jismquiff
2006-09-20 22:27:09 UTC
ANYONE who STILL thinks Mark "Praise Jesus" Brunell has anything left
is simply lacking in perception and basic knowledge of the game! (This
of course applies also to The Ol' Washer Woman of a coach Skins fans
are stuck with, thanks to an equally football-stupid owner.) As for
your other limp-wristed yaps, any fool could see the team weaknesses
you rehash. Go back whence you came!
-----
is simply lacking in perception and basic knowledge of the game! (This
of course applies also to The Ol' Washer Woman of a coach Skins fans
are stuck with, thanks to an equally football-stupid owner.) As for
your other limp-wristed yaps, any fool could see the team weaknesses
you rehash. Go back whence you came!
-----
Imagine. Imagine, just once, that there's a reason for what you see, one
that's in the mind of Joe Gibbs. Can you do this?
that's in the mind of Joe Gibbs. Can you do this?
Are you ready for Carr's analysis? I'm sure I've been missed. I was out of
country and missed the first game. However, I did catch the Cowboys
game.Here's how I see it.
First, the defense is a big disappointment. They seem to be a bit
overconfident and undisciplined. It's like they think their past
performances mean that they are automatically a good defense. They are
aggressive, but that's not enough. They need to tackle better. They need
to work within their limitations and let the other guys help out as needed
(trust issues). I have confidence that it will turn around very quickly.
The offense, however, is in trouble. Like in their first year, they look
very confused. They seem to have little confidence and are playing
hesitantly. It looks like they might be thinking too much. Or maybe they
are placing too much confidence in the scheme and not aggressively trying
to win the individual battles. Whatever it is they don't have 100% of the
players playing at 100% on every play.
I think it was a mistake for the coaches to hold their cards close to
their vests during preseason. You can practice all you want, but the real
test is always game time. Everything is a little bit faster and much more
hectic in a game. Watching them play it's pretty clear there's a lot of
confusion out there. These kind of mistakes should have been worked out
before the first game. They cost you a lot more than giving other teams a
look at your offense (which they will get in the first few real games
anyway).
I think Gibbs has placed too much emphasis on not turning over the ball.
Brunell, as HeavyJumbo pointed out, has always been smart with his passes.
It's in his very nature to avoid the INT, which is why over his career
he's got one of the lowest INT rates ever. In fact his *career* INT rate
(2.3%) is better than most QBs have ever had in a single season. But when
you harp on an already conservative QB to be even more conservative, your
completion percentage goes down. Brunell seem hesitant to pull the
trigger. Combine this with poor pass protection and general confusion and
you've got a recipe for a disjointed offense.
Brunell can still throw the ball, though he made a few bad throws last
week. This is evidenced by the offensive play when they are trying to
stage a comeback (playoffs last year, last week against Dallas). He was
able to complete a lot of good passes. Yes, it was against a prevent-style
defense, but if it was his *arm* that was a problem, it wouldn't matter
what the defense was. When he and the rest of the offense play
aggressively, good things happen. Watch the passes by the Redskins versus
those by other teams. You see a lot more attempts (and thus
completions/INTs) into traffic. When Washington decides to pull out the
stops, all of a sudden they can move the ball. Go figure.
CCR has this crazy notion that Brunell's arm is weak and he cannot throw
the deep ball. Nonsense. If his arm was weak, he couldn't throw the
sideline patterns. Those are the dangerous passes with a weak arm. The
defender has the angle on the ball, so a weakly thrown ball will be easily
defensed. If a QB's arm is weak, he can still throw those deep balls the
30 to 50 required yards, it just may have a little more arc than the next
guy.
It is still way too early to consider switching QBs. If you want to bring
Campbell along, you do NOT do it when you're giving up six sacks in a
game. You do not do it when you cannot run the ball. You do not do it when
the entire offense is in disarray. Let Brunell suffer through that mess
until things start to turn around. Then, when the biggest problem is
Brunell, you put Campbell in the game. That's best for Campbell and the
team.
Cooley is a decent pass catcher, but I don't like his blocking. He prefers
to dance with a guy rather than push him out of the play entirely. Cooley
also has issues dealing with a blitz. In fact the hot reads are just not
working. This is something Thrash has always excelled at. Cooley and the
other guys need to get smarter since the best way to defend a blitz is a
completion to a hot read.
The line play is inconsistent. Period. Are they just not good enough or
are they slacking off?
What I want to see next week is an offense that is aggressive and not
worried about making mistakes. Right now I see a conservative offense that
*is* worried about making mistakes. You can't play football (or do
anything in life) if your emphasis is on *not* doing something. You don't
ski a slalom course worried about hitting a pole. You ski it to make the
turns correctly.
If Gibbs 2.0 has a bug, it's the emphasis on "not" doing something. No
mistakes. No turnovers. No penalties. Don't get behind. This team needs to
focus on playing hard and aggressive. When you're concentrating on doing
things right, the mistakes take care of themselves.
country and missed the first game. However, I did catch the Cowboys
game.Here's how I see it.
First, the defense is a big disappointment. They seem to be a bit
overconfident and undisciplined. It's like they think their past
performances mean that they are automatically a good defense. They are
aggressive, but that's not enough. They need to tackle better. They need
to work within their limitations and let the other guys help out as needed
(trust issues). I have confidence that it will turn around very quickly.
The offense, however, is in trouble. Like in their first year, they look
very confused. They seem to have little confidence and are playing
hesitantly. It looks like they might be thinking too much. Or maybe they
are placing too much confidence in the scheme and not aggressively trying
to win the individual battles. Whatever it is they don't have 100% of the
players playing at 100% on every play.
I think it was a mistake for the coaches to hold their cards close to
their vests during preseason. You can practice all you want, but the real
test is always game time. Everything is a little bit faster and much more
hectic in a game. Watching them play it's pretty clear there's a lot of
confusion out there. These kind of mistakes should have been worked out
before the first game. They cost you a lot more than giving other teams a
look at your offense (which they will get in the first few real games
anyway).
I think Gibbs has placed too much emphasis on not turning over the ball.
Brunell, as HeavyJumbo pointed out, has always been smart with his passes.
It's in his very nature to avoid the INT, which is why over his career
he's got one of the lowest INT rates ever. In fact his *career* INT rate
(2.3%) is better than most QBs have ever had in a single season. But when
you harp on an already conservative QB to be even more conservative, your
completion percentage goes down. Brunell seem hesitant to pull the
trigger. Combine this with poor pass protection and general confusion and
you've got a recipe for a disjointed offense.
Brunell can still throw the ball, though he made a few bad throws last
week. This is evidenced by the offensive play when they are trying to
stage a comeback (playoffs last year, last week against Dallas). He was
able to complete a lot of good passes. Yes, it was against a prevent-style
defense, but if it was his *arm* that was a problem, it wouldn't matter
what the defense was. When he and the rest of the offense play
aggressively, good things happen. Watch the passes by the Redskins versus
those by other teams. You see a lot more attempts (and thus
completions/INTs) into traffic. When Washington decides to pull out the
stops, all of a sudden they can move the ball. Go figure.
CCR has this crazy notion that Brunell's arm is weak and he cannot throw
the deep ball. Nonsense. If his arm was weak, he couldn't throw the
sideline patterns. Those are the dangerous passes with a weak arm. The
defender has the angle on the ball, so a weakly thrown ball will be easily
defensed. If a QB's arm is weak, he can still throw those deep balls the
30 to 50 required yards, it just may have a little more arc than the next
guy.
It is still way too early to consider switching QBs. If you want to bring
Campbell along, you do NOT do it when you're giving up six sacks in a
game. You do not do it when you cannot run the ball. You do not do it when
the entire offense is in disarray. Let Brunell suffer through that mess
until things start to turn around. Then, when the biggest problem is
Brunell, you put Campbell in the game. That's best for Campbell and the
team.
Cooley is a decent pass catcher, but I don't like his blocking. He prefers
to dance with a guy rather than push him out of the play entirely. Cooley
also has issues dealing with a blitz. In fact the hot reads are just not
working. This is something Thrash has always excelled at. Cooley and the
other guys need to get smarter since the best way to defend a blitz is a
completion to a hot read.
The line play is inconsistent. Period. Are they just not good enough or
are they slacking off?
What I want to see next week is an offense that is aggressive and not
worried about making mistakes. Right now I see a conservative offense that
*is* worried about making mistakes. You can't play football (or do
anything in life) if your emphasis is on *not* doing something. You don't
ski a slalom course worried about hitting a pole. You ski it to make the
turns correctly.
If Gibbs 2.0 has a bug, it's the emphasis on "not" doing something. No
mistakes. No turnovers. No penalties. Don't get behind. This team needs to
focus on playing hard and aggressive. When you're concentrating on doing
things right, the mistakes take care of themselves.