Just some off the cuff remarks, knee jerk reactions so to speak from tonight's game. I want to get them down fresh and without being influenced by anyone else's thoughts.
1. Throughout this game my first reaction was that this was a well-coached team. Few penalties, efficient personnel changes, clean sideline operations. And from what I saw, an alert sideline with players engaged and listening to coaches. Very hard to do when you are dealing with 90 players and it's your first time out together. To me it was the single most positive and most important thing I could take out of this game.
2. The running game ran surprisingly well and did well 5 backs deep (Stevesonn, Henderson, Gibson, Larison, and Jennings, who I didn't know was on the roster before tonight). They all ran hard, looked quick, and hit the right holes and made the most out of them.
3. The best passer tonight, was the guy who won't be on the roster (but on the PS). He was the only guy who completed multiple passes that got to the even the medium area. Dobbs tried a few deep ones but was largely inaccurate. 48 points but the passing offense has a LONG long way to go.
BTW- I don't care a lot what it looks like at this point, except for the WR competition.
I didn't realize just how sudden Maye can be when he runs. He DEFINITELY need a few well timed designed runs each game.
I thought the OL was EONS better all 3 groups into it. Quite simply they just look like they were playing together more in one night than they seemed to all last year. Credit the coaching, the system, the players but this wasn't just adding a few more talented players, it was EVERYONE that played looked better.
It wasn't against the type of comp they will see come the regular season, but for now it is a good start, and they have 3+ weeks to improve on it
I can't tell you how thrilled I was to see Marcus Bryant get most of the game snaps. I couldn't tell you how well be played, but I knows he's a lot better because of it. I almost as happy that Wilson and Campbell got so many snaps. You got to play football to get good at football.
Individuals - Henderson will get all the highlights, and he deserves them, but all it tell us is this. As of this moment, this DOESN'T look like an offense that is easily going to break big plays (20+) very easily. Rather a typical JMD move the chains offense. They have one player who they know can be explosive every time he touches the ball (Henderson) and one who has the potential (Williams)
I saw William beat the defender deep twice and the QB not get him the ball. So he's still in "potential" mold.
I know Chism will get a lot of comments, and he looked fine doing pretty much everything asked of him, but keeping it in perspective, so did a kid named Jiles (whom I have never heard of EVER) looked just as good at 6'3 and fast. There IS some talent in that WR room and I can only see 5 guys on the final roster, unless we go with only 2 TE and no FB and I don't see that happening for a 7th or even 6th
Oh, I forgot to mention, given that WE were initiating most of the contact, we appear to have come out pretty unscathed, which I believe will be the case when you are the HITTER, rather than hittee.
DL played well and held the Commanders rushing attack pretty much under control along with the LB's, but they didn't "flash". No undo pressure, and few plays that sat you up in your chair. They were OK, "solid", etc .
LB's and DB's did well all through the line up Miles Battle flashed and I like that he's a big guy. Maybe he's the big CB I was
hoping that Bolden would become (and still might, though...)
One comment about the announcers. I generally like the McCourty brothers and Zo, but tonight they were CONSTANTLY talking over the game play. I saw a play where Truman Jones (Harvard) made a tackle and they just continued talk about anything else. I thought, this might be the only chance he or his family gets to his name on TV playing in an NFL game and these guys took it away. Unfair or not?
I look forward to the guys who break down the film and the over-hype from the mediots...and us.
