If a WR drops a ball because a defender is closing in on him. he doesn't belong here. A defender is almost always closing in. It's not like the DB physically influenced the catch; he hit MT at about the same time as the ball hit the ground.
The one reason I wanted to do journalism a long time ago is I hated the way no one asked tough questions...It's changed now...but the one question I would have asked Mike Thomas, in regards to this play, early in the game, with a chance to steal momentum,is...did you see #23 coming at you, and did it cause you to lose concentration? Because it looked like the classic concentration drop....not focused...and as a rookie, that's to be expected.
I understand concentration drops...had quite a few myself...what I can't stand is when guys drop throws right in the hands, WITH NO ONE AROUND. That's concentration too....but I put that in another category.
I remember guys in here were saying how good Pharoh Cooper's hands were.....then he started dropping a few too...it happens...These guys are rooks.
I'm more worried about guys that can't create separation and get open. Because you can't necessarily FIX that with coaching and practice. You can run better routes, but that doesn't ensure you'll start getting open. Same with catching too, you can practice but there is no guarantee that you'll automatically begin grabbing the ball outta the air. All you can do is practice....and I've seen/witnessed more success stories with catching than with all of a sudden a guy starts getting open.