Two games in and I have seen some signs of encouragement from this team:
• The offense is running about 20 more plays a game than what was averaged last year
• Rudock has shown good mobility and can make a play with his feet
• Weisman is a tank that can get some tough yards and can handle 20 plus carries a game
• The linebacker play has been really good – particulary Hitchens
• Blitzing the QB is happening more often and with positive results
Despite the positives so far, it is not hard to identify the major weaknesses of this team:
• No pass rush whatsoever from the front 4
• Secondary is getting beat deep badly on a frequent basis
• Inability to sustain drives
• Receiver play has been very poor with multiple drops and continued problems getting separation
• Penalties and special teams play have been big concerns
Breaking it down further, my major frustrations are concentrated in 2 areas:
Play-calling:
• In the Northern Illinois game - 3 times the Hawks faced a 3rd and less than 3 and all three times the call was for a pass that fell incomplete and resulted in a punt. If Weisman is our best player and the O-Line is considered a strong point, then pound the ball, pick up crucial first downs and keep drives alive.
• The bubble screen has not worked since McNutt left, so stop calling a play that doesn’t work.
• Stop throwing dangerous out patterns that require the QB to throw the ball 10-20 yards to only pick up 4-8 total yards – this pass is the easiest for a DB to read as well as intercept, and yet it remains a staple in the Greg Davis inept playbook.
Personnel decisions:
• Powell needs to be utilized more – if the kid is only on the field for 3 plays a game it is pretty easy for the opposing team to key on him when he is on the field – none of the other receivers can create any separation, so this kid needs to be on the field a lot more to at least keep the safeties from playing in the box the whole game.
• Shumpert is stonehands from the movie Necessary Roughness – don’t throw the ball to stonehands – I don’t know how this guy continues to start and get the majority of playing time when he consistently drops more passes than he catches.
• CJ Fed is a weapon that needs to be targeted at least 6 times a game. Jon Miller has commented multiple times about being dumbfounded that he is not being targeted more often. The touchdown he caught in the opener is a perfect example of how to use this guy – put him in the middle of the field and let him box out or out jump his defender for the ball.
• I still think that Canzeri is most explosive option at running back that we have, and he is being vastly under-utilized. I like Weisman a lot to wear down the defense and get the tough yards, but he just doesn’t have the speed to break long runs. I think that Canzeri is a much better change of pace back to Weisman’s style than Bullock, and I think that Canzeri has more burst and more ability to make a defender miss in the open field. The coaches could use Canzeri as a screen option and as a 3rd down back very effectively if he is given the chance to make some plays. Ferentz tends to give running backs an entire series and then they are out – mix it up and use different RB’s based on the down and distance.
• The offense is running about 20 more plays a game than what was averaged last year
• Rudock has shown good mobility and can make a play with his feet
• Weisman is a tank that can get some tough yards and can handle 20 plus carries a game
• The linebacker play has been really good – particulary Hitchens
• Blitzing the QB is happening more often and with positive results
Despite the positives so far, it is not hard to identify the major weaknesses of this team:
• No pass rush whatsoever from the front 4
• Secondary is getting beat deep badly on a frequent basis
• Inability to sustain drives
• Receiver play has been very poor with multiple drops and continued problems getting separation
• Penalties and special teams play have been big concerns
Breaking it down further, my major frustrations are concentrated in 2 areas:
Play-calling:
• In the Northern Illinois game - 3 times the Hawks faced a 3rd and less than 3 and all three times the call was for a pass that fell incomplete and resulted in a punt. If Weisman is our best player and the O-Line is considered a strong point, then pound the ball, pick up crucial first downs and keep drives alive.
• The bubble screen has not worked since McNutt left, so stop calling a play that doesn’t work.
• Stop throwing dangerous out patterns that require the QB to throw the ball 10-20 yards to only pick up 4-8 total yards – this pass is the easiest for a DB to read as well as intercept, and yet it remains a staple in the Greg Davis inept playbook.
Personnel decisions:
• Powell needs to be utilized more – if the kid is only on the field for 3 plays a game it is pretty easy for the opposing team to key on him when he is on the field – none of the other receivers can create any separation, so this kid needs to be on the field a lot more to at least keep the safeties from playing in the box the whole game.
• Shumpert is stonehands from the movie Necessary Roughness – don’t throw the ball to stonehands – I don’t know how this guy continues to start and get the majority of playing time when he consistently drops more passes than he catches.
• CJ Fed is a weapon that needs to be targeted at least 6 times a game. Jon Miller has commented multiple times about being dumbfounded that he is not being targeted more often. The touchdown he caught in the opener is a perfect example of how to use this guy – put him in the middle of the field and let him box out or out jump his defender for the ball.
• I still think that Canzeri is most explosive option at running back that we have, and he is being vastly under-utilized. I like Weisman a lot to wear down the defense and get the tough yards, but he just doesn’t have the speed to break long runs. I think that Canzeri is a much better change of pace back to Weisman’s style than Bullock, and I think that Canzeri has more burst and more ability to make a defender miss in the open field. The coaches could use Canzeri as a screen option and as a 3rd down back very effectively if he is given the chance to make some plays. Ferentz tends to give running backs an entire series and then they are out – mix it up and use different RB’s based on the down and distance.
