Tavon being used better

[WestCoastRam]

I'll give Schotty credit for using Tavon better these days.

The fly-sweep is a staple of the playbook now which is great. I loved how the ran it multiple times daring the defense to stop it.

Lots of smoke routes out of stacked WR formations outside. It gives him a blocker in front which gives him an extra couple seconds to make a move.

Playing him outside more and not in the slot. I suspect this is because he's so hard to see because of size coming across the lineman and traffic in the middle of the field.

I'd still like to see more flys, posts, flags, etc... with him on the outside but I also suspect he still has a lot of work to do on his route tree skills.

Oh, and no more inside runs of Tavon from the RB position!

 

[RamzFanz]

Yep. Looks like it only took a season and a half.

 

[Robocop]

yea a little better. but when Bradford comes back I expect to see some real route running with him. ceiling is sooo high. figure it out by next year Schotty.

 

[rickrawk]

If Sam is healthy next season, this team is gonna be scary good!!

GO RAMS!!!!

 

[RaminExile]

Like i said last week, Schottey's been reading this board obviously and it shows - he's realized that if you get TA in motion before the snap - the misdirection and the respect for the guy's speed that the d must give him are gonna kill defences. Enough of this running him up the gut shit - except for now and again to keep them honest - play action, fly sweeps, smoke screens, drag routes are his staple - AND THEN - when he gets guys trying to get up to the LOS to stop him do you start to run him on 9's, sluggo's, deep posts, comebacks and digs. When he can do that, he's the complete package, swiss army knife, unstoppable all pro Marshall Faulk 2.0.

 

[Dagonet]

looking good WC.. It should only get better too my friend. Time will tell.

 

[Wonderboy]

Couldn't agree more with the OP. Schotty has TA dialed in and is finding ways to get him the ball more often. They're not even that creative and they don't need to be! He's just handing it to him a ith a running start and throwing it to him in the flat with a blocker. It's so simple and effective, it makes me wonder if there was another reason it wasn't being done before (Fisher)? But hey, better late than never! Keep it going!

 

[mr.stlouis]

Another thing on Austin, he's 100% and playing at full speed on a consistent level for the first time in his career. Maturity + health = TNT

 

[jrry32]

Austin has seemed a lot more decisive of late on punt returns too.

 

[RamzFanz]

Why Schotty loves to run TM up the middle is beyond me. You have a dude who destroys it on the edge and you call 8 out of 10 up the middle. It's like he just HAS to be a contrarian.

 

[Ramhusker]

Actually, I don't think he is being used much different. I think he is now reacting instead of thinking. And I think the blocking has come together. The light seems to have come on with him and his blockers.

 

[LesBaker]

Looked to me like someone told BS to go look at TA's college highlight film on YouTube and figure it out right.

 

[jap]

Some of this was on Tavon himself too. Early on in his rookie season and this season, he tended to peek at the D before he had fully gathered the ball in and tended to drop it. Of course, it didn't help that the Horns had this young kid learning several dozen positions early on his rookie season. You could see Tavon trying to decode where he was supposed to go on each play.

When Sam is back he will have a QB who can hit him consistently & accurately in stride without having to waste any motion while catching the ball and racing to daylight.

 

[Big Willie]

Actually, I don't think he is being used much different. I think he is now reacting instead of thinking. And I think the blocking has come together. The light seems to have come on with him and his blockers.

That's how I see it too. The blocking seems to be better, and Tavon is playing with more confidence. Also, the Rams are not having as many 3 and outs, which allows Shotty to call more plays and open up his playbook.

 

[Memphis Ram]

That's how I see it too. The blocking seems to be better, and Tavon is playing with more confidence. Also, the Rams are not having as many 3 and outs, which allows Shotty to call more plays and open up his playbook.

That may be a part of it, but you have to question how long it took for the fly sweep to come into play. And I don't recall those quick outs coming in a stack set until recently.

 

[Big Willie]

That may be a part of it, but you have to question how long it took for the fly sweep to come into play.

I question Shotty's calls every game....I am just trying to give him the benefit of the doubt.

 

[HE WITH HORNS]

Just need to throw him the deep ball once or twice a game, and then he will finally be used properly.

 

[WestCoastRam]

That may be a part of it, but you have to question how long it took for the fly sweep to come into play. And I don't recall those quick outs coming in a stack set until recently.

I do think that Schotty has suffered from paralysis of analysis at times. There was a time when we didn't have any offensive weapons and then we had a ton of mediocre weapons and then we had a ton of good weapons. I don't think it's a mistake that Schotty's best play-calling in each of the last two seasons have come when we've had injuries decimate his options in the offense. I think he gets too caught up in having a package for everyone. There's so much more of an identity to the offense right now. Britt and Tavon on the outside. Stedman in the slot. Tavon also runs reverses and fly sweeps. The TE's do what they've been doing. Tre is the top back and Cunningham 3rd down. It's very clean, it's very clear. Instead of being creative with so many different personel groupings, he's being creative with the players.