Am I the only one who still doesn't have a feel for how good or bad we are? I mean I am elated to be 9-5 after the last 6 year nightmare! However, this team is really hard to get a read on. We have been dominate and we have been horrible. We have had a pretty easy schedule, but what game is easy in the NFL. I go into every game expecting a victory, but I do that every game, but part of me still wonders which D will show up and will we score enough points. It is crazy because by this point in the season I usually have a good feel for the team. I mean I know we are a play mistake free with good D, that is our ID. It is just weird because I feel anything can happen with this team good or bad. Any body feeling me?
I will try to break it down for you if I may..........
1) We have a very intelligent, accurate, QB who moves pretty well in the pocket. He rarely turns the ball over and is an excellent leader. He throws VERY WELL in between the hashes and short to intermediate even to the outsides. He can attack the middle of the field very well, even deep. His passes are crisp and accurate, usually allowing the receivers a nice opportunity to make a play after the catch. He is the key to the teams overall success.
2) OL - Very average to good. This is the hardest group to get a read on. Run blocking wise, they seem ok at times, and at times seem to struggle. The average gain per carry, just guessing Id say its decent. This is tough to read though because of the way the defenses will play against us considering our QBs skill set.
Pass blocking they seem to be average to good as well. But, again, our QB does very well moving around back there, so its not as if they are blocking for a QB who dosent know how to manuver within the pocket and outside the pocket. I would guess we dont give up alot of sacks, but we do some. The QB dosent seem to face a ton of pressure though. Again, when he does, he is capable of doing what good QBs do, and make a play despite it.
3) RBs -- We have a solid backfield. The FB acquired earlier in the season seems to do a good job blocking, and definately has been good in short yardage. The RBs are as fine as any roster in the league. 3 guys who can make plays when given the opportunity.
4) WRs -- A very underrated group. No true standout, must double cover guy, but some nice role players. The loss of Camarillo hurts the depth of this group though. While Bess has taken his role nicely, and has equalled or bettered that production, the depth behind him dosent equal up to what Bess brought to the #3 spot.
5) TEs -- Great unit. Very underrated. A great pass catcher in Martin and a nice combination skill guy in Fasano. Above or a little better than average in both blocking and catching for Fasano.
6) DL -- A nice mix of youth and experience. Decent group. Above average big guy in the middle who is the nucleus of the D. Ferguson is paramount to our success with his run stuffing ability. Holiday is a nice veteran player as well. Langford has been outstanding for a rookie and Starks is underrated and does a nice job as well. The rest of the depth is marginal but young.
7) LBs -- An outstanding pass rusher in Porter. An average to good ILBing pair with Akin and Channing. Roth leaves something to be desired in most games. He is marginal at best but, could be a solid backup when the position is upgraded. Depth wise they arent great, but Torbor has experience and Anderson has been rushing the passer a little better on 3rd downs lately.
8) DB -- Another very underrated group. Will Allen is EXCEPTIONAL. One of the leagues finest. Excellent in run support and above average in coverage. Can cover quick slot men in 3wr sets. Goodman is underrated. Very acceptable #2. Would be a great #3, but a pretty solid starter. The depth for this group however needs a serious upgrade as we lack any real talent at CB behind these 2.
At safety Bell is a very good player. Hill is decent and would make a solid backup, but is an adequate starter at best. Culver has played fairly well in his role. An upgrade at safety would be nice, with Hill and Culver backing things up.
Special teams - Good punter, decent kicker. Needs to improve his kickoffs. The coverage has played better since being pretty bad for a large part of the season.
So Id say we are pretty good. We obviously have some areas to address still, and must solidify the depth in alot of areas. We arent the best team in the league, but we certainly arent the worst. We are capable of beating anyone, and there are plenty of teams it would be very tough for them to beat us. We play too smart and dont give bad teams much of a chance. Bad teams need you to make mistakes for them to beat you.
Unlike most who seem to think WR and DB are our biggest needs. I still believe we have work to do on the OL, and front 7 on D. We will again look to upgrade these positions. Plus we have some solid players like Ferguson who we must be looking to replace soon due to age.
I dont think we need DB as badly as most. Depth in those areas for sure, but there are starting positions in the front 7 and OL that need taken care of first before we are better than the top teams in the league.
However, this dosent mean we arent capable of beating those teams now. And if we get in the playoffs, we certainly have a shot to win against any team we may face and go as far as any team can.
