(01-09-2024, 11:23 AM)Cleatwood Wrote:

(01-09-2024, 11:08 AM)Caldrac Wrote: Lawrence needs to work on a few things this off season:

1. Ball security.
2. Protecting himself in the field of play.
3. Being a bit more checkdown Charlie in games.

Other than that, he has everything else going for him. Size, athleticism, arm strength and toughness. I think there's actually a sweet spot for this kid too when it comes to pass attempts. When he had 29 or less pass attempts in 2023, they went 1 - 3. When he had 40 or more pass attempts, they went 0 - 5. When he had 30 - 39 pass attempts, they went 7 - 0.

They were 8 - 1 this past season when he had a QB rating of 90.0+ or higher, the one game they lost? It was the game he couldn't finish due to injury with the Bengals. He had six games this year with a QB rating of 100+.

I genuinely don't think he's the be all, end all issue on this football team, but, again, we've now asked this guy to play perfect football for two years in a row on a team with a head coach that has a gambling problem, his third offensive coordinator in a row, no running game and a below average offensive line.

He has plenty of space to work with before he reaches his ceiling. If Baalke can dig his head out of his [BLEEP], and, Taylor and Pederson can give the kid a break in the running game? I think we'll get a high end Alex Smith type football player out of him, the one where he stays with his original team and doesn't become a competent passer with his second stint elsewhere.

Couldn't disagree more with #3.

Once you turn him into checkdown Charlie, there is no reason to have him on the team. Just about any QB of the street can do that.

What makes Lawrence special is his ability to push the ball downfield (which this team couldn't do because the line was garbage) and hit those 2nd level windows. The second he stops doing that, he stops being special.

I said "a bit more" not, "drastically alter his aggressiveness and take the easy stuff routinely". My favorite thing I ever heard any NFL player say came from Peyton Manning when he was giving his brother Eli Manning advice on the day he was drafted.

"You want to respect these defenses in the NFL, but, you don't want to give them TOO much respect". 

That's how I view Lawrence. At the end of the day. He is who he is. He's a gunslinger. He has the confidence that he can make every throw and I really think he's proven that already in three years. He just has to learn how to dial it back in certain moments in the game. 

Take the 5, 10 yards underneath for an easy set of downs instead of bombing the damn thing downfield and missing out on more opportunities later on. There's a natural ebb and flow in this game for Quarterback's and they have to make a conscious effort towards realizing that in themselves.

These defenders and defensive coaches know your tendencies. They'll start taking away certain looks while catching onto the fact that you're not seeing the easy looks underneath or over the middle to keep them honest and on their toes. This is the part of his game where he needs to improve.

He had six games where he was perfect last year rating wise. Six games out of sixteen isn't bad, it's good, not elite. We need about nine to ten of those games out of him every year now and this team is golden. And he CAN do that. Getting six of those with no running game and limited time in the pocket is an accomplishment.

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