Atlanta @ Miami Review

[whitekb011]

First, we came out healthy, with no devistating injuries. I hope we don't play any of our starters next week.

Offense: First off, the Miami defense is a good defense. They have a good secondary and are strong with their front 7. Plus we were on the road.

QB: Ryan not a great night, but not as bad as you think. His over-throw to Finn, was becasue he was blanketed and it was a throw away under pressure. The throw that everyone is complaining about (short to Roddy) was put in the right spot (Statistical Probability). CB had inside coverage and was on Roddy's right hip one step behind with his head away from the QB. The best place to throw the ball is Roddy's Left shoulder and short, because when he stops, the CB not looking at the ball, will take one, maybe two steps, before he stops. Roddy did not turn his head to see the ball and could not recover. He should have known that was were the ball needed to go. Redmon, great pass to Finn and he is our number #2.

RB: Turner looked good, though I did notice his cutt backs did not seem to produce as many yards as his front side runs. Snelling and norwood didn't play enough to get a gauge on. Nance and Smith too close to call.

WR: White, not a good night, but he is healthy and I think it is more to do with "Preseasonitis" than anything else. Douglas looks fluid and smooth, you could really see his comfort level out there tonight. Weems makes the team because of his special teams play.

TE: Gonzo did not have good night blocking. I think it's a Preseason thing with him too. I saw him get beat/miss assignment several times.

OL: Bakeer had a good night and I was glad to see that, blaylock looked fairly good. McClure actually handled that big guy (cant remember the number) fairly good, but had some help from a guard. I worry about Dahl and Clabo if we get behind. They don't have quick feet and are not good benders, but believe they will get better over the season. Their is a reason why we did not offer them long term contracts.

Defense: They were very tuff and 1-7 on third downs aint to shabby. Very glad to see that.

Safety: I know that everyone says Coleman is a starter, and I agree, but I think Moore starts at mid season. Moore brings an "Enforcer" mentality, like DeCoud, that Coleman does not bring. If you watch him play, watch the two end around plays, notice where he starts at the begining of the play and then watch him come in. He is very fast and he takes very, very good angles to miss blocks and stop the ball carrier. He hits harder than anyone in our secondary, hands down. He needs to stay healthy. Remember, this kid was arguably a to 10-15 pick if he comes out his junior year at Mizzu.

CB: The coaches gave Jackson a lot of time on the field this pre-season, he did not do well. I saw a comment in another thread saying Jackson is not being used right, he is a pure Tampa 2 corner. Well, we played a base Tampa 2 for darn near the entire second half, he had minor improvement against significantly lesser competition. Owens, will be starting oppisite Robinson. He has that same mentality as Decoud, Moore, Lofton, and Weatherspoon. Grimes, played well ans is an athletic freak, but not a starter. Williams, nothing spectacular, but nothing bad too. I think the CB's making the team right now are DR, BG, CO. Competition for the other 2-3 spots.

LB: All of our LB's played well. I noticed Spencer Adkins on the second team, he did well and fits the athletic mold of our LB core. Weatherspoon played so much better tonight. His progress from game two to game three are very noticable and another poster said you could really see the game slow down for him. That is really accurate. For those complaining about Nicholas, don't, he had a very good night on run downs and had great coverage. Lofton is solid and consistently plays at a highlevel, from down-to-down. He and DeCoud are the most consistent performers on our team. Peterson played much better, but I think our best linebacking will be Nicholas, Lofton, and Weatherspoon. I don't think that will be our starting lineup at the begining of the season, but by mid season, I believe we see the three of them on the field at the same time.

DL: If anyone doubted how much of a differrence Jerry makes, watch the tape. He was doubled most of the night and consitently penetrated. Additionally, Trey Lewis and Jamal Anderson played very well next to each other. Don't put to much credit in Beermans sack, he gets that sack becasue Spoon and I think Decoud, or Lofton (can't remember) forced Henne up in the pocket and Beerman was where he was supposed to be. That is good team defense. Abe, didn't really see anything spectacular or unspectacular. He is a veteran and really hates the preseason, so take it for what it's worth. He is in a contract year and he's not going to risk anything in the preseason.

ST: Eric Weems will make this squad. I also think that Bryant is done, and we are waiting to see who wins the Houston Job. I would not be suprised to see Bryant lose his job. Now, given that, his leg is stronger, but missing that extra point, is uncalled for. He has not had a good preseason and it's frustrating that we still can't solve our kicker problems, and when I look at prater performing well in Denver, it makes me sick.

Coaching: I was expecting to see more game planning, but because Miami is a 3-4 team and we open up with Pittsburgh, I believe that is some of the reason we saw vanilla offense. I was glad to see a screen pass attempt. Defensively, besides a couple of blitzs, we played fairly vanilla too and were very successful.

Summary: Over the next two weeks, we need to work on execution. All though our defense palyed well, a couple of better thrown balls by Henne makes our D not look as good as it was. There is tons of room fro improvement, but from a base defense and offense perspective, we are solid and look forward to a team that compete with anyone, including, Green Bay and the Saints (who I think arn't as good as advertised).

[Peyton]

I disagree that Owens is going to win the starting position over Grimes, I don't see it at all. We'll find out soon enough I guess.

[Dog River]

One thing I think everyone is overlooking is 2 penalties for 17 yards. Excellent for preseason.

[since68andcounting]

Very balanced and well written analysis. I agree on several fronts...the linebacker assessment, the kicker assessment, Weems making the team on return ability. The only thing I disagree with is I still think Grimes is a much better cover corner than Owens at this point.

[ChessPlayer1]

The Grimes Owens debate is a good one.

Im in the Owens camp.

Coverage- I believe Owens and grimes are decent in coverage. Grimes will give you more INT's

Tackling- Owens. End of statement.

IMO- Edge Owens

Owens is very aggresive in run support.

For a small guy he is fiesty with decent coverage skills.

[Dem Birds]

I disagree that Owens is going to win the starting position over Grimes, I don't see it at all. We'll find out soon enough I guess.

I've actually been a big Grimes advocate this off-season but due to Grimes' injury and Owens' solid play in the preseason, I'd say Owens has a good shot of unseating Grimey. Owens definitely plays the way the coaches like; physical.

[FalconFanSince1970]

Good write up.

I agree with most of it but definitely don't agree with the Baker had a good game statement. You did spell it Bakeer though so maybe that's a rookie I haven't seen yet.

[controlfreak]

QB: Ryan not a great night, but not as bad as you think. His over-throw to Finn, was becasue he was blanketed and it was a throw away under pressure. The throw that everyone is complaining about (short to Roddy) was put in the right spot (Statistical Probability). CB had inside coverage and was on Roddy's right hip one step behind with his head away from the QB. The best place to throw the ball is Roddy's Left shoulder and short, because when he stops, the CB not looking at the ball, will take one, maybe two steps, before he stops. Roddy did not turn his head to see the ball and could not recover. He should have known that was were the ball needed to go. Redmon, great pass to Finn and he is our number #2

Even Baldy had enough sense to know the ball should have been in front of Roddy. Wow, no homerism, really?

On another note I agree about Moore. The kid didn't look someone who hadn't played in a year. I think he starts sooner, not later.

Brent Grimes is the best corner we have, Dunta included. After he aggravated his groin Chevis took his place and got lit up. Twice on third down Grimes played Marshall perfectly and prevented the conversion.Owens is the nickel in my opinion.

Baker did not have a good game. Matt was getting hit every other play because of him.

[TeamPlayer1]

Thanks for the analysis. Weems will definitely make the team due to excellent special teams play. I've always liked Grimes but I agree that Owens is more physical and a much better tackler.

JA98 plays the run well but is not now and never will be as good as Beirmann at DE.

[izwun]

Nice breakdown, and it's good to see that you stayed true to the description of the topic.

I'm on the side of having Grimes start opposite of DR, even though it wouldn't disappoint me one bit to see Owens out there.

I think you have a valid point when you say that Owens has the same "mentality" as the rest of our key defensive players. That makes sense to me, and may end up being the deciding factor for Owens to be the the other starting CB.

My only caution would be that I haven't seen Owens get tested downfield this PS. Not that he was bad at it last year, just that Grimes was a little better.

Bottom line is, I only want to see the best player at each position.

[atljbo]

Good write up.

I agree with most of it but definitely don't agree with the Baker had a good game statement. You did spell it Bakeer though so maybe that's a rookie I haven't seen yet.

I only remember Baker giving up 1 QB pressure...

[atljbo]

When it comes to the Grimes and Owens debate... Both will see the field allot... I just feel like Owens fit the type of CB they like... They went after Dunta because he is that physical type CB they want... Owens is in the same mold.

[RYNE]

I disagree that Owens is going to win the starting position over Grimes, I don't see it at all. We'll find out soon enough I guess.

Really? I think its pretty obvious.

[gritzblitz]

Just a few of my thoughts to add on:

-Better Red Zone Offense but still missed some opportunities.

-D is better than I thought; better 3rd down D

-Palmer's play demonstrated he should warrant serious consideration to make the team team; may even push Peele for 2nd string.

-Surprisingly did not see any young receivers have much of an opportunity to show what they can do in the absence of Meire; pretty sure we will go with 5 Wrs..none rookies -- White, Jenks, HD, Finn and Weems

-Weems seems to be locked in as returner

-Redman's play solidified him as #2 Qb

-Kicker...ehhh...even though he did slip on the PAT

Overall I think we are a deeper team than last years team.

[kibitzer]

You may as well let that Prater thing go. That was all Pestinko's fault, anyway. I have no solid fact to base this theory on, but I truly believe it was so bad here, that it's entirely w/in the realm of probability that a-) Prater was not given a chance to succeed here, or given the right situations/coaching, and b-) he just wanted off the team badly enough that he didn't give 2 poops about succeeding here.

All that is Pestinko. Thanks Bobby.

Edited August 28, 2010 by kibitzer

[whitekb011]

Good write up.

I agree with most of it but definitely don't agree with the Baker had a good game statement. You did spell it Bakeer though so maybe that's a rookie I haven't seen yet.

Did we almost agree on everything? That would be a first, we are going to win the superbowl now!

[whitekb011]

Just a few of my thoughts to add on:

-Better Red Zone Offense but still missed some opportunities.

-D is better than I thought; better 3rd down D

-Palmer's play demonstrated he should warrant serious consideration to make the team team; may even push Peele for 2nd string.

-Surprisingly did not see any young receivers have much of an opportunity to show what they can do in the absence of Meire; pretty sure we will go with 5 Wrs..none rookies -- White, Jenks, HD, Finn and Weems

-Weems seems to be locked in as returner

-Redman's play solidified him as #2 Qb

-Kicker...ehhh...even though he did slip on the PAT

Overall I think we are a deeper team than last years team.

I agree with the depth, especially on defense. I'm a firm believer that Defense wins championships, and we have solid depth two deep at several positions.

[whitekb011]

When it comes to the Grimes and Owens debate... Both will see the field allot... I just feel like Owens fit the type of CB they like... They went after Dunta because he is that physical type CB they want... Owens is in the same mold.

I think so too about Owens. I think Grimes is the perfect Nickle CB. He has Tons of athletic ability and is really good. If he started outside, it would not bother me. Like you, I think Ownes brings that physicality and urgency. I think he is a better fit because he is more versital, he can blitz, he can cover the flat. He is a very sure tackler.

[swgadirtybird]

You may as well let that Prater thing go. That was all Pestinko's fault, anyway. I have no solid fact to base this theory on, but I truly believe it was so bad here, that it's entirely w/in the realm of probability that a-) Prater was not given a chance to succeed here, or given the right situations/coaching, and b-) he just wanted off the team badly enough that he didn't give 2 poops about succeeding here.

All that is Pestinko. Thanks Bobby.

WOW seriously with out a doubt Bobby P. was as close to a plague as you could get but sorry.

Prater could not hit the side of a barn standing next to it when it was here. Crap like that happens. The way he was kicking when he was here if he had been keep we would have been worse then we were that year.

Edited August 29, 2010 by swgadirtybird

[kibitzer]

WOW seriously with out a doubt Bobby P. was as close to a plague as you could get but sorry.

Prater could not hit the side of a barn standing next to it when it was here. Crap like that happens. The way he was kicking when he was here if he had been keep we would have been worse then we were that year.

Yep, and I stated what I attribute it to. There are other theories. I'm sticking w/mine.