HighSeas
Sophomore
- Joined
- Feb 4, 2013
- Messages
- 4,828
I planned on doing this the day after the game but the experience was too frustrating so I put it off until now. I broke down the offense and took notes particularly on the plays that failed - to assign blame appropriately. Instead of typing up those notes almost 2 weeks after the fact I figured I'd try to project what it all means for the rest of the season.
I think Enos proved he's a high-level OC but he will need to continue to adjust to the personnel given. The scripted first drive with the motion and quick-game was gorgeous until Jarren failed to deliver the ball to Harley on 2nd down in the red zone. Enos' use of formations will give most defenses fits but UF was a tough matchup because they stay firm with essentially a 5-man front and zone on the back-end. There aren't a lot of ways to exploit that scheme tactically without better protection up front. Some of the run concepts Enos showed will bear major fruit throughout the year. My favorites are the speed triple option shovel play (busted because of a botched pickup on UF stunt) and the G-lead toss pitch play that we ran twice in 3 plays out of different formations. The infamous Enos screen plays were hit or miss but that had more to do with execution than design. It's clear particularly from watching the 1st half that Enos understands design in terms of using alignment and personnel to create advantages.
Enos can improve in a few areas. One is running fewer Richtian spread isolation route concepts with slow developing routes and no checkdowns. This was admittedly a small percentage of overall passes and there was some integration with most of the concepts but these plays stress the protection and QB greatly. Speaking of which, we all know and expected the OL to be a weakness so perhaps it'd be wise to not leave 60 alone on an island several times like he's Joe Thomas? On obvious passing downs we shouldn't be seeing formations with the back and TE both to the boundary. Our Tackles can use all the help they can get. Also I'm not a fan of those play action pass plays where the OL sets like they're run blocking. Both times that scheme was run 60 was stuck in cement and never got out of his stance. He's too inexperienced to have multiple protection schemes thrown at him and it's no coincidence he froze on those plays. The last thing is the Martell usage. He was pretty successful as a decoy and noticeably drew eyes whenever he ran in motion. But he shouldn't be taking snaps as a slot running routes with the depth we have. And please stop using Osborn as the jet sweep guy - I like Osborn as a route runner but we have much better runners/playmakers.
OK onto the players:
15 will need to more decisive getting the ball out, tucking and running or throwing it away. There were a couple throws he missed because he didn't anticipate them. He sailed one ball when his weight distribution was poor. I believe in his talent and I think he will learn to manage the pocket better. I like the flashes he showed of being able to throw off-platform. I don't know if he will ever be a true anticipatory thrower but that won't hold him back from being great.
4 needed to do a better job of selling the inside break on his crucial "drop" in the endzone. He telegraphed the outbreak early on in his route and #1 already had outside leverage and was sitting on it. Route running is gonna be a sink or swim skill for JT at the next level.
9 was horrendous as a run blocker and missed assignments in every way possible. It's a technique issue with him as he can pass protect just fine. 85 was even worse and he struggles with dropping his weight and getting physical. He also almost caused a pick late in the game when he rounded his crossing route instead of flattening toward the ball to shield the defender. I always said I liked him as a vertical and jump ball threat but that's where his utility ends.
On the OL I was pleased with the performance of 65 who I was never a big fan of. He had his lapses in protection but was solid getting push in the run game. The other interior guys were also mostly good in the run game but tapered off overall in the 2nd half. 55 killed a couple plays in a row by getting bullrushed into the backfield and 51 had some struggles with leverage tilting his weight on his outside foot. 60 and 74 both showed flashes of pass protection skill but their sets are wildly inconsistent. 60 needs to get depth in his kickslide but he quick sets far too often causing him to open the gate with his back to the sideline and footwork all over the place. At least his issues are technique/mental as he actually handled the physicality part quite well consider his youth and lack of size. 74 is better at getting depth in his set but sometimes takes a poor landmark or uses poor hand timing/placement. Of the 2 I trust 74 more because his sets are more reliable and he gets out of his stance at least. He's impressive in the run game too with his ability to drop his big frame and sustain blocks.
Moving forward I think the OL will have a lot of success running the ball because the interior gets good push and executes deuce blocks, our backs are terrific and Enos can design good schemes out of a variety of formations. I'd like to see us use 60's mobility at some point assuming he maintains the job. I'd personally look for a replacement until he corrects his technical issues but I don't know where that would come from. Sliding 51 out to tackle wouldn't completely solve the edge rush problem and it would harm the run game potential. Perhaps the better solution is to provide more help on the edges and give more 'easy answer' checkdowns to Jarren on some of these pass concepts. I'd like to see a drag route that's not part of a mesh concept, for example, as mesh is too slow to develop. We almost gave up a safety on that play.
In the pass game obviously 9 will continue to be featured and 2 was open a lot as well. Hopefully someone else steps up and starts running decent routes because this scheme requires it above all else (speed, size, etc. are secondary). The screen game should be very explosive against mentally and physically tired defenses. Dallas is the total package and Harris is powerful with great contact balance and competitive toughness.
Not sure what else needs to be said but questions & comments are always welcome! Oh yeah we should roll over UNC btw. Any defense that doesn't have big roided-up slippery snap-count-timing Senior DEs and big gumby-armed corners should get steamrolled by this offense.
I think Enos proved he's a high-level OC but he will need to continue to adjust to the personnel given. The scripted first drive with the motion and quick-game was gorgeous until Jarren failed to deliver the ball to Harley on 2nd down in the red zone. Enos' use of formations will give most defenses fits but UF was a tough matchup because they stay firm with essentially a 5-man front and zone on the back-end. There aren't a lot of ways to exploit that scheme tactically without better protection up front. Some of the run concepts Enos showed will bear major fruit throughout the year. My favorites are the speed triple option shovel play (busted because of a botched pickup on UF stunt) and the G-lead toss pitch play that we ran twice in 3 plays out of different formations. The infamous Enos screen plays were hit or miss but that had more to do with execution than design. It's clear particularly from watching the 1st half that Enos understands design in terms of using alignment and personnel to create advantages.
Enos can improve in a few areas. One is running fewer Richtian spread isolation route concepts with slow developing routes and no checkdowns. This was admittedly a small percentage of overall passes and there was some integration with most of the concepts but these plays stress the protection and QB greatly. Speaking of which, we all know and expected the OL to be a weakness so perhaps it'd be wise to not leave 60 alone on an island several times like he's Joe Thomas? On obvious passing downs we shouldn't be seeing formations with the back and TE both to the boundary. Our Tackles can use all the help they can get. Also I'm not a fan of those play action pass plays where the OL sets like they're run blocking. Both times that scheme was run 60 was stuck in cement and never got out of his stance. He's too inexperienced to have multiple protection schemes thrown at him and it's no coincidence he froze on those plays. The last thing is the Martell usage. He was pretty successful as a decoy and noticeably drew eyes whenever he ran in motion. But he shouldn't be taking snaps as a slot running routes with the depth we have. And please stop using Osborn as the jet sweep guy - I like Osborn as a route runner but we have much better runners/playmakers.
OK onto the players:
15 will need to more decisive getting the ball out, tucking and running or throwing it away. There were a couple throws he missed because he didn't anticipate them. He sailed one ball when his weight distribution was poor. I believe in his talent and I think he will learn to manage the pocket better. I like the flashes he showed of being able to throw off-platform. I don't know if he will ever be a true anticipatory thrower but that won't hold him back from being great.
4 needed to do a better job of selling the inside break on his crucial "drop" in the endzone. He telegraphed the outbreak early on in his route and #1 already had outside leverage and was sitting on it. Route running is gonna be a sink or swim skill for JT at the next level.
9 was horrendous as a run blocker and missed assignments in every way possible. It's a technique issue with him as he can pass protect just fine. 85 was even worse and he struggles with dropping his weight and getting physical. He also almost caused a pick late in the game when he rounded his crossing route instead of flattening toward the ball to shield the defender. I always said I liked him as a vertical and jump ball threat but that's where his utility ends.
On the OL I was pleased with the performance of 65 who I was never a big fan of. He had his lapses in protection but was solid getting push in the run game. The other interior guys were also mostly good in the run game but tapered off overall in the 2nd half. 55 killed a couple plays in a row by getting bullrushed into the backfield and 51 had some struggles with leverage tilting his weight on his outside foot. 60 and 74 both showed flashes of pass protection skill but their sets are wildly inconsistent. 60 needs to get depth in his kickslide but he quick sets far too often causing him to open the gate with his back to the sideline and footwork all over the place. At least his issues are technique/mental as he actually handled the physicality part quite well consider his youth and lack of size. 74 is better at getting depth in his set but sometimes takes a poor landmark or uses poor hand timing/placement. Of the 2 I trust 74 more because his sets are more reliable and he gets out of his stance at least. He's impressive in the run game too with his ability to drop his big frame and sustain blocks.
Moving forward I think the OL will have a lot of success running the ball because the interior gets good push and executes deuce blocks, our backs are terrific and Enos can design good schemes out of a variety of formations. I'd like to see us use 60's mobility at some point assuming he maintains the job. I'd personally look for a replacement until he corrects his technical issues but I don't know where that would come from. Sliding 51 out to tackle wouldn't completely solve the edge rush problem and it would harm the run game potential. Perhaps the better solution is to provide more help on the edges and give more 'easy answer' checkdowns to Jarren on some of these pass concepts. I'd like to see a drag route that's not part of a mesh concept, for example, as mesh is too slow to develop. We almost gave up a safety on that play.
In the pass game obviously 9 will continue to be featured and 2 was open a lot as well. Hopefully someone else steps up and starts running decent routes because this scheme requires it above all else (speed, size, etc. are secondary). The screen game should be very explosive against mentally and physically tired defenses. Dallas is the total package and Harris is powerful with great contact balance and competitive toughness.
Not sure what else needs to be said but questions & comments are always welcome! Oh yeah we should roll over UNC btw. Any defense that doesn't have big roided-up slippery snap-count-timing Senior DEs and big gumby-armed corners should get steamrolled by this offense.
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