- JW's improvement is real. The scrambles are great to see, the value of his 1st down conversion with his legs cannot be understated. Those drives end with punts or FG attempts (welp!) without that. His confidence in the pocket, taking a hit on the long TD bomb, and confidence to make throws he wouldn't attempt previously is evident. And oh the placement was phenomenal last few weeks.
- JW does still give at least one gimme to the opposing D, they dropped it this week, and will be interesting to see how he does against a front that can challenge him w/pass rush
- The Oline dominated a much smaller front 7. The matchup was favorable, but they are definitely improving. Improvement can be seen since the PITT game when they were actually challenged. But let's not kid ourselves...still a long way to go here before we can challenge a playoff contender
- Wiggins seems to be developing and gives us a legit deep threat other than JT4...awesome to see
- To me our DT's are above average, but not impactful right now. I would like to see more Jordan Miller, love Nesta's motor and edge, and other guys have their ups and downs, but we don't have a Gerald, RJ, or Norton yet. (And none of them was ELITE at the playoff contention level). Hopefully someone takes a big step forward, or one of the freshmen turns out to be a difference maker. Depth is great this year and next though.
- Rousseau is being game planned for, and is still very raw in terms of moves. He is a freak, fun to watch, but still has a ton of room for improvement
- Garvin will benefit the most from Rousseau's emergence, he will draw double teams and attention, and Garvin has been much better when he is not the focal point of the pass protection in the past.
- Shaq is a great dude, durable as heck, and playing the best I have ever seen him play last few weeks. He is still limited in his mobility and this holds him back from being elite. He is a good, not great college LB, but an elite personality.
- I think we need to practice and play with 3 traditional LBs against a team like UL (and recruited a few LBs who can cover) to help against these power run games. I have said this in other threads, the power run game can give defenses with personnel designed to stop the spread major problems. A striker is not big enough to deal with that attack on a down by down basis. (Which is why I don't mind Enos's multiple TE looks).
- CBs are getting better and better, but again, we don't have elites athletes here...good athletes, but not good enough for Playoff football IMO
- Amari Carter played his best game, and I want to give him props because I am hard on him. I still am not convinced he can consistently get guys down in space (doesn't wrap enough for my liking) but he sure brings the wood.
- Camden Price has been good within 40, his one miss last week was a just miss, not the laughably poor kicking we saw earlier
- Hedley has been awesome, like KJ back there. ST has vastly improved
This Staff has shown the willingness to correct and make changes. GR15 not starting to starting. Huge mistake, but previous staffs would have stayed the course. Same with the kickers, punting, and punt returns (no JT4 and still productive). Oline and JW improvement is noticeable. JW has a chance to be a difference maker at this level....GOD I HOPE HE IS.
We should handle FIU easily and tune back up after the bye week. Statistically, Duke's defense should provide a better measuring stick for this offense.
This team is not close to playoff contention, but should not expect them to be. Trending up, and recruiting should follow. It will be a process of a couple seasons of bringing in and cultivating some Day 1 and 2 Draft talents before we get there. Still, enjoy the ride, there is a lot to like, but not close to being "Back" yet.
- JW does still give at least one gimme to the opposing D, they dropped it this week, and will be interesting to see how he does against a front that can challenge him w/pass rush
- The Oline dominated a much smaller front 7. The matchup was favorable, but they are definitely improving. Improvement can be seen since the PITT game when they were actually challenged. But let's not kid ourselves...still a long way to go here before we can challenge a playoff contender
- Wiggins seems to be developing and gives us a legit deep threat other than JT4...awesome to see
- To me our DT's are above average, but not impactful right now. I would like to see more Jordan Miller, love Nesta's motor and edge, and other guys have their ups and downs, but we don't have a Gerald, RJ, or Norton yet. (And none of them was ELITE at the playoff contention level). Hopefully someone takes a big step forward, or one of the freshmen turns out to be a difference maker. Depth is great this year and next though.
- Rousseau is being game planned for, and is still very raw in terms of moves. He is a freak, fun to watch, but still has a ton of room for improvement
- Garvin will benefit the most from Rousseau's emergence, he will draw double teams and attention, and Garvin has been much better when he is not the focal point of the pass protection in the past.
- Shaq is a great dude, durable as heck, and playing the best I have ever seen him play last few weeks. He is still limited in his mobility and this holds him back from being elite. He is a good, not great college LB, but an elite personality.
- I think we need to practice and play with 3 traditional LBs against a team like UL (and recruited a few LBs who can cover) to help against these power run games. I have said this in other threads, the power run game can give defenses with personnel designed to stop the spread major problems. A striker is not big enough to deal with that attack on a down by down basis. (Which is why I don't mind Enos's multiple TE looks).
- CBs are getting better and better, but again, we don't have elites athletes here...good athletes, but not good enough for Playoff football IMO
- Amari Carter played his best game, and I want to give him props because I am hard on him. I still am not convinced he can consistently get guys down in space (doesn't wrap enough for my liking) but he sure brings the wood.
- Camden Price has been good within 40, his one miss last week was a just miss, not the laughably poor kicking we saw earlier
- Hedley has been awesome, like KJ back there. ST has vastly improved
This Staff has shown the willingness to correct and make changes. GR15 not starting to starting. Huge mistake, but previous staffs would have stayed the course. Same with the kickers, punting, and punt returns (no JT4 and still productive). Oline and JW improvement is noticeable. JW has a chance to be a difference maker at this level....GOD I HOPE HE IS.
We should handle FIU easily and tune back up after the bye week. Statistically, Duke's defense should provide a better measuring stick for this offense.
This team is not close to playoff contention, but should not expect them to be. Trending up, and recruiting should follow. It will be a process of a couple seasons of bringing in and cultivating some Day 1 and 2 Draft talents before we get there. Still, enjoy the ride, there is a lot to like, but not close to being "Back" yet.
