WhitewalkerInPhilly Posted August 21, 2015 Share Posted August 21, 2015 1) I dont read too much into Cassel sitting the entire game. We all know what Cassel is, and isnt. He is not someone who makes his skill players look better than they actually are. He is someone who lets his skill plays make him look better. That can work for you, but when theyre all out, it would have looked even uglier than what we would have seen. The lack of skill players made it tough to get an honest evaluation of TT and EJ, I dont want to imagine how Cassel would have looked. 2) It wasnt always pretty, but I think Taylors performance should put to bed some of the more outlandish and over-exaggerated claims as to flaws in his game. He did not take off running at every possible chance, though he did when a planned bubble screen was blown up, and on a designed read option play. While his numbers did not blow you out of the water, he was able at times to sit back in the pocket and deliver the ball. I believe that he was something like 4/5 on third down conversions when throwing the ball. 3) That said, we shouldnt ignore an honest critique of Taylors flaws. He got too cute trying to make a play on his first drive and that sack made it that much harder on Carpenter. (Ill touch on that later). His lone pass to the EZ from the red zone was a bit late, and while his accuracy was 70%, his YPA was 6.5, barely better than what EJ did last year before getting benched. He has yet to show he can make deep throws over the middle. Still, I think he looked alright. 4) Speaking of that End Zone throw, man I think the refs were brutally inconsistent on how their called penalties on the respective secondaries. If Darbys call for PI, and Aaron Williams personal foul are going to get called, I dont see how when Deonte had an arm wrapped around his waist in the EZ, and when he got his clock cleaned on a Manuel overthrow how that doesnt get called. 5) Jesus our running backs looked bad. I know that our top 5 players our depth chart were gone, and that we were running with guys who wont find stable work in three weeks, but man that was ugly. Get well soon Shady, Fred, Boobie, Karlos and Bryce 6) EJ does look improved. He was able to feel the pocket a bit better, and at times was able to take the first and second guy miss. It was a pity that the second strong OL is so bad that the 3rd and 4th guys were right behind. 7) I was worried about Darby with the PI early, but he definitely cleaned up his game. It seems that Rexs strategy of throwing him into the deep end of the pool is working, and those two interceptions seem good indicators that those ball skills that we were worried about were coming along. 8) Im sorry, but Im a little worried about the defense. I know its still early, but Im getting Pettine flashbacks: constant pressure, flashy turnovers, but a lot of broken tackles and conversion on third and long. Rex had better be pissed. 9) Carpenters miss didnt make me happy, but Id rather he get the rust off now rather than week 1. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GunnerBill Posted August 21, 2015 Share Posted August 21, 2015 #8 is my big worry. I have spent all off season to this point telling myself Rex is smarter than Pett and will not be so ideologically driven to blitz and generate flashy sack numbers but after last night I am concerned. Not only was the blitzing too much last night it was predictable as well. Sometimes you gotta let the front 4 do their jobs! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YattaOkasan Posted August 21, 2015 Share Posted August 21, 2015 #8 is my big worry. I have spent all off season to this point telling myself Rex is smarter than Pett and will not be so ideologically driven to blitz and generate flashy sack numbers but after last night I am concerned. Not only was the blitzing too much last night it was predictable as well. Sometimes you gotta let the front 4 do their jobs! The Browns had one sustained drive against the 1's. I know the Browns aren't going to light anyone up, but 3 points per half should be considered a W for the D. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WhitewalkerInPhilly Posted August 21, 2015 Author Share Posted August 21, 2015 #8 is my big worry. I have spent all off season to this point telling myself Rex is smarter than Pett and will not be so ideologically driven to blitz and generate flashy sack numbers but after last night I am concerned. Not only was the blitzing too much last night it was predictable as well. Sometimes you gotta let the front 4 do their jobs! My worry is a little tempered by the biggest comparison we've been aspiring to: the 2000 Ravens. They had multiple games where the defense outscored the offense. I'm ok with being agressive if you think that will get pressure and turnovers, but if you do you better get a clean tackle with the first defender. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MTLBills Posted August 21, 2015 Share Posted August 21, 2015 #8 is my big worry. I have spent all off season to this point telling myself Rex is smarter than Pett and will not be so ideologically driven to blitz and generate flashy sack numbers but after last night I am concerned. Not only was the blitzing too much last night it was predictable as well. Sometimes you gotta let the front 4 do their jobs! +1000 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpberr Posted August 21, 2015 Share Posted August 21, 2015 I feel pretty good about the quarterbacks. I think TT and EJ played very well. I think the whole EJ playing with the 2nd teamers is a deliberate confidence building exercise by the coaching staff. I don't think he's going anywhere. If I'm the Browns, that game couldn't have inspired much confidence. McCown took some serious shots and had two INTs against a vanilla defense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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