The Falcons game in Atlanta was another good, solid performance in the preseason. A lot of the jitters were gone from some of the newer guys, some other guys were able to step up, and some were able to show their solidity and consistency. Even though it is preseason, it sure feels nice to be 2-0. Sanu was able to get a nice grab in the end zone from Bruce Gradkowski, Marvin Jones caught another good long ball, and of course Green and Dalton hooked up for another highlight reel score! Who Dey! A few things from the game, though, that I was sure were not huge problems in the beginning of camp season:
#1 Thing we learned from the Falcons game - RB is not settled down the depth chart. I know fumbles happen and it is early. I don't want to see them this frequently from different players, though. That was an issue last year at the back position. This is an area of the team where we definitely needed improvement from injuries, fumbles, lack of finding suitable running lanes. This just showed that if we get injured at the top, we are in a lot of trouble. Five backs gave it a whirl (Leonard, Peerman, Boom, Brown, and Brooks). Together, they combined for 27 yards and 1 touchdown. We had two back up quarterbacks that rushed for a combined 49 yards rushing, almost double...Cue C+C Music Factory's hit, "Things that Make You Go Hmm". Then the 2 fumbles, 1 from two separate backs. Maybe the Atlanta defense was better, maybe since it was the second game, it was less vanilla play calling, maybe we simply are still flawed in this arena. This is and has been an issue for some time. We need better insurance if the The Law Firm or Scott (which is a regular issue for Bernard) go down. Hopefully, this is rectified before the regular season.
#2 Thing we learned from the Falcons game - Taylor Mays (I am currently waving my huge white flag) We surrender!!!! We are on your side man, I swear!! What is this guy doing? Does he know his teams colors? Maybe he's color blind...We are the ones with stripes on our helmets, fool! Nothing like going to war with friendly fire. He is taking all of our guys out for the other teams, Maualuga and now Burfict. Marvin said he needs to keep his head up when he tackles...I think he just a secret agent, working for the Shittsburgh or something. I've never had to think about my guys being injured by their own guys. Come on Taylor! In honor of Shark Week, maybe our guys should be equipped with those electronic devices that give out warnings to keep the predators away...maybe they'll work on Mays too.
#3 Thing we learned from the Falcons and Jets game - We have a hard time containing a mobile quarterback. Even when the first string D is on the field, it seems as though when, the Son of God, Davis, and a couple other qb's got out of the pocket, we could not contain them. They were cutting, sliding, and eluding us like cats in the wild. This should not be happening. Those big guys up front for the D should know if these guys are in the pocket for too long and do not appear to be throwing the ball, they need to get off of their blocks and attack. I know it is easier said than done. But this is something I feel like we need to work on. This has happened now a few times in both games. This is allowing the other teams to keep drives alive that were clearly dead. Let's go for the jugular!
Moving on to camp now. Camp was super laid back, no helmets, just walking. I was surprised they even practiced on Friday. It was only for an hour, but it was a day after game day. Guys were bumped and bruised and just taking it easy. It was nice to see Kirkpatrick doing some drills on the back field with Sims. Both of their recoveries seem to really be coming along. Not too much else to say about camp...no fires, no tents, no helmets.
Now, on to the first hard cuts of the season...
Weber - We was the back up kicker, which was good while Nugent was injured. He was very average at best. Someone else will probably pick him up later in the season. Who knows, maybe you will be able to buy insurance from him soon.
Shipley - This seemed to be a huge shocker to people. I am not sure why, though. He played his rookie year and did really well, then he was out for an entire season. Not just any season either. A season where we saw the birth of Green and other guys like Hawkins and Simpson step up when needed. So Jordan wasn't really missed. We were all pretty happy to see him back this year, though, because everyone thought he would be an added threat underneath. Then we met Sanu and Marvin Jones... added to Green and a healthy (?) Gresham, with a an all purpose RB in Green-Ellis. Suddenly, he became irrelevant. Not to mention, in camp, I had said before, we wasn't really up to par. He had a lot of drops and a few route issues. In preseason, he has only had one catch. According to some reports, he had ice wrapped around his knee after the Atlanta game also. It is unfortunate, but I am sure that he will find another place. Especially now with camps fully underway and other teams making decisions at their positions. He is still a quality guy and hard worker. Anyway, isn't Miami looking for a receiver??
Some predictions for future cuts...
Daniel "Boom" Herron - He has just not been great. He was injured and his time to shine in Atlanta was less than lackluster
Aaron Brown - Has practiced well, but hasn't really been able to step up. He isn't eligible for the practice squad, so where else can he go?
Pat Simms - I don't know why, but with the depth on the defense right now and his injury, I just think he may be the next guy. I may be wrong, but who knows.
Who do you think is next?
Sunday is the last public camp and it is in the stadium. So, if you haven't gotten out yet, the time is now. Thursday, Green Bay is coming to town for the last preseason game at home. It should be a good game to really see what these guys are about with preseason closing up and the 1st team staying in the games longer. I think we will see good things! Who Dey!
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