't think he's timid because of contact. J-Mac is an elusive runner by nature. That is okay on punts, but not KOs.
* Amendola runs hard and had a long return of 25.
PR ---
* Maclin is more natural on punts. Ran one back for 11 yds.
MISC STs ---
* Buckley had tackle on opening KO.
* Sean Jones had good hit in punt covg.
* Gibson lost contain on a KO and gave up a long return. Sloppy.
* Macho made a terrific tackle on that KOR. Put the guy down with authority.
* Gave up a long return in early 3rd.
* Fokou had to make a horse collar tackle on a PR.
I didn't completely finish re-watching the game. I got through 3 quarters.
Exactly what I predicted. We had 267 yards of offense, scored 38 points, and came up with 7 takeaways. At least that's what I think I predicted. Welcome to the NFL, Sean McDermott. Our new Defensive Coordinator came up with a great gameplan and his players executed it brilliantly. Does he think he's Raymond Spruance or what?
We dominated the line of scrimmage. We covered well. We flew to the ball. The tackling was sloppy too often for my liking, but that is a common problem early in the year as players adjust to real games. McDermott was very aggressive, but occasionally would play conservative. We blitzed on a 2nd long play where CAR went deep. Ball was incomplete. Next play was 3rd/long and we rushed only 3. That left 8 guys in coverage and that's when Sheldon jumped the pass to Smith and picked it off and flew upfield. You have to mix blitzes and coverage. Sean kept the Panthers off balance.
Poor Jake Delhomme must think he's Phil Connors, trapped in Groundhog Day. Minus Andie MacDowell, though. His last game was 6 turnovers. This time he had 5 turnovers and got benched. We need to check with Panthers fans to see if he is taking piano lessons and doing ice sculptures to get out of his trap.
There isn't really much to say about our offense. We only had 2 drives go 50 or more yards. We got the ball deep in CAR territory twice and converted both to TDs. The score got out of hand and we had Kolb come in after Donovan's injury. I wasn't thrilled with what I saw because of mistakes (dropped passes, sloppy throws, and penalties). At the same time, all we talked about in the offseason was the Red Zone. We were 3 of 3 in Goal-to-Go situations. We also ran for 185 yards and were solid on 3rd downs while Donovan was in the game. I felt like I was watching the Titans or Ravens from last year, minus the power rushing attack of course.
The revamped OL was a major question coming into the game, but they played well. Not just okay. They had a good game. We used bunch formations and chip blocks to help them out, but the Big Uglies impressed me. Good start.
MISC
* Strategy/Coaching --- There isn't much to say in this game about Reid. The score got out of hand in a hurry. I thought he did a solid job of handling things. I would have preferred more running in the 2nd half, but I understand the thinking to get Kolb some passing reps in.
* Abiamiri's TD --- We lined up with VA at LDT and Darren Howard at RDT. Omar and Akeem lined up as stand up DEs. Juqua and Trent lined up as ILBs. Juqua flew upfield immediately and attacked the C. Darren attacked the gap between LG and LT. They doubled him. That freed up Cole to go unblocked up the middle. He got to Jake in a hurry and knocked the ball loose. VA ran over, grabbed the ball, and dove into the endzone. TD. Great design and execution.
* Peanut's PR TD --- He got the ball near the left sideline. He made one guy miss and then turned on the jets. Chris Clemons either got away with a block in the back or came very close. D-Jax then used his speed and elusiveness to motor down the sideline for the TD. He is explosive.
* New play --- We ran a new variation of Flip 90 and Westy got a 1st down on 3rd/1. It took all his speed to get 2 yds on the play. Flip 90 is when the QB fakes to the FB on a dive play up the middle and then immediately pivots and flips the ball to the RB out wide. This play was unstoppable several years ago. NFL defenses have caught on. The new wrinkle is to fake to the FB and have the RB stay on that side so the QB doesn't have to pivot. Some other team ran this as well.
* Hit on Donnie --- The hit by Lewis on D-Mac looked dirty to me. Donovan was in the endzone and going to the ground. Lewis dove for a guy already in the endzone. I'm all for guy going 100mph and not giving up, but if he's in the endzone...he's in the endzone. You can't undo a TD. Had he hit McNabb right at the line, clean play. That didn't happen.
* GL Stand --- Carolina was only 1 of 3 on Goal-to-Go situations. They ran 9 plays inside our 10-yard line. They got 8 yards and no TDs. That is some stout D. Their lone TD came on a run from the 11. I loved seeing our guys on the field at the end of the game for the final GL stand. We put all the key players back out there. You can say we risked injury, but I loved the fact that our guys wanted to be out there. They had enough pride to want to keep CAR from scoring meaningless points at the end of a blowout. I like that kind of e'sprit de corps.
* Points of Turnovers: PHI - 17 , CAR - 0
* Fumble Recoveries: VA, Gaither
-OFFENSE-
QB
MCNABB - Okay game. Never really got into a good flow with the offense, but made big plays when we needed them. Ran a bootleg on the first play of the game. Good call. Donnie ended up keeping the ball and going for 4 yds. Good way to get him loose. Made a very good play on 3rd/9. Dropped back and looked around. Felt some heat so he moved up in the pocket and then hit Avant with a throw over the middle. Moved the chains. Made a very good throw to Curtis late in the 1st Qtr, but it was dropped. Almost had a pass picked off by Peppers. Was trying to get the ball to Westy and made a sloppy throw that was too close to the DE and he almost came up with the ball. Picked off by Beason in the 3rd. The pass was too flat. Curtis was wide open for a good gain. Bad throw. Had some good scrambles. Had a good run late in the half when he ran for 15 yds. Ran for a 1st down on 3rd/5 early in the 3rd Qtr. Ran for the TD as well.
KOLB - Disappointing game. Looked okay initially, but then struggled as the offense got incredibly sloppy. I don't know if everyone just let up or what. The playcalling was strange. DeSean dropped a handoff. Winston Justice suddenly forgot how to block. Kevin certainly didn't help matters. He didn't make crisp throws and displayed no emotion or confidence. The offense wasn't great before he got in the game, but things went down hill in a hurry.
RB
WESTY - Good game. 13 carries for 64 yards. Caught 3 passes, all short. One was a shovel pass TD. Ran to the left side for 18 and the right side for 17 on the same drive. Very impressive stuff. The run left showed his speed/burst. The one to the right showed his vision and cutting ability. Looked like the old Westy. Had a good block on a pass play when a DE stunted and came free up the middle. Had a nice run up the middle before McNabb's TD. Westy started right, had nothing, and cut back to the left. Good vision and he showed some shiftiness.
MCCOY - Solid overall performance, but a sloppy start. Got too wide on pass. McNabb got the ball to him and he was already out of bounds before he could even think about getting upfield. Donovan was coaching him up about that. Donnie knows we need McCoy this year and rookie mistakes have to get eliminated ASAP. A play or two later McCoy took a handoff up the middle. He was tackled, hit the ground, and the ball came loose. The refs made an awful call and ruled it a fumble. Andy challenged and it was easily overturned. Still, McCoy can't put the ball on the ground. Ball security is crucial. As John Heisman used to say to his players, "Gentlemen, it is better to have died a small boy than to fumble this football."
LeSean did have 9 carries for 46 yds (Bucklhalter had 46 yds for DEN). He showed excellent burst. If he's clean to the outside teams are in trouble. McCoy ran hard and looked comfortable being out there. Some guys look like rookies. Other guys look like they belong.
BUCKLEY - Played on STs. No carries as RB.
FB
WEAVER - Solid showing. Made a terrific cut block of Peppers on D-Jax's first Wildcat run. That gave us a free lane to the outside. Did a good job as a blocker all game long. Helped on the shovel pass TD. Helped on pass plays. Good block on SAM on run play to the right. Had an 11-yard run. Very nice play. Only caught one pass and lost 3 yds on it. We tried a screen, but it was well defended.
TE
CELEK - Good game. Had 6 catches and a TD. Did drop a pass on early 3rd down. The ball looked a little behind him, but should have been caught. Made a simple catch on 3rd/long, but fought upfield for enough yards to set up a FG. We ran a short, safe pass to him on 1st/GL from the 9. Donnie faked a handoff and went out wide. He could toss the ball to Brent or run and have Brent as a blocker. Donnie threw the ball with good touch (only a 4 or 5 yd pass) and Celek was able to grab it and bull his way into the endzone. We're doing a lot of plays with him that stress RAC ability. I like it. We had Brent chip and help out with pass blocking a fair amount. He did well with that.
SMITH - Wore #82. For a minute I did a double take and thought I was having LJ flashbacks. Must get help...call 9-1-1. Wait. That's just Alex Smith. Had a good down block on Peppers on a Westy run to the outside. Blocked okay on some other runs. Didn't have any passes come his way.
WR
DESEAN - Sloppy game as a WR. Dropped an early WR screen pass. Caught a short pass over the middle. Finished with just 2 catches for 9 yds. We used him creatively throughout the game. Lined up as the QB in the Wildcat and ran for 8 yds. Ran a pair of End Arounds. Bobbled the handoff and looked like he was dribbling the ball. Finally batted it out of bounds for no loss or gain. Best run went for 25 yds. Used his speed to get wide and then showed great body control to make a tight turn and fly upfield. Explosive weapon. We did throw 7 passes his way. CAR made it a priority to cover him tightly and did a good job.
CURTIS - Caught 2 passes for 26 yards. Bad drop early in game. Just dropped a pass that would have put us inside the 20. Caught a 15-yd pass along the sideline on a 2nd Qtr drive. Came back to the ball (as always). Had good blocks on Westy's 2 best runs.
AVANT - Only had 1 grab, but it got us 18 yards on 3rd/9. Got open over the middle.
BASKETT - Was most valuable as a blcoker. Caught a pass for 6 yds.
MACLIN - No touches.
OL
PETERS - Good game. I wasn't sure what to think as I saw the game live, but I liked what I saw on tape. Did have 2 False Start penalties in 1st Qtr. First one turned 3rd/4 into 3rd/9. Can't have those kind of mistakes. Outstanding block on LB on Westy run. Got a LB and stuck with the block. Eventually pushed him into a body on the ground and the LB fell. Looked athletic and nasty on the play. Looked solid in pass pro. Got out wide with rushers. Got his hands on them and worked to stay with blocks. Very good blocking on play late in the half. CAR ran a stunt. Peters shoved the DE as he went inside and then got the DT as he came wide. Got the best of both guys. Physical as well. No love taps from JP. He hits you. Had a good block in space on DeSean's long run to the left side. Hustled to make the tackle of Beason after the INT.
COLE - Very good game. Started at LG and played well. Good block on early run up the middle. Pulled outside on our first Wildcat run. Paved the way for D-Jax by getting a good hit on #41. Pulled on a Westy run to the left and had a very good block on Beason. Floored a DT on a trap play. Hit the guy from the side and the DT didn't know what happened. Had a solid block on the shovel pass. Pulled to the right and hit a LB. Didn't move him, but did enough for Westy to score. Pulled to the right and had a good block on Beason on run play.
JACKSON - Good game. Looked more agile, nimble than last year. Floored a LB on End Around to DeSean. Didn't really affect the play, but I love to see our guys being nasty. Did a pretty good job of getting to the 2nd level. Seemed to make the right line calls. Blitzers weren't running free all game.
STACY - RG. Sloppy game. Lost his guy on a pass play and the player hit Donovan after the pass. Had the guy initially, but didn't sustain it. Got away with holding on the final pass play of the half. Looked okay at times. You can see his potential with his size and athletic ability. Just looked rusty.
JUSTICE - Okay game. Got help in pass pro. Had a poor block on Tackle Trap play. Didn't attack his defender at all. Barely touched the guy. Had a good block on a Westy run to his side. Was able to seal the DE and give Westy the outside running lane. Came off the ball very quickly on a run play and got to the 2nd level in a hurry. Got part of a LB on the play. Needs to slow down and be more physical with his block. Had a good seal block on the shovel pass. Got a decent amount of help on pass plays, but generally held his own. Had one really bad block attempt on Peppers late in the game that resulted in a sack, FF.
___________________________________
-DEFENSE-
DE
COLE - Very good game. Had 5 tackles and a sack. Pressured Jake on multiple plays. Came up with a huge sack, FF when rushing up the middle. Knocked the ball loose and VA scored TD. Played with a great motor. Chased the ball from sideline to sideline. Bit hard on a run and took an inside angle. That left the edge open for Williams and a solid gain. Hustled outside to chase down Smith on a Wildcat play. Got under the TE and stood him up on a GL run. That forced the runner to stay inside. The analyst talked about the good block of Cole on that play. Apparently Charles Davis and I have different views on blocking. Trent got off a block and stuffed a RB for a gain of only 2 on a 2nd Qtr play. Used a good inside move to beat Gross and got held, but no call. Stunted inside and came free. That pressured Jake into the Jordan INT.
VA - Starting LDE. Good game. Looked athletic. Had 5 tackles and scored a TD. Hustled in pursuit on plays that went away from him. Covered a TE on a short route on a zone blitz. Looked natural. Threw Otah to the ground on a run play. DW started to the left and then tried to come back to the right. VA was there and that allowed Q to swoop in for the TFL. Pressured Jake on 3rd down pass attempt. Darren went hard inside. VA saw this and looped around him and hurried a bad throw from Jake. Shed block of TE and tackled RB for gain of only about 2 yards. Got very good pressure on a screen pass. Beat the TE and was almost held. Was a step or two away when Jake got rid of the ball. Victor played like a starting LDE should. If he can develop as a pass rusher we just might have a quality player.
PARKER - Backup LDE. Solid game. Credited with 3 stops and a TFL. Showed he can be a valuable backup. Had one major mistake. Got near Jake on an early 3rd down and reached out for him. Got part of the facemask and drew a penalty flag. That was on 3rd/long and extended the drive, CAR's only TD of the game. Disrupted 3rd/short run to his side near the GL. Should have made the tackle, but slowed the runner enough for the pursuit to get to him. Got into the blocker, shed him, and got a step upfield. Textbook stuff. Had a very nice play in the 2nd Qtr when he shed the TE and grabbed the RB as he tried to go outside. Limited the play to a couple of yds. Crashed down the line and got RB on a play up the middle. Good pressure in the mid-3rd created a an easy pick for Sammie, but he dropped it.
HOWARD - Good game. Led the team with 2 sacks. Got pressure off the edge on an early 3rd down play. Played DT and RDE. Hit Josh McCown low and knocked him out of the game on one sack. I was worried they'd call a penalty for a low hit on that. Had 5 tackles and was disruptive, especially in the 2nd half when they started throwing a lot. Forced a fumble.
CLEMONS - Played LDE and Joker. Got pressure on Jake on 3rd/long that helped to cause an INT. Just missed a sack when the QB was flushed wide. Darren got there half a step before CC. Dropped back into coverage as well as rushing. Didn't make it onto the stat sheet, but did his part. Chris blitzed a lot, but this happened to be the game where he got picked up most of the time. Guys like Jordan and Cole came free.
DT
PATTERSON - Good game. Had 5 tackles and half a sack. Helped to control the middle of the field. CAR never got an inside running game going. Spun off a double team to stuff a runner for no gain. Had half a sack. Fought to get off block and then met Omar at the QB.
BUNKLEY - Good game. Stat sheet only says 2 tackles, but Bunk was a force on the inside. Shed blocker and tackled RB for no gain on 3rd play of the game. Hustled to chase down Jake on a play where he scrambled. Drove the C backward on Jake's first pick.
LAWS - Got knocked around by the LG/LT more than you'd like. Has to play stronger and be more stout. Did have a TFL. Jumped over a cut block attempt from an OL and got to the RB in the backfield. Nice play.
DIXON - I was shocked to see Antonio active and on the field. Got mixed in with Laws. The coaches wanted fresh DTs in the game to battle the CAR rushing attack. Dixon didn't make any tackles or stand out. You can see how big and strong he is. Still needs a lot of work.
LB
JORDAN - Good game. Made some plays, which we need from the WLB. Had his first career INT and sack. Blitzed on the opening drive and knocked the FB back. That flushed Jake. Got cut by the FB on an outside run by Stewart. Needed to keep his feet and have contain on that play. Got his sack on a 2nd Qtr play. Blitzed up the middle and was untouched. Saw the RB coming to get him and jumped. Grabbed Jake up high as he was coming down and was able to wrestle him down. Missed tackle of DW on a screen pass late in the half. Wasn't a gimme, but should have made the play. His INT was a good play. Jordan read screen pass. He stayed with the RB. Once he saw the ball he stepped up and had an easy pick. Finished with 5 tackles.
GOCONG - Solid game. Had a pair of solo stops. Broke up a pass near the GL. Must have read Jake's eyes. Ran over and swatted the ball down with authority. Hustled to the opposite side to stuff a RB for minimal gain. Played a Wildcat run well. Didn't let the runner get wide and that created a TFL for Laws. Played the run well all game long. Got off blocks and played his gap or area. Great hustle on Williams long screen play to get downfield and help force him out of bounds.
GAITHER - Starting MLB. Had 4 tackles and half a sack. Also recovered a fumble. Missed a tackle of Stewart on a pass play late in the half, but didn't cost us. Blitzed outside to get his half sack. Fought through a block to get there. Didn't have many solo tackles because CAR had such trouble running inside. They had better luck on the outside. Omar did a solid job of running the D and covered well on a couple of plays.
FOKOU - Mainly played on STs
WHITE - Mainly played on STs.
CB
S BROWN - Great game. Had a pair of INTs and good returns on both. The first pick was great. Sheldon snared the ball as it fell toward the ground. Came an inch or so away from hitting the ground. Great hands, focus, and concentration. The 2nd pick was an easy catch, but impressive play. Sheldon dropped into his area, read the play, and jumped the route. He leapt up in the air to snag the ball and then returned it deep into CAR territory.
SAMUEL - Good game. Had a really impressive pick. Covered Smith down the sideline on a deep pass. Sammie tracked the ball perfectly and leapt up and grabbed it. All Steve could do was tackle him and complain about the bad throw. Asante has one annoying habit. Does not believe in wrap-up tackles. Must be a religious thing. Got Smith out with a shoulder hit on the first play. Then missed tackle on RB in the flat on a 3rd/1 pass. A good stop would have brought up 4th down. Forced Stewart out of bounds on a pass play late in the half. Just missed a pick-six in the late 3rd. The ball was floating to him. All he had to do was grab it and go. Drop.
HOBBS - Played some at LCB and RCB. Tackled the TE in the flat after a short catch. Had tight coverage on Smith in endzone on 3rd/GL pass late in the half.
MmmBop - Good game. Had 2 tackles, broke up 3 passes, and had an INT. Leapt up to make the pick. Impressive awareness and catch. Didn't play a lot in the 1st half, but got a good amount of work in the 2nd when CAR had to throw a lot. Had tight coverage on Smith on a 3rd down pass and broke it up. Broke up a pass to Smith to the other side on the next 3rd down with a good hit.
PATTERSON - Mainly played on STs.
S
MIKELL - Good game. Led the team with 6 tackles. Covered well. Had one big mistake. Q lost contain on TD run. He bit hard to the inside and let Williams get outside and around the corner. Good coverage on 2 downfield throws. Had proper position and was running with Muhammad on both attempts. Had an impressive blitz early. Timed his attack up the middle perfectly and knocked the RB backward. Jake was able to step away from Q, but the blitz was well executed. Blitzed effectively throughout the game. Had a TFL on DW run.
HARRIS - FS. Did okay in his first ever start at FS. Missed an early tackle of DW on an outside run. Fought off the block well and got his hands on the runner, but couldn't make the tackle. Lined up over slot rcvr and then blitzed. Got near Jake, but was a step away when Jake ran upfield for a gain of 9. Helped to break up a pass to Smith that Sheldon picked off. Finished with one tackle. Dropped an INT late in the game. Made a good break on the ball and would have been a TD. Just dropped it.
DEMPS - Mainly played on STs.
________________________________
SPECIAL TEAMS
ROCCA - Averaged 42.8 per punt and 2 of his 4 kicks were downed inside the 20.
AKERS - Pretty good game. Nailed a 48-yd FG. Good depth on KOs. Had one touchback. Had KO late in half go out of bounds. That helped CAR drive down for a FG. We had a FG blocked, but it wasn't DA's fault. Peppers made a good play. And is 8-feet tall.
KOR
* Hobbs got more chances than I thought. Normally Rhys-Lloyd has a lot of touchbacks. Hobbs ran back 2 KOs. Averaged 22.5. The blocking on the 2nd return wasn't good.
PR
* DeSean had a good game. Ran an 85-yder back for TD. Did field a punt inside the 10 (which is dumb), but made a clean catch and ran it back 21 yards.
MISC STs ---
* Demps was called for a penalty while covering first punt. Q was shoved in the back and went into the PR, but it looked like he could have avoided the guy. At the least, should have sold the fact that he was pushed better.
* MmmBop had good coverage on early KO.
* Clemons called for penalty when he started upfield on punt. That gave CAR a 1st down.
I hate Reggie Bush. There is something about green that reminds him that he was once a star at USC and it brings out the best in him. He's a little quicker, a little faster against us. I watch him a lot of the year and don't see the same guy. Against the Eagles that jerk remembers he's supposed to be good. Drives me nuts.
There is something about us that brings out the best in the Saints overall. They swept us in 2006 and played very well both times. We beat them in 2007, but even then it wasn't easy. They flat out kicked our butts yesterday, 48-22. The game was close for a while.
The score was 10-10 at the 2-minute warning. The defense had just sacked Drew Brees and forced a Saints punt. That is when everything started to come apart. DeSean fielded the punt at the 4-yard line. There were 2 block-in-the-back penalties on the play and we got the ball at our own 3. The blocking was sloppy on the next couple of runs. Kevin made a poor pass on the 3rd down play. Even a good punt by Rocca only put NO at midfield. They had a 2 play drive and scored a TD to take a 17-10 lead. That seemed to give them a lot of life.
The fumbled KOR to start the 2nd half was the fatal blow. Ellis Hobbs fumbled and the Saints turned that into a quick touchdown and got to play with an 11-point lead. I think the game really shifted at that moment. 24-13 felt like a huge deficit. Then Kolb threw a sloppy pass a couple of plays later and that set up another short TD. Suddenly the game that was so close was 31-13. They turned our mistakes into TDs. Game, set, and match.
I know a lot of people are upset today. The game was highly frustrating. It was a huge letdown after the season opener. I’m not down on the Eagles coaches or players. I don’t think substantially less of the team than I did a week ago. We got beat by a good team. We didn’t have our starting quarterback and compounded that by playing a very sloppy game. The players and coaches now have a couple of games to look at and figure out what is working and what isn’t. The goal is for us to win a SB. Peaking in September isn't required to do that.
I was happy about the effort. I never saw any let up. The players definitely got discouraged when the score went from 17-13 to 31-13 in a very short span. Our guys didn’t mail it in after that. Kolb and the offense kept firing. The defense played with a lot of emotion despite their struggles. That effort didn’t affect the scoreboard on Sunday, but it can carry over to other games. You want players who care. You want guys who play hard no matter what. The defense was playing their guts out trying to get the safety late in the game when it was meaningless. I think that kind of attitude is important. Remember the Black Knight in The Holy Grail? "Tis only a flesh wound. Come back you coward." (That's the way I felt watching the D in the 4th quarter yesterday.
The officiating was bad. We had pass rushers held a few times and got no calls. There was a play late in the game where Justice moved early. Kolb (and the rest of civilization) anticipated a flag. The refs did nothing and the play was a waste. McCoy had a legit fumble in the 1st half that the refs blew dead, saying he was down. Normally I'd be thankful, but Maclin recovered and would have easily run in for a TD. If they don't blow the whistle on that we go up 14-10 and have some weird momentum. I still don't know what happened with the Evans TD catch. His heel clearly looked out to me. I did think the Evans fumble deserved to be overturned. That was the right call.
Coaching / Strategy
Let's start with McDermott. I didn't like his strategy. He was very aggressive last week in facing the Panthers. He dialed that back this week. I think he expected the defensive line would play well enough to get some pressure on their own and he wanted the back seven to be free to cover. Neither group played well in either area. Brees had plenty of time to throw and Saints receivers consistently found holes in our coverage. We did mix in some blitzes, but didn’t have much success with them. No matter what we tried yesterday, it didn't work.
Brees has a QB rating over 100 against the blitz in the last few years. There is no guarantee that would have worked much better. I would have at least preferred to go down swinging. We sacked Drew a couple of times, but only hit him a couple of other times. You've got to get some hits on him.
As for the offense...Andy Reid and Marty Mornhinweg ran the most creative gameplan I’ve ever seen from an NFL team. I think they had a plan behind this strategy. Reid was bound to know that we would have to score points to beat the Saints. If you go back to A.J. Feeley starting as a young guy in 2002 it was the defense that won games. Feeley made some plays, but it was good defense and special teams that largely carried the team in his time as the starter. That mentality is normally good for when you have a backup quarterback playing. It wasn’t going to work against Brees and company. Reid knew that we’d likely need every offensive edge possible. He and Mornhinweg devised a complex gameplan that featured a lot of Wildcat looks and original plays. I give them a lot of credit for opening up the playbook.
I wasn’t completely happy with the way they did things, though. As long as Kolb was moving the ball within the conventional offense and the score remained close I thought the prudent thing to do was to remain somewhat basic. You only need to “manufacture” yards and points when the offense is struggling on its own. That wasn’t the case on Sunday. I think Reid was a little too anxious to try out some of the plays and that it took away from the offense at times. I wanted Kolb and the offensive players to get in a good rhythm as far as running, blocking, and executing plays. That couldn’t be easy with constant shifting of personnel and formations.
The special plays were very creative and generally well executed. I’m just a believer in the old saying that “you don’t fix what ain’t broke”. Kolb threw a beautiful touchdown to Jackson early in the game. We never threw another deep ball to Jackson. The Saints gave him a lot of attention with their defensive backs, but Jackson is one of the few guys in the league that is fast enough to outrun a double team. Put him in motion if you want to try and free him up. Get creative in that way, but use his speed on vertical pass routes.
I think the lack of a conventional rushing attack hurt us. I didn't count the base runs vs Wildcat runs. I'll see if I can go back and do that. My point about base runs is that they allow the OL & RBs to get in a rhythm and they also set up play-action passes. The Wildcat fakes set up other Wildcat plays, but don't have as much impact on the overall gameplan. Kolb was throwing well down the field. Why the heck weren't we going max-protect and running PA passes?
Andy showed what a brilliant offensive mind he's got. I just didn't think it was necessary.
* Reid made a good challenge on the Evans TD. I thought his heel clearly was on the sideline, but the refs saw something else and let the TD stand.
_____________________________
QB
KOLB - Good game. Got sloppy at times and made some mistakes, but did well overall. Can you imagine if I told you last week that Kolb would throw for 391 yards and a pair of touchdowns? Not many people would have believed that. Kolb did make some mistakes, but they were due to lack of experience, not skill or talent. You can coach him up on the areas that need work. I was pleased with his pocket presence. He took some big hits, but still got the pass off and the ball was on target. He threw some passes away when it was clear no one was open. The one sack he took was a blitz up the middle where the defender was untouched. You just have to eat that ball, which Kolb did.
One area that many fans have worried about is Kolb’s arm strength and ability to throw the ball on intermediate or deep routes. I thought he did very well in this area. He threw an excellent ball on the long touchdown catch by DeSean Jackson. That pass was accurate and had some zip. Kolb threw a couple of good passes to Jason Avant in the middle of the field. He hit Brent Celek on a seam route for a good gain. We had 5 pass plays of longer than 20 yards. We had a couple more than went 19 yards. Kolb doesn’t have an elite arm, but he showed enough arm strength to run an NFL offense and make the defense cover the whole field.
I thought Kolb made good reads and accurate throws. He was comfortable running the offense. Some young quarterbacks look nervous and it shows in their play. Kolb did fine. Until we got to the red zone, that is. Kolb struggled down there. All of a sudden things get compressed and you have to be very precise. Reads have to be made quickly. Throws have to be on target. The quarterback also has to get the ball out quickly so as not to give defenders a chance to bat the ball down at the line of scrimmage or make a play on it near the receiver. Kolb was indecisive and his reads were slower than you’d like. These are typical mistakes from a young quarterback. The one touchdown that he threw in the red zone came on a fourth down play where Kolb scrambled and relied on his playmaking instincts. He saw Avant open in the back of the endzone and got him the ball.
* The TD pass to DeSean was a strike.
* Made a real good short bootleg pass to Celek. Waited for Brent to get free and put touch on the ball.
* Good pass over middle to McCoy just before he got planted by a blitzer
* Good pass to Celek on 3rd/7
* Made a poor throw to DeSean on 3rd/5 late in the half that forced us to punt. He would have had a ton of room to run on the play and we would have gotten at least to the 20 or 25 yd line, maybe more.
* Good read, throw to Avant on the final drive of the half got us 26 yards and helped lead to a FG.
* Threw a terrible pick on the first drive after halftime. The LB read the play all the way and Kevin should have seen him before making that throw.
* Threw behind Westy on a slant pass on 3rd down. A good throw gets us the 1st and might have been a big play if Westy could have slipped Vilma's tackle attempt. Pressure by the LDE is what led to the poor throw.
* Forced ball to Celek on final 3rd down play that Sharper picked off. Got greedy with using the TE.
RB
WESTY - Looked good in the 1st half and then got old at halftime. Had 9 carries for 45 yards before the break and only had 4 rushes for 7 yds afterward. His ankle got hurt and that affected him. Without his burst the running plays weren't very effective. Caught 3 passes. Did pretty well in blitz pickup. Threw a pass out of the Wildcat down near the GL. The ball was a bit behind Weaver and fell incomplete.
MCCOY - Okay game. Fumbled after short catch over the middle. The refs ruled him down (we recovered anyway). This is 2 fumbles/non-fumbles in 2 weeks. That must stop. Shotgun draw worked well because of his burst. 2 good gains on 4th Qtr drive. Got 1st downs on both plays. Finished with 5 carries for 18 yards. Lost 4 on his final run or his stats would look a bit better.
FB
WEAVER - Okay game. His blocking was up and down. Got used creatively because of the oddball looks we were giving the Saints. Westy threw a pass to him near the GL. Weaver got his hands on the ball, but his momentum was going forward and the ball was behind him. Just couldn't quite make the grab.
TE
CELEK - Great game. 8-104. Big catch on 3rd/7. Caught the ball 5 yards downfield and then fought for the final couple of yards. Great effort, toughness. Made a great adjustment to the ball on seam route in the 4th and got a gain of 26 on the play. He showed great awareness of where he needed to go to get a first down. He also was darn near impossible to tackle.
SMITH - Played, but I didn't take any notes on him.
WR
DESEAN - Good game. 4-104-1 as a receiver. Showed his speed and playmaking ability. The 71-yd TD was a thing of beauty. I would appreciate it if DeSean would hold the ball securely until he gets into the endzone. It isn't an accessory, dude. Hold onto the darn thing. Lined up as QB in the Wildcat several times. Had 3 carries for 15 yards.
CURTIS - Finished 3-44. 2 of the grabs came on the final drive of the half against soft coverage. Had a couple of deep balls thrown his way, but didn't have the speed to get either pass. Dropped an early throw, but it wasn't for much yardage. Doesn't have his usual burst. Needs to be careful or he'll lose his starting spot.
AVANT - Great game. Led WRs with 7 catches. One was a TD. Jason kept the chains moving all game long with clutch catches over the middle. Made one grab up high on a 3rd down pass. I love the way Avant attacks the ball. He doesn't just wait for it. He'll go up and get it. Had a couple of long catches (25, 26).
MACLIN - Played some this week. Had a catch on the first play of the game. Ran a good route, got open, and caught a pass for 6 yds. Caught a short pass in the 2nd Qtr. Looked crisp in the way he did things. Only had 2 catches for 12 yds, but I was impressed.
OL
PETERS - Solid game. Didn't have as much impact on run plays because we ran some odd plays. Good block on 3rd down. Stuffed Will Smith to the inside on pass play. The DT decided to try and loop outside when Smith slammed into him. Peters saw that and shifted to the DT. Really caved in a DT when the Shovel pass came to his side. McCray cleanly beat him for a sack in the mid 4th. Great burst off the ball.
COLE - Solid game. Really caved in a DT in pass pro. Missed Vilma on a run play late in the half and he was able to tackle Westy for little gain. Looked solid in pass pro overall. Wasn't getting great push on inside runs.
JACKSON - Solid game. No bad snaps despite the fact he had 3 different people getting the ball from him. Good in pass pro. Got out to the 2nd level well. Didn't have any standout blocks, good or bad.
MAX - Started at RG. Got 1.5 blocks on Shovel pass where he pulled to the left side. Made a huge play on 3rd/GL. Saw a DL bat the ball and then start trying to catch hit. Max gave him a huge shove and that helped to cause the guy to drop the ball. We then got to kick a FG. Missed a block on a screen pass that led to hurried throw and incompletion. Got beaten by pass rusher late in the game. Showed his potential, but also looked sloppy for a guy with his experience.
JUSTICE - Solid game. Had a very good run block on McCray in the 1st Qtr. Actually got him off the ball. Had a poor block on 3rd down pass. Let the DE get inside of him and pressure Kolb, which led to an errant throw. Generally held his own in pass pro. Got some help from TEs and RBs. Still gives up the inside too easily, but he is a functional starting RT. I didn't think that would be the case about 6 months ago.
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DE
COLE - The only DL who gave them regular trouble. Had a sack early in the game. Got pressure a few times during the game, but nothing significant. Forced Brees to throw quickly on a pass in the late 3rd. Fell down on Bush's TD run after getting rid of blocker or he might have made the play. Finished with 2 tackles. Played hard, but didn't have the kind of impact I hoped for.
VA - Starting LDE. Actually had a good spin move early on. Didn't explode out of it, but showed he's making progress as a pass rusher. Most success came with bull rushes. Did get in Brees face a time or two. Lost contain on an End Around and let the receiver get outside. Has to be more disciplined. Helped on the INT. Started inside with the play fake, but then realized it was a pass and went outside. Wasn't going to let Brees be able to get to the outside cleanly and take his time. Got sealed by blocker on Bell's TD run early in the 3rd. Got "tackled" by the RT on a 4th Qtr pass play, but drew no flag. Had 3 tackles.
HOWARD - Quiet game. Got pressure on one 3rd down pass, but Brees already got rid of the ball. Didn't seem to play much.
PARKER - Solid game. Caused the Cole sack by jumping in the air and taking away Brees quick passing lane. Got a sack of his own late in the half. Just beat the RT and got to Brees as he was about to throw. The ball came out, but they recovered.
CLEMONS - Fast off the edge. Got held a couple of times by the RT, but couldn't draw a flag. One of the times it happened was late in the half. The RT held him and had a hand up in his facemask. The ref looked at it, but no flag. The whole stadium saw it. Huge non-call. The Saints should have been backed up inside their own 40. Instead Brees got extra time because of the hold and found Bush open on the sideline for a huge gain.
BABIN - Got to play. Got penetration on a late run play and disrupted it.
DT
A comment about the DTs as a group. The Saints did a good job of blocking them and also using cutback runs to neutralize our guys. Bunk and Patt didn't get pushed around, but they weren't as effective as usual because of what the Saints did.
PATTERSON - Had 3 tackles. Did play a screen well. Got through a couple of blockers and just missed getting a TFL. Made a good tackle of Bell on a run to his side at the end of the 3rd Qtr.
BUNKLEY - Quiet game. Made a play against the run in the 4th Qtr. Hustled downfield to help on tackle of FB after short pass. Was in on 3 tackles.
LAWS - Got penetration early in the game on a pass play. That got my attention. I was hoping to see more of that, but it only happened the one time.
DIXON - Stuffed a RB on 1st/GL run. Used his strength to fight off block and grab the RB.
LB
JORDAN - Solid game. Had 8 tackles, 2 TFLs and an INT. That's the kind of playmaking we need from a WLB. Beautiful INT. Got into the passing lane on 3rd/short. Batted the ball in the air and then grabbed it. Stuffed a lead blocker early on. Tackled well on pass plays over the middle. Struggled with Bush's speed out in space on a couple of pass plays. Thought he had good position, only to see Bush turn on the jets and get away from him. Made a poor tackle attempts on Evans on sideline TD catch. Didn't dive through his legs or wrap up. Got a TFL on a screen pass. Got a TFL on Bush late in the game for what appeared to be a safety. The refs gave him forward progress, though.
GOCONG - Okay game. Screwed up on a Bush run to the right . Chris had contain and just got caught leaning inside. That was enough for Reggie to get by him. Overran the play on Bush's TD run and left the backside open. Finished with a couple of tackles.
GAITHER - Uneven. Covered well. Held his own vs TEs in the middle of the field. Did not play the run well. Didn't make good reads. Didn't get off blocks. Didn't get to the ball. Missed a tackle of Bell when he did make a good read and shot upfield. Blitzed a couple of times. Lacked the speed to get much pressure. Had 5 tackles, but needed to come up bigger than that in this game.
CB
S BROWN - Solid game. Big tackle on Colston on 3rd/GL. Beaten for a 38-yd gain on 3rd/11 by Henderson. Sheldon had great coverage and was even holding a bit. The pass was perfect and Devery made a great catch. Tackled Reggie for a loss late in 4th.
SAMUEL - Not a good game. Had a few passes come to his side of the field. Was part of a blown coverage on the first TD pass to Colston. Later had a horrible play on the short TD to Evans. Failed to keep Evans sealed and let him get to the sideline. Asante tripped over Jordan while trying to do something on the play. I'm not real sure what. Did make a good tackle of TE on 3rd down to force a punt. Didn't cover tightly or play the ball on passes that came to his side.
MmmBop - Okay game. Had TFL on Bush run early in the 2nd Qtr. Got beaten for a TD late in the half by Colston. Had tight coverage, but never saw the ball or made a play on it. Brees made a great throw and Colston made a very good catch.
S
MIKELL - Led the team in tackles with 10. Had a TFL on 2nd GL series of the game when he flew off the edge. He was part of the blown coverage on Colston's TD. Asante let Colston go. Q was watching Brees and not the receiver. I'm not sure who's to blame, but one of them screwed up. Made one critical mistake. Didn't close to the ball quickly enough on Bush's TD run. Q was outside on his own and had a clean shot at Reggie. Q was nervous about getting burned to the outside (like Jordan had been and like Deangelo did to him last week). Q waited half a second to make sure Bush was going straight upfield. He then tried to make the tackle, but wasn't there in time.
HARRIS - FS. Quiet game. Had one good tackle when he took down Shockey in the open field on a 3rd down pass play. Got JS down short of the sticks. Made a diving attempt to get Evans out on his TD catch. I thought he did, but the refs disagreed. Came up quickly and made a good tackle on Evans after short pass in the 3rd Qtr. The ball came loose and it was called a fumble, but unfortunately the refs reviewed it and ruled it an incompletion. Made a good tackle of Bush when they were pinned down by the GL. Got to blitz several times, but had no hits or serious pressure.
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STs
ROCCA - Up and down game. Hit some real boomers, but also had 2 shanks that hurt us.
AKERS - Had one touchback. A couple of his KOs only went to the 5 or so. Got run into on a FG. There was some question about roughing vs running into. The refs called running into the kicker and that was a good call. David put on an acting show to exaggerate the contact.
KOR ---
* Hobbs fumbled a KOR to start the 2nd half and it killed us. He later set up a score with a 63-yd return, but it didn't have the same impact.
PR ---
* The Saints limited D-Jax to 2 returns for 5 yds. Great job on their part.
* DeSean really screwed up when he caught that punt inside the 5. He's got to let that ball go.
MISC STs ---
* Sean Jones got to play this week. He made the most of his time on STs and had 3 tackles.
* Our blocking was lousy for most of the game. We've got to get better.
* Too many penalties. We lost valuable yards and field position because of dumb mistakes. Unacceptable.
Good game. We won 34-14 and the score really doesn't tell the story. We are the more talented team and played like it. That's a good sign. Winning is important above all else, but how you do it is pretty darn important. Good teams don't play down to the competition. They play up to a certain standard. I thought we did that yesterday. Very encouraging sign to me.
The offense piled up 420 yards and 34 points. Remember when the offense used to really struggle when Westy missed a game? Things have come a long way when we can have this kind of success with a new QB, rookie RB, rebuilt OL, and young receivers. Crazy.
The defense was lights out. KC had 0 yards at the end of the 1st Qtr. They finished with 196. It seemed like many of those came on draw plays on 3rd/long. The Chiefs scored 2 TDs. We helped on both. The offense turned the ball over on downs near midfield to set up the first score. The other TD came after Jeff Garcia bobbled the snap late in the game.
Sean McDermott had an aggressive gameplan. He loaded up guys at the LOS and we blitzed on a regular basis. We only finished with 3 sacks, but Cassel was under a lot of pressure. We got enough heat that KC decided to keep running the ball and basically forego the passing game despite the fact they trailed by 20 or more points most of the 2nd half. I remember the line from Goodfellas when Henry Hill talks about the neighborhood kids carrying home his mother's groceries...out of respect. Those 29 runs by KC yesterday were a nod to our pass rush, a sign of respect.
There are some things I wasn't happy with:
* We only forced one turnover. Chris Gocong got Larry Johnson to fumble and Q Mikell fell on it.
* Throwing the ball midway through the 4th Qtr. I loved Celek getting a TD. I hated the mentality behind it. I'm sure Andy would say he was going for the kill shot. That's the part of football I just don't think he gets. With a big lead you line up and play power football. Alternate Weaver and McCoy as the runners. Pound on the defense. It probably won't lead to a TD, but it will kill their spirit if done well. And the confidence brought on by running the ball well can carry over to the next game. The OL gets a chance to get in a rhythm. Same for the runners. The Celek TD won't have a residual effect in the coming weeks.
2 Plays I didn't like. A lot:
-1- 1st/GL. We use a jumbo set with 6 OL and 2 TEs. Vick is at QB. We run a play fake and throw. Vick is pressured and has to throw the ball away. Andy loads up with all the big boys just so he can throw the darn ball. C'mon, Big Red. Throw me a friggin' bone. Run the rock out of that set a few times before you throw it.
-2- 4th/1. We're on there side of midfield. Going for it was the right call. A QB sneak wouldn't work because we needed about a full yard. How about running McCoy? Or an option play with Vick? Or using Weaver? Nope. We roll right and have DeSean run a quick out. He's the primary receiver. Ball was deflected by Vrabel. Dumb play. You put all your eggs in one basket. We have to block the play well. The QB has to throw well on the move. The receiver has to make a tough grab by the sideline. We've done this in the past and it has worked, but I don't like it on 4th/1.
MISC PLAYS
*We use an unbalanced line when McCoy lines up at QB. I like that. It has worked well for 2 weeks.
* Empty set. DeSean in left slot. He gets inside position on CB. Kevin throws the ball a bit behind him. DeSean is able to adjust and make the catch. He spins as defenders close on him and comes out of the bunch. He then gets upfield quickly. The S coming from back deep is caught off guard by the speed and can only make a diving tackle attempt. 64-yard TD.
* We ran the option twice in the game. I like this. We bring a WR to the backfield and have him line up parallel to Vick. This creates a good pitch angle. Vick runs the play well. I'd like to see more of this.
QB
KOLB - Kevin played even better than last week. He wasn't flawless, but had a darn good game (24-34-327, 2 TDs in the air and 1 on the ground). Kevin was generally accurate. He made good reads and threw the ball well. His passes had good velocity. He was deadly on 1st downs. Through 3 Qtrs he was 10-12-170 on them. That's impressive. Kevin seems very comfortable in the shotgun. He can drop back, but doesn't look as smooth. He threw the ball well on a few intermediate routes. He hit DeSean for a gain of 43. He hit Celek for his TD down the field. Kevin threw off his back foot a couple of times. Both passes were caught and had some zip, but that can be a bad habit to get into. I thought his best throw was a pass to Celek on 1st/GL from the 9. He threw the ball quickly. It was accurate. It had zip, but was catchable. Brent got it easily and put us down a the 2. Simple play, but that's the kind of Red Zone passing you need. Be decisive, be on time, and be on target. Kevin saw the field pretty well. There was one play where Celek was uncovered in left slot. Kevin dropped back and immediately got the ball to him. That was a gain of 15 or so. Sounds easy, but how often do you see something obvious before the snap and the QB goes elsewhere? You yell at the TV "how could you not see that?".
My biggest problem with Kolb right now is that he's erratic on some throws over the middle. This cost us last week on a couple of 3rd downs. Ditto for this week. The problem he has is throwing to his targets and not leading them. When guys are crossing the field you have to throw to the spot where they will be, not where the player is. Young QBs have to adjust to how fast the guys are moving and get the ball out in front of them. Kevin must work on this. I'm not sure if this is his fault, but there were at least 2 plays where he and the WR were not on the same page. Kevin threw to Reggie on the left side. The ball went one way and Reggie cut to the other. That was almost picked off. Later Maclin and Kolb looked confused on a pass to the right side. I don't know who was at fault, but this needs to be ironed out. You don't want to leave points on the board due to confusion and you sure as heck don't want a turnover because of it.
VICK - As Billy Shakes once famously said, "much ado about nothing". 0 for 2 passing and had 1 run for 7 yards. Lined up at WR and came in motion early on. His lone run came early in the game and was an option play to the right side. Ran an option to the left side and made a clean pitch to McCoy for a gain of 5. The 2 pass plays were both played well by the defense and Vick had to simply get rid of the ball. He is rusty. The ESPN idiots are nuts if they think he's really ready to start right now.
GARCIA - Only played late. Fumbled a snap, which KC recovered and turned into a TD.
RB
MCCOY - Shady ran for 84 yards and a TD in his first start. I loved the burst he showed. It makes a difference when a runner can get to and through a hole in the blink of an eye. Lined up at QB in the Wildcat on the 2nd drive. Took the snap, faked a handoff, and then ran just off LT for 9 yds. Most impressive run came on the next play. Got the ball in the I-formation on a standard run to the left. As he got to the line he decided to cut back. Shady took the play all the way to the right sideline. Used his speed and a stiff arm to get 15 yds on the play. His TD was a 5-yd thing of beauty. Took the direct snap and went up the middle. Got hit at the 3, but spun off the defender and then fought his way into the endzone. Great effort. You can see why he set the NCAA record for TDs in a 2-year span. Just has a nose for the GL. I love running the shotgun draw with him. Did it on the 3rd drive and hit it up the middle for 11 yds. Great burst. Showed his short area quickness and elusiveness on a 2nd Qtr run. Got to the line and had to dodge defenders. Did just that and found a small crease where he was able to get upfield for a couple of yds. Sounds like no big deal, but 2nd/8 is completely different than 2nd/12. Subtle things like that can impact a close game. Only caught 1 pass. Got a ball over the middle on 3rd/10. Fought for 9 yds, but couldn't get to the line. Still swinging that ball too much. Has got to be careful. Almost busted loose for a long TD late in the game.
Did a good job in pass pro. Aggressively took on pass rushers. Actually took out 2 guys on a 3rd down pass to Celek. It had more to do with them getting too close to each other, but I'll still give the rookie credit.
BUCKLEY - Had a 4-yd run late in the game.
FB
WEAVER - Solid job as a blocker. Also caught 2 passes. First catch was for 9 yds on a new sort of screen we're using. RB/FB lines up like a wing and initially blocks. He lets the defender then go upfield and the ball comes to him. Other grab was a dump-off in the flat. Had a terrific block on a run up the middle late in the game. Took on a LB in the hole and sealed him to the outside. That gave Shady a highway to run on.
TE
CELEK - Great game. 8-104-1. Caught the ball early and often. We used him as a TE, in the slot, and out wide. Got passes thrown to all 3 spots. Really effective at working the middle of the field. Got up slowly after catch on 1st/GL. Took a big hit from the LB. Fought for the 1st down on a pass play late in the 2nd Qtr. Was dragging a defender and stretching the ball. Brent has shown good hands. He catches the ball naturally and smoothly. He won't go down with the first defender. There are some plays when he won't go down with 4 or 5 guys on him. That's the kind of toughness you want in a TE. His TD late in the game was a simple route and catch. He broke one tackle and headed for the endzone. 35-yard TD.
Had a great block on Vick's run to his side. Brent got on Vrabel and moved him a couple yards off the ball. Helped in pass pro on a regular basis. Would block and then drift out on a short route if Kolb had a clean pocket. Had a bad block on McCoy run in the 2nd Qtr. LB shed him and made the play too easily. Had a good down block on 3rd/1 run to his side. McCoy ran off his hip for the 1st.
SMITH - No passes came his way. Good backside seal on McCoy's 15-yd run on the 2nd drive.
WR
DESEAN - Great game. 6-149-1. Had both RAC and YAC yds. That is Run After Catch and Yards After Contact. Peanut wasn't going down until someone made a good tackle or forced him out of bounds. I covered his long TD up above. Also had a 43-yard catch in the 1st half. Got a ball over the deep middle and just took off. Made a terrific catch on 3rd/5 late in the game to move the chains. Got position on the CB on a slant. The corner was all over him. Caught the ball more with his arms than hands and it wasn't pretty. It was a tough, physical catch that showed DeSean is stronger than a lot of people give him credit for. Had a 17-yard catch as well.
AVANT - Quiet game. Only had 2 catches for 14 yds. I'm sensing a Romo-TO-Witten style feud because of all the passes that went to Celek. Jason's best catch came on 3rd/6. Lined up tight to the formation and ran a drag route to the short side of the field. The defense lost him in traffic and he was wide open. Got 10 yds on the play. Did fumble on the play, but the ball went out of bounds. Had a good block of Hali on McCoy's TD run.
MACLIN - Had 1 run for-1 yds. Ran wide on a fly sweep, but KC played it well and DeSean isn't a gifted blocker. Caught 4 passes for 33 yds. Was open for a TD late in the 1st half, but Kolb's throw was off target. Took a big shot in the back from the SS on the play and you could tell that he felt it. Made a terrific sideline catch for 11 yds. Ran a good route and then got his toes down to seal the catch. Caught a pass on the sideline right after that. Has yet to show anything great, but the question with him was the adjustment to a conventional offense (route running and catching intermediate passes). He's doing well so far. The big plays will come.
BROWN - Caught a pass on a rollout to his side. Got 4 yards.
OL
There are still communication problems. JJ and Cole let a DT go free on an early run and the guy got a short TFL. A blitzer came up the middle on the 2nd drive and JJ was late to pick him up, as if he expected Cole to do it, but realized at the last second that Nick wasn't going to.
PETERS - Very good game of pass pro. All the preseason talk about "what is wrong with this guy" is gone. Knows the offense, is in shape and up to game speed. Playing like a stud LT. Hali tried spin move on him on 3rd down, but Jason simply washed him to the inside. Had a good cut block on ILB on a McCoy run to his side. Had a key block on Shady's TD run. Got on an ILB and sealed him. Showed his athletic ability when he got a LB coming off the edge on a pass play. The LB had lined up way outside and had a good angle to the QB. Jason calmly but quickly slid out and got to him. Had a good block on the option play we ran to his side. He and Cole doubled the DE, then Jason released and went for the OLB. He got a hand on the guy, but couldn't make a clean block. That LB forced McCoy out of bounds. Jason slapped his hands together when he saw that, mad at himself for not making a better block. I love having a LT who has that kind of mentality. Run blocking isn't a necessary evil. It is a good thing and getting LBs will lead to big plays for the RBs. Tra never showed that kind of an attitude in his play or actions.
JACKSON - Good game. Had several run plays where he helped double on the NT/DT and then moved on to get a LB. Paved a path like this on a shotgun draw play where Shady ran for 11. Got too high on a GL run on 3rd drive and was stood up. Stayed low on the next play and paved the way for Kolb's QB sneak TD. Caused a run play to get blown up when the NT got the best of him. Got good movement on the NT on a run to the left before halftime. Good block on the NT on McCoy's run up the middle late in the game. As always, was strong in pass pro.
STACY - Played some RG in the 2nd half. Didn't really stand out.
MAX - Starting RG. Good cut block on LB on Vick's run. Good block on DL on shotgun draw play where McCoy went for 11. He was okay in pass pro. Shows promise on some run blocks, but just doesn't move guys off the ball the way you'd expect for a man his size.
COLE - LG. Solid game. Good job of pass pro. Locks onto the defenders and extends his arms to keep the guy off his body. Really works hard to sustain his blocks. Helped to move the NT on Kolb's QB sneak TD. Didn't have any run blocks that caught my eye. I wish we'd pull him like we did in the season opener. He looked really good on the move.
JUSTICE - Good game. Best of the year so far. Solid in pass pro. Moved over to LT in the unbalanced line and had an excellent down block on Shady's run on the 2nd drive. Winston just caved in the DE to give him a good running lane. Had a good block on Shady's 15 yd run. The DL went with the flow. Winston could have just lightly pushed on him, but made solid contact on the guy. That worked perfectly when McCoy cut back to the right. Winston rode the DL out of the way. Had a key block on Shady's TD. Didn't move Dorsey off the ball, but occupied him and that let LeSean get by. Got beaten by LB in pass pro, but Kolb had already gotten rid of the ball and didn't even get hit. Vrabel beat him for a sack, but it was wiped out by a penalty.
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DE
COLE - Better showing than last week. Had 8 tackles, 1/2 a sack, and a TFL. Drew a holding call on a run play, but it was odd. The RB was by Trent and the LT had no reason to hold him. Weird. The sack came when Cole used a good inside move late in the half. Missed a sack early in the game. Came free and had a shot at Cassel, but Matt spun away. Made a terrific play vs the run in the early 3rd. Split a double team and got LJ as he came to Trent's side. Stopped him for a gain of a couple of yards. Showed his great motor on a 3rd/20 play where he tackled the RB on a draw. Flew upfield, saw the runner, and then hustled to make the stop for a short gain. The TFL came in the 3rd Qtr. Trent was unblocked off the edge and just got the RB for a loss.
PARKER - Played LDE and DT. Good game. Had 3 tackles, a sack, and a TFL. Hit Cassel off the edge on an early pass, but Darren was offside. Sacked Cassel on the opening drive. Cole and Howard both got heavy pressure and flushed Cassel from the pocket. Juqau chased him down from behind.
Flushed Cassel late in the game with good pressure off the edge.
CLEMONS - Finally got to the QB. Credited with 1/2 a sack. Rushed up the middle and got there at the same time as Trent and Darren.
VA - LDE. Played the run well when they came to his side. Had 1 tackle in the gamebook, but at least 2 solo tackles in reality. Both plays he shed a blocker when the ball came to his side and then grabbed the RB for minimal gain. The second one was especially impressive since LJ tried to cut back on the play. Victor read that and got there on time. Got really good pressure on a 3rd Qtr pass. Hit Cassel just as he threw the ball.
HOWARD - Just missed a sack early in the game, but he was offside on the play. Had a couple of tackles. Grabbed a RB on a draw play late in the half. Batted down a pass late in the half when he came free up the middle on a pass rush. Got to the QB late in the half, but was half a second behind Cole and Clemons (who split the sack). Should have had a TFL on Charles late in the game, but whiffed on him in the backfield.
DT
PATTERSON - Didn't make any tackles, but had a solid game. Stout at the line. Seemed to get doubled a lot.
BUNKLEY - Good game. Had 3 tackles and 2 TFLs. Played the run well. His first TFL came early in the game when LJ was trying to run up the middle. Bunk was unblocked on the play and got to him in a hurry. 2nd TFL on a QB draw in the 3rd Qtr. Bunk fought off a block to get Cassel down for a short loss.
LAWS - 1 tackle. Did a better job of being stout on run plays. He's effective when he stays square, stays low, and uses his hands.
DIXON - Didn't make the stats sheet, but showed some ability. Can really eat up a double team. Still fights to get through blocks when engaged by 2 OL. Missed a tackle of Charles on the WR to RB pass. I'm impressed that he hustled downfield, but looked pretty stiff on the tackle attempt. Hustled in pursuit on a few plays. Got some pressure on the QB late in the game. I'm really surprised he's playing regularly. I thought he'd be inactive most of the year.
LB
JORDAN - No turnovers or big plays this week. Only had a couple of tackles. Got burned on a running play where the runner cut back and attacked an area Akeem had vacated. Luckily the Chiefs held on the play and that erased the run. Had a good pop on LJ on a play to the opposite side. Akeem got over there and hit him instead of wrapping up. Akeem hit with enough force to send LJ flying to the ground. Barely missed a TFL. Cole got to the RB half a second prior to Akeem. One interesting note. Akeem lost his job in the Nickel to Tracy White.
GOCONG - Had a pair of tackles and a FF. That is one turnover from the LBs in each game. Good streak. Tackled TE Sean Ryan after a catch over the middle. Flew off the edge to tackle the RB for minimal gain to open the 2nd half. The FF was a nice play. Gonzo flew up and got by the FB. He then got a hand on the ball as LJ tried to go by him. The ball came free and Q landed on it.
GAITHER - Good game. Led the team with 9 tackles and added a sack. His run defense was better than last week, but still needs to get better. Best play vs the run came early in the game when he shot a gap and tackled Larry Johnson for a loss of 4. Had some other good plays. On a run to his right Omar fought off the block of the G and tackled the RB for only a yard gain. Omar blitzed several times. He fought through blocks to try and get to the QB. Got off blocks to make tackles several times in the game. He can be tough and aggressive when he wants, but he must do it on a more consistent basis. Solid in coverage. Made a good tackle of TE after short completion.
MAYS - Saw his first action of the year. Played on STs and some MLB late in the game. Had a physical tackle of Charles on a run play. Got a nice pop on Charles after a catch over the middle. Actually knocked Jamaal's helmet loose.
FUKOU - Played late.
WHITE - Played some in the Nickel D. Blitzed up the middle and got a good shot on Cassel right as he threw the ball.
CB
S BROWN - Only had a pair of tackles, but both came on 3rd down plays where Chiefs caught short passes. Both guys were stopped shy of the chains. Sheldon also jumped a route on a play where we blitzed and he guessed what the QB would do. The pass was off target or he might have had a shot at it.
SAMUEL - Very quiet game. Not many passes or plays came his way. Actually made a wrap-up tackle on Bobby Wade on the KC's 4th play of the game. Miraculous. Made a terrible tackle attempt on a quick throw to Bradley in the 4th Qtr.
HOBBS - Got burned for a TD in the 2nd Qtr. Had tight coverage on Mark Bradley, but he was able to go up and get the ball above Hobbs and come down inbounds. Ellis had a good tackle of LJ on a run in the 4th. Held him to no gain.
HANSON - Quiet game. Solid job covering slot receivers. Almost made a big play on the WR-RB pass as he flew upfield, but couldn't get to the guy before he made the downfield throw. Blitzed off the edge late in the half and got good pressure on Cassel.
S
MIKELL - Another good game. Had 4 solo tackles and recovered a fumble. Helped to create a TFL on a run play. Lined up in the box and flew upfield at the snap. Took on a blocker and that pinned the RB to a certain area where a LB came and got him. Most of his tackles came out in space. Q put guys down with authority. He read a TE screen well and tackled him for minimal gain. Played the run well throughout the game by flying up in run support.
HARRIS - FS. Blitzed regularly. Never got to the QB. Credited with 4 solo tackles. Several of them were good, clean tackles.
JONES - Or should I say, "Friendly Fire". Flies around at 100mph. Will hit anything or anyone. Almost killed poor Joe Mays late in the game. Sean saw Jamaal Charles fighting not to go down and he flew in to kill someone. Charles went down and Sean just missed Mays' leg. Jones was shot out of a cannon. He might have injured Joe with clean contact to the leg. Got a TFL late in the game. Cassel fumbled a shotgun snap and fell on the ball. Jones came in quickly and got on him. Looked like a tough hit for Cassel, but he got right up. Missed a tackle of Bobby Wade on his TD catch late in the game.
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STs
ROCCA - Solid day. Had a rocket early in the game that went for 53. Other punts were shorter, but was trying to pin KC inside the 20. 1 did, 1 didn't.
AKERS - 2 of 2 on FGs. KOs were pretty good, but did hit one badly and it only went to the 10.
KOR ---
* I thought Ellis Hobbs ran harder than the first couple of games. He averaged 28.5 on 2 returns.
PR ---
* DeSean had one good return ruined by penalty.
* Maclin took over as PR and was "awkward". He caught one and was indecisive on the return. The next one he was shaky on the catch. Must get more confident as a RS.
MISC STs --
* Eldra Buckley was offside on a KC punt, but it didn't cost us anything big.
* KC successfully ran a fake punt in the 3rd Qtr. Buckley made the tackle, but gave up a couple yards too many.
* Celek recovered KC's onside kick at the end of the game.
We're only 3 games in, but the bye week gives us a chance to take a look at what is working and what isn't. NFL teams are always self-scouting and trying to eliminate issues, while focusing on strengths. You can't make major changes, but adjustments can make a big difference some times.
OFFENSE
* Running Game *
I wish we were running more, but that's a tired discussion. We are running the ball pretty well. We're at 119 yards per game. Last year we averaged 106 ypg. The longest run is a 25-yard jaunt by DeSean Jackson, so our numbers aren't skewed by some huge play. Here are the top runners:
My biggest problem is the lack of success on critical run downs (3rd/short or GL situations). We only have 3 rushing TDs. One was Kolb on a QB sneak. One was McNabb on a scramble. McCoy did get in on a run up the middle.
I think the playcalling, running, and blocking are all at fault. I'm hoping that the situation improves as the season goes along. The linemen are still adjusting to each other. The RBs are adjusting to FB Leonard Weaver and his blocking.
The lack of a powerful N-S runner could hurt us. The current players may get better as they do play together, but that isn't a given. Could be that things are as good as they'll get. If so, the team needs to consider playing Eldra Buckley at RB or looking at another Kyle Eckel type (or just Kyle himself). Weaver could help as the runner, but then who is the lead blocker?
The Wildcat offense has been successful in terms of getting yards. However, it has not led to any big plays or TDs. We had success with snapping the ball to DeSean and letting him run wide to use his speed. We had success with snaps to McCoy/Westy and them running behind an unbalanced line. Michael Vick was at his best running a couple of option plays. The one tricky double reverse pass was ineffective (at best). Westy threw a short pass to Weaver on a play near the GL. The call worked, but the pass was behind Weaver and he wasn't able to hang on to it.
* Passing Game *
We are throwing the ball very well right now. Kevin Kolb is the first QB in NFL history with 300 or more yards passing in his first 2 starts. Some people will talk about the Saints playing a lot of prevent defense to protect their lead, but Kolb had good success in the 1st half of that game when it was tight. He isn't a fluke.
Some skeptics like to focus on the fact that Kolb has greatly benefited from RAC yards. DeSean and Brent Celek have been able to take the ball and get upfield for even bigger gains. DeSean has a pair of long TDs because of his speed and RAC skills. This isn't something to hold against Kolb. RAC yards are a good thing. Jerry Rice, Joe Montana, and Steve Young built HOF careers on RAC yards.
We don't have enough info to say much about McNabb. He was only 10-18-79 vs CAR, but the game got out of hand and that changed the way both teams played.
The pass protection has been good. Starting QBs have been sacked 3 times in 117 pass attempts. McNabb and Kolb had to run a few times, but generally the protection has given them a good pocket to throw from. The OL are doing a good job individually and have picked up most blitzes. The TEs and RBs have helped out. The coaches are mixing up max protect with other times sending everyone out.
I'm very happy with the play of the receivers so far. Celek and Jackson have been brilliant. They're moving the chains and making plays. Drops have not been a problem. Our guys are running good routes and getting open. They are catching the ball when it comes their way. And we're making plays with the ball once it is caught.
Jackson is the elite playmaking receiver. Celek is the solid TE. Avant is the slot guy and big time possession receiver. We have yet to establish the X-receiver. Curtis has struggled with injuries and had a key drop in the opener. Maclin has played okay in his place, but is still a rookie figuring things out. We need one of them to step forward as the season goes along.
* Playcalling *
This is a tough area to judge. We got a big lead vs CAR and that led us to somewhat play it safe. We didn't turn into a running team, but we didn't play a wide open style in the 2nd half.
We ran a very elaborate offense vs NO (too elaborate, I think). My guess is that the coaching staff knew that our only chance to beat them was to score at least 24 points and that we'd have to get very creative to hit that goal. We did all kinds of crazy stuff in that game. Sadly, the base offense had good success. I wish we'd have stuck to more of that kind of stuff and dialed back all the option and Wildcat plays.
We don't yet know the identity of the 2009 Eagle offense. Every year we change a little. In 2004 we threw to TO all the time. In 2006 we ran a very vertical attack. Both Reggie Brown and Donte Stallworth were among league leaders in yards per reception. 2007 was all about Brian Westbrook. He ran for 1,333 yards, caught 90 passes, and scored 12 TDs. Last year was a mish-mash of things.
As for 2009, we're doing some good things. We're forcing the ball to Celek. We've lacked good TE production for several years. I'm glad they are back to making that position a focal point. We're running a shotgun draw very well with McCoy. He's got the burst to make that play work. We're throwing the ball to DeSean in the middle of the field. That gives him a chance to use his speed to create big plays. In Week 1 we ran to the left really well. We've gotten away from that and I'm not sure why. We haven't thrown many traditional screen passes. We have a new play where the RB acts like a wing that is helping to block, then releases. It's worked okay. We ran a variation of Flip 90 and got a 1st down, but just barely. Good play. Westy just lacks the speed to make it work easily. The WR screen pass that we like hasn't worked well at all.
3 weeks in and no flea flickers? Fire Andy, fire Marty.
* Misc *
- We're 2nd in scoring at 31.3 points per game.
- We're 7th in the league in yards per game, 383.3.
- We're 9th in the league on 3rd down conversions.
- The Red Zone offense has been better than last year.
vs CAR 3 for 3. Goal to go, 3 for 3.
vs NO 1 for 5, Goal to go, 1 for 3.
vs KC 2 for 3, Goal to go, 2 for 2.
The struggles vs the Saints were a big problem, but that was a QB making his first NFL start. One of the misses came late in the half when we drove deep, but ran out of time and had to settle for a FG. That isn't what I consider a true RZ failure.
Up and down. The Panthers marched down the field on us way too easily to start that game. Our guys started getting off blocks after that and took control of the Carolina RBs. It felt like the run defense of '08 when we played at a high level. Things changed the next week. New Orleans started off throwing. They only had 11 carries for 56 yards in the 1st half. They had 18 carries for 77 yards and 2 TDs in the 2nd half as they wore us down and sealed the game. They gashed us with cutback runs. Both Reggie Bush and Mike Bell scored on us. That was bad run defense. We didn't get off blocks. We didn't tackle well. KC came to town next and we shut them down completely. Larry Johnson had one of the worst games of his career (when he gets at least 15 carries). We attacked upfield, disrupted plays, and tackled much better.
The LBs didn't play well vs the Saints. Gocong overran some plays. Omar struggled. He didn't get off blocks well at all. We needed him to help control the middle of the field and he didn't do it. This is a concern with NFC East games coming up. The 3 other OLs in the division feature some big, quality blockers. We must toughen up in this area. We have played 12 quarters of football so far. We've played the run well in 7 of them. The other 5 were a struggle. That's more good than bad, but we do need to be more consistent.
* vs the pass *
The pass defense was outstanding in Weeks 1 and 3. We covered well and really limited what those teams could do. KC put up okay numbers in terms of efficiency, but they threw underneath most of the game and failed to sustain drives. Take away the trick play that went for 26 yards and KC only averaged 6.5 yards per catch. For comparison's sake, take away DeSean's long play for us and we still averaged more than 11 yards per catch. Jake Delhomme was more aggressive and we made him pay for it. We picked him off 4 times. We got 1 from his backup as well.
Against Brees and the Saints our pass D was...I'm not sure how to describe it. Brees and Colston beat Hanson for a 25-yard TD, but the coverage was good. Brees and Henderson beat Sheldon for 36 yards on 3rd and long, but the coverage was great. On plays like that you just tip your hat to the other guy and say "wow". The biggest problem (within our control) was RAC yards. Bush, Henderson, and Shockey all had pass plays of 15 or more yards that started as short throws. We didn't do a good job of rallying to the ball and we didn't tackle well.
LB coverage has been mixed. Gaither has done well for the most part. Jordan lost his job in the Nickel and was replaced by Tracy White. Gocong is up and down. People think he's awful, but no one ever notices the plays where he stays hugged up to a TE or RB and the ball doesn't come that way. We only see the times when the pass goes to his guy, who is open on the play.
Arguably the most crucial component of pass defense is a good pass rush. This is an area that's tough to rate. We blitzed a lot in Weeks 1 and 3. That was very effective, leading to 8 sacks and a lot of bad or quick throws. The base pass rush has not been as good as I'd hoped. Trent Cole is still a force at RDE. I like the Nickel and Dime units as well as the blitz, but the starting front four must pick up the pace.
New DC Sean McDermott has been a more aggressive playcaller. We regularly load up the LOS and attack. This has required more aggressive coverage as well. The players have done a good job of getting penetration up front and sticking with receivers out wide. McDermott was conservative vs the Saints and they ate us alive. I like the new style and hope we see more of that.
* Misc *
- Takeaways have been pretty good. We had 6 in the opener and then 1 in each of the next two games . Ideally you want 2 per game. We're ahead of that pace, but the opener skews that.
- The LBs have made more plays this year. They have 2 INTs, 2.5 sacks, 1 FF, and 3 TFLs.
- Victor Abiamiri scored a TD in the opener when he recovered a fumble.
- We're 4th in the NFL in yards per game.
- We're 24th in points allowed. That 48 vs NO skews that stat.
- We're 2nd in the NFL in 3rd down percentage (22.5%)
- The quick change defense has got to improve. I'm talking about situations after a turnover or strange play. Ideally you want the defense to go get a stop and bail out the offense or STs. This would have made a huge difference in the Saints game. Instead we gave up TDs after consecutive 3rd quarter turnovers. Good teams don't let that kind of stuff happen. Limit mistakes.
* David Akers is having a good year. He's 5 for 6 with a long of 48. His only miss was a kick blocked by Julius Peppers. Akers is getting good depth on his kickoffs, for the most part. He did have one go out of bounds.
* Sav Rocca is not having a good year. He's 21st in gross yards and 19th in net punting. A couple of shanks have hurt his numbers. Sav has the 2nd fewest punts of any regular in the league.
* DeSean Jackson ran a punt back 85 yards for a TD vs CAR. His speed and ability have to be on the minds of everyone who kicks to him. He's averaging 22.2 yards per PR (1st in the league). He did make one critical mistake. Jackson fielded a punt inside the 5 vs the Saints. He got a good return on the play, but an illegal block pinned us deep and helped to set up the Saints with good field position. I know some people think the blame is strictly on the blockers. No. Returners are taught NEVER to field a ball inside the 5. Most coaches teach guys not to field the ball inside the 10. Punters are now so skilled at downing the ball that some coaches will let guys field the ball just inside the 10. You never touch the ball inside the 5. That's not up for discussion.
* Ellis Hobbs is 11th in the league with an average of 25.5 yards per KOR. His long return went for 63 yards. He had a disastrous fumble in the Saints game to open the 2nd half. Our blocking on KOs has not been very good. We need to get better at this. Hobbs has the speed and style to break long returns.
* Our coverage units have been okay, but are middle of the pack. The good news is that we haven't been burned for a long PR or KOR.
* LT Jason Peters --- Good start. He was up and down in the summer, but has looked like a stud LT in the regular season.
* RT Winston Justice --- Did I really say we should cut him all through the offseason? Oops. His best NFL game came in the opener. Then he topped that last week. I'm impressed.
* RB LeSean McCoy --- Looks like the real deal. Has to quit swinging the ball, but he has impressed as a runner and receiver. His burst is a welcome addition to the offense. He's only scored 1 TD, but he showed a nose for the end zone on that run. I think he could be a big help down in that area as the season progresses.
* RB Brian Westbrook --- Incomplete. Already missed a game. Was 9-45 in the 1st half of the Saints game and then got hurt at some point and was ineffective in the 2nd half. Will he be healthy this week? Can he stay healthy?
* QB Kevin Kolb --- Are we done with the discussion about whether he's an NFL QB?
* DE Juqua Parker --- He's no longer starting, but his production is the same. JP is meant to be a role player. He's much more effective coming off the bench.
2008 - 16 games - 33 solo tackles, 5 sacks, 2 TFLs, 1 FF, 7 PDs, 1 INT
2009 - 3 games - 7 solo tackles, 2 sacks, 1 TFL, 1 FF
* FS Macho Harris --- He's on the field, but isn't standing out. That's both good and bad. He has no INTs or dramatic pass break-ups downfield. He has no sacks. Hasn't caused or recovered a fumble. His tackling has been solid. Made a very good open field stop on Shockey on 3rd/long to force a punt. Just missed a pick-6 late in the opener. I want him to start making plays, but at least he's not getting burned.
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FINAL THOUGHTS
We have 2 blowout wins and a blowout loss. I know the Eagles are a good team, but I’m not sure how good. We need to see a bigger sample before we’ll know that. My biggest concern is seeing how this team handles in-game adversity.
Think about last year.
Loss to Dallas was a tight game where we came up small late in the game.
Loss to Chicago … ditto.
Both losses to Washington … ditto.
Loss to Giants … ditto.
Tie w/ Cincy … ditto.
Even the loss to Baltimore was only 12-7 after 3 quarters. We completely fell apart in the 4th.
You can argue that the wins over SF and PIT were tight games. We had leads in both games in the 4th quarter. The regular season win over the Giants was the only game we won all season by less than a TD (20-14).
Winning close games is critical in today’s NFL. The Steelers won 6 games last year by a TD or less. Those clutch wins helped them to be ready for the postseason. We won tight playoff games, but both times had the lead. I want to see us show that we can win a game that is even or where we’re trailing late.
_
Yo Bucs, you can have your NFC title win, opening night at The Linc win, and 62-yard FG win. We've got the one that counts...Week 5 of the 2009 season.
Now that we've got that out of the way...very strange game. I never felt like we were in danger of losing. We won by 19 points, but I can't say that I enjoyed the win as much as I wanted to. Earlier in the week I wrote about the need to play up to an standard of excellence. That we did not do.
The offense had some great moments, but also punted 5 times against the 31st ranked defense in the league. We had one sustained drive all game long. Late in the 3rd Qtr we went 12 plays and 64 yards to kick a FG.
The defense gave up more than 300 yards to a struggling offense with a QB making only his 2nd career start. Tampa was able to convert 9 of 18 3rd down opportunities. We did come up with 3 INTs and got a safety late in the game. We also came up with a couple of 4th down stops.
Penalties were a problem all day. We had 10 for 111 yards. They were also very costly penalties. The worst was on Macho Harris. We had Tampa in 3rd and 25. Macho gave a shot to a receiver late in the play and drew a flag that kept the drive alive. Dumb, dumb, and dumb. Tampa continually ran the play clock down inside of 3 seconds, but never drew a penalty for delay of game. A couple of plays looked to be late.
I do have to give credit to Tampa for playing hard all game. Raheem Morris had his guys motivated and focused. QB Josh Johnson frustrated the heck out of me. We should have had 6 to 8 sacks in the game, but he continually stepped away from pressure or took off running. What a selfish jerk. He started the game well, going 16 of 24. Our pressure started to wear on him and blitzers started to get right in his face. Josh was only 10 of 26 for the rest of the game.
_______________________________
A note about the offense. We only had about 35 real snaps on offense. There won't be a lot to say about the RBs and the OL since most of those plays were passes. I thought throwing the ball early was good strategy. I was disappointed in how little we ran, but part of that is what happens when you keep getting explosive plays in the passing game (5 of more than 20 yards).
QB
MCNABB --- showed no ill effects from his rib injury. He was efficient and explosive (16 of 21 for 264 yards). He also ran twice for 30 yards. I never saw him looking like a guy with any injuries or problems. Avoided a slow start, which was a possible concern for me. Scrambled for a 1st down on the opening play. Then dropped back, bought some time, and fired a pass downfield to Maclin for a 51-yard TD. The throw wasn't great, but he gave Maclin a chance to make the play. Made a bad throw on the 2nd series. Had Avant open over the deep middle and Donnie got sloppy with his release point and short-hopped the pass (Why does he hate those worms so much?). Hit Avant on 3rd down on the next drive and kept the chains going. Made a terrific back shoulder throw to DeSean, but penalty wiped it out. Made a good throw to Celek on a crossing route that allowed him to turn upfield and get RAC yards. Did have a couple of passes batted down. The second long TD was a good throw. Donovan put the ball in a place that Maclin could get to it and it was very catchable. Donovan threw a good pass to Westy on a Wheel route that set up a short TD run. Let's understand that Tampa doesn't have a good pass defense. Still, I was impressed with Donovan's ability to put the ball out where his guys could make a play for him. Sure looked like he and his receivers were on the same page a lot of the time.
KOLB --- Got some mop-up duty late in the game. Quietly dominated.
VICK --- Played in the Wildcat and also got some QB reps. Finished 1 for 3 as a passer. His highlight was an 11-yd run to the right side. Showed some toughness. Took a big hit as he fought for the 1st down. Had to come out of the game for a few snaps. We ran one option play. Someone finally stopped it. Penetration led to a bad pitch and McCoy was stopped for a loss.
RB
WESTY --- Quiet game. Only had 8 touches. Looked like he was moving around pretty well. Never got to see him going full bore in the open to judge his speed. Finished with 6 carries for 18 yards. Did have a couple of catches. Threw a short screen to him in the late 1st, but the D was all over it. Play actually lost a couple of yards. His highlight was an old school play of ours. We lined up in the Ace formation and faked to him. Westy then ran a Wheel route and had a LB covering him. Brian turned back, located the ball and made a good catch. Put us at the 6. Brian scored on the next play by running for a TD. He got good blocking and showed some burst to get into the end zone.
MCCOY --- Quiet day as a runner. Best play came from the Wildcat with him as the QB. The play was designed up the middle, but LeSean bounced it wide and got 9 yards. Had 6 carries for 14 yards. Also had a couple of receptions. Caught a pass in the left flat. Made one defender miss and got upfield for a gain of 5. Unfortunately it was 3rd/long. Other catch was also in the left flat. Made the first guy miss and then got 10 yds to move the chains.
FB
WEAVER --- Finally got involved in the offense. Had 2 carries for 4 yards, both dive plays. The second one came on 2nd/1 and moved the chains. Sounds simple, but I liked seeing us concentrate on getting the 1st down instead of dialing up another deep ball or trick play. Caught a 20-yard TD pass in the 2nd Qtr. Just released as an outlet receiver and Donnie hit him right at the LOS. Leonard turned upfield and outran the LB in pursuit for the TD. Good play for a FB.
TE
CELEK --- Celek continued his good year. He was 4-58. One of them was a 38-yard catch and run where he jumped over Ronde Barber. Got 22 RAC yards on the play. Brent is trying to show that he's more than just a productive starter. He might be developing into a very good player. We'll see if he can keep this up. While I love his pass catching, Brent's blocking needs a lot of work. DE threw him out of the way and tackled Westy for no gain on a run to the strong side. Can't have that. Did have an effective block on Westy's TD run. The DE was flowing wide and Brent just rode him away from the ball. Had a good block on Weaver's second run. Got into the DE and rode him to the inside. Good effort. Other 3 catches were short throws across the middle. Brent made a good grab on the final one (low pass).
SMITH --- Strictly a blocker.
WR
DESEAN --- Had one real pass come his way. Donnie threw a back shoulder fade pass. DeSean saw it and made the catch. But...he was called for Off. Interference. DeSean did give the DB a nudge, but that sure looked like a bad call to me. Wiped out a 3rd down conversion. His sole catch came late in the game on a WR screen from Vick. Ran once on an End Around for no gain.
MACLIN --- Great game. 6-142-2. Caught short, intermediate, and deep passes. Worked the left and right sides. Was effective over the middle. Ran good routes. Beat press coverage. Located the ball well and adjusted to it. Caught with his hands and body.
First TD...ball was a little off target. Mac had to get his hands up and in an awkward position to make the grab. He did just that. Second TD...we had a tight formation, where all the players are bunched up close together. Mac was on the left. He got a clean release and just ran by the CB. Mac then turned and located the ball. He got his hands up, brought the ball into his body, and secured it as he went to the ground. Excellent concentration. Had a catch on a Dig route where he went up for the ball, got it, and held on as the S tackled him hard. I like seeing that kind of strength and toughness from him. Made a clean hands catch on the play.
AVANT --- Only had 1 catch for 12 yards. Blocked well on run and pass plays.
OL
PETERS --- Had a pretty solid day in pass pro. Gaines Adams gave him problems a couple of times, but Jason controlled his defender most of the game. We didn't run much to the left side so we didn't get to see anything special in that area.
JACKSON --- Good game. Doubled with Cole to drive DT Roy Miller off the ball and give Westy some running room to the left side. Good block on Westy's TD run. Got to the MLB and engaged him for a second or so. That allowed Brian to get into the end zone. Helped out in pass pro on Hovan on a play where he got by Cole. Roy Miller blew up our option play by crossing Jamaal's face and getting penetration.
STACY --- Played some RG in both halves. Didn't stand out at all.
MAX --- Started at RG. Got into the DT on Westy's TD and stuck with the block. Pushed the guy wide and gave Brian a good running lane. Solid day in pass pro.
COLE --- Came close to getting a holding call while pass blocking vs Miller. Their arms got tangled and it looked like Nick hooked him. Luckily the pass went out at the same moment. Hovan beat him with a quick burst off the ball in pass pro. Nick anchored well, but the athletic guys can beat him.
JUSTICE --- RT. Another solid showing, but not as good as last game. He was physical with his run blocks and confident in pass pro. I'm going to focus on the negatives here, but this isn't to show he played poorly. The good blocks just weren't noteworthy. Had a sloppy block on Weaver's first run up the middle. Winston hit the LB, but lost his footing and ended up on the ground. His guy made the tackle. Got knocked to the ground by Wilkerson in pass pro. Didn't affect the play, though. Caught a pass when McNabb was hit as he was throwing. Initially I thought that was dumb, but then I realized that Justice didn't know for sure if it was a pass or fumble. Better safe than sorry. Got a LB and drove him wide on Westy's TD run. Beaten for a sack late in the 3rd. Wilkerson got around the edge by using his arms to beat the block.
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DE
COLE --- Very good game. Had 7 solo tackles, 2 TFLs, and a sack. First TFL came on a run up the middle where Trent got into his blocker, stepped to the inside, and then grabbed the RB. Just missed a sack on the 2nd drive. Came off the edge and reached out for Johnson, but Josh stepped up in the pocket and got the pass off. Hustled to chase down Johnson for a sack early in the 2nd Qtr, but the play was wiped out by penalty. Got penetration on a run play early in the 2nd, but couldn't bring Cadillac down. Showed excellent hustle in coming from the backside to tackle Johnson on an option play and limiting it to only a yard. Jumped offside on 3rd/5. Gave Tampa a 1st down. Got his sack late in the half. We used a 3-man line and Trent used a spin move back to the inside and nailed Johnson for a short loss. Hit Josh on the final play of the half, the play where Sammie picked off the pass in the end zone. Drew a holding call on TE Jerramy Stevens. Hustled to tackle Cadillac from behind after he caught a pass. Hustled to get to Johnson on a 4th Qtr pass, but Josh got just beyond the line so that it wasn't a sack.
PARKER --- Had 2 solo tackles and a TFL. Played an option play early in the game perfectly. Strung the play out wide and kept outside leverage. That allowed the rest of the defense to come over in pursuit and get the TFL. Missed a tackle of Ward on a draw play late in the half. That was 3rd and long and we let them move the chains. Just missed a sack late in the half. Had Josh dead to rights, but Johnson leaned back and threw up a prayer (that Winslow answered).
VA --- Had a good moment on the 2nd drive. TB threw a short pass. Victor engaged the TE who was trying to block him and drove the guy backward. Didn't really affect the play, but I like seeing Victor be physical and use his strength. Used a good rip move to get around the RT early in the 2nd Qtr. Flushed Johnson. Victor completely froze on an option play run at him. I know pro guys aren't used to them, but VA made the mistake of not tackling the QB or RB. He had Josh right in front of him but hesitated. Luckily it didn't cost us. Got some pressure on a 3rd Qtr pass. Unfortunately he hit Josh in the head and drew a flag. Legit call. Got a sack in the 4th Qtr. Played LDT. Drove the RG back a couple of steps, then used a spin move. Knocked the ball away from Johnson and then tackled him.
HOWARD --- Played more RDE than I can recall in a recent game. Spent a lot of time in the backfield. Had 4 tackles and a TFL. That TFL came late in the game and gave us a safety. Tackled Cadillac on a run up the middle on 3rd down. Stopped him just short of the mark. That led to 4th down and a Tampa fumble. Good hustle by Darren on the 3rd down play helped him to make the tackle. Barely got Cadillac's foot, but that ended up being a key moment. Deflected a pass late in the half, but LT Donald Penn was able to grab it and steamroll up the field for (what seemed like an eternity) 15 yards. Flew off the edge and just missed a sack on a 3rd Qtr pass. Regularly got pressure from DE and DT. Used his burst and moves to get by and around blockers all game long. Offside on an early 4th Qtr play. His safety was a thing of beauty. Timed his get-off perfectly and attacked the inside shoulder of the G. Slanted and got by the G to nail Cadillac a yard deep in the end zone.
CLEMONS --- Didn't seem to play as much. I know he was in the LDE rotation early on, but didn't note him getting pressure or standing out. Don't recall seeing him much in the 2nd half.
DT
PATTERSON --- Quiet, but effective game. Got pressure on Johnson on a 2nd Qtr pass, but Josh was able to scramble upfield for a gain. Stood up the C on the opening play of the 2nd half. Blew up the run because of that. Only got in on 1 tackle.
BUNKLEY --- Only had 2 tackles, but both were TFLs. Got good pressure on a 1st Qtr pass. Got a step inside on the LG and was able to get in Johnson's face as he threw the ball. Drove the C back on a run play, but couldn't get to the RB. First TFL came on a screen pass to open the 2nd Qtr. Got off his block and hit the RB just after he caught the pass. Got the other TFL on a run up the middle early in the 2nd. He and 30 other defenders were waiting for Cadillac on the play and got him for a short loss. Brod hustled in pursuit on some downfield plays.
DIXON --- Starting to show us something. Blew up an early run. Drove the C backward and forced the RB to bounce the play wide an extra gap. That allowed a LB to get the runner for a loss. Showed his strength on another running play. Got into the C and drove him back. Dixon got off balance and was thrown to the ground. Looked good with a swim move, but unfortunately it was on a screen pass. Played NT on the short yardage defense on 4th down. Blew up the C which helped to create the fumble by Johnson. Came free up the middle on a 3rd Qtr pass play, but couldn't get hold of Johnson.
LB
JORDAN --- Had 2 tackles and 2 pass deflections. Blitzed off the edge on the 2nd drive. Just hit Johnson's arm after the pass was out. Blitzed on a 3rd down pass. Dove over the RB to try for the QB. Missed him. Hurt the play. Had Akeem just bull rushed, he'd have moved the RB back at least a step in the pocket and created a sack for Trent. Instead he dove and went off to the side, giving Josh room to step up. Should have had a sack on a blitz up the middle on the 3rd drive. Went inside the RB and Josh was able to move wide and throw the pass. Had Akeem gone outside on the RB that would have boxed Josh in and made it hard for him not to get sacked. Akeem still had a shot at him, but couldn't get his hands cleanly on Josh. Disrupted a run play by blowing up the FB. That led to a TFL. Made a solid tackle on Jordan on a run that came to his side. Hit the QB just after he threw on the play where Samuel blitzed and flushed the passer. Batted down a pass in the 3rd Qtr.
His highlight was a non-play. The Bucs went for it on 4th down. The ball was fumbled by Johnson. There was a scramble for the ball. Jordan ripped it from Johnson and ran it back for a long TD. Great moment. Tampa challenged, saying that Josh had control of the ball before Akeem ripped it loose. I thought the replay was iffy, but frankly I wanted the play to be overturned. I wanted to see our offense on the field. I did hate for Akeem to lose his TD and big play.
GOCONG --- Had 2 TFLs and a sack. First TFL came on a run away from him. Gonzo hustled down the LOS and hit Ward from the side. Akeem had stuffed the FB and clogged up the running lane. Blitzed off the edge late in the 1st Qtr and got his first sack of the year. He was unblocked and hit Johnson from behind. Got called for PI while trying to cover Winslow in the 3rd. Good call. Chris got his inside arm and that kept Kellen from behing able to make the catch. Blitzed on a 4th Qtr pass and got enough pressure to force an errant throw. Slid into MLB on the final series when backups played. Came up the middle, grabbed the RB, and slung him to the ground. Winslow got the best of him a few times in the game. I'm sure Chris is glad he's gone.
GAITHER --- Good game. Had 4 solo tackles, 2 TFLs, and a PD. Made a good play vs the run on opening drive. Got of block of the C and stopped Cadillac for 2 yds. Got a TFL on the 2nd drive. Attacked upfield and fought through the block of the LG. Got Cadillac for a loss of 3. Dixon blew up the play, Gaither made the stop. That is excellent DT/MLB work. Made a good tackle on 3rd/4 run. Ward started to the right. Gaither held his ground instead of flying in that direction. Ward tried to cut back and Gaither was waiting for him. Gave up a couple of yards, but stopped the play short. Had a great pass break-up in the mid-3rd. Lined up in the A-gap, as if to blitz. Dropped at the snap into a passing lane and deflected the throw. If the ball wasn't on a rope he might have picked it off. Got pressure on a blitz up the middle and forced an errant throw that was picked off. Had a blitz in the early 4th where the RG tried to block him and Omar just drove the guy backward. Made a forceful tackle of Cadillac after a short catch over the middle.
TROTTER --- Definitely looked rusty. He had a couple of solo tackles. He attacked the LOS quite a bit. First tackle was on a TE over near the sideline after a short pass. Didn't overrun plays. Was patient in making reads before closing to the ball. Not much of a factor in the game.
WHITE --- Now wearing #52. Blitzed up the middle late in the half and forced Josh to throw quickly and incomplete. Deflected one pass.
FUKOU --- Played 2 snaps at SAM.
CB
S BROWN --- Up and down game. Got beaten deep on the first play of the game. Seemed to be paying attention to the QB and that almost cost him a big play. Luckily, Mike Clayton couldn't hold on to the ball. Helped to break up a 4th down pass to Clayton. Hit him just after the ball got there. Mike was struggling to make the catch, but Sheldon made sure that wasn't going to happen. Got beaten by Bryant for a gain of 31. Spent too much time peaking in the backfield on the play. Had tight coverage on Clayton late in the half on a throw near the end zone. The ball was out of bounds, but Sheldon had great position on it and might have picked off a better throw. Made a great break on a 3rd Qtr pass. Broke it up. Should have picked it off. Would have been an easy TD. Picked a pass late in the 3rd Qtr. The blitz forced a hurried throw and Sheldon made a good play on it. I'm sure glad to see him making these tough catches this year.
SAMUEL --- Good game. Had 2 INTs, 4 tackles, and a TFL. Got Cadillac on an option play for a 5-yard loss early in the game. Wasn't a clean solo tackle. He, Mikell, and Juqua were all in on the play. Blitzed off the edge early in the 2nd Qtr and should have had a sack. Came fast off the edge, but got juked and let Josh get outside him. That's a no-no. Tackled Ward on a draw play up the middle after a long gain. Got called for a facemask on the play, but did make the tackle. Ward almost broke it all the way. First pick came at the end of the 1st half on a deflected pass in the end zone. Ran it back and I thought he might go all the way for a minute. There was too much traffic and he only got to the 27. Good hands, awareness on the play. Picked off an errant throw in the early 3rd. Set the offense up inside the 30. Hurt his right leg and left in the early 4th.
HOBBS --- Got regular PT. Helped to stop a WR screen. Didn't let the play get outside of him cleanly and that allowed pursuit to catch up to the ball. Made a very good tackle on a TE on a short pass, but hurt his shoulder on the play.
MmmBop --- Hanson played the slot and then some CB when Sammie got hurt. Made a quick break on a short 3rd down pass early in the game. Reached around the receiver and just missed breaking up the pass. Hanson made a good tackle of Bryant in the open field after he caught a pass over the middle. Made a good tackle of Winslow in the open field. Had 4 solo tackles in the game.
PATTERSON --- Played in the Nickel/Dime package early on, but got hurt and left the game. His highlight was being called offside when he was trying to sell a blitz to the QB.
S
MIKELL --- Solid game. Helped to break up a 3rd down pass early in the game. Got to the receiver just as the ball did and Bryant couldn't make the catch. Blitzed off the edge and forced a quick throw. Made an excellent tackle of Winslow after the catch on 3rd down just after halftime. Stopped him short of the mark. Had good coverage on a few incomplete passes where pressure forced bad throws and Q didn't get to play the ball or make the tackle. Had tight coverage on Stroughter in the end zone in the 4th and the pass had to be overthrown. Winslow beat him for a short TD late in the game.
HARRIS --- Had 3 solo tackles. Was involved in one big moment in the game. Stupidly bumped a receiver late on a 3rd/25 play. The shot meant nothing to the play and wasn't the kind of physical hit that meant anything. It was enough to draw a flag and give Tampa a 1st down. You could say that I was a tad irate. Dumbest play by an Eagle all year. Tackled Ward on a run up the middle. Blitzed up the middle late in the half and hit Josh half a second after he threw a pass. Timed the blitz really well. Got beaten by Winslow for a TD late in the half. Coverage looked pretty good and he tried to knock the ball out, but Kellen made a real good play.
JONES --- Played some in the Nickle/Dime units. Blitzed up the middle and pressured Josh early in the 3rd. That led to a terrible throw and INT.
________________________________
STs
ROCCA --- had his best day, 48.8 per punt.
AKERS --- nailed a 44-yd'er and consistently put KOs deep into the end zone.
KOR ---
* Hobbs only had one KOR and went 21 yards.
* Weaver got the KO late in the half and took it up near midfield to help put us in scoring position. Got 18 yards on the return. Good awareness, hands, and hustle.
PR ---
* DeSean had a quiet day. His only PR went 4 yards.
MISC STs ---
* Sean Jones failed to secure an onside kick. He had no chance on the first bounce but stayed with the ball and should have had it when coming down after that. Didn't get it and Tampa did.
* Normally I call Sean "Friendly Fire" because of the way he hits Eagles. Gocong tried to clobber Sean on the onside kick. Gocong was hustling on the play, but made matters worse by getting over there out of control.
* Dorenbos got driven back 10 yards after the first punt. That was weird to see.
There is a scene in Reno 911: Miami when the deputies go check in to a sleazy motel. The desk clerk over and over talks about "the suckfest". That's what Sunday's game felt like, a suckfest. The offense sucked. The defense sucked less, but still sucked. Special teams sucked. The coaching sucked as well. Pretty much a complete suckfest. Now to the details.
The offense struggled to move the ball with any consistency all game long. We came into the game as the #2 scoring team in the NFL. We never once got inside their 15-yard line. That's hard to believe. You'd think we get in there on some fluke play...a STs return...a turnover...a long penalty. Nope. And the only time we got inside the 20 came late in the half when they were playing somewhat of a prevent defense.
The focus will be on the playcalling. It was bad. However, we can't overlook execution as well. The blocking was inconsistent. There were some plays when Donovan had a perfect pocket and Westy had good running lanes. Too often, though, we lost the battle up front. We didn't handle blitzes and stunts well. Sometimes it was due to mental errors and not making good decisions. Other times the players saw the play, but missed the block. Can't have that.
McNabb got sacked 6 times and saw regular pressure. He didn't respond to it well. Donovan got happy feet and threw erratically for much of the game. Luckily the coaches knew the thing to do was keep dialing up pass plays. Even better, they kept calling deep pass plays. We had at least 9 throws that went 20 or more yards. I might have missed one or two. And there were several deep routes that resulted in sacks or where Donovan had to check down.
Prior to the game I said we should go at them with a vertical passing attack. That was their weakness. Peters went down early in the game. At that moment the gameplan should have gone out the window and we should have concentrated on intermediate stuff. Instead, we continued to go deep. Nice adjustment. I was having flashbacks to the Osi game of 2007.
The OL struggled, McNabb struggled, and his receivers weren't a lot of help. Our routes weren't very crisp. The double moves weren't sold well. We had several drops in the game. Celek had some good moments, but the only receiver who really helped out his QB was DeSean.
The defense played a solid game. They held Oakland to 13 points and came up with a pair of takeaways. That's usually good enough to win. Unfortunately the defense was sloppy and should have even posted better numbers. The biggest problem continues to be our ability to cover TEs. Zach Miller had a great day. We also tackled poorly. That hurt us numerous times in the game. We should have had another 2 to 3 sacks, but the guys were a half step late. Getting burned by the FB for 5 catches for 55 yards was brutal. How do you not shut him down at some point? The one stop we absolutely had to have...we didn't get. Ugh.
Akers missed 2 FGs. We kicked and covered pretty well. A big return would have been huge to help jump start a drive, but the Raiders kicked even better than we did.
You always have to put things into context. We can't yet do that with this game. The Eagles won handily last week. If they go and win next week then the Raiders loss is simply a one-game anomaly. If we let it hang around and affect us down the road then it is the start of a losing streak or bad stretch of games. Can't have that. As bad as it felt and as much as we want to harp about the loss, we really need to bury it and move on. You should only lose a game once. Then you have to let it go and get ready for the next opponent.
MISC STUFF
* OAK WRs ... 2 catches for 6 yards. How does someone beat you strictly throwing to the TE and FB?
* Bad officiating, for and against us. The officials did a lousy job. The Raiders were clearly offside on a run play that resulted in a TFL. No call. The guy was through our line. How the heck does no one see that? King Dunlap appeared to get away with tripping Seymour on a pass play. We got lucky that the officials called PI on Oakland to wipe out a pick-six. The DB had his hand around Maclin loosely and their feet got tangled up, but it wasn't blatant interference. The ref should have explained the Int. Grounding no-call late in the game. The Raiders had a receiver in that area and it was a good no-call. Still, to clear up confusion he should have explained that. I was very surprised that D-Jax didn't get a flag when he was tackled on a PR and looked to be out of bounds. I also couldn't believe there wasn't a flag when Akers was hit after a FG. He made the kick and I don't know that the 5-yd penalty would have affected things, but how do you not call that?
* There was some just flat out bad luck. Alex Smith blocks a DE, sends him to the inside. No OL picks him up and he gets a free run at McNabb. Sack.
COACHING
I touched on it earlier, but I'll go into more detail here. The offensive gameplan was great going into the game. As soon as you lose your starting LT and see that the Raiders are going to blitz more than usual you must adjust. We didn't.
Andy and Marty called 53 passes. We had 11 runs by RBs. That is insane. You must have more balance. 70-30 would have been a huge improvement. I got my hopes up right after halftime. Andy and Marty did a great job initially. First play was a pass to the right where we rolled Donovan to that side. He completed a good, safe pass to Maclin. Next play was a run up the middle that got 25 yards. Next play was a run for 9 yds. We're in rhythm. Things are clicking.
Then we throw a slant to the right. Incomplete. Next play is a swing pass to Westy behind the line and he's tackled for a loss. Finally we throw deep to Maclin and it is incomplete. Then we miss the FG.
Why stop running? Why go to the slant? OAK had played the slant well all game long. I can live with a pass, but call a crossing route or something we'd had success with. Keep the offense in rhythm.
There were a couple of real low points for me. The first came at the end of the half. There was about 30 seconds left, but we were in scoring territory. The clock was stopped. Out trots Mike Vick. Huh? You're going to get cute at this point? Also, you have to assume that the receiver will get tackled in bounds and we'll need to hustle into the next play. Will Vick know where to line up? Will he be able to hustle off the field? Dumb, dumb, and dumb. Stick with guys who know the hurry-up offense. Last year we were 2nd in the NFL in points before halftime. Our guys do a good job in that situation. Why mix things up? There was confusion prior to the snap and McNabb tried to call our 4th timeout of the half. That led to a penalty. We did end up kicking a FG and getting 3 points.
Late in the game we had a key 3rd/7 play. We ran a play-action pass. There is some logic to the call. I have to assume this is a play that McNabb likes a lot or we'd had success with. The fake is meaningless in that situation. You go with the play because you like it. However, there is even more logic for why not to run it. OAK had blitzed us a lot on 3rd/long, and successfully. McNabb has to turn his back for the fake. He won't see the blitz coming. Guess what? He didn't see it and he was sacked. Dumb call.
We burned through all 3 timeouts early in the 1st half. Reid was trying to fix things because of how poorly we were playing. I won't complain too much about that.
He went for hit on 4th/inches from our own side of the field. I was very surprised. I thought punting would have been wise. We ran a QB sneak and moved the ball. It sure seemed like Big Red was trying to jump start the team. I liked the fact he saw the flatness of the guys and was trying to do something about it. Unfortunately, it didn't work in waking us up.
Reid or the players made a bonehead move late in the game. I'm not sure who called the timeout with 2:02 left. The Raiders had 3rd down coming up. You let the clock run down to 2:00. It stops and then you have your timeout left to call after 3rd down if needed. In the end it didn't make a difference because the defense sucked on 3rd/10.
___________________________________
QB
MCNABB - Sloppy game. 22-46-269. No picks or TDs. Never looked right. Got sacked a couple of times early and seemed to play too fast from then on out. Had a couple of highlights. Hooked up with DeSean on a deep ball that netted us 51 yards and set up a FG. That was a good throw and catch. Best pass was when he hit Celek on a seam route. Brent added some RAC yards for a gain of 42. McNabb put the ball right on the money. He also had some nice short thows to DeSean. McNabb had a lot of success with checkdowns and screens. Got the ball to Westy and let him do the rest.
Too often he hurled the ball deep instead of setting his feet and making a good throw. That was due to the pressure, but a good QB like McNabb has to take advantage of the times when he does get good blocking.
One thing I didn't like is that McNabb constantly seemed to be upset with something. He was yelling at the refs for flags on several plays. He was upset with receivers about what routes they ran. He was into LeSean about blocking. He blamed himself for a bad throw to Weaver. Get that stuff out of your head. Play the next play.
RB
WESTY - Good game. Caught a dumpoff over the middle and turned that into a gain of 34. There were some huge voids in the middle of the field and Westy was able to motor for good gains a few times. Did that as a runner and receiver. Had 6 carries for 50 yards. Caught 9 passes for 91 yards. My only beef with him was his speed. On a couple of plays it looked like he might be headed for a monster gain or TD. Players were able to close in him in a hurry. Still has great vision and patience to let plays develop. If only he had LeSean's wheels...
MCCOY - Bad game. Missed blocking assignments a few times. You can get away with that if you produce big plays or score TDs, but not if you struggle with the ball. You must protect the QB. Best run was a cutback that went for 8 yards. Saw back blocking to the playside and cut back to the left side and got upfield. Also had a 4-yder up the middle. Unfortunately he had the ball away from his body and Seymour was able to knock it loose. Luckily, we recovered. Made a good cut block on rusher on play where Donnie hit Celek for a short gain. Dropped a short pass over the middle. Doesn't seem like a big deal, but we then came up short on 3rd down by less than a yard. Finished with 5 carries for 13 yards.
VICK - Got one carry in the game and was tackled for a loss. Lined up as a WR and got the handoff from McNabb. Raiders defenders were pointing to Vick prior to the play.
FB
WEAVER - Caught a couple of short passes. Got blasted by a DB on one. McNabb owes him an apology for that throw. Did okay as a blocker. We just didn't run enough.
TE
CELEK - Up and down game. Whiffed on an early block in pass pro. Trevor Scott blew by him with an inside move and sacked McNabb. That play set the tone for the whole game. Did catch 4 passes for 75 yards. Best play was a catch down the seam that went for 42. Half was in the air and half RAC yds. Had a costly drop over the middle in the 2nd half.
SMITH - Mostly a blocker. Finally had a good pass thrown his way and dropped it. Had a good chance to be a 1st down. Didn't seem like a big deal at the time, but we missed a FG on that drive. A few extra yards could have made a difference. Accidentally created a sack when he shoved #98 to the inside in pass protection.
WR
DESEAN - Put up good numbers, 6-94. Best play was a 51-yd bomb. Took off down the right sideline and made a great catch. Had to really extend for the ball. If he'd been able to keep his feet that might have gone for a TD. Made an impressive catch on 3rd/long. Went down for the ball to secure it. Made a terrific sideline catch on 3rd/3 late in the half. Showed his great speed on a short catch and run when he was able to get around a defender and down the sideline after a short throw.
Why weren't we using him more on crossing routes? Why didn't he get a handoff on an End Around?
MACLIN - Quiet day. Had 6 balls thrown his way, but only caught 1 for a short gain. Several of the passes were deep throws.
AVANT - No catches. Either the Raiders did a great job or McNabb missed him being open. 2 balls came his way. Both were poor throws / solid coverage.
OL
PETERS - Hurt early in the game and had to leave.
DUNLAP - Struggled quite a bit. Seymour continually got under his pads and drove King backward. Dunlap's weakness is his ability to anchor in pass pro. Unfortunately for him, he faced the only 300-lb 4-3 RDE in the entire NFL. King held his own against other guys that lined up at RDE. Needs work, but he's not the reason we lost this game.
JACKSON - Had a good block on early screen pass. Got a LB in space that allowed Westy to really run free for a second. Missed his block on a run up the middle and that LB made the tackle. Recovered Shady's fumble. Good awareness, hustle. Got some movement on 4th/inches QB sneak that allowed us to get the 1st down.
STACY - Played off and on. Didn't stand out to me.
MAX - RG. Failed to read a stunt by the Raiders and didn't block the guy coming to the inside. That player went and sacked McNabb. Whiffed on a DT on a screen. You're supposed to slow the guy down, not let him go free. McNabb got hurried and had to throw the ball away. Did have a good block on run play early in 3rd that turned into nice gain. Made a poor block on MLB on a run to the right.
COLE - Poor game. Got badly burned by Seymour using a spin move. Didn't even attempt to block Seymour late in the half. JJ reached for him, but Rich sacked McNabb on the play. Failed to properly read a stunt in the 4th and when King went for the looping DL Nick didn't take the guy to the inside. That led to a hurried throw. Very disappointing game. I like Nick quite a bit. I'm not sure what happened to him.
JUSTICE - Pretty good game. Mostly kept his side clean. Let 77 get by him and pressure McNabb on one pass play. Did a good job on Greg Ellis. Held him to one tackle, no sacks, and no QB hits. Flopped over to LT when we mixed in an unbalanced line in the 3rd Qtr. Got beaten by a blitzing LB on pass in early 4th.
___________________________________
DE
COLE - More quiet than usual. Did get his sack. Got Russell as he spun away from a blitzing Jordan. Had Russell wrapped up late in the 1st half, but couldn't get him down before the pass was thrown. Real close, though. Came close to another sack late in the 3rd. Forced a hurried throw. Had a TFL on a run to his side. Had another TFL late in the game.
PARKER - Had a sack. Got pressure on some other plays, but didn't get clean hits on Russell. Got the sack with a power rush and then inside move to get to Russell.
CLEMONS - Came free on a blitz up the middle (as the Joker). Dove for the QB, but Russell was able to step to the side and get a short pass off. Got pressure from LDE on a 4th Qtr pass. Hurried the throw.
VA - Made a tackle on early 3rd down draw play. Just missed a TFL on a run play up the middle. Hustled to get to the ball, but Gaither already had the guy under control. Stupidly hit the QB after he'd let go of the ball. The ref looked at him like "What the heck was that?". Got good pressure on a pass late in the 3rd. Had to really fight through a block. Got hurt late and had to leave the game. RB cut VA as he was going for Russell. Could be a nasty knee injury.
HOWARD - Played a 3rd/10 run well. Held his ground as DT and that disrupted the run. Quiet game overall. Only had 1 tackle.
DT
PATTERSON - Had 5 solo tackles. Pretty active game. Clogged inside running lanes, but didn't get much penetration. Got some pressure late in the 3rd when he spun off a block, but Russell was able to get the pass off.
BUNKLEY - Had 3 tackles. Got some pressure on early pass by driving the C back to the QB. Blew up a run play and created a TFL by pushing his blocker backward. Got hurt on the play and came out for a few snaps. Got pressure on a 4th Qtr pass by driving back another OL.
LAWS - Got regular PT this week. We rotated DL quite a bit. Trevor had 3 tackles, including a TFL. Still needs work on his run D, but was quick off the ball.
DIXON - Another good showing. Only had 1 tackle, but he makes a difference out there. Drove the RG back toward the QB and got pressure on a pass that we picked off. Blew up a 3rd Qtr run and held it to no gain.
LB
JORDAN - Very up and down game. Only had a pair of tackles. Blitzed on the 2nd drive and flushed Russell into a sack for Cole. Struggled vs the run at times when playing off. Got blocked too much, but TEs and OTs. Had some good plays, especially when up on the line. Created a TFL when he fired off the ball and drove the TE backward, closing the running lane. Did a solid job of taking on the lead blocker on plays that came at him. Hesitated just a bit on the last 3rd down of the game. Came off the edge and took one inside step before realizing Russell still had the ball and then went after him. JaMarcus was able to get the throw off to the FB. Akeem has to play that outside in. Go to the QB, then work toward the RB. If he had, might have sacked Russell or caused a bad pass.
GOCONG - Led the team with 10 tackles, all solo. Played pretty well. Had one lowlight. Went to tackle Russell on a scramble. JaMarcus used the world's slowest spin move and got by him for an extra couple of yards. Stuffed an inside run that came at him.
GAITHER - Had 7 tackles, 6 solo. Had a TFL. The TFL came when Bunk drove back his blocker and Omar was able to attack the ballcarrier in the backfield. Made a good stop vs TE screen at the end of the 3rd. Made a good tackle vs inside run early in 4th. I thought he was okay vs the run. Most of the Raiders success came to the edge.
TROTTER - Bad game. Got badly burned by Miller on the long TD. Trot bit on the play fake and then lacked the speed to recover. He got Miller's shirt with a hand, but wasn't able to even slow him down. Had 1 tackle. Also got burned on the FB pass at the end of the game. Gaither was injured and Trot had to play. He just didn't have the speed to get out wide with the FB. 1st down. Ball game.
CB
S BROWN - Had 3 solo tackles and a PBU. Broke up a pass in early 4th. Ball got knocked in the air a couple of times, but Sheldon couldn't grab it. Tackled and hit well.
SAMUEL - Very up and down game. Had an INT and a couple of pass break-ups. Did an awful job of tackling. He made a horrible, horrible attempt on Miller's long TD. Asante whiffed. Any contact at all might have slowed the play enough to stop it for a reaonable gain. Had several other air tackles. Normally I give him a pass for being sloppy, but these were really bad and cost us some key yards. Got his pick on a ball that the WR couldn't hold onto and popped up in the air. Almost had another pick on a very similar play. Got called for a penalty that was really dumb. He and a WR were trading shots. The receiver got one in late in the play and Asante reponded with a head butt. That drew the flag. Dumb on Samuel's part. It was a bad call. 3 refs watched the play closely. Only one threw a flag.
HOBBS - Hustled downfield to try and get Miller on the long play, but couldn't fight through the blocker to make the stop.
HANSON - Had 3 solo tackles. Best one was on a 3rd down pass where he stopped the receiver short of the sticks. Got the guy down decisively with a good tackle.
S
MIKELL - Had 3 tackles and an INT. Wasn't able to get to Miller on the long TD. WR took him out with a big block. Picked off a pass late in the half. Russell overthrew Miller down the seam and Q made a good pick.
HARRIS - Had 4 solo tackles, including a TFL. Quick whistle robbed us of FF late in the game. Macho saw that the RB was under control by another defender so he started grabbing at the ball and got it to come out. The whistle blew right at that moment. Very close. Macho was okay vs the run. He's effective in the box, but needs to make things happen more than he does right now. TFL came when he chased down an End Around behind the line.
JONES - Took over SS when Mikell went out after a head-to-head collision. Sean had a couple of tackles. Played the run well. Broke up a seam pass to Miller in the mid 4th. Good coverage on the play.
________________________________
SPECIAL TEAMS
ROCCA - Solid game. Averaged 42.8 per punt, but 3 were inside the 20 and we limited Oakland to 3 return yards.
AKERS - 3 for 5 on the day. Hit from 45, 43, and 45. Missed on early drive after INT. 43 yard attempt. The snap was low. It also looked like a Raider came close to getting a hand on the ball. The kick took a hard turn. Akers puts a lot of English on his kicks so that could have just been his own doing. Missed a 47-yd FG early in the 3rd. Got hit after a FG in the 2nd half, but didn't get a flag.
KOR ---
*Demps got the call in his return to action. Long return was only 25 yds.
PR ---
*DeSean always looked like he was about to bust a long return, but never did. Averaged 10.8 on 4 PRs.
MISC STs ---
* Eldra Buckley made a terrific STs tackle on a KOR. Stopped the Raiders returner at the 13. That's hustle.
* Jason Avant forced a fumble late in the game, but they recovered it.
* Dorenbos got hurt late in the game. The thought of not having him for a crucial kick had me nervous.
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