itsalloverfatman
12-19-2010, 09:17 PM
Gut Reactions - Week 15, Broncos-Raiders
TJ "The Dude" Johnson Dec 19, 2010 8:35 PM
Bill Walsh, the original gangsta of QB evaluation, once wrote:
"He [the quarterback] must be courageous and intensely competitive. He will be the one on the field who is running the team. His teammates must believe in him or it may not matter how much physical ability he has. If he is courageous and intensely competitive, then other players will know and respect that. This will be a foundation for becoming a leader."
Today, Tim Tebow proved he's a leader. He made plays; he was intensely competitive; he was courageous as hell. I think most would agree that the foundation that Walsh spoke of is there in the Broncos' first-round draft pick.
But we ought not confuse intensity with the passing tree.
For the most part, he didn't get a chance to see the passing tree. Mike McCoy came out with a very conservative game plan--a game plan flush with quarterback draws and run-heavy packages.
For the day, Tebow was 8-16 for 138 yards. His rating, surprisingly, was 100.5. That's not a bad first game for any quarterback. Realistically, however, Tebow is still a work in progress. He rarely got past his 1st read in his 16 attempts.
Broncos fans have reason to believe, however. Tebow accounted himself well. He made some great adjustments at the line of scrimmage during the game. He showed great leadership. He got better in the pocket as the game went on.
Let's get to the Positives, the Negatives, and the Who The Heck Knows?
Positives
1) Tim Tebow made a lot of plays with this feet. Dude set the Broncos' record for longest touchdown run by a quarterback. Surprisingly, he broke Bubby Brister's record, not John Elway's. This is obvious, but worth noting: there aren't many quarterbacks in the league who could have made this play on 3rd-and-24.
2) Three turnovers in the 1st half? Is hell Oakland frozen over? Or did Al Davis pigs just grow wings?
3) Kevin Vickerson played a great cornerback defensive end on the early turnover. That's one hell of an athletic play from a guy that size. That doesn't mean he still doesn't get owned on the run (he does), but it was an athletic play.
4) The Broncos' coaching staff tried to establish the running game early in order to help Tebow. They played quite a bit out of their 212 and 221 personnel packages. This stands in direct contrast to the standard 113 package favored in the Josh McDaniels offense. Essentially the Broncos favored two-wide-receiver sets over those that featured three. The staff also tried to give Tebow some early easy throws. They weren't successful, but I'm giving them points for trying.
5) I'm convinced Brandon Lloyd is the best receiver in the NFL. Either that, or he sold his soul to the devil for one perfect year. I'd tweet you how great he is, but I'd only have 140 characters. I'm running out of adjectives to describe Lloyd after the catches he makes. Lloyd is GARGANTASTIC.
6) Brady Quinn and Kyle Orton on the sideline coaching Tebow--classy.
7) The Broncos' defense on 3rd downs. Robert Ayers and Darcel McBath should be singled out for their play today. Even when they weren't in on the tackle, they were both disruptive on 3rd downs. The Raiders ended the game 2-for-11 on 3rd downs.
8) Steve Hasheesh redeemed himself today with three field goals. He's still unpronounceable, but that, by itself, is becoming cool.
9) The Bills, Bengals, and Panthers all won today if you care about draft picks.
10) The Raiders didn't score 59 today. Sure, they scored 39, but that's 20 less points! Honestly, who you start at quarterback doesn't matter when you give up that many points.
Continued at IAOFM (http://www.itsalloverfatman.com/broncos/entry/gut-reactions-week-15-broncos-raiders)
TJ "The Dude" Johnson Dec 19, 2010 8:35 PM
Bill Walsh, the original gangsta of QB evaluation, once wrote:
"He [the quarterback] must be courageous and intensely competitive. He will be the one on the field who is running the team. His teammates must believe in him or it may not matter how much physical ability he has. If he is courageous and intensely competitive, then other players will know and respect that. This will be a foundation for becoming a leader."
Today, Tim Tebow proved he's a leader. He made plays; he was intensely competitive; he was courageous as hell. I think most would agree that the foundation that Walsh spoke of is there in the Broncos' first-round draft pick.
But we ought not confuse intensity with the passing tree.
For the most part, he didn't get a chance to see the passing tree. Mike McCoy came out with a very conservative game plan--a game plan flush with quarterback draws and run-heavy packages.
For the day, Tebow was 8-16 for 138 yards. His rating, surprisingly, was 100.5. That's not a bad first game for any quarterback. Realistically, however, Tebow is still a work in progress. He rarely got past his 1st read in his 16 attempts.
Broncos fans have reason to believe, however. Tebow accounted himself well. He made some great adjustments at the line of scrimmage during the game. He showed great leadership. He got better in the pocket as the game went on.
Let's get to the Positives, the Negatives, and the Who The Heck Knows?
Positives
1) Tim Tebow made a lot of plays with this feet. Dude set the Broncos' record for longest touchdown run by a quarterback. Surprisingly, he broke Bubby Brister's record, not John Elway's. This is obvious, but worth noting: there aren't many quarterbacks in the league who could have made this play on 3rd-and-24.
2) Three turnovers in the 1st half? Is hell Oakland frozen over? Or did Al Davis pigs just grow wings?
3) Kevin Vickerson played a great cornerback defensive end on the early turnover. That's one hell of an athletic play from a guy that size. That doesn't mean he still doesn't get owned on the run (he does), but it was an athletic play.
4) The Broncos' coaching staff tried to establish the running game early in order to help Tebow. They played quite a bit out of their 212 and 221 personnel packages. This stands in direct contrast to the standard 113 package favored in the Josh McDaniels offense. Essentially the Broncos favored two-wide-receiver sets over those that featured three. The staff also tried to give Tebow some early easy throws. They weren't successful, but I'm giving them points for trying.
5) I'm convinced Brandon Lloyd is the best receiver in the NFL. Either that, or he sold his soul to the devil for one perfect year. I'd tweet you how great he is, but I'd only have 140 characters. I'm running out of adjectives to describe Lloyd after the catches he makes. Lloyd is GARGANTASTIC.
6) Brady Quinn and Kyle Orton on the sideline coaching Tebow--classy.
7) The Broncos' defense on 3rd downs. Robert Ayers and Darcel McBath should be singled out for their play today. Even when they weren't in on the tackle, they were both disruptive on 3rd downs. The Raiders ended the game 2-for-11 on 3rd downs.
8) Steve Hasheesh redeemed himself today with three field goals. He's still unpronounceable, but that, by itself, is becoming cool.
9) The Bills, Bengals, and Panthers all won today if you care about draft picks.
10) The Raiders didn't score 59 today. Sure, they scored 39, but that's 20 less points! Honestly, who you start at quarterback doesn't matter when you give up that many points.
Continued at IAOFM (http://www.itsalloverfatman.com/broncos/entry/gut-reactions-week-15-broncos-raiders)