Who spreads the ball around more...Jake or Matty?

[Fireball77]

Does it really matter what he was doing 6 years ago vis a vis the perception by you and others as to what he is doing now? No, IMO.

[monstercat]

It's not like the Panthers were lining up 3-4 WR's very often anyway. Usually, Jake's options were Smitty, Moose, RB, TE. This is a run heavy offense, so they could replace Jake with anybody they want and those numbers probably won't change much, if at all.

[Mr. Scot]

Scheme does make a difference. So does the receiver's ability to get open.

If Dwayne Jarrett improves and Gary Barnidge is as good as he looked in minicamp, we won't be lacking for options.

[rayzor]

lol I wonted to know do you have stats from when moose and smith was in a full 16 games..because those 2 games smith was out really messes up the stats

ok, sorry. i really wasn't trying to talk junk. i just didn't know.

anyway... there has always been a receiver that jake will have on his checkdown list but what you are going to find on most any year is what you find with this one as far as balance is concerned. i did at the end of that post mention what smith's numbers would have likely looked like had he played those 2 other games and it would have probably moved him from 31% of the targets on the year to 35%, which is only one point above where white was.

in 2005 smith got about 150 targets. colbert, proehl, and deshaun foster each got about 50 targets each and then the next closest was rod gardner with 26 and kris mangum with 23. hoover had 20, nick goings had about 14 and michael gaines had about 12. jake had 435 throwing attempts so smith accounted for about 34% of the targets.

in 2006 we had key in there. jake threw the ball 432 times. smith had 141 targets (32%) and key had 128 (about 30%) but remember in that year smith missed the first two with a tweaked hammy but that would only have a minor effect on his % of targets like it did this past year. drew carter got 50 targets, mangum got 33 targets and gaines got 29. foster got 46, williams 36, hoover 29 and colbert only 12.

anyway, you go through every year and you are going to see a lot of the same. there are usually one or two receivers that get the lions share of targets but even then the most that any one receiver will get is at or below 35% of the targets and that is something that isn't likely to be much different than other situations around the league.

[Squirrel]

Nice research I was wondering about the 2005 seaason as it seemed like Smitty go the bulk of the balls.

[rayzor]

Nice research I was wondering about the 2005 seaason as it seemed like Smitty go the bulk of the balls.

in 2005 smith got about 150 targets. colbert, proehl, and deshaun foster each got about 50 targets each and then the next closest was rod gardner with 26 and kris mangum with 23. hoover had 20, nick goings had about 14 and michael gaines had about 12. jake had 435 throwing attempts so smith accounted for about 34% of the targets.

there was really no one that came close to the number of targets but we didn't have a lot of options.

[The Answer]

[CharlotteBeer.com]

Smith gets the most targets on this team? It's almost as if he's not only our No. 1 receiver, but also one of the best at his position in the game.

Really, folks, whether you think Jake forces the ball to Smith or not, results don't lie. Nine times out of 10, Smith will come down with the catch or make the big play. In a run-first offense such as ours, the third receiver and tight ends aren't going to see a lot of action. Our running game is perfect for setting up the big play or the deep pass to Smith.

Now, we've got some good talent at those positions, and it will be just another option for Jake to have should Moose and Smith be covered. But if Smith makes the catches, why not throw it to him?

If it ain't broke, don't fix it. That's not to say there aren't things Jake needs to work on, but I just think spreading the ball around isn't really an issue.

[Squirrel]

In all honesty Jake doesnt target Smith all the time. Seen it plenty times at games where Smith will be wide open and Jake doesnt see him.

[monstercat]

Wanna hear something funny and a little ironic?

ESPNU showed one of Smitty's old Utah games a few days before the draft, and one the first passes of the game was to Smitty in triple coverage. He out jumped three defenders for the ball and took it to the house after the catch. He was skinnier back then, but he was doing pretty much the same things he's doing now, even with a different QB.

[rayzor]

In all honesty Jake doesnt target Smith all the time. Seen it plenty times at games where Smith will be wide open and Jake doesnt see him.

true enough.

hopefully rip will get him to be aware of the field better and to take advantage of the best options more than he has before.

[scpanther22]

all I hope that comes out of this is more passing to the TE...i know its not apart of the scheme but all signs from what I have read at mini camp says we might be looking to passing more to our TE..Because barnidge and dante have talent as receivers..at least in madden..lol

[Snake]

dyslexia..along with other things

I am no Spelling wiz my self but Firefox is your friend. Quick spelling checks right at your finger tips.

[Snake]

In all honesty Jake doesnt target Smith all the time. Seen it plenty times at games where Smith will be wide open and Jake doesnt see him.

agreed. I think his worst problem is holding onto the ball way to long. I mean I understand extending a play but sometimes throwing it out of bounds is a hell of alot better then a sack or INT.