Bye Week Review

[Just Want A Title]

Now that we have reached the bye week, I thought it would be nice to get everyone's take on the team.  I am sure there will be a lot if agreement on certain things but I am curious to see what we disagree on.  With that said, here is my take:

Our rookie class and free agents/trades:  Ragnow and Hand have been pretty much indispensable as rookies.  Johnson has been a huge boost to our running game.  Walker is getting significant playing time and is playing fairly well.  Devon Kenard has been pretty good in pass rush and decent against the run.  Okwara has exceeded all expectations.  Blount has been as advertised.  Christian Jones has been somewhat disappointing.  Eli Harold has exceeded expectations also.  Overall, Bob Quinn did a really nice job with the players he chose to bring in this year.  Kudos to him.  If I had to grade him it would be a B+.  He gets a bit of a downgrade of not adding better D-line additions.

Offense:  At times, the offense hasn't been very good.  At times it has been fairly good.  We have finally shown a consistent running game.  Still it would be nice to see the offense be more consistent and more explosive.  Our WRs are doing a really good job.  We are getting very little production from our TE's and that needs to change.  The O-Line has been much  improved and they might get better as the season progresses.  Johnson, Blount and Riddick are solid but it would be nice to see them more on swing and screen passes.  Stafford has been solid but it seems like he is just a little bit out of sync.  I am not sure if it is him or JBC.  Overall I give them a B.

Defense:  Obviously, our D-Line is a work in progress.  They don't generate much pass rush and are still trying to figure out how to be decent against the run.  Any improvement on defense is going to have to start with the D-Line.  The one thing the is really confounding is the disappearance of A'Shawn Robinson.  Our LBs have provided most of our pass rush but have been inconsistent against the run and spotty in pass coverage (not just Jarrad Davis).  Our secondary is the heart of our defense.  If their play goes down hill we are in serious trouble on defense.  Overall, I give them a C+.  

Special Teams:  I don't know what happened but our coverage units haven't been very good.  This is another area that needs to be tightened up.  Prater is still Prater and Sam Martin is rounding into shape.  Overall, I give them a B

Coaching:  JBC is doing a solid but not spectacular job.  Personally, I think he needs to show a more aggressive/attacking style.  On defense, I don't see Pasquoloni coming back after this season.  I think he was brought in to help Patricia transition into the head-coaching position.  His comments about sacks being over-rated is a good example of why he shouldn't be brought back.  We are terrible against the run.  He does a good job of generating pass rush with our LBs and creating coverage sacks but the performance of our front-seven shouldn't be so inconsistent.  I think Patricia is a good coach who is still finding his way as a head coach.  Expecting to instantly morph into the second coming of Bill Belichick is unrealistic and unfair.  He is obviously going through some growing pains.  Still, I think he has a bright future if he can get our run-defense straightened out and prod more consistency out of our offense.  Overall, I give the coaching staff a C+.

 

What I am hoping to see:  As stated above, I am hoping to see a more aggressive and more consistent offense.  Our offense has the potential to be lights out but it doesn't quite seem to maximize its potential.  Getting any kind of production from our TE's would complete our offense.    I hope that our run-defense improves to middle of the pack (gotta have realistic expectations).  I really hope our special teams coverage gets back to what it was last year or at least closer to the top-10.  

Players who I want to see more of: 

Jalen Reeves-Maybin:  This kid is fast and makes solid plays when he is in the game.  He might be our best hope at having a good coverage LB. 

Miles Killibrew.  He wasn't doing well as a safety so he moved to LB.  I think he could surprise some people after the bye week.  He has the physical talent but he has to get better between the ears.  

Eli Harold:  I think he could end up being a really smart pick-up by Bob Quinn.  This might be the perfect defense for his skill set.  I think his play will continue to improve as he gets more familiar with the playbook.  He might not be a pro-bowler but he could be a solid starter if he continues to improve.

Brandon Powell:  I think he could replace Jamal Agnew as a gadget/jet-sweep player.  They kept him on the active roster for a reason.  

What does everyone else think?

 

[SimbaWho]

I don't think much to be honest. No surprise to some people but we've beaten up on injury riddled teams and when a full squad comes to play us we've lost every game.

I thought they played "nice" games in S.F. and DAL but results equaled losses still. Nothing the Lions have shown me since the Jets games leads me to believe we've got everything turned right around and we're going to make a run at the playoffs. 

I do like Kerryon Johnson though. Kenny Golladay should get paid soon, The offensive line is looking pretty good. There are things to like but I'm not sure I can elevate them past CHI/MIN in the division, and LA/PHI/TB/ATL/NO/CAR all look like better teams to me. 

[Rockcity2]

Think my biggest gripes are coaching and imo multiple guys playing the wrong positions 

Why they start blunt is beyond me..

Are you really gonna stay pat at TE..