Frayser
Practice Squad
I know everyone posts dozens of "my thoughts" emails after every game, but living in Nashville I was able to actually sit down and watch this one in the comfort of my own living room. So I thought I would go ahead and offer up some things I noticed.
#1 - Ronnie Brown
I'm really glad he got a lot of rest playing behind Carnell at Auburn because at this rate he'll be lucky to last four years in this league. Don't get me wrong. It's not his fault. Ronnie is an amazing back. I have yet to see him give up on a play, and he seems to always be good for two more yards than you expected on each and every run. But we cannot keep abusing this kid the way we are. Typically, when backs get in the 80-120 yard range, they at least broke out one decent-sized run to rack up some yards. Right now, Ronnie is earning every inch out there . . . and I'm just waiting for that day when he gets up slow after taking a nasty hit. (For all you superstitious fans out there, I am knocking on wood as I type)
#2 - Offensive Line
How about that for a transition? I'm not even going to discuss the pass blocking. It is what it is. The Titans actually have a very young, and deep, defensive line so I was not surprised we had a little trouble. But for once . . . just once . . . I'd like to see Ronnie get the ball handed off to him and actually see a . . . what's that thing called again . . . oh right . . . a hole! You watch a team like Pittsburgh, and it's no wonder Parker ends up with 120 yards. He gets the ball and has a three yard gap in the line of scrimmage to run through. I'm not asking for that on every play, but I'm not even sure I've seen it yet this year. Our best running play (besides the reverses) was a draw where we fooled the defense. In short, we have got to be able to get some better run blocking out of this line. That, more than anything else, is going to help Culpepper ease back into things.
#3 - Randy McMichael
Can somebody put an APB out on him? Two receptions for 15 yards? He's only got 4 on the year. This is our stud, playmaking tight end that is supposed to create so many mismatches with defenses. As with Brown, I'm not faulting Randy. From my perspective, it looks like we're just not going to him enough. Perhaps Mularkey isn't utilizing him in his playcalling. Perhaps Culpepper it just not seeing him out there. But whatever the reason, we're leaving yards, first downs, and touchdowns out on the field when we don't get Randy involved in the game.
#4 - Defensive blitzes
There have already been a few threads on this, but I think our blitz problem was even more apparent today. There were at least four plays where we came with all out blitzes that Tennessee picked up and, if not for a terrible throw by Collins, we would have been burned for huge yards (and possibly a TD). I'm sorry to say it everyone, but Tom Brady is no Kerry Collins. He makes those throws, and we lose this game. Blitzes are going to get picked up now and then, but we have got to be more effective . . . especially when you consider the fact that our secondary is not necessarily a strong point of our defense.
#5 - Yeremiah Bell
Did anyone see the play where he came on the blitz and then ended up making the tackle on David Givens some 15 or 20 yards down the field (and hurting Givens . . . not that I'm celebrating that)? Nice effort. More of that please.
#6 - Overall
A win is a win, and I will certainly take it. Nick had a lot of good things to say after the game. It sounds like guys are staying positive and having fun out there. If the Bengals beat the Pats and we beat the Texans next week, we go in all square against New England. Still, this win leaves much to be desired. As I said, I live in Nashville, and Tennessee is just plain awful. Their loss to the Chargers was humiliating, and they're not even my team. I think it's pretty obvious that we will not beat good teams playing like we did today.
#1 - Ronnie Brown
I'm really glad he got a lot of rest playing behind Carnell at Auburn because at this rate he'll be lucky to last four years in this league. Don't get me wrong. It's not his fault. Ronnie is an amazing back. I have yet to see him give up on a play, and he seems to always be good for two more yards than you expected on each and every run. But we cannot keep abusing this kid the way we are. Typically, when backs get in the 80-120 yard range, they at least broke out one decent-sized run to rack up some yards. Right now, Ronnie is earning every inch out there . . . and I'm just waiting for that day when he gets up slow after taking a nasty hit. (For all you superstitious fans out there, I am knocking on wood as I type)
#2 - Offensive Line
How about that for a transition? I'm not even going to discuss the pass blocking. It is what it is. The Titans actually have a very young, and deep, defensive line so I was not surprised we had a little trouble. But for once . . . just once . . . I'd like to see Ronnie get the ball handed off to him and actually see a . . . what's that thing called again . . . oh right . . . a hole! You watch a team like Pittsburgh, and it's no wonder Parker ends up with 120 yards. He gets the ball and has a three yard gap in the line of scrimmage to run through. I'm not asking for that on every play, but I'm not even sure I've seen it yet this year. Our best running play (besides the reverses) was a draw where we fooled the defense. In short, we have got to be able to get some better run blocking out of this line. That, more than anything else, is going to help Culpepper ease back into things.
#3 - Randy McMichael
Can somebody put an APB out on him? Two receptions for 15 yards? He's only got 4 on the year. This is our stud, playmaking tight end that is supposed to create so many mismatches with defenses. As with Brown, I'm not faulting Randy. From my perspective, it looks like we're just not going to him enough. Perhaps Mularkey isn't utilizing him in his playcalling. Perhaps Culpepper it just not seeing him out there. But whatever the reason, we're leaving yards, first downs, and touchdowns out on the field when we don't get Randy involved in the game.
#4 - Defensive blitzes
There have already been a few threads on this, but I think our blitz problem was even more apparent today. There were at least four plays where we came with all out blitzes that Tennessee picked up and, if not for a terrible throw by Collins, we would have been burned for huge yards (and possibly a TD). I'm sorry to say it everyone, but Tom Brady is no Kerry Collins. He makes those throws, and we lose this game. Blitzes are going to get picked up now and then, but we have got to be more effective . . . especially when you consider the fact that our secondary is not necessarily a strong point of our defense.
#5 - Yeremiah Bell
Did anyone see the play where he came on the blitz and then ended up making the tackle on David Givens some 15 or 20 yards down the field (and hurting Givens . . . not that I'm celebrating that)? Nice effort. More of that please.
#6 - Overall
A win is a win, and I will certainly take it. Nick had a lot of good things to say after the game. It sounds like guys are staying positive and having fun out there. If the Bengals beat the Pats and we beat the Texans next week, we go in all square against New England. Still, this win leaves much to be desired. As I said, I live in Nashville, and Tennessee is just plain awful. Their loss to the Chargers was humiliating, and they're not even my team. I think it's pretty obvious that we will not beat good teams playing like we did today.
