(12-27-2017, 04:36 PM)Scarecrow Wrote:

(12-27-2017, 04:32 PM)Krayz_Jville_D Wrote: i dont think the cardinals loss was good at all for us

however, I do believe this one was, for sure

Why not?

Winning 3 in a row after that wasn't good?

I think both losses were good reality checks but for different reasons. In the Cardinals game it was a wake up call to the offense: Blake can't turn the ball over; he has to make smart decisions of where to go with the ball and Blake & the entire unit need to capitalize on the short fields and opportunities the defense give them.

The niners game was a wake up call for the other side. We can't play soft and let our opponents dictate the game to us. It's obvious our run defense is too dependent on personnel. When Dareus and Poz are in the game we're better up front, but the drawback is that off play action Poz has to cover a TE, RB, or FB and Juczyck (sp?) exposed Poz losing a step pretty badly in this game. The defense also needs to remain disciplined, too many non-sensical penalties, frustration boiling over and egos getting in the way of communication. We've struggled against TE's, backs coming out for passes in the flat and quick passing game all year. This was the first time we faced a quick release qb with a gameplan that targeted those 3 specific weaknesses. We need to do a better job scheming AND making adjustments prior to halftime.

Overall this was the real humbling this team needed. Much like the 2006 Colts after we hung 375 yards rushing on them just before season end; it forced this team to look at its warts and realize that you can't just rely on your strengths to win games. 





Luckily, the issues that arise are correctable barring injury, but the main concerns raised are the below points:

1) Marcel Dareus needs to start. Abry Jones is ok, but hasn't been as stout against the run this season. He's fine rotating in for fresh legs much like Smoot does for Calais, but it's obvious at this point that we need Dareus eating space in the middle for this Defense to play to its potential.

2) Safeties, the shifts and communication need to improve. For as many plays as they make, in the few games we lose the safeties are a BIG reason why IMO. Church has played miles better than Cyprien, but that doesn't excuse him being out of position against the Jets/poor angles on tackles, Getting exposed by the TE in coverage, and the outright blown coverages against the Cardinals. He's the weak link of the secondary but still a solid player, just need to make sure he's in a position to make plays and not get exposed too often.

3) 2nd unit and injuries. This is an issue on both sides of the ball, when someone goes down or is out of the game to catch their breath. The replacement tends to look lost. After Telvin's concussion, the backup WLB (not sure if it was Brown or McCray) allowed a long TD on the very next play.

4) Poz can be clutch in run situations, but he gets exposed in coverage and is the mismatch in the front 7 most teams will look to exploit. He dazzles us with stellar play that makes us forget that he's not as fast as he was when he first came to Duval. I don't want to be forced to recognize how deep that flaw is by allowing a long score in the playoffs to shift momentum and the course of a game.

5) Lack of Depth at key spots. It's clear we're Deep at WR, DL, CB etc. but our OL is very scarce after the starting 5. There is NO backup Safety I'd be comfortable starting in a must win game. And the dropoff from Fournette to Ivory, Grant etc. is significant. We need to address these spots with jars on the shelf this offseason.

6) Lack of impact from TE. Marcedes has been great as a blocker and thus can go unnoticed for chunk gains down the seam or TE screens. But I feel like we've lacked a true playmaker or dependable passing game option since Kyle Brady, Julius Thomas never panned out. And we've never spent more than late round picks to address the position and I think it could be a real X-Factor for this offense and key to Blakes development.

7) We need to get creative come playoff time. I'm not just talking fake punts and ST's trickery. We need to throw looks at opponents they've never seen before. End-Around to Westbrook or Mickens, Fournette and Grant on the field at the same time. "Lightning Package" or another similar innovation on Defense. By forcing teams to respect the idea of something unusual will open up more space for our bread and butter plays.

8) MAN COVERAGE!! We get shredded when we play zone, Ramsey and Bouye are the starting Probowl CB's for a reason, let them line up and just erase opposing wideouts.



tl;dr: Cardinals game was wake up call for Offense, Niners game was Wake up Call for Defense. (Lesser extent the Rams game was a wakeup for ST's) & the 2nd half of the post is bullet points of observations about things that need to be addressed in the short and long term.

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