Day 11: In-depth Offense Report
Posted: Sat Apr 05, 2008 3:56 pm
The Florida offense came out a bit sluggish on Saturday morning, but eventually turned it on near the end of a two-hour scrimmage. The defense took a commanding lead during the early portions but the offense continued to fight and lost the head-to-head match-up by a close margin.
QUARTERBACKS: Tim Tebow, Cameron Newton, John Brantley
What I liked: Tebow threw the deep ball very well today. Friday it was John Brantley who developed a connection with Deonte Thompson, but Saturday was the Tebow-Thompson show through the air. They connected for two touchdowns of over 40 yards, and it would have been three if Thompson had caught a ball that hit him in the hands. Brantley surprises me with how comfortable he is in the pocket. The defensive line made their presence felt at times today, specifically when Matt Patchan broke into the backfield and pushed Brantley down, but every time Brantley took a snap he stood in the pocket relaxed and made smart throws. I only remember one interception on the day, and that was on a tipped pass from Tebow that Wondy Pierre-Louis came down with.
What I didn’t like: The quarterbacks left their receivers hanging out to dry too much today. Cornelius Ingram got blown up twice when going for passes out of his reach. Tate Casey also got destroyed by Jamar Hornsby again and Aaron Hernandez got his helmet knocked off. All three instances came because the quarterbacks threw ugly footballs out of the reach of their receivers.
RUNNING BACKS: Kestahn Moore, Chris Rainey, Mon Williams, Emmanuel Moody, Brandon James.
What I liked: After Friday I posed the question as to why Mon Williams wasn’t getting multiple touches. Saturday the question was answered. Williams got plenty of snaps, mostly with the second team, but the running back depth chart is extremely fluid and the one I listed is my best guess based on what we saw Saturday. Williams does everything you want a running back to with the ball in his hands. He stays low and is strong enough to move the pile by himself. The offense started one drive from their one-yard line and was challenged to pick up a first down. Williams picked up the first down for the offense by himself, taking the ball three straight times and carrying as many defenders as necessary to get there. Brandon James keeps getting more use in the passing game and it’s working well. He can obviously catch the ball since he returns punts and kicks and he’s showing that he can catch passes just as well. Moody didn’t break any huge runs today, but he’s running tougher if nothing else. Chris Rainey impressed again. When he gets the ball on a sweep play to the outside, it’s almost a guaranteed ten yards if the blocking is there, because no one can get to him in time. He’s won’t be a short yardage back, but today on third and one he ran through a Dustin Doe tackle to pick up the first down, sending Tebow and the offense into a frenzy over their speed back playing big.
What I didn’t like: In the drills where the offense started from their one-yard line, Brandon James took a handoff and ran backwards before picking up a yard. He is lucky Joe Haden missed a tackle, or else he would have been tackled for a safety. He’s got to be smarter, although I doubt he would get a carry in that situation during the fall. Moody also dropped another option pitch although it was thrown to the wrong shoulder. I’ve seen him do that multiple times this spring, and it’s evident he’s never run in any offense similar to the one Florida runs.
WIDE RECEIVERS: Deonte Thompson, David Nelson, Carl Moore, Justin Williams, Butch Rowley
TIGHT ENDS: Cornelius Ingram, Aaron Hernandez, Tate Casey
What I liked: Deonte Thompson looked outstanding today, outside of his one drop in the end zone. After the drop, the coaches called the same play, a play action bomb to him on a fly pattern, and he got redemption with the catch. The big drop drew a negative reaction out of Percy Harvin and Louis Murphy, who both didn’t participate, and they both spent time talking with their younger receiver. I’m a big fan of seeing some of the veterans of this team spending time with the younger guys. Carl Moore was the only receiver who made an impact Saturday. I like everything about Moore. He looks to be a receiver that can go over the middle without fear of contact. He makes all the catches in traffic and is focused on the football until it’s in his hands. The two tight end set was used in a few series on Saturday. One play had Ingram on the right side of the line and Hernandez on the left. Tebow faked the hand off, rolled to his right where he had Ingram running an out pattern and Hernandez running the same pattern a few yards behind Ingram. The play gives Tebow two options, and Hernandez just happened to be the open man on this play. Hernandez is so tough for anyone to tackle. Cornerbacks go up against him and stay low, which they should, but he just spins out of their tackles and continues up the field. It takes at least two guys to bring him down.
What I didn’t like: The drop by Thompson in the end zone is an obvious here, but he learned from it so it’s no big deal. Ingram also had a few drops today or times when he didn’t go hard after the football, but I honestly can’t blame him. It looked like the secondary got into his head a little bit, and he was scared to attack the football after being hit so many times.
OFFENSIVE LINE: T Phil Trautwein, Kyle Newell; G Mike Pouncey, Jim Barrie; C Maurkice Pouncey, Corey Hobbs; G Carl Johnson, James Wilson; T Jason Watkins, Marcus Gilbert.
What I liked: Injuries to Mike Pouncey and Carl Johnson took them off the field for a portion of the practice. What I did like about the situation was seeing guys step up when they are given an opportunity. I’ve said over the past few days how Jim Barrie was stepping up, and now he gets a chance to work with first team because of injuries. James Wilson still looks good when he gets on the field. If you watch him during plays you wouldn’t think he’s taking it easy on his knees right now because he just goes after people. Jason Watkins is going to have a big time season. Physically he looks like an NFL lineman already, and he’s well on his way to making his play the same level. The interior of the line looked good today, despite just about zero chemistry. Barrie, Pouncey and Wilson haven’t played together much, if at all, so some of the slip-ups were based on chemistry alone.
What I didn’t like: There were about four false starts called on the offensive line. The injuries are also a big negative for this group, but none of them will affect the fall. Once Maurice Hurt and Jim Tartt get back into practices, the depth issues should disappear.
PLAYER OF THE DAY: It’s a tossup between Mon Williams and Deonte Thompson, but I’m going Thompson. His vertical speed is going to make up for what Bubba Caldwell gave this offense last year, and should open up plenty of room for Percy Harvin to do what he does best.
QUARTERBACKS: Tim Tebow, Cameron Newton, John Brantley
What I liked: Tebow threw the deep ball very well today. Friday it was John Brantley who developed a connection with Deonte Thompson, but Saturday was the Tebow-Thompson show through the air. They connected for two touchdowns of over 40 yards, and it would have been three if Thompson had caught a ball that hit him in the hands. Brantley surprises me with how comfortable he is in the pocket. The defensive line made their presence felt at times today, specifically when Matt Patchan broke into the backfield and pushed Brantley down, but every time Brantley took a snap he stood in the pocket relaxed and made smart throws. I only remember one interception on the day, and that was on a tipped pass from Tebow that Wondy Pierre-Louis came down with.
What I didn’t like: The quarterbacks left their receivers hanging out to dry too much today. Cornelius Ingram got blown up twice when going for passes out of his reach. Tate Casey also got destroyed by Jamar Hornsby again and Aaron Hernandez got his helmet knocked off. All three instances came because the quarterbacks threw ugly footballs out of the reach of their receivers.
RUNNING BACKS: Kestahn Moore, Chris Rainey, Mon Williams, Emmanuel Moody, Brandon James.
What I liked: After Friday I posed the question as to why Mon Williams wasn’t getting multiple touches. Saturday the question was answered. Williams got plenty of snaps, mostly with the second team, but the running back depth chart is extremely fluid and the one I listed is my best guess based on what we saw Saturday. Williams does everything you want a running back to with the ball in his hands. He stays low and is strong enough to move the pile by himself. The offense started one drive from their one-yard line and was challenged to pick up a first down. Williams picked up the first down for the offense by himself, taking the ball three straight times and carrying as many defenders as necessary to get there. Brandon James keeps getting more use in the passing game and it’s working well. He can obviously catch the ball since he returns punts and kicks and he’s showing that he can catch passes just as well. Moody didn’t break any huge runs today, but he’s running tougher if nothing else. Chris Rainey impressed again. When he gets the ball on a sweep play to the outside, it’s almost a guaranteed ten yards if the blocking is there, because no one can get to him in time. He’s won’t be a short yardage back, but today on third and one he ran through a Dustin Doe tackle to pick up the first down, sending Tebow and the offense into a frenzy over their speed back playing big.
What I didn’t like: In the drills where the offense started from their one-yard line, Brandon James took a handoff and ran backwards before picking up a yard. He is lucky Joe Haden missed a tackle, or else he would have been tackled for a safety. He’s got to be smarter, although I doubt he would get a carry in that situation during the fall. Moody also dropped another option pitch although it was thrown to the wrong shoulder. I’ve seen him do that multiple times this spring, and it’s evident he’s never run in any offense similar to the one Florida runs.
WIDE RECEIVERS: Deonte Thompson, David Nelson, Carl Moore, Justin Williams, Butch Rowley
TIGHT ENDS: Cornelius Ingram, Aaron Hernandez, Tate Casey
What I liked: Deonte Thompson looked outstanding today, outside of his one drop in the end zone. After the drop, the coaches called the same play, a play action bomb to him on a fly pattern, and he got redemption with the catch. The big drop drew a negative reaction out of Percy Harvin and Louis Murphy, who both didn’t participate, and they both spent time talking with their younger receiver. I’m a big fan of seeing some of the veterans of this team spending time with the younger guys. Carl Moore was the only receiver who made an impact Saturday. I like everything about Moore. He looks to be a receiver that can go over the middle without fear of contact. He makes all the catches in traffic and is focused on the football until it’s in his hands. The two tight end set was used in a few series on Saturday. One play had Ingram on the right side of the line and Hernandez on the left. Tebow faked the hand off, rolled to his right where he had Ingram running an out pattern and Hernandez running the same pattern a few yards behind Ingram. The play gives Tebow two options, and Hernandez just happened to be the open man on this play. Hernandez is so tough for anyone to tackle. Cornerbacks go up against him and stay low, which they should, but he just spins out of their tackles and continues up the field. It takes at least two guys to bring him down.
What I didn’t like: The drop by Thompson in the end zone is an obvious here, but he learned from it so it’s no big deal. Ingram also had a few drops today or times when he didn’t go hard after the football, but I honestly can’t blame him. It looked like the secondary got into his head a little bit, and he was scared to attack the football after being hit so many times.
OFFENSIVE LINE: T Phil Trautwein, Kyle Newell; G Mike Pouncey, Jim Barrie; C Maurkice Pouncey, Corey Hobbs; G Carl Johnson, James Wilson; T Jason Watkins, Marcus Gilbert.
What I liked: Injuries to Mike Pouncey and Carl Johnson took them off the field for a portion of the practice. What I did like about the situation was seeing guys step up when they are given an opportunity. I’ve said over the past few days how Jim Barrie was stepping up, and now he gets a chance to work with first team because of injuries. James Wilson still looks good when he gets on the field. If you watch him during plays you wouldn’t think he’s taking it easy on his knees right now because he just goes after people. Jason Watkins is going to have a big time season. Physically he looks like an NFL lineman already, and he’s well on his way to making his play the same level. The interior of the line looked good today, despite just about zero chemistry. Barrie, Pouncey and Wilson haven’t played together much, if at all, so some of the slip-ups were based on chemistry alone.
What I didn’t like: There were about four false starts called on the offensive line. The injuries are also a big negative for this group, but none of them will affect the fall. Once Maurice Hurt and Jim Tartt get back into practices, the depth issues should disappear.
PLAYER OF THE DAY: It’s a tossup between Mon Williams and Deonte Thompson, but I’m going Thompson. His vertical speed is going to make up for what Bubba Caldwell gave this offense last year, and should open up plenty of room for Percy Harvin to do what he does best.