Mitch
Crawled Through 5 FB Fields
THE GREAT:
* Offensive line---kept Kolb clean, opened holes late in the game when it was most needed. Might be overlooked, but this may be the best o-line performance, all things considered, in quite some time.
* Wildcat PP21 LSH36---what a boost! The only thing that made me curious was how Belichick knew it was coming and practiced versus it. Didn't matter---they couldn't defend it.
* STs & Coach Kevin Spencer---not only did we turn the momentum of the game totally in our favor with Groves' punt block---the missed FG at the end, well, look at it again---Spencer had Paris Lenon sprinting from left to right just as the ball was being snapped, THAT, and combined with Gostkowski knowing to kick it LEFT of CC93, imo, caused the pull.
* Kerry Rhodes' play on Gronkowski to deny the 2 pointer.
* CC93---despite having the toughest matchup on the d-line versus Pro Bowl G Logan Mankins was HUGE out there in dispruting and getting to Brady.
* Whisenhunt's call on the Kolb 5 yard sneak, right out of the Pats' playbook.
* Whisenhunt's call on the Roberts TD coming inside of Heap's out route.
* Kevin Kolb for playing tough---take that Tommy Kelly!
* Speaking of tough---how about the big catches Early Doucet made in traffic!
* Larry Fitzgerald for being great even when he was bracketed all day. Still not sure how they called his catch on the quick slant incomplete. Doesn't matter now.
* Daryl Washington for being around the ball and making plays all day.
* Sam Acho for bringing outside pressure---especially on that tremendous 10 yard sack he had on Brady. Kudos to Graves on his sack too.
* Ray Horton for playing the 4-2-5 ALL DAY! This is why the Pats tried to run so much, because they were coaxed into it, and it did not help Brady's rhythm.
* DD90 and CC93 for playing their arses off practically all day as the inside DTs.
* WE HAVE A PASS RUSH!
* WE CAN COVER!
* WE CAN DEFEAT A TEAM THAT WAS 10-0 in HOME OPENERS and 35-1 at HOME with HOF QB Tom Brady...AT 10AM-1PM ARIZONA TIME, NO LESS!
Things that NEED IMPROVEMENT:
* You CANNOT try to run the ball on first down 9 times out of 10 versus a loaded box.
* Kolb's short passes.
* The chemistry between Kolb and Heap.
* Man, the Roberts' off-side penalty...
* Zastudil needs hang time---not distance.
* Clock Management---Whisenhunt has been improving, but today he made some mistakes that nearly cost the team the game:
a). LSH36 should have been instructed to run the kickoff out and he had an easy one to do so---would have taken the clock to the 2 minute warning, thus guaranteeing being able to take at least 40 seconds off of 2:00.
b). The fumble by Williams should have never happened because the play was wrong right from the start:
* first of all, you are not going to run for 13 yards on the play, not with their whole team playing run.
* you CANNOT risk a fumble in that situation NO MATTER WHAT.
* the play itself it EXTREMELY RISKY---if you have ever played QB in a tight situation where the d-line is teeing off to create a botched snap or handoff---you would know that having to take a clean snap and open your hips to them throw a pitch LEFT in THIS case---which was to the INSIDE of the potential pressure---is just inviting trouble to happen---that and risking the catch of the pitch or fumble recovery of the pitch is totally preventable and should have been. PLUS---when you run wide you risk the OTHER potential BRAIN FART of winding up out of bounds.
* at that point the clock is your BEST FRIEND---you have 1:10 left, you snap the ball and you TAKE A KNEE. By the time you punt the ball there would be under 30 seconds left---the punt will take another 7-10 seconds---so the odds are heavily in your favor when the other team has no timeouts that they can't go 45 yards in two plays and still have time to spike the ball.
Ryan Williams should have never be put in that position. He still should have manifested the requisite football IQ to realize that taking a slide in that situation is going to win you the game 99/100 times.
Whisenhunt still has these clock issues---as much as he deserves tremendous credit for preparing the team to win, he has to give his players the BEST chance.
All that said---the late half meltdowns that have cost the team repeatedly in the past under Whisenhunt---have been avoided thus far in 2012!
As CT said, 2-0 Baby!
* Offensive line---kept Kolb clean, opened holes late in the game when it was most needed. Might be overlooked, but this may be the best o-line performance, all things considered, in quite some time.
* Wildcat PP21 LSH36---what a boost! The only thing that made me curious was how Belichick knew it was coming and practiced versus it. Didn't matter---they couldn't defend it.
* STs & Coach Kevin Spencer---not only did we turn the momentum of the game totally in our favor with Groves' punt block---the missed FG at the end, well, look at it again---Spencer had Paris Lenon sprinting from left to right just as the ball was being snapped, THAT, and combined with Gostkowski knowing to kick it LEFT of CC93, imo, caused the pull.
* Kerry Rhodes' play on Gronkowski to deny the 2 pointer.
* CC93---despite having the toughest matchup on the d-line versus Pro Bowl G Logan Mankins was HUGE out there in dispruting and getting to Brady.
* Whisenhunt's call on the Kolb 5 yard sneak, right out of the Pats' playbook.
* Whisenhunt's call on the Roberts TD coming inside of Heap's out route.
* Kevin Kolb for playing tough---take that Tommy Kelly!
* Speaking of tough---how about the big catches Early Doucet made in traffic!
* Larry Fitzgerald for being great even when he was bracketed all day. Still not sure how they called his catch on the quick slant incomplete. Doesn't matter now.
* Daryl Washington for being around the ball and making plays all day.
* Sam Acho for bringing outside pressure---especially on that tremendous 10 yard sack he had on Brady. Kudos to Graves on his sack too.
* Ray Horton for playing the 4-2-5 ALL DAY! This is why the Pats tried to run so much, because they were coaxed into it, and it did not help Brady's rhythm.
* DD90 and CC93 for playing their arses off practically all day as the inside DTs.
* WE HAVE A PASS RUSH!
* WE CAN COVER!
* WE CAN DEFEAT A TEAM THAT WAS 10-0 in HOME OPENERS and 35-1 at HOME with HOF QB Tom Brady...AT 10AM-1PM ARIZONA TIME, NO LESS!
Things that NEED IMPROVEMENT:
* You CANNOT try to run the ball on first down 9 times out of 10 versus a loaded box.
* Kolb's short passes.
* The chemistry between Kolb and Heap.
* Man, the Roberts' off-side penalty...
* Zastudil needs hang time---not distance.
* Clock Management---Whisenhunt has been improving, but today he made some mistakes that nearly cost the team the game:
a). LSH36 should have been instructed to run the kickoff out and he had an easy one to do so---would have taken the clock to the 2 minute warning, thus guaranteeing being able to take at least 40 seconds off of 2:00.
b). The fumble by Williams should have never happened because the play was wrong right from the start:
* first of all, you are not going to run for 13 yards on the play, not with their whole team playing run.
* you CANNOT risk a fumble in that situation NO MATTER WHAT.
* the play itself it EXTREMELY RISKY---if you have ever played QB in a tight situation where the d-line is teeing off to create a botched snap or handoff---you would know that having to take a clean snap and open your hips to them throw a pitch LEFT in THIS case---which was to the INSIDE of the potential pressure---is just inviting trouble to happen---that and risking the catch of the pitch or fumble recovery of the pitch is totally preventable and should have been. PLUS---when you run wide you risk the OTHER potential BRAIN FART of winding up out of bounds.
* at that point the clock is your BEST FRIEND---you have 1:10 left, you snap the ball and you TAKE A KNEE. By the time you punt the ball there would be under 30 seconds left---the punt will take another 7-10 seconds---so the odds are heavily in your favor when the other team has no timeouts that they can't go 45 yards in two plays and still have time to spike the ball.
Ryan Williams should have never be put in that position. He still should have manifested the requisite football IQ to realize that taking a slide in that situation is going to win you the game 99/100 times.
Whisenhunt still has these clock issues---as much as he deserves tremendous credit for preparing the team to win, he has to give his players the BEST chance.
All that said---the late half meltdowns that have cost the team repeatedly in the past under Whisenhunt---have been avoided thus far in 2012!
As CT said, 2-0 Baby!
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