Portland Fanatic
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I think I'm stating the obvious here, but I really think the season depends on how the Oline finishes off the season.
Why?
~ Drew Bledsoe has proven, with time, he can win games and be more then a bus driver.
~ The defense is WAY ahead of where I thought they'd be at this point. I knew the potential was there, but they are playing well (I'll get back to the last minutes of the game(s) in a moment)
~ Our CB's are playing extremely well...perfect no, but very well.
~ Our aging WR's are playing very well, and even though we lost Crayton for a few games we were smart in having an insurance policy in Price.
~ After the bye hopefully we will have JJ back at full strength...and we will know what we have in Barber and Thompson...this is a plus in the long term.
Now for the Oline
~ Petitti has played pretty well except for the last game where he obviously struggled...a rookie forced into the limelight, learning playbook, and opponents is a HUGE task.
~ LA is doing ok for the most part...
~ Big Al...off and on...he gets blown up at times, but is a smart player.
~ Rivera...he is a decent/solid player, but not a silver bullet at RG.
~ Tucker...I've expressed my great concern over him...only time will tell.
Bottom line...how well they protect Bledsoe, and open up running lanes which is spotty at best, will determine the rest of the season. I do not see the oline making huge improvements...don't think they are really banged up, so my concern is how will they improve in the last half vs. the first half of the season...don't see to much changing here??? I would love to somehow see less obvious play calling in certain situation, and stop the freakin trick plays at key points in the game. We need to work on basic more then getting cute...we have had only ONE successful trick play all year.
Defense
~ I think we will figure out how to fix the last minute issues that have cost us...personally I put more blame on the offense for not driving the nail in the coffin, but with that said there are some obvious issues in the last few minutes that hopefully we be corrected and addressed during the bye week!
Why?
~ Drew Bledsoe has proven, with time, he can win games and be more then a bus driver.
~ The defense is WAY ahead of where I thought they'd be at this point. I knew the potential was there, but they are playing well (I'll get back to the last minutes of the game(s) in a moment)
~ Our CB's are playing extremely well...perfect no, but very well.
~ Our aging WR's are playing very well, and even though we lost Crayton for a few games we were smart in having an insurance policy in Price.
~ After the bye hopefully we will have JJ back at full strength...and we will know what we have in Barber and Thompson...this is a plus in the long term.
Now for the Oline
~ Petitti has played pretty well except for the last game where he obviously struggled...a rookie forced into the limelight, learning playbook, and opponents is a HUGE task.
~ LA is doing ok for the most part...
~ Big Al...off and on...he gets blown up at times, but is a smart player.
~ Rivera...he is a decent/solid player, but not a silver bullet at RG.
~ Tucker...I've expressed my great concern over him...only time will tell.
Bottom line...how well they protect Bledsoe, and open up running lanes which is spotty at best, will determine the rest of the season. I do not see the oline making huge improvements...don't think they are really banged up, so my concern is how will they improve in the last half vs. the first half of the season...don't see to much changing here??? I would love to somehow see less obvious play calling in certain situation, and stop the freakin trick plays at key points in the game. We need to work on basic more then getting cute...we have had only ONE successful trick play all year.
Defense
~ I think we will figure out how to fix the last minute issues that have cost us...personally I put more blame on the offense for not driving the nail in the coffin, but with that said there are some obvious issues in the last few minutes that hopefully we be corrected and addressed during the bye week!
