Besides the new words in my vocabulary and the basic concepts of football, there were two things I learned clearly from those early days of playing the game.
One: Winning is one of the most addictive highs in all the world.
Two: Losing absolutely, positively, completely, utterly and totally sucks.
Naturally, it sucks even worse when your livelihood depends on how well you play or coach a game. Still worse when you lose to someone you really wanted to beat. That’s why I’m sure the coaches and players are very down in the face of this past Sunday’s loss.
Time to begin the post mortem…
OFFENSE
Still overall a good show, arguably better than the defense this outing, but with an issue or two. Starting with…
THE BIG UGLYS
Great job helping keep Cam Newton upright and protected. The mostly old, somewhat new combo has begun to gel somewhat and the pass game is in a better position to succeed for it. The team handled the Bears pass rush – and especially Julius Peppers – pretty well.
Run blocking is still an issue though, and maybe it will be all year. Honestly, given that the O-Line coach was the coach for the unit in front of the Greatest Show on Turf, maybe that discrepancy shouldn’t be all that big a surprise. I imagine that'll be an emphasis in upcoming practices. Hopefully it produces results.
Unfortunately, a few errors and penalties too. And of course there was the weird "did not report' penalty on Travelle Wharton that negated our lone Wildcat play. For the uninitiated, yes that is a rule, and in there at least in part because some teams run "tackle eligible" formations. Doubt you'll see that happen again.
A quick mention to honorary Big Ugly jeremy Shockey, who looked good handling Julius Peppers one on one :thumbsup:
NEWTON
Cam Newton’s second outing against a cover two type scheme looked better than his first. That’s good, because it means he’s learning. Other than that, not a lot of new ground to cover out of this game. The good is still the good (incredible field vision, rocket launcher arm, run threat that must be accounted for) and the concerns are still the concerns (ball placement, jump passes and arm throws, issues in the Red Zone). Rather than rehashing those things, I want to take a look at a few particular game moments that were memorable from this past Sunday.
First and foremost, the interception. While acknowledging that a tipped ball can’t really be considered all the quarterback’s fault, Fox announcers Billick and Brennaman panned both Newton’s throw and his decision making.
Me? I have no problem with either.
Was it a risky throw? Yes, but that’s what gunslingers do. It also could have been a successful throw had Legedu Naanee just had a little better control. Naanee was between two defenders, so the decision to throw the ball high was the right call. That’s the luxury that a tall receiver is supposed to give you, the ability to throw high and let him outjump everyone. Unfortunately, that just didn’t work out in this case.
Regardless, if I’m a coach reviewing film with him, I tell him “good job” on that throw, and I have no problem if he does the same thing the next time.
The second moment was actually a couple of moments. Specifically, those times when a Bear defensive lineman got a hand on Newton. For a lot of quarterbacks, that hand on the shoulder, arm or whatever either alters their throw, upsets their balance or brings them down altogether. Not Newton. He shrugged them off like they were nothing.
Now everyone will see that and say, “Well, he’s big”. Granted, that’s the primary thing, but what it also shows is a growth in pocket presence and pocket awareness. Those proverbial hands make a fair number of quarterbacks panic a little. At no point did I see Newton look panicky. So while he may yet be seeing “twelve men on the field” he’s getting better at not letting those men affect what he needs to do.
Moment number three was in a similar vein. There was a point - ironically enough in the third if I remember correctly - where someone in the receiving corps lined up in the wrong spot. Newton got his attention and directed him to where he was supposed to line up. I pointed to the screen and excitedly said to my game watching buddy "that’s the kind of thing I want to see."
Newton was able to direct traffic because he understood the play they were running. As the season has rolled on, I’ve seen him doing more and more pre-snap stuff, and that to me is a very positive sign that the offensive concepts are coalescing in his head. Does he have it all down? Likely not yet, but not bad for a rookie from a spread offense in only his fourth pro game.
The final moment? The post-game moment that has drawn its fair share of press attention. Folks may want to seize on this as a sign that his immaturity is coming out. Speaking as someone who played sports from youth on though, I can tell you that this kind of thing happens, and is quickly forgotten.
I’ve seen many teammates jaw at each other far worse than what Newton supposedly said (still not buying that) to Greg Olsen. Said teammates were back lining up next to each other during the following practice. They say winning cures all ills, but the truth is that practicing together toward a common goal cures a good number of them as well.
I'll probably get kidded for sounding like a bit of a homer in this analysis, but make no mistake, the grouchy old man still lives here and he'll be back soon enough (maybe even next week)
RUNNINGBACKS
The re-emergence of DeAngelo Williams? I’d feel more comfortable saying that if Williams had been effective for the entire sixty minutes rather than growing less effective as the game went on. Still, it’s good to see him get back up there a little. Stewart is still Stewart of course, and still better suited to “be his own blocker” than Williams, but don’t write DeAngelo off just yet.
My buddy pointed out that in years past, it hasn’t been unusual to see our run game not really hit its stride until a few weeks in. If he’s right about that, then expect things to get better as we move toward mid-season. Naturally, as that improves, the Red Zone efficiency will too.
RECEIVERS/TIGHT ENDS
Time for a few awards…
The Academy Award for Best Actor goes to…Charles Tillman for his dramatic performance in “Oh my gosh, he pushed me!” Best Supporting Actor goes to the ref who bought it, and Best Performance by an Unwilling Participant goes to Jeremy Shockey. I’ve heard Shockey’s acceptance speech for this one ran a little long and got a bit testy, so the band tried to play him off but he wouldn’t stop (and I don’t blame him).
The Razzy Award goes to...Legedu Naanee for his performance in “Why isn’t this working?” Critics who analyzed his performance still point to his lack of body control, especially on jumps. One of the main reasons you have a big receiver is so you can throw high passes that he can just go above everyone and pull down. If he can’t do that, then all the size in the world makes no difference at all.
The People’s Choice Award for “Whom Shall We Cover in the Red Zone” goes - in a narrow vote - to Greg Olsen over Steve Smith. For differing reasons, it was clear the Bears really didn’t want to see either of those two score. Me, I was hoping for Olsen to score the first touchdown. Instead, he had to settle for the final one, and that in garbage time. I have a feeling this isn’t the last go-round though, and next time I’ll be hoping for a different outcome.
Despite losing out on the prior trophy though, Steve Smith does win The Comeback Award for his performance in “The Crossing Route’. This particular performance was huge in 2003, but in the years that followed seemed to inexplicably fade away. Now with a new director at the helm, this show has returned to the spotlight where it belongs. Older fans are thrilled to see it again, and younger fans are learning just how good it can be.
And finally, the Emmy Award for his performance in “Hey Coach, can I come out of the doghouse yet?” goes to...Brandon LaFell. While viewer ratings for this show have overall been high, it still seems to be weak in the demographic of Panther Coaches. Those working behind the scenes – primarily LaFell, Fred Graves and Ricky Proehl – seem to be doing all they can to pick up on that front. Still, this show only won be a narrow vote over “Oh how we miss you” starring David Gettis.
We'd like to thank you for attending these awards. For the post party, we're headed over to the other side of the ball.
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