Yomar Posted August 30, 2002 Share Posted August 30, 2002 "You pretty much know they'll throw 70 percent of the time,'' Vrabel said. "That gives you pretty much a free run to rush the passer.'' See, this is where I think Spurrier may have held his cards a little closer to his chest than people think. I think in the regular season we will see a lot more of Stephen Davis than we have so far, he knows what Davis can do, he saw all the game tape from last year, and he ain't nobodies fool...the preseason was for evaluating who the QBs and WRs were going to be, we know who the RB is... It also illustrates the importance of protection that Mike Martz was quoted talking about on another thread... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baralufficus Posted August 30, 2002 Share Posted August 30, 2002 I couldn't agree more .... and to tell you the truth , I think the Cards will see a BIG dose of Davis early and often, just to throw off the defense ...And then we can see the ball chucked downfield with huge success...Against the Cards that is .....lol...But we will still beat the Eagles in week 2 ...2-0 would be GREAT >>..I hope , i hope ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeathByLinebacker Posted August 30, 2002 Share Posted August 30, 2002 Spurrier said in the post-game press conference that they would be more balanced and not try to pass it all the time in the regular season. He said the team wasn't good enough in it's protection to drop back and throw 50 times. I'm not sure what team is, but clearly he knows that running the ball is one way to slow down the pass rush. You would hope so at $5million a year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
codeorama Posted August 30, 2002 Share Posted August 30, 2002 Originally posted by Yomar "You pretty much know they'll throw 70 percent of the time,'' Vrabel said. "That gives you pretty much a free run to rush the passer.'' See, this is where I think Spurrier may have held his cards a little closer to his chest than people think. I think in the regular season we will see a lot more of Stephen Davis than we have so far, he knows what Davis can do, he saw all the game tape from last year, and he ain't nobodies fool...the preseason was for evaluating who the QBs and WRs were going to be, we know who the RB is... It also illustrates the importance of protection that Mike Martz was quoted talking about on another thread... You are right on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muskrat Posted August 30, 2002 Share Posted August 30, 2002 I have been telling the 'Skins critics at work the exact same thing...Stephen Davis can flat out run, we all know it..the question marks was QB and the starting WR's...THAT is what the preseason was being used to evaluate. Anyone who thinks Davis won't get his share of carries is delusional. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
One Dollar Posted August 30, 2002 Share Posted August 30, 2002 I think you guys are in a similar situation the Ravens were in when The won it all. They had this supposed mastermind offensive HC but won because of ball control and a strong defense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tommy-the-Greek Posted August 30, 2002 Share Posted August 30, 2002 He runs the ball 52% of the time when the real games start. That stat might be accurate in the first half and reverse it in the second half. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Art Posted August 30, 2002 Share Posted August 30, 2002 With our line as it was last night, I'd be surprised if we pass it at all in a real game. Samuels needs to get healthy in these 10 days and we need to prioritize a backup tackle of some ability as a need pick to guard against Samuels going down again. I don't think Coleman played his way off the team yesterday, but, he almost did if he didn't. When the games go live, Spurrier is going to do some things in the running game that will slow teams down. He's obviously thrown more in the preaseason than you'd expect in the regular season. Teams are in for a surprise if they think he's going to throw that much with a rookie left tackle and first year player at left guard once the bullets start really flying. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuckeyeSkins Posted August 30, 2002 Share Posted August 30, 2002 I have to agree with what's been mentioned in this post. IMHO I think the main reason SS has been doing much more passing then running is the fact that he KNOWS who his running back is and what that back is capable of doing. On the other hand, he has QB's and WR's some of whom he is familiar with but still needed to determine which of those players would perform the best. So let Vrabel and his counterparts think the ball is gonna be chucked 70 per cent of the time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarge Posted August 30, 2002 Share Posted August 30, 2002 Not much to add, here. Stephen Davis is gonna run a ton, and teams that plan for the pass only are in for long days. Sorry teams (like the Cardinals) are going to see even more of him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fansince62 Posted August 30, 2002 Share Posted August 30, 2002 fellas...fellas...last night was not encouraging, but a few pointers: 1) as I have stated in other threads, from my vantage point DW does not look to handle pressure well. granted preseason is short, but at this level and these speeds, he doesn't seem to have the physical gifts needed to address matters when things break down. SM simply looks to be more in control under pressure. 2) last night saw us starting a rookie at left tackle against the 1st team defense of the SB champs. the results were predictable. also, from what I saw, the backs are still missing blocks or getting run over. the middle of the line, for all the wanking, seems to be doing tolerably well. 3) as others have said, we will run a lot more in the regular season. 4) remember that this line has not worked as a complete unit once. it hasn't had time to gel. unfortunately that is going to have to happen during the regular season. my real worry is that the O has too many of these 3 and out misfires. did you see how many defensive players were sucking wind toward the end of the 2nd quarter and on into the 2nd half? is it possible that the potential for injuries also goes up if you're flat out tired? this alone, in my opinion, is goping to drive SOS to a more balanced attack. why is it that we can't execute the quick slant under blitzing conditions like the pats did so well last night? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisFul Posted August 30, 2002 Share Posted August 30, 2002 Originally posted by fansince62 fellas...fellas...last night was not encouraging, but a few pointers: 1) as I have stated in other threads, from my vantage point DW does not look to handle pressure well. granted preseason is short, but at this level and these speeds, he doesn't seem to have the physical gifts needed to address matters when things break down. SM simply looks to be more in control under pressure. Where are all the ppl that were throwing rocks at me when i dared suggest that DW didn't have the skills necessary to start in the NFL? That is looking more and more apparent: Shane gives the Skins the best chance to win. I see the Skins are having a whole lot of trouble on the OL. I dont know why this is, but it seems to be a league-wide epidemic. Picking up a capable guy is gonna be hard, there are a lot of teams looking to pick up guys to bolster their O Lines. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GatorMarc Posted August 30, 2002 Share Posted August 30, 2002 Opponents always seem to feel that Spurrier throws all of the time when the ratio really isn't too far from 50/50. As for Danny. I think he can get it done. My concern is at the O-Line. Danny can't make adjustments from the ground. He needs more than milliseconds to throw the ball. No QB will survive with such a line protecting him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuckeyeSkins Posted August 30, 2002 Share Posted August 30, 2002 I hope every team we play this year comes in with the attitude that SS is gonna chuck the ball 70 percent of the time. Then they can get a wake up call from Stephen Davis. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riggo-toni Posted August 30, 2002 Share Posted August 30, 2002 Originally posted by One Dollar I think you guys are in a similar situation the Ravens were in when The won it all. They had this supposed mastermind offensive HC but won because of ball control and a strong defense. I agree. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redman Posted August 30, 2002 Share Posted August 30, 2002 As much because they're weak on defense as because we need to do it, I see the Cards getting a big dose of Davis in the first half of the first game. Run blocking is less tricky than pass blocking for the o-line, barring more complex traps etc. That will allow us to gain some confidence and to force the Cards to adjust. And it's not like Stephen hasn't had some big success against them in the past. I also think that we're going to see reverses (we already have seen a few) and other misdirection plays like draws and screens to force the defense to make a read before rushing the QB. Spurrier's all but said that he has wrinkles in his offense that he hasn't shown during the preseason. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
g8wayg8r Posted August 30, 2002 Share Posted August 30, 2002 If the guys up front don't block, it doen't matter whether you try to run or pass. It's three and out. No running back or quarterback can succeed without their line taking control. We have backs and receivers that can run the HBC'c offense. I've got my fingers crossed that the line learns to play well enough together so three and out is a thing of the past. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yomar Posted August 30, 2002 Author Share Posted August 30, 2002 Originally posted by g8wayg8r If the guys up front don't block, it doen't matter whether you try to run or pass. It's three and out. No running back or quarterback can succeed without their line taking control. See, now that there is Fred Taylor talking...you ain't in Florida anymore Sunny Jim, Stephen Davis don't need no stinkin' blockin'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DougWilliams Posted August 30, 2002 Share Posted August 30, 2002 i doubt any qB would have done much better last night. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
g8wayg8r Posted August 31, 2002 Share Posted August 31, 2002 I was watching the Rams tonights and noticed how their O-line kept those nasty little red suckers at three yard away more than DW could even dream. Kurt had time to yawn, scratch himself and completed passes. Yet, something really amazing happened. On occasion, those little red f%^&$#% would be in his face and....and get this....he would throw an incomplete pass. Hard to imagine. Guess he didn't have enough confidence or a strong enough arm when that happened :laugh: IF THE LINE CAN'T DO THEIR JOB, NOBODY ELSE WILL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bulldog Posted August 31, 2002 Share Posted August 31, 2002 it's really amazing how a player that hasn't started but 6 or 7 games in 6 NFL seasons draws this much loyalty from fans out there. I just hope that some of you are really NFL and not just college football fans. Things are evaluated differently up here in the 'bigs' as they say The big Kahunas in their Greek togas don't always make it in the NFL even when they have the head coach in there pulling for them. The fact is that Wuerffel's moments came against second half 49er and Panther defenses. The Redskins didn't move the ball in either of his starts and he made the cardinal mistake of committing turnover after turnover last night. I think that is why Spurrier sent Wuerffel to the bench. Throw the ball out of bounds, take the sack, but don't fumble the ball in your own end of the field. Not 3 or 4 times. Realistically, looking at the quarterbacks in preseason, Matthews looked the most comfortable overall. Against both starters and backups Shane seemed to be the most consisent. He didn't have the half that Danny did in Japan in any of his appearances, but he didn't make that many glaring mistakes and when he did throw an interception he got up off the mat and continued competing. When pressured he rolled out of the pocket to buy time and hooked up with his short receivers and backs. He ran for a couple of first downs as well. Neither Wuerffel nor Rosenfels who was clearly the #3 this summer showed that kind of presence or leadership on the field. You see a guy like Matthews lose the starting job last summer in Chicago to Jim Miller because of a sprained knee in the second to last preseason game and you wonder whether Shane would have taken the Bears to the playoffs if he had been in there? We won't know. But we do know that he came off the bench to help the Bears to 3 of those 13 wins, twice with second half comebacks. One of those games he threw for 350 yards. Those might not be the makings of a Brett Favre-type resume but it sure beats the hell out of what Wuerffel and Rosenfels have shown they can do up here where they get paid to play the games :laugh: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Art Posted August 31, 2002 Share Posted August 31, 2002 I hate to break it to everyone, but, the starting offensive line was better on the whole in the preseason than Danny Wuerffel was. It was awful in the last preseason game, but as is clear, the cure to that is named Chris Samuels. Wuerffel didn't get benched because he was pressured a lot. He didn't really get benched at all since he never was the starting QB. Matthews was selected to start largely because Danny Wuerffel made poor decisions in executing Spurrier's offense against the Pats and despite pressure, which he could not control, he made errors that he could. He fumbled. He made bad throws. He didn't audible to the correct play. He held the ball too long. Spurrier saw these traits and saw Matthews continue to get stronger as the preseason wore on and he went with the guy who was more efficient in the offense on the whole, rather than the guy who was more efficient in Japan. It's pretty simple really. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
g8wayg8r Posted August 31, 2002 Share Posted August 31, 2002 Art All I could "see" of the game was the play-by-play on sportsline.com, so I can't comment on the things you said exept that it is a sure way to find yourself on the sideline if you are a QB for SOS. It sure "sounded" like the line was being manhandled. If that's true and it continues (which I can't beleive it will.....every game), swapping the QB may not be the answer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Art Posted August 31, 2002 Share Posted August 31, 2002 g8, The line was beaten pretty soundly by all accounts against the Pats. It wasn't beaten at all, at least the starting group, for four games, so that's encouraging. Wuerffel was under pressure. He didn't lose out on the starting job because he was pressured. Evidently in Spurrier's offense the QB has a certain responsibility in making play calls. One one sack I saw he had a few seconds in the pocket but didn't throw the ball to anyone. That's on him. On another sack, he stepped into the sacker instead of flushing away from pressure. That's on him. He fumbled three times. That's on him. He threw bad passes. That's on him. He didn't audible to the right play in the face of a blitz. That's on him. The offensive line, with a rookie left tackle and a first timer at left guard didn't block well. That's on them. Wuerffel isn't playing because HE messed up. The offensive line was in flux and didn't play well. If Samuels is in the lineup and we are giving up that much pressure on the QB blindside, we are going to be in trouble, but, last I checked, Samuels is in the lineup for us. Wuerffel lost out because he played very, very poorly against the Patriots. He played worse against the Patriots than any of our QBs have played the entire preseason. That'll get you on the bench here and Spurrier knows he was under more pressure than anyone else in this game. He also knows where Danny screwed himself out of the starting job, else he wouldn't have picked Matthews. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
g8wayg8r Posted September 1, 2002 Share Posted September 1, 2002 Bring on the red bellied birds. Can't wait for opening day :cool: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.