BackInDaDay

from the limited amount of clips i've seen of Seminole EJ, he seemed to be comfortable running when he was uncomfortable passing. after two injuries sustained in his short Bill career, i'm guessing he's been coached up to shut that down as much as possible. it's probably the second most preached sermon in practice after ball security. so now, when the rookie QB's not confident throwing to a covered receiver, and battles his instincts to run, what's left? Freddie on the circle route. every week we see NFL QBs chucking the ball 40-50 yards downfield to covered receivers - confident they'll make the play. remember those sideline passes EJ throws to the ballboys? he's more concerned with ball security than making a play. if he isn't by now, he never will be a consistently accurate passer - but he can throw. so next year get him some 'go to' guys that make these other QBs look so wonderful each weekend. in the mean time, limit the number of 'live' receivers to throw to on a given play. this will limit his pre-snap reads and the adjustments needed immediately after. and encourage him to follow his instincts when he's not comfortable with how the plays developing. the kid's a playmaker that could become a winning NFL QB. right now, i think he's just wound too tight

you know why EJ's looking like Trent Edwards in the pros? because he's doing what Trent would do when he didn't have the confidence to pull the trigger - check it down. you know why EJ had success in college? because he did what Trent couldn't do when he didn't have the confidence to complete a pass downfield - RUN! who did the Bills think they were drafting? let him try to make plays his way.. what's the worst that can happen? he finds out he's not durable enough to play his game in the NFL? maybe he'd be ok with that. being given a chance to have some special days, as opposed to mediocre seasons.

i think NFL95MGD has morphed EJ with Johnny Football to make a point about the under utilization of EJ's play making abilities. i agree with him. if we drafted the real Manziel, and put him in the same box as EJ for fear of injury, he's be on the cross right now.

there's a difference between understanding the offense and executing the offense. if dumbing down the offense gives him 2 options, and limits his pre-snap reads to how those options may be defended, i'm all for it, because it will get him out of the pocket sooner than later. he's not even comfortable with his first option at this point, so let him have 3 clicks to pull the trigger or pull it down..

please read the original post you're not the first reader that the title confused

the read option which is run like the veer includes a delayed hand-off between the QB and RB called a mesh. they mesh until the QB reads the lineman they're optioning, then he either lets the RB take it into the hole the DL widened out on to defend the QB - or pulls it back to run outside the DL because he chose to defend the RB. he used to run the RO without the mesh, but with a trailing pitch man at FSU. i was thinking the OP was talking about the straight hand-offs to Spiller - also designed to go off tackle - which seldom get turned upfield.

.. and never get the edge blocked

was that the Browns? i liked Harmon, and i think he was having a good game before that.. #33

ralph wilson never trusted the team to coaches with a track record of success in pro football. even the Levy hire was suspect. those late 80's/early 90's teams were the product of early draft picks earned from years of poor seasons, and no free agency. bottom line.. our best years were the exception to the rule - wilson won, in spite of himself. he's not the only clueless owner, but other than a couple championships 50 years ago*, the excitement of OJ, the limited success of the Ferguson/Cribbs era, and the afore-mentioned glory years that never ended well - we've always been losers. * - i can remember some of the '66 season, but was squarely on board in time for our loss to KC in the game that would have put us in the 1st SB - who knew this was gonna be a sign of many disappointments to come?

i think many of us are underestimating EJ's ability to make plays with both his feet and his head. check out Gruden's cutups/talking points on his option play, and his pre-snap recognition (specifically his play against ND when an injury limited his playbook). This is the player who many thought was the sleeper in the 2013 QB draft class. Marrone and Hackett have been charged with refining his mechanics and improving his intelligence as an NFL pocket passer. what's been lost in translation is his ability to make plays. after losing their projected franchise QB to injury on two separate occasions, they reined that in - preferring to keep him on the field to learn how to play with his head.. but it wasn't the cerebral EJ alone that was drafted in round 1 - it was the total package that made him an attractive pick.

see your point, but i don't want them to get EJ involved in the run game for production.. only to get his competitive juices flowing.. he's not much use to this O in his current 'pocket passer' state. it's back to square one, now.. he either gets his head cleared, or knocked off

trying to survive to make a play leads to turnovers and injuries.. going in with a game plan that includes active participation has a better shot at success

the FO may have too much invested in EJ for this to happen.. but i understand. i had another post about that, but after seeing his mechanics in today's game, i don't know if he's got the confidence to lay one out for Calvin Johnson

can't argue that better protection could help him, but it hasn't been this poor - and it doesn't explain his reluctance to execute a set throw. he's not comfortable with pulling the trigger, and that's a problem. personally, i think he would benefit greatly having a physical 'go to' guy, but for now they have to find a way to get him some success with the team he has.

they gotta find a way to get him postively involved in the O. too many negatives lately - incompletions, sacks, picks, drops, flags, etc.. start the next game with a naked bootleg. break things up. let him play football. let him taste success again.

yikes.. see how that could happen, but i'm not there, yet

this was another week where EJ wasn't under center much - but the way the game deteriorated so quickly, may have played a part in that. anyway, on the occasion EJ dropped back from center, he was bouncing out of his plant step. this is important because the drop is timed with his first throw option in a play designed by the staff for how they believed the D would defend in a particular position/down/distance situation. bouncing out of that plant step before putting it back down and making the same throw shows the lack of confidence EJ has in committing to the throw. maybe he's getting caught up in trying to look off a defender, and isn't picking up his #1 in traffic - or maybe he's hesitant because his #1 doesn't yet have the separation he's comfortable with. whatever it is, he has to commit to the throw on these plays. right now, he's executing as if he's very unsure of his ability to complete even medium range passes. he's like a pitcher aiming instead of throwing, and balking men over in a tight inning. this advice may fly in the face of trying to protect our franchise QB's health, but if the coaches want to see the guy they drafted - they better let EJ play football.. let him carry the ball in the read option.. roll him out and let him try to make plays downfield - he's not Brees, or Brady, or Manning, but he's a competitor.. cut him loose

we really only have two concerns right now - our inconsistent downfield passing game and our D's pass coverage. both are related to inexperienced players at key positions, but i'm more concerned over Gilmore than Manuel.. are all his problems injury related? he has to be able to play on an island for Pettine to open things up.. just as our attack has to make Tampa's DC pay for sacrificing coverage for pressure

i'll be honest, those FSU stats look pretty impressive, but they don't jive with what i'm seeing with the Bills - at least, not yet. that's why i think that a physical receiver - who can beat his man off the los and make plays on less than perfect passes is a must for EJ. even with adequate protection, some of his throws have been real head-scratchers. i'm not saying he can't be an accurate passer, only that he may never be a consistently accurate passer - and that's ok, because he can make all the throws, and no DC can base his defensive gameplan on the assumption that he'll miss every time. the league has more guys like EJ, than not.. and not many have the physical tools to keep plays alive which #3 has. there's not a single QB who isn't more accurate when he has the chance to set his feet and fire, and nothing gets that done better than a well executed drop back from center where the ball comes out as soon as that back foot is planted.. but even if the QB's mechanics on a drop&toss are sound, the timing of the play breaks down if the receivers can't get into their patterns quickly. has Hackett seen too many instances of EJ setting up and waiting for his receivers to get to their spots? maybe that's why he prefers him in the shotgun(pistol) formations - preferring instead to let EJ survey his options downfield and anticipate separation. the immediate trouble with this is, he's asking his young QB to recognize the flow of the coverage.. and when that recognition is off, EJ doesn't pull the trigger until he sees separation. this can result in poorly thrown balls, or (to EJ's credit) check downs when the alarm in his head goes off. i'm confidant that with experience EJ will develop better recognition skills, but i don't think he'll ever be a consistently accurate passer.. so getting him at least one receiver who can beat his defender to his spot on drop&toss plays, and who comes up with poorly thrown balls when EJ's being - well, an inexperienced QB - is essential. he doesn't have to be the next Calvin or AJ.. just a better physical compliment to Goodwin.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GkRIqTUzCwk most of you have probably seen the Gruden camp episode with EJ. as someone who's rooting hard for this kid to succeed, i'm concerned that his accuracy issues are going to follow him his entire career. i understand that as he gains experience with NFL defenses he should improve getting the ball to the right spot due to his anticipation of the coverage - but my concern begins at the 17:02 mark. the coach and QB discuss his success at FSU with throwing the ball downfield and allowing his receivers to 'go get it'. EJ acknowledges that his teammates were often the better player on the other end of these, making big plays for them. right now, our roster doesn't have the type of physically gifted receivers that can 'go get it'. we have a lot of speed - which can get them to an open spot before the D reacts, but EJ hasn't shown the accuracy to consistently make these 'timing' throws. like i said, i'm hoping that in time his recognition of where the D is flowing will help him - but i'm thinking that after x amount of years playing the position, his feel for this hasn't progressed with his other skills. thank goodness he's been patient enough to let the play come to him, or right now he'd be following Geno into JP's "home for emotionally battered quarterbacks". i give Marrone and Hackett credit there.. trying to give him throws he can make as first reads, and coaching him up to take care of the ball when he thinks he'll be late to his second or third option. a check down beats a pick - even if it's not gonna sustain a lot of drives. i'm thinking the best thing the GM and coaches can do for him, is to add at least one deep threat that can come back on the ball and take it from a defender. Goodwin is a wonderful threat because you can't overthrow him, but we've already seen many under thrown and poorly thrown balls to him, and the other guys. there aren't many accurate NFL passers with strong arms - usually, you have one or the other.. but when your receivers can make plays, a strong armed guy like EJ has a better chance to succeed. those deep outs will be put where a play can be made on them after he gets the same confidence in his Bills receivers as he had with his Seminole buddies. oh yeah, and a big Metzelaars type target wouldn't hurt either, but EJ needs that downfield playmaker more to open things up, and make Ds pay for 1-on-1 coverages on the outside receivers.