Why does Witten fall down as soon as he's touched?

[Mavs Man]

It's hard to criticize such an asset on offense, but has anyone else noticed his tendency to fall over upon the first tackle/wrap-up? This was really noticeable watching the Bills game. He catches the ball and boom, he hits the ground. I'm not talking about big hits either, just simple leg wrap-ups. I would expect a guy his size to barrel forward for a few more yards.

 

[BrAinPaiNt]

He has a bone in his leg and it hurts when someone touches it.

 

[baj1dallas]

It's hard to criticize such an asset on offense, but has anyone else noticed his tendency to fall over upon the first tackle/wrap-up? This was really noticeable watching the Bills game. He catches the ball and boom, he hits the ground. I'm not talking about big hits either, just simple leg wrap-ups. I would expect a guy his size to barrel forward for a few more yards.

Witten barrels through tackles all the time. WTH kinda drugs are you on?

 

[Funxva]

It's hard to criticize such an asset on offense, but has anyone else noticed his tendency to fall over upon the first tackle/wrap-up? This was really noticeable watching the Bills game. He catches the ball and boom, he hits the ground. I'm not talking about big hits either, just simple leg wrap-ups. I would expect a guy his size to barrel forward for a few more yards.

They were doing a good job of tackling in that game. Check some of the earlier ones, and you will see that he was very difficult to bring down.

 

[Mavs Man]

They were doing a good job of tackling in that game. Check some of the earlier ones, and you will see that he was very difficult to bring down.

Maybe it was that one game. We were watching it and it seemed he would do this slow fall on several of his catches.

 

[WoodysGirl]

If they're grabbing his legs, from the waist down, how does he breakout of that tackle? If the defender uses good technique, then the offensive guy isnt going to break that.

Sometimes I think people think guys are supposed to superhero strength and should break every tackle.

 

[Reality]

Maybe it was that one game. We were watching it and it seemed he would do this slow fall on several of his catches.

Because if you look closely, someone usually had his feet wrapped up because I'm sure scouting reports show that tackling him low is the best technique to use against him.

-Reality

 

[03EBZ06]

I've seen Witten break lot of tackles and/or punishing defenders.

 

[Danny White]

Witten has become incredible at finding the soft spots in the zone. But what that means is when he catches the ball, he's usually surrounded on all sides by defenders.

I'd rather have him wisely hit the deck (as long as he already has the first down... which is another thing he's become great at: finding the sticks and getting just beyond them) than needlessly fight for another yard and maybe get hurt when he's gang-tackled by 4 guys.

But I don't question his toughness one bit. Remember him playing all those games with a broken jaw? I just think that sometimes, discretion is the better part of valour.

 

[Boyzmamacita]

I've seen Witten break lot of tackles and/or punishing defenders.

Me too. We're blessed to have #82.

 

[Deep_South]

It looks to me like Witten's main concern is holding on to the ball, to the exclusion of everything else. It is hard to make a major move against a defender draped all over you while clutching the ball with both hands to keep it from being stripped.

 

[Doomsday101]

He looked damn good on that 1st TD catch of the game as he blew past the LB. I have no issues when it comes to Wittens game.

 

[Mavs Man]

Witten has become incredible at finding the soft spots in the zone. But what that means is when he catches the ball, he's usually surrounded on all sides by defenders.

I'd rather have him wisely hit the deck (as long as he already has the first down... which is another thing he's become great at: finding the sticks and getting just beyond them) than needlessly fight for another yard and maybe get hurt when he's gang-tackled by 4 guys.

But I don't question his toughness one bit. Remember him playing all those games with a broken jaw? I just think that sometimes, discretion is the better part of valour.

That answers my question. It's those 6-7 yards routes in the middle of the field, he grabs the ball, a LB is at his feet, and he hits the deck rather than fight for the yards. I think I've been watching too much of MBIII.

 

[Mavs Man]

It looks to me like Witten's main concern is holding on to the ball, to the exclusion of everything else. It is hard to make a major move against a defender draped all over you while clutching the ball with both hands to keep it from being stripped.

That makes sense, too. He rarely fumbles (in fact, can't think of one).

 

[czmtzc]

It looks to me like Witten's main concern is holding on to the ball, to the exclusion of everything else. It is hard to make a major move against a defender draped all over you while clutching the ball with both hands to keep it from being stripped.

This is exactly my thought. He usually has both arms wrapped around the ball after he catches it, and that will hurt your balance a bit.

 

[WV Cowboy]

If they're grabbing his legs, from the waist down, how does he breakout of that tackle? If the defender uses good technique, then the offensive guy isnt going to break that.

Don't tell Marion Barber that.

Seriously, I have noticed that and commented about it before with Witten. Remember he had that fumble right before the half in a Giants game a year or so ago that cost us points, so maybe he is just concerned about fumbling.

And I noticed the difference last year when Fasano gets the ball, he is like a bull in a china shop.

I do think that Witten has been doing better with that, but he did revert back to going down easier in the Bills game.

Incredible catch for the TD in the Bills game, I was afraid that Romo had overthrown him.

 

[Fletch]

Witten barrels through tackles all the time. WTH kinda drugs are you on?

Hey, Mavs Man makes a very valid point. Witten does get taken down by the legs and just seems to topple over just about every other catch.

Now don't get me wrong, Witten is a top 3 - top 5 TE, but his tendency to drop like a sack of potatoes when someone hits him low is quite noticeable.

I do wish Witten was a little more athletic in the run after the catch department. But then again, I'll take Witten and his overall ability at his respective position over just about anybody.

 

[WoodysGirl]

Don't tell Marion Barber that.

When Barber's breaking tackles, the defenders aren't getting good holds on his waist or his legs. Barber is like a ping pong and usually guys bounce off him or he initiates the contact so they can't get a good hold on him. If they try to tackle him high, they're not going to bring him down unless it's a good form tackle.

Seriously, I have noticed that and commented about it before with Witten. Remember he had that fumble right before the half in a Giants game a year or so ago that cost us points, so maybe he is just concerned about fumbling.

And I noticed the difference last year when Fasano gets the ball, he is like a bull in a china shop.

I do think that Witten has been doing better with that, but he did revert back to going down easier in the Bills game.

Incredible catch for the TD in the Bills game, I was afraid that Romo had overthrown him.

Like someone else said, if Witten is working the middle of the field, once he goes downfield, he just sits in the soft zone. Romo gets him the ball and defenders converge. He doesn't get the chance to dance and keep moving.

Rarely does he get the ball on the move. But if he does, he's very hard to bring down.

 

[iceberg]

It's hard to criticize such an asset on offense, but has anyone else noticed his tendency to fall over upon the first tackle/wrap-up? This was really noticeable watching the Bills game. He catches the ball and boom, he hits the ground. I'm not talking about big hits either, just simple leg wrap-ups. I would expect a guy his size to barrel forward for a few more yards.

some people are just never happy.

 

[Mavs Man]

I didn't realize I was opening a can of worms, here. I wasn't suggesting that Witten stinks up the joint, isn't a top 5 TE in the league, isn't a great team leader, team player, offensive weapon, favorite target of our resident Next Big Thing QB, or that I think we ought to trade him to a division rival along with Carpenter and a bag of potato chips. I'm happy with Witten, I'm very happy with this team, and I don't expect him to be perfect, but it's something I've observed lately.