If you watched the BTN coverage of practice you heard Beathard talk about some missed opportunities last year. The big play numbers wouldn't have been as bad had they capitalized on what was available. A couple were missed throws, but Jake had a lot of opportunities down the field that he didn't even see or he hesitated too long and then checked it down.
Now, please don't misconstrue what I'm saying. I'm not saying Ferentz or Davis are keen on taking chances. Obviously it's still a conservative offensive mentality and I expect it to be the same this year. However, I do believe they opened it up more last year than most people are giving them credit for. It was just painful because it became a combination of the Ferentz conservative philosophy and Rudock's tendency to check it down and play it safe. That combination is a big part of what paralyzed the deep threat of the offense.