In Defense of Bledsoe

[sago1]

Didn't see Giant-Cowboy game cause it wasn't shown here in Florida but have read lot about poor performance of our Offense including less then stellar performance by Bledsoe. Also have read some rehash supposedly from a Bills fan pointing out how good Bledsoe plays in first 8 games and last 8 he is not good. I would point out that the Bills played well, as did Bledsoe, the last 8 weeks in 2004, but guess what they had a running game, something other teams have in the NFL but we don't. Point is not only is our OL not giving Bledsoe enough protection (what do we expect from backup LT and rookie RT) but they along with poor blocking from FB/TE points aren't opening up anywhere near enough running lanes.

Point is without an OL and a running game, please tell which QBs in the NFL will be taking their teams to the playoffs. P. Manning is doing well, but it sure helps to have E. James getting the job done, a decent OL and a pretty decent defense.

We've got the defense, but w/o a good OL who can protect the QB and open up the running game no QB including Bledsoe can get the job done. Our 90s Cowboys were great; we have a great QB, a great RB, WR & TE and maybe best OL in the NFL. In 97 our OL troubles began as it the constant sacks/hits Aikman took its toll and shortened his career. And with the loss of that OL Emmit's numbers dropped, etc. Even the Triplets couldn't get us back to the playoffs/SB w/o a good OL, what do we expect Bledsoe to do. He's been carrying this team (for the most part w/o much if any running game) and now his OL/FB/TE isn't getting the pass blocking does as well. Yep, Bledsoe isn't our future franchise player but he sure isn't the man responsible for the collapse of our offense despite what former Bill fans & others on this board want to claim. I would also have liked to hear a little about Crayton playing, but he didn't and didn't like it that Witten only had 1 catch. We gotta upgrade our OL, got a good blocking FB so we use Witten for what he is a receiving TE (although I do think we really got to push him to develop enough strength in his lower body to become at least an adequate blocker.

 

[SkinsandTerps]

Starts at the line of scrimmage. For any team.

Bledsoe however had time on many occasions and tried to force passes or made poor throws. IMO, he cant just be given a free pass.

 

[Vertigo_17]

Didn't see Giant-Cowboy game

If you'd watched the game, you know there was plenty of blame to go around - Bledsoe included. While the OL was awful, Bledsoe made bad decisions as well and the criticism is deserved.

Let's hope we see a different offensive team this week from Drew and Co.

 

[Zaxor]

Starts at the line of scrimmage. For any team.

Bledsoe however had time on many occasions and tried to force passes or made poor throws. IMO, he cant just be given a free pass.

True

but it has always been that way with Bledsoe (see NE/Buff/Dallas) its always the o-line...ALWAYS

 

[lspain1]

Starts at the line of scrimmage. For any team.

Bledsoe however had time on many occasions and tried to force passes or made poor throws. IMO, he cant just be given a free pass.

Sorry, I don't agree with this. In fact, this view is so wrong I don't know where to begin. Bledsoe has limitations that everyone is aware of. To say he was responsible means he would have had to develop overnight mobility and scrambling ability that he just does not have.

Bledsoe's problems result from the very poor OL play we are covering ad nauseum. I believe if we were getting even average play we would have done much better on Sunday. The fact we have no running game you can not attribute to Bledsoe.

I have heard the "pass-to-run" arguments on this board but right now our line can't block its way out of a paper bag. It didn't matter what play we ran on Sunday. The only thing that worked was a screen pass to Julius that got him outside where he was running in space. Do you remember the holes Julius was getting last year that let him go through the hole to the second level? Those kind of holes are non-existent with this line.

The number of times Bledsoe got to actually plant his feet and throw on Sunday I could count on one hand and that was with mostly 3 step drops. It was bad and that has brought me to my current level of pessimism about this year. The game was worse than the score indicated.

I'll say this. If you aren't going to give Bledsoe a pass in that game then there are a whole lot of other folks you better bring in to blame because there's plenty to spread around. Why didn't the receivers get separation (no time and double coverage)? Why was Johnson replaced by Gurode (Parcells was trying to make something happen)? How come Sean Payton can't come up with a better game plan (name a play that performed well outside of a screen pass all day)?

The OL play is causing cascading problems that you can't scheme around. Our defense is keeping our opponents to low scores but the fact that the score will be close does not mean we will have a meaningful chance to win the game. It's a disaster that I do not see getting fixed before the off-season. Without a defense as dominant as Chicago's we can not win with things as they are. We do not have that dominant a defense because we have two corners hurt and a lot of rookies starting.

Blaming Bledsoe for all of this is just 'out to lunch' thinking.

 

[SkinsandTerps]

I dont know what game you saw.

Bledsoe clearly doesnt deserve a free pass.

The OL played poorly over the course of the game, true.

The receiving options were open underneath on more than a handful of plays where Bledsoe made late reads or none at all. He needs to make those plays, he needs to be able read the D at most of the time.

This guy is not a young, learning QB, he is a 13 year vet with the propensity to look for the long ball. He should be so much better at making reads at this point. He played under Parcells, Bill B., Weis, Williams, etc. I would think that some of them if not all of them have discussed this issue with him at some point.

Not saying that there isnt plenty of blame to go around, but most if not all of it is on the offenses shoulders.

 

[Canadian BoyzFan]

If you'd watched the game, you know there was plenty of blame to go around - Bledsoe included. While the OL was awful, Bledsoe made bad decisions as well and the criticism is deserved.

Let's hope we see a different offensive team this week from Drew and Co.

Pretty hard to throw the ball effectively on 3rd and long and only 2 options to throw to. Max protecting is limiting the options available in the passing game.

 

[aikemirv]

How many passes did Bledsoe have knocked down at the line of scrimmage?

at least 3-4.

How many deep passes did he miss when Glenn had a step?

I think about 3.

Bledsoe played well at the beginning of the year and I am not bashing him, but he played as poorly as the Oline. No matter how much pressure you have had all game, when you actually have time to pass, a 13 year vet ought to hit the WR!!!

 

[Canadian BoyzFan]

Bledsoe could be better..no quesion. However, IMO..there are more glaring holes in our line up than Drew.

Not too many folks can argue that point.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

Did anyone happen to see that 3rd and one play in the 4th quarter that was so crucial?
If I recall correctly we had what looked to be a TE, (maybe Campbell or Pierce), about 5 yards downfield that was open, but Bledsoe chose to throw the ball 20-25 yards downfield into double coverage with a pass that had about a 5% probablity of being completed.

To excuse Bledsoe, the QB, from any blame in this offensive mess is incomprehensible!

Does Bledsoe need time in the pocket? Yes.
Was Bledsoe exclusively to blame Sunday? No.
Does the OL bear a large portion of the blame for the mess? Absolutely!

But there is this little factor that goes into playing QB that Bledsoe has always struggled with and it's what seperates the good ones from the great ones. Its a little thing called "decision-making".

Bledsoe has struggled with that aspect of his play his entire career and he will continue to struggle with it until the day he retires. His tremendous physical skill in being able to throw the ball makes up for this weakness some of the time and is what has allowed him to throw for over 40,000 yards in his career.

Bledsoe is by no means a "bum". He is a gifted throwing QB who can be effective. But he is getting older. His legs aren't what they were when he was a young QB. His pocket presence is very inconsistent and he will always cause you to pull your hair out with his propensity to make a couple of bone-head decisions over the course of every game or so.

All of that is so obvious about Bledsoe that it amazes me why anyone would want to exonerate him of any blame in the decline of our offense the past month or so.