It was great to finally be back at the stadium after being starved from home games for almost two months. Making it particularly satisfying was the tremendous level of female talent at this game. What babeage! I do need to get one thing off my chest. There was a group of about 10 fans or so who seemingly spent more time going back and forth to the concession stands than they did actually watching the game. The thing is, they all seemed to follow each other, as if they couldn't stand to be apart from each other very long. That was absolutely ridiculous, people!
Anyway...to the analysis...
1. Welcome back, Rashad Greene!!! Your punt return was clutch!!! This is one of the few times under the Bradley regime that Special teams was a positive catalyst for the entire game. There were no long returns allowed. No turnovers surrendered. No blocked punts. No missed FGs. Good job guys, and especially Greene!
2. I thought Bortles had a decent game. He attacked downfield quite a bit with some success to Robinson and Walters. That INT was maddening, and the fumble on the QB sneak kept the game close. But, at the end, he came through with a TD at the end of the game. That's what you want out of a young QB. I thought he made a concerted effort to get Julius Thomas involved early, but then they seemed to get away from him for a while. Glad BB found him
3. The defense still lacks a pass rush, but they did a good enough job against the Tacks. My fears of increased vulnerability against the run because of Alualu were not realized. They held up okay. Mariota inflated their numbers. They managed four sacks against the Tacks. Nice to have a Ryan Davis sighting (not a knock on him). Also nice to have an Andre Branch sighting (a knock on him).
But the defense came up clutch, from the forced fumble, to the stops short of the first downs, to the very last play of the game.
4. Offensive Playcaling was a mixed bag again. I liked the trick play call with the Walters pass. ARob was open deep. That was just a pathetic pass. Denard Robinson was a college QB. Why not utilize him on that play in the capacity you utilized Walters? Once again, Bradley and Olsen tried to establish physicality inside the five. Like in London, the team ran three straight times. Like in London, the team failed to punch it in. Combine that with the failure to get the first down on 3rd and short when trying to ice the game, and the inescapable conclusion is that short yardage is killing this team. We need a more physical running game. While Wiz's experience and added bulk vis-a-vis Bowanko has helped this team, I wonder if that is a position we can upgrade.
5. That said, Yeldon had a pretty good game.
6. Anyone else irritated with those PI penalties in the 2nd half? What in the world are our CBs supposed to do? Tennessee DBs got away with some contact.
7. Bottom line: The team has won back to back games under Bortles for the first time, and has won 3 out of the last 4 games. Is this team learning how to win? You can make the case either way, I think, and only tie will tell if what that answer is. However, it's always good beating the tacks. Beating them this game guaranteed the tacks will have another non winning season, which is a good thing. Now to root like crazy for the Jets and Falcons.
Worst to 1st. Curse Reversed!
