Its a mixed bag http://dailydolphin.blog.palmbeachp...lphins-offensive-starters-struggle-vs-dallas/ And there were some who thought MM should replace Tanny .One impressive pass does not make a starting QB.
However you feel about the PFF grading process, I think this shines a pretty interesting light on the over importance people place on the "long ball".
Hmm, and yet MMoore clearly out produced Tannehill, now not saying THill should be sat am saying this is PFF at it's not very good self. Take J'wan James, he is not a powerful run blocker, did fine in pass pro, yet his grade is poor when in context the line last season was much worse and the pass blocking needed to be upgraded. I'll take James' poor run blocking in lieu of keeping THill upright 9 times out of 10 Add in their preseason "Top 5" did include Darkwa who has been killing it for us Do think Lazor needs to rethink running all of those sweep/flanker screens, what Pottman did Saturday will happen a lot if that play is overused.
As a backup QB, I wouldn't expect Moore to outplay Tannehill and based on this rating system, he didn't. Of course Tannehill also had a bad game against what is considered one of the worst defenses in the entire NFL. Tannehill has led this offense to only one TD in three preseason games. He will have to play much better once the regular season begins or else this team is headed for another mediocre to bad season. The one positive from the game, beside the running of Moreno, was the play of the first string defense against the #1 offense of the Cowboys. They were much more effective than I thought they would be and it once again appears this team is going to have to rely on the defense, until the offense hopefully gets its act together.
Personally.... I forgot about the Cowboys game Sunday Am. Its preseason guys...sometimes I think we over analyze things. Not pointed at you Crunch at all....just saying once the first snap happens next week....aint nobody gonna say..."Yeh but...look at the 3rd preseason game"...
the only offense the cowboy #1 offense could muster was not really schematic, just simple freak talent making a few catches against tight coverage with no yac..thought they were very good. #1 offense will be fine, they were practicing the run game in scoring situations.. Not talking to you here j-dub...So big freakin deal ryan made a bad throw, it was a misread on a back shoulder man, Brady thru a pick 6 this preseason to a guy who called them cheaters..first few quarters in a new system (all three games) I thought he showed well, loved the first read option keeper against Dallas on the first play. One missing element I haven't seen from Ryan is the ability to threaten the defense and make them aware that he will run if there is a lane and they turn their back to him..I would like to see that just a couple times a game when regular season starts.
Much more positive than negative.. Starting D looked great.. Run game..hello!!!. We have a real traditional downhill three down running back with some attitude. Starting offense moved the ball at will. No injuries...preseason is over..play all scrubs next week, and lets continue to game plan for pats
D1 showed some explosive ability while keeping his head still in full stride, not easy but it's the name of the game when it comes to the deep ball. I wanna find out who was covering him and how fast that corner was cause I don't remember Williams being touted as being as fast as that looked.
I agree that we should not overvalue action during the preseason. I do believe the rating of Shelly Smith does illustrate a mistaken focus taken by PFF and some posters. Smith did not have a dominant game, but he did have a profound impact on the success for the running game. Sometimes it was having football IQ to seal off the hole when his assignment was out of position. While he was driven off the line on the first running play, he stayed in contact long enough that it was not a tackle for loss. PFF focuses too much on dominant performance instead of performance that contributes to success. Sometimes effort, staying engaged with a block, and doing just enough to meet your responsibilities is enough for an offense to function.
I cannot recall a time I've ever disagreed more with PFF on a game. There is no way on god's green earth that Smith deserved a -1.8 run blocking grade, let alone be rated our worst run blocker in the entire game. When I rewatched the game on NFLN with their Miami feed for the entire game, I played back dozens of our offensive plays to focus on the interior OL mostly. To my eyes, Smith did really well run blocking, and for that matter, Satele made several nice blocks too. I do not recall a single failed running play that was the fault of either one whiffing on a block, and many of the best runs went through the area being blocked by the C and RG. Smith is much more physical player and makes much better use of his functional strength, than does Dallas Thomas. Thomas is totally a finesse blocker in every aspect, run or pass. He can position and wall off sometimes, but even then does not lock on and sustain well. Thomas to my eyes, plays tender. Smith had multiple examples in that game of locking on and completely eliminating his man.
To your point, I think PFF has a flaw in how they grade on zone blocking in the run game. Case in point: The 2011 Broncos. ZBS in the run game. Willis McGahee ran for 1203 yards and averaged 4.5 a carry. Yet among their 5 starting OL, only one had a + rating as a run blocker, RT Orlando Franklin with a 4.6. The next best run blocker was LG Zane Beadles with a -1.6, followed by RG Chris Kuper, -7.6, LT Ryan Clady, -11.3, and Center J.D. Walton with a -16.1. That line group was pretty much intact for the entire season. Their continuity should have been pretty good. Yet, with so many poor blocking grades, how did McGahee avg 4.5 a carry? In backup roles, Lance Ball averaged 4.3 and Moreno averaged 4.8. Running middle left and middle right, behind Walton basically, McGahee averaged 5.5 and 3.4. Behind Clady he averaged 4.3. So how can a team run the ball so well, but grade out so poorly overall in run blocking?
Those 2 decisions Tannehill made (to the left side of the field) would have sucked against ANY defense. Aside from those 2, he did fine.
Exactly, one of the issues is they do not differentiate b/t an effective play and a pretty/dominant play "Shelly Smith was pushed back on a bull rush" Yes he was, however that did not effect the outcome of the play PFF is great, it also is not manned by fmr position coaches and coordinators, so I tend to go with what I've seen over what they tell me they have seen and see as positives or negatives.
Dallas Thomas looks like a good pass protecting tackle trying to play Guard and lacking the physicality to manage it. And agreed, Smith looked fine to me
I recall one successful running play where Smith locked on, but got pushed back a little, but never lost control of the defender, and the runner went right past them. Smith had him well inside the shoulders and locked on like his hands were the jaws of a pit bull. PFF may not have called that a good block, but I would. His man never came close to being on the tackle. Smith also does with with chipping a DT, and getting out on a LB. Very smooth with that particular skill set. Doesn't whiff on the 2nd level blocks either.
