What is the real problem with the offense.

[Wolverine]

Ok we know the OL is a problem but we did play with a more open offense against KC.

Looking back at the games where we opened it up more Bledsoe has played better. It does seem like he is better when he knows it is more open and can do more of what he wants out there.

Has the problem been that Bledsoe is a hot and cold QB or have his bad games come cuz of how closed the offense had been against the Donks and Giants.

IMO I think the conservative offense hurts Bledsoe almost as much as our OL does.

 

[Teague31]

It's the OL.... we can open it up against KC cause their defense sucks. we have shown that we cannot do that against good defenses.

 

[MapleLeaf]

Ok we know the OL is a problem but we did play with a more open offense against KC.

Looking back at the games where we opened it up more Bledsoe has played better. It does seem like he is better when he knows it is more open and can do more of what he wants out there.

Has the problem been that Bledsoe is a hot and cold QB or have his bad games come cuz of how closed the offense had been against the Donks and Giants.

IMO I think the conservative offense hurts Bledsoe almost as much as our OL does.

...and you guys can flay me for this opinion if you like, the problem is that Bledsoe is too one dimensional. It's not that he is slow footed, but rather his passing is not adept when under ten yards.

He really only looks good and makes good throws when he can plant his feet and step into it. I'm hoping that he can be more proficient in the dump off passes with a little more touch and anticipation than a cannon shot ala the Campbell near interception.

The o-line is definitely a problem and we can't run properly, but geez louise not every pass has to go for 10 plus yards on third down for a critical first down.

What happened to good executed dump off passes that backs and receivers can get in stride and make some YAC? We need to expand the dimension of our offence to help ourselves out in the roster shortcomings we have right now.

If our line isn't great at blocking we have to find other creative ways to get 4 to 7 yards. Eventually a defence will get wise when all you do is chuck it down the field. With our dimensional limitations we are not a playoff team offensively. Once the run is shut down we are truly one dimensional and Bledsoe cannnot overcome that.

If we had a serious short yardage ability in the passing game, and I think Barber can be that guy, we may be able to keep this offence rolling when the line isn't performing. It's really up to Drew and how well he executes the short passes and is creative with them.

 

[jbsg02]

KC has one of the worth pass defenses in the league.

 

[Ashwynn]

...and you guys can flay me for this opinion if you like, the problem is that Bledsoe is too one dimensional. It's not that he is slow footed, but rather his passing is not adept when under ten yards.

He really only looks good and makes good throws when he can plant his feet and step into it. I'm hoping that he can be more proficient in the dump off passes with a little more touch and anticipation than a cannon shot ala the Campbell near interception.

The o-line is definitely a problem and we can't run properly, but geez louise not every pass has to go for 10 plus yards on third down for a critical first down.

What happened to good executed dump off passes that backs and receivers can get in stride and make some YAC? We need to expand the dimension of our offence to help ourselves out in the roster shortcomings we have right now.

If our line isn't great at blocking we have to find other creative ways to get 4 to 7 yards. Eventually a defence will get wise when all you do is chuck it down the field. With our dimensional limitations we are not a playoff team offensively. Once the run is shut down we are truly one dimensional and Bledsoe cannnot overcome that.

If we had a serious short yardage ability in the passing game, and I think Barber can be that guy, we may be able to keep this offence rolling when the line isn't performing. It's really up to Drew and how well he executes the short passes and is creative with them.

Wow, we been playing short dump offs and hoping the back will break it, or Witten runs a 3 yard route on 3 and 5 and we hope he can turn it upfield. They never do and have been royally roasted for it in the press, the forum here and elsewhere. You been watching this year. thats pretty much 80% of our offense. The short dink and dunk. That and having Jones run into the bigget pile on the field on 3 and 1, for no gain.

 

[Cowboy Junkie]

I think the main problem is the Oline ,but I think we have a problem with the running backs and tightends not breaking tackles or making guys miss...

Seems to me like we just do not have the explosiveness from those positions , so those short dump offs or 8 /10 yard routes are going no where...
We are not getting very strong explosive runs...
The backs are getting through the Dline then thats it.
Not making linebackers miss and not running over DB's

I would like to see Witten punish tacklers a little more and maybe even carry some for that extra yard or 2...

 

[MapleLeaf]

Wow, we been playing short dump offs and hoping the back will break it, or Witten runs a 3 yard route on 3 and 5 and we hope he can turn it upfield. They never do and have been royally roasted for it in the press, the forum here and elsewhere. You been watching this year. thats pretty much 80% of our offense. The short dink and dunk. That and having Jones run into the bigget pile on the field on 3 and 1, for no gain.

...in the games do you think Bledsoe throws dump off passes or swing passes with good execution?

From my vantage point I have seen far too many short passes that Jones, Barber or Witten has had to reach back or for the sky to pull the pass down.

When you can't give those passes to the players in between the numbers or in stride they won't have much of an opportunity to make the play.

We need to see better execution on swing passes and slants. Screens that Bledsoe can sell the play action on then get the ball to the RB.

Early in the series three yards or four yards on passes such as these are just as good as a decent run, but they show the defence a different dimension to your team and may soften them for other types of plays.

Coaches talk about it over and over again and it's the reason why every offensive coordinator has some form of "west coast" plays in their playbook. A short pass can be as safe and successful as a good run if executed properly.

 

[Cowboy Junkie]

Wow, we been playing short dump offs and hoping the back will break it, or Witten runs a 3 yard route on 3 and 5 and we hope he can turn it upfield. They never do and have been royally roasted for it in the press, the forum here and elsewhere. You been watching this year. thats pretty much 80% of our offense. The short dink and dunk. That and having Jones run into the bigget pile on the field on 3 and 1, for no gain.

I was a little slow with my post , but I think other teams are forcing us to do the things you say knowing the players we have can not hurt them after the catch or with a run .

 

[Ashwynn]

...in the games do you think Bledsoe throws dump off passes or swing passes with good execution?

From my vantage point I have seen far too many short passes that Jones, Barber or Witten has had to reach back or for the sky to pull the pass down.

When you can't give those passes to the players in between the numbers or in stride they won't have much of an opportunity to make the play.

We need to see better execution on swing passes and slants. Screens that Bledsoe can sell the play action on then get the ball to the RB.

Early in the series three yards or four yards on passes such as these are just as good as a decent run, but they show the defence a different dimension to your team and may soften them for other types of plays.

Coaches talk about it over and over again and it's the reason why every offensive coordinator has some form of "west coast" plays in their playbook. A short pass can be as safe and successful as a good run if executed properly.

Execution is a good point often not talked about. The game plan would be top notch if Witten executed it the way its drawn up. Which is he catches it for 3 yards and falls forward for 2-3 or more yards. But it aint happening. The players arnt executing.

When that happens a staff should change the plan to accomidate the players strength. If he can catch it. let him run 6 yards and let him catch it. Theres an old chinese saying 'when you find yourself in a hole, quit digging' Meaning change the things that arnt working. We dont do that. I dont know why? Its obvious even to a causal fan. Predicable, unreliable plays after unreliable plays. If they execute it, it looks good. Thats where expereince comes in, they will get there and these plays will move the chains. But it aint happening at this point in time. And thats frustrating as hell.

Edit. Not bashing or calling witten out. using him as an example only!

 

[DallasDomination]

The consevative offense is the biggest problem for Bledsoe...I never really undertood why BP would even go into the game plans with the MAX protection Scheme and all those little extra gadgest, because honestly they messed Drew Bledsoe up bad.


Keep the offense open and let the Oline handle their own crap....If they fail they fail, but aleast we're giving ourselves every chance to make a big play,instead of just going down the field 1 yard at a time.

 

[Sarge]

KC has one of the worth pass defenses in the league.

You need to work on that speech impediment.

 

[hendog]

You need to work on that speech impediment.

Oh lord now that was funny.

 

[Martice]

...and you guys can flay me for this opinion if you like, the problem is that Bledsoe is too one dimensional. It's not that he is slow footed, but rather his passing is not adept when under ten yards.

He really only looks good and makes good throws when he can plant his feet and step into it. I'm hoping that he can be more proficient in the dump off passes with a little more touch and anticipation than a cannon shot ala the Campbell near interception.

The o-line is definitely a problem and we can't run properly, but geez louise not every pass has to go for 10 plus yards on third down for a critical first down.

What happened to good executed dump off passes that backs and receivers can get in stride and make some YAC? We need to expand the dimension of our offence to help ourselves out in the roster shortcomings we have right now.

If our line isn't great at blocking we have to find other creative ways to get 4 to 7 yards. Eventually a defence will get wise when all you do is chuck it down the field. With our dimensional limitations we are not a playoff team offensively. Once the run is shut down we are truly one dimensional and Bledsoe cannnot overcome that.

If we had a serious short yardage ability in the passing game, and I think Barber can be that guy, we may be able to keep this offence rolling when the line isn't performing. It's really up to Drew and how well he executes the short passes and is creative with them.

WOW! Great Post. Throw in the fact that Crayton is back. He is excellent in the short type passes you describe.

Drew must be able to execute the short passes as well as he does the long passes if we are to stay competitive in these up coming games. This is exactly one of the ways that Drew can help his 'O' line. I know he has a fixation on Terry Glenn and will occasionally glance at Witten, but he has so many offensive weapons in the short to intermediate routes that the "o' line shouldn't have to hold a block as long as they have been asked.

Last game Drew got the ball out faster than recently and if he is to continue with this type of play, he will have to recognize that the short routes are as CLUTCH (there's that word again) as a deep one sometimes.

Once again, great post.

 

[Doomsday101]

I think the OL has been the major problem, it is the reason we have difficulty sustaining the run and the reason we have been forced to go with max protection. This offense has shown when we can get some blocking up front we can move the ball down the field and put points on the board.

 

[alancdc]

They are saying the same thing here in Carolina Panthers territory about Jake. People thinks that when Jake knows they are going to pass, or be more wide open, like in the 2 min drill he is great. When he thinks they are going to run 6 out of 10 times he can't get in a rythm. Maybe Drew is the same way. Maybe that is why it seems like offenses run so smoothly in the 2 min drill. However, it is virtually imposible to run that ALL the time so they need to figure out how to keep them in a flow of passing.

 

[percyhoward]

From my vantage point I have seen far too many short passes that Jones, Barber or Witten has had to reach back or for the sky to pull the pass down.

Latest example--against KC on 3rd down at midfield. The dumpoff pass to a wide open Barber that Bledsoe fired directly at the ankles. Great catch by Barber, that probably saved the game. Drew needs to settle down and put some touch on those.

Bledsoe's rating is 42 points higher on 3rd-and-long than on 3rd-and-medium. He's not comfortable with the shorter passes.

 

[parcellsguys]

The O-line. Imagine if the O-line was solid in all aspects. Then the Cowboys would be able to run a versatile game plan every week.

If the coaching had to spend less time worrying about the ways to help the line then they could develop a lot more mismatches in the passing game. Allowing 2 receivers to go out for a pass does not threathen a defense half as much as if there are 4 receivers going out for passes, simple math on that one.

When the line playing solid it sets a foundation for the offense. Same thing on the defensive side of the ball. These last couple of Patriots teams that won the Super Bowls have had great line play on both sides of the ball. Of course the QB's and LB's get all the credit, but the OL's and the DL's are the real heroes.

 

[Martice]

Latest example--against KC on 3rd down at midfield. The dumpoff pass to a wide open Barber that Bledsoe fired directly at the ankles. Great catch by Barber, that probably saved the game. Drew needs to settle down and put some touch on those.

Bledsoe's rating is 42 points higher on 3rd-and-long than on 3rd-and-medium. He's not comfortable with the shorter passes.

This may explain why he has gained so many yards throwing over his career because he favors the long ball and with those types of plays, you stand the chance of being sacked more times than not and also run the risk of throwing more INT's. This is where I think Drew's biggest adjustment will come.