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- Rambeau
OK, this will just be ramblings and a quick summary of watching the game under a microscope.
The goal line fumble. I couldn't tell exactly how, but it wasn't from Sam backing out too quick. I watched this frame by frame several times from different angles. The ball seemed to catch him unawares, and kind of just went through his hands. So it could have been a bad snap angle, or Sam wasn't ready when he should have been, or his hands were not closed off enough.
Anybody ever take a snap from a real center? The ball comes in really hard and fast. Seems basic and easy, but it isn't at all. You basically have to catch and grasp at exactly the same time. Anyway, this can't happen.
Special Teams: Coverage units. They are looking better, and there are some names that stood out: Pointer; McLeod; Prince; J. Stewart. Stewart stood out for almost always being the first one down the field. He is much faster than I thought, and when in at linebacker he also played fast. He needs to break down better after sprinting downfield. That can be taught, speed can't.
Offensive Line: Barksdale played his best game by far, and he looked extremely comfortable out there. Long got beat once badly, but other times when Long was getting beat, he shows something that is truly rare...he can recover. I saw him do it a couple of times. He's special. Chris Williams looked terrible at RT, bad technique, he recovered a little after the first few plays, but doesn't look comfortable there, luck for him, Shelley Smith just looks over-matched at LG. The main problem with Smith is that he just doesn't get enough push against the big boys, and Green Bay had them. Harvey Dahl played a lot better, but didn't stand out in any way...not a bad thing.
Brandon Washington doesn't belong on the field at any position, this guy is going to get someone killed. D.J. Young has some talent, but doesn't have any technique, this guy looks as raw as raw comes. I just don't see him making it unless we elect to PS him, and Boudreau puts a lot of time in him. I was very critical of Ty Nsekhe last week. This week, he played almost flawless, and looked like a completely different player. His technique was outstanding in this game. The problems that I see is that he is obviously inconsistent from week to week, and that he can only play the left side.
Tim Barnes got some decent minutes at LG in the second half, and I was relieved to see that he played very well there. I was really having a hard time understanding how 3 "Center only" players could be awarded roster spots. I am not concerned now. I think that Barnes might be better than Smith at the Guard spot, but I need to see a larger sample size. Jones just played meh, Lee played OK, but he is just too small, and Pocic continued to struggle in his limited time on the field.
Note: There has been a lot of discussion about the run blocking, and I am sorry to report that our blocking schemes are just as vanilla as the rest of our schemes. We are pretty much talking about man blocking only. I did see some holes, but they were backside, and all of our Rb's missed some holes that were there, mostly because they were trying to slam it in there too fast. Can you blame them, they get crucified if they try to show patience?
I saw Pead make 3 exceptional blitz pickups in the game. Richardson looked great.
I want to know who the fourth TE will be after Cook, Kendricks, and Harkey. Harkey is a stud and has surprised the heck out of me, he will be Sam's best friend when he's lined up at fullback.
The WR's did a horrible job at blocking in this game, just horrible.
Helmick flashed brilliance on his catch and run. Johnson had a solid game all around. Veltung had a very good punt return, but ddropped a pass. Radway had a kick return, but dropped a pass. Nobody has separated themselves for that 6th spot. Austin is thinking too much. Quick had a nice catch. Bailey looked lost a couple of times.
Defense:
DL: Nothing real exciting to report, tough to evaluate these guys right now, but a few guys stood out. Langford was finally getting off the ball quickly, and shot the gap a couple of times. Brockers wasn't really penetrating, but was almost unmovable. Quinn is finally showing a couple of moves, and his run defense has improved dramatically. He looked possessed on a couple of plays. I'm still mad at Chris Long for jumping offsides when we had them buried. That can't happen Chris, you got more pie in your face.
Conrath will be a good player for us this year. Hayes was running WAY better than he was last week, what a difference a week makes as far as conditioning. Rivers was outstanding, and the coaches offered him a great opportunity. Rivers made the very most of it, he played nearly the whole game and he has an unstoppable motor. I saw at least four plays that very few guys could make in this league. He has that elite burst when closing on the ball. I think Rivers will be a special player for us. His movement skills, strength, and speed, are all exceptional, AND he plays with heart. We need to get him on some special teams, because he will excel there. He won't make it to the PS, he makes this roster, IMO.
Brodine was showing some versatility when he played DT, and DE. I hope he makes it to the PS, because next year with hard work, he will be a force, much like Conrath, last year. Not really impressed with anyone else.
LB: Ogletree is still thinking too much, and that is slowing him down on the field. Ray-Ray played faster this week then last, and flashed some big plays. One of his best plays was when he gave up a TD. After spinning around the wrong way, on a perfect throw to the pylon, Armstrong was able to recover and make a strong play for the ball. Stewart played really well, and he plays fast. He's starting to trust his instincts, or reads, or both. He made several good plays, and because of ST play, I think he makes the team. Bates flashed a couple of times.
Josh Hull looked dynamite out there, and I think that this is the first time that we have seen him truly healthy. he was a speed demon out there, playing fast with a purpose. He was good in coverage, and from sideline to sideline. Spoon played better than he did last week, and had a few ferocious hits.
Secondary: There were some missed tackles, but Finnegan seemed to not miss any. Pointer and McGee both looked solid, and Pointer made a spectacular special teams tackle on the punt team. That dude can change direction on a dime, and in traffic. He has a real shot at being the nickel corner if we want to leave Finnegan on the outside. This would probably keep Johnson off the field. Johnson played much better after that first missed tackle. Steeples was competitive when the ball went his way, but I don't think he makes the roster.
All of the safeties played pretty well, and McLeod could end up being the free safety. He just flies around out here making plays. Stewart missed a couple tackles, and he is constantly getting hurt. I just don't know about him now. McDonald made a couple huge hits. Daniels is really coming on fast, and seems to be the clear #2 SS. Davis will make the team, he is just a really solid player that is always in the right spot. Hall has really caught my eye the last two preseason games, but we are too deep for him to make the roster, so he will probably be asked to play on our PS.
Added: Benny scores a long TD if not whistled down. There was an obvious PI on Givens, which would have extended a drive, and on the next GB possession, a not so obvious PI that overturned an exceptional INT by McLeod. The holding call on the long Richardson run was horrible, IMO, and they missed a deep one on Quick. Refs were in mid-season form for GB.
I probably forgot some stuff, but would be happy to engage in discussion, or answer any questions any of you have. I made a preliminary 54 last night.
The goal line fumble. I couldn't tell exactly how, but it wasn't from Sam backing out too quick. I watched this frame by frame several times from different angles. The ball seemed to catch him unawares, and kind of just went through his hands. So it could have been a bad snap angle, or Sam wasn't ready when he should have been, or his hands were not closed off enough.
Anybody ever take a snap from a real center? The ball comes in really hard and fast. Seems basic and easy, but it isn't at all. You basically have to catch and grasp at exactly the same time. Anyway, this can't happen.
Special Teams: Coverage units. They are looking better, and there are some names that stood out: Pointer; McLeod; Prince; J. Stewart. Stewart stood out for almost always being the first one down the field. He is much faster than I thought, and when in at linebacker he also played fast. He needs to break down better after sprinting downfield. That can be taught, speed can't.
Offensive Line: Barksdale played his best game by far, and he looked extremely comfortable out there. Long got beat once badly, but other times when Long was getting beat, he shows something that is truly rare...he can recover. I saw him do it a couple of times. He's special. Chris Williams looked terrible at RT, bad technique, he recovered a little after the first few plays, but doesn't look comfortable there, luck for him, Shelley Smith just looks over-matched at LG. The main problem with Smith is that he just doesn't get enough push against the big boys, and Green Bay had them. Harvey Dahl played a lot better, but didn't stand out in any way...not a bad thing.
Brandon Washington doesn't belong on the field at any position, this guy is going to get someone killed. D.J. Young has some talent, but doesn't have any technique, this guy looks as raw as raw comes. I just don't see him making it unless we elect to PS him, and Boudreau puts a lot of time in him. I was very critical of Ty Nsekhe last week. This week, he played almost flawless, and looked like a completely different player. His technique was outstanding in this game. The problems that I see is that he is obviously inconsistent from week to week, and that he can only play the left side.
Tim Barnes got some decent minutes at LG in the second half, and I was relieved to see that he played very well there. I was really having a hard time understanding how 3 "Center only" players could be awarded roster spots. I am not concerned now. I think that Barnes might be better than Smith at the Guard spot, but I need to see a larger sample size. Jones just played meh, Lee played OK, but he is just too small, and Pocic continued to struggle in his limited time on the field.
Note: There has been a lot of discussion about the run blocking, and I am sorry to report that our blocking schemes are just as vanilla as the rest of our schemes. We are pretty much talking about man blocking only. I did see some holes, but they were backside, and all of our Rb's missed some holes that were there, mostly because they were trying to slam it in there too fast. Can you blame them, they get crucified if they try to show patience?
I saw Pead make 3 exceptional blitz pickups in the game. Richardson looked great.
I want to know who the fourth TE will be after Cook, Kendricks, and Harkey. Harkey is a stud and has surprised the heck out of me, he will be Sam's best friend when he's lined up at fullback.
The WR's did a horrible job at blocking in this game, just horrible.
Helmick flashed brilliance on his catch and run. Johnson had a solid game all around. Veltung had a very good punt return, but ddropped a pass. Radway had a kick return, but dropped a pass. Nobody has separated themselves for that 6th spot. Austin is thinking too much. Quick had a nice catch. Bailey looked lost a couple of times.
Defense:
DL: Nothing real exciting to report, tough to evaluate these guys right now, but a few guys stood out. Langford was finally getting off the ball quickly, and shot the gap a couple of times. Brockers wasn't really penetrating, but was almost unmovable. Quinn is finally showing a couple of moves, and his run defense has improved dramatically. He looked possessed on a couple of plays. I'm still mad at Chris Long for jumping offsides when we had them buried. That can't happen Chris, you got more pie in your face.
Conrath will be a good player for us this year. Hayes was running WAY better than he was last week, what a difference a week makes as far as conditioning. Rivers was outstanding, and the coaches offered him a great opportunity. Rivers made the very most of it, he played nearly the whole game and he has an unstoppable motor. I saw at least four plays that very few guys could make in this league. He has that elite burst when closing on the ball. I think Rivers will be a special player for us. His movement skills, strength, and speed, are all exceptional, AND he plays with heart. We need to get him on some special teams, because he will excel there. He won't make it to the PS, he makes this roster, IMO.
Brodine was showing some versatility when he played DT, and DE. I hope he makes it to the PS, because next year with hard work, he will be a force, much like Conrath, last year. Not really impressed with anyone else.
LB: Ogletree is still thinking too much, and that is slowing him down on the field. Ray-Ray played faster this week then last, and flashed some big plays. One of his best plays was when he gave up a TD. After spinning around the wrong way, on a perfect throw to the pylon, Armstrong was able to recover and make a strong play for the ball. Stewart played really well, and he plays fast. He's starting to trust his instincts, or reads, or both. He made several good plays, and because of ST play, I think he makes the team. Bates flashed a couple of times.
Josh Hull looked dynamite out there, and I think that this is the first time that we have seen him truly healthy. he was a speed demon out there, playing fast with a purpose. He was good in coverage, and from sideline to sideline. Spoon played better than he did last week, and had a few ferocious hits.
Secondary: There were some missed tackles, but Finnegan seemed to not miss any. Pointer and McGee both looked solid, and Pointer made a spectacular special teams tackle on the punt team. That dude can change direction on a dime, and in traffic. He has a real shot at being the nickel corner if we want to leave Finnegan on the outside. This would probably keep Johnson off the field. Johnson played much better after that first missed tackle. Steeples was competitive when the ball went his way, but I don't think he makes the roster.
All of the safeties played pretty well, and McLeod could end up being the free safety. He just flies around out here making plays. Stewart missed a couple tackles, and he is constantly getting hurt. I just don't know about him now. McDonald made a couple huge hits. Daniels is really coming on fast, and seems to be the clear #2 SS. Davis will make the team, he is just a really solid player that is always in the right spot. Hall has really caught my eye the last two preseason games, but we are too deep for him to make the roster, so he will probably be asked to play on our PS.
Added: Benny scores a long TD if not whistled down. There was an obvious PI on Givens, which would have extended a drive, and on the next GB possession, a not so obvious PI that overturned an exceptional INT by McLeod. The holding call on the long Richardson run was horrible, IMO, and they missed a deep one on Quick. Refs were in mid-season form for GB.
I probably forgot some stuff, but would be happy to engage in discussion, or answer any questions any of you have. I made a preliminary 54 last night.
