BTB: What to look for at Training Camp

[arglebargle]

Specifically, what coaches look at and want in training camp practices. Pretty interesting set of guidelines. Really puts the focus on player safety, as the results of an avoidable injury in camp can really hose your season. Yet no one wants a saggy camp performance.


http://www.bloggingtheboys.com/2012...p-primer-what-to-look-for-in-oxnard#storyjump

 

[xwalker]

2. Players should be finishing
This is "so big in NFL practices," Trestman reports. All players should be going as fast as they can until the whistle. As one example, when a pass is completed in practice:

• All eleven defensive players must run to the ball, taking the appropriate pursuit angles to the ballcarrier.
• Offensive linemen turn and run to help the ballcarrier get a block (and to be in position to cover a loose ball). This is a time when you may hear Bill Callahan yell, "cover!"
• All other downfield players "go to the ball" to get that key block to spring the receiver free.
• The ballcarrier must explode and score, running the length of the field with explosion.
  

Both Jimmy Johnson and Bill Parcells asked players to work so hard during the week that, by comparison, Sundays were a bit of a reprieve. I'll be looking to see whether Jason Garrett and his coaches can manage to create the same atmosphere (especially given the practice strictures delineated by the new CBA).


3. The ball should stay off the ground
Trestman avers, "An NFL quarterback should be able to properly locate the ball 100 percent of the time in practice." How is this accomplished? Tony Romo should throw the ball in an optimal location for his receivers to make the reception and, on crossing routes, get yards after the catch. He and Kyle Orton should keep the receiver's body between the ball and the defender. Responsibility for keeping the ball off the ground doesn't fall exclusively in the QBs laps, however; receivers and running backs need to catch the passes that are thrown to them; when they do, Trestman notes, it signifies a high level of focus and concentration in practice - which will be important a week to ten days in, when the players get physically and mentally fatigued.


I've been to several training camps starting back in 1992.

The all-time worst player with regards to #2 and #3 above, was Roy (WR) Williams. If the ball was not thrown perfectly to him, he wouldn't even make an effort to catch it. Even when it hit him in the hands, it was about 50-50 that he would hold on to it.

The 2nd worst was MartyB. Sometimes, he would make some ridiculous one-handed catch when he was covered by 3 defenders, but other times he would make ZERO effort. Also, as most people know, watching him mope around the field was one of the worst sights in Training Camp.

The all-time best at #2 and #3 above was Michael Irvin. It didn't matter if he was being defended by a UDFA, when the ball was in the air, he went after it as-if his life literally depended on catching it.

The 2nd best at #2 above (finishing) was/is Jay Ratliff. His intensity, even in one-on-one or one-on-two drills is just at a complete level above the other guys. Ratliff reminds me of how people describe seeing/hearing a tornado up close.

 

[arglebargle]

Great observations! Explains some of the things that happened on the field.

Also, gives some insight into the Cowboys love affair with Ratliff: You know you will always get 100 percent from him, and he provides a good example for the rest of the guys. I expect that he will still be going all out at the point he becomes a role player.

Interesting to see who else on the team has that drive. Would be a good thing for folks who are at training camp to report on. I'd bet that Sean Lee is in that group, and I expect to see him become a defensive leader this season. I also suspect that Costa has some of that drive, and that may be why the team likes him more than most fans do.