Let Drake be Drake....

[Real fan 02]

Can you imagine this place if we are Drafting in the Top 5 in 26.

 

[RobertWeathers]

Another point Bedard made was that Drake was not "maniacal" the way other QBs of the past are. He thought if he had a bad play Drake's attitude was to not get pissed off but to say to himself that's just one play, do better next time. I have a long running debate about this topic with others. Are today's young athletes as driven as the ones of previous generations? Is it fair to expect Drake to be a maniac like Brady was or is OK if they have different approaches? The same is true in F1 auto racing. The current championship leaders, Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, are chill dudes compared to cut-throat legends of the recent past such as Lewis Hamilton or even more recently Max Verstappen. Can their approach be changed? Should it? I don't know.

Yup.

I think people are shaped and influenced by the environment they grew up in and their experiences. Work ethic. Competitiveness. Urgency, etc. Specific to sports, I believe "you are who you are" and can't be changed. That doesn't mean said person can't change but IMO it's highly unlikely they do.

I don't know what kind of a competitor and leader Drake is or if he has a maniacal work ethic but as part of the "reps" he needs for proper evaluation to determine if he is "The Guy", those traits also need to be evaluated with equal importance.

In that regard I don't expect him to be Tom but if he is falling short in those areas then IMO the team needs to revisit their quest to find a franchise QB.

 

[Real fan 02]

Lazar said when he watched the film it looked like the rookies on the offensive line started to get gassed towards the end of the game.

I can see that.. an NFL game is much more exhausting than college I'd imagine. However Wilson and Campbell faced well.. it even seemed like LV felt like Moses was the better option to attack for Crosby.. that has to instill some good confidence for Campbell.

 

[Real fan 02]

I admittedly have this same thought.

McDaniels has seemingly brought a stink wherever he has gone recently. I feel like it’s a little disappointing we went right back to the BB tree on offense.

We need a completely clean break, and he’s the last old piece of that era still here. Tired of trying to “force” systems onto players.

The only thing is... say we moved off Josh. Now it's drakes 3nd OC in 2 seasons. The best course is to fix the problems, continue on with drakes development and see where we are at by mid-season.. I don't anticipate the offense looking terrible as we go along. Just my thoughts.

 

[Ross12]

I listened to Bedard's two post-game podcasts yesterday and he makes similar points. A lot of what Drake put on tape was bad, no denying that. Bad reads, bad mechanics, bad throws. Yet he also said is what Drake needs is more reps. Lots of them. That gives the staff more tape to grind, more opportunities to illustrate to him what he is doing wrong, more opportunities for him to use that teaching the next time he's in the same situation. To me this could easily be a 1-2 year process.

Another point Bedard made was that Drake was not "maniacal" the way other QBs of the past are. He thought if he had a bad play Drake's attitude was to not get pissed off but to say to himself that's just one play, do better next time. I have a long running debate about this topic with others. Are today's young athletes as driven as the ones of previous generations? Is it fair to expect Drake to be a maniac like Brady was or is OK if they have different approaches? The same is true in F1 auto racing. The current championship leaders, Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, are chill dudes compared to cut-throat legends of the recent past such as Lewis Hamilton or even more recently Max Verstappen. Can their approach be changed? Should it? I don't know.

Weird stuff, because we have Bedard saying that he's chill and level-headed (which is how I've perceived him too) but then Vrabel at the podium was implying he needs to work on his reactions to bad plays. I took that as Drake was getting upset, a la Mac Jones, but maybe it's the opposite - Vrabel WANTS him to get more worked up.

 

[203Pat]

I can see that.. an NFL game is much more exhausting than college I'd imagine. However Wilson and Campbell faced well.. it even seemed like LV felt like Moses was the better option to attack for Crosby.. that has to instill some good confidence for Campbell.

I am not mad at the way the line performed outside of the short yardage run game. I think the rookies held their own for the most part and all things considered with Moses he did a solid job against a DPOY type player in Crosby.

 

[mgteich]

We drafted Drake 3rd overall, declined offers from other teams to stay at 3 and take him. This was done for a reason obviously.

Drake has the talent, the tools and now the coaching to start tapping into his potential. Watching Vrabel's media interview yesterday He spoke about how he wants to focus on what Drake does best. Drake isn't a necessarily a pure pocket passer. Of course he can do that..but Neither was Allen or Jackson for that matter when they came into the NFL. However he seems to thrive and get into his grove when he's able to use his athletic ability to throw guys open and convert with his legs. Sunday he seemed unsure at times. Letting Drake be more of himself I feel as a fan that's just an observer would really help him Ascend in his second season.

Should the reigns be taken off Drake? What do you think as a fan?

Yup!

Let Drake play. Give him a chance to improve. There is no need to simplify the playbook. If he makes mistakes, so be it;he'll learn from them.
=========

 

[Real fan 02]

I am not mad at the way the line performed outside of the short yardage run game. I think the rookies held their own for the most part and all things considered with Moses he did a solid job against a DPOY type player in Crosby.

I agree. It just from watching.. appeared Carroll felt as the game went on that Moses ended up being the better match up for Crosby.. that alone has to instill some confidence in the rookies.

 

[Real fan 02]

Yup!

Let Drake play. Give him a chance to improve. There is no need to simplify the playbook. If he makes mistakes, so be it;he'll learn from them.
=========

Agreed. I want him to go through the motions... he still amassed nearly 300 yards passing made some big throws in the game. As the season goes on I expect to see that will more regularity.

 

[Real fan 02]

Yup.

I think people are shaped and influenced by the environment they grew up in and their experiences. Work ethic. Competitiveness. Urgency, etc. Specific to sports, I believe "you are who you are" and can't be changed. That doesn't mean said person can't change but IMO it's highly unlikely they do.

I don't know what kind of a competitor and leader Drake is or if he has a maniacal work ethic but as part of the "reps" he needs for proper evaluation to determine if he is "The Guy", those traits also need to be evaluated with equal importance.

In that regard I don't expect him to be Tom but if he is falling short in those areas then IMO the team needs to revisit their quest to find a franchise QB.

Agreed. I believe TB12 just had it in him from birth.. that fire...that competitive spirit.. Drake is a competitor too.. a family full of athletes.. if you listen to the veterans like Henry, rham, Diggs over the summer they all said he's been much more vocal and demanding as a leader. Those are things you want to see. I just want the kid to start attaining the most important stat a qb can have.. wins!!!

 

[ErniesPinkStripes]

 

[Gumby]

Good insights here. It is my opinion that Vrabel and McDaniels have the training wheels on Maye right now just wanting him to get acclimated and focus on the fundamentals. It'll probably be that way for 3-4 weeks, and then they will start to expand. This works out anyway because Diggs still needs time to get right, and Kyle Williams needs to adjust to the pros as well. So by the time they are ready to expand things with Maye, two of his best weapons will be ready to rock too.

I agree w you; but still fear then being 0-4 when we take training wheels off.

 

[Vindicate]

If I take a probably-too-optimistic outlook, I would chalk things up so far to Drake still being new in the scheme and needing time and reps to get comfortable. He is doing too much thinking instead of playing loose. McDaniels ran mostly easier concepts during the game, and had Drake throw more than was probably wise, to be able to give him the reps and have stuff to put on film for him to review and improve on the following week. As time goes on and he becomes more comfortable with the basics then he will be able to progress further.

They also really did not target anything deep very often, and when they did it was mostly up the seam to a TE. They need Diggs to knock the rust off and get back into game shape, and get Kyle Williams comfortable, at which time they will have a more threatening set of weapons. Some successful screens/dumpoffs to Henderson would also help. So would Pop Douglas holding onto the football.

I saw some people say Diggs had a good game but this is what I was mainly thinking about. I want to see explosiveness from him. His average air yards per target isn't a deep target, 10-12 yards. But he's explosive, we just need to find a way to scheme those plays in.

 

[Real fan 02]

I agree w you; but still fear then being 0-4 when we take training wheels off.

I know sadly... I'm really hoping it doesn't get to that. From what I took from Vrabel's talking points were.. basically look.. let's not f around here.. and let's allow Drake to do what he does best.. that's going to be the best way to allow him to start tapping into his potential as a top 10 possibly top 5 QB down the line..

 

[Vindicate]

I would like Maye to remember that Pop Douglas is 5'8 not 6'8: those over throws to a wide open Receiver is egregious.

I will say, watching Williams after their decent start had some ROUGH accuracy at times. **** was going into the ground, sailing over.

Not saying this to disagree, in fact I was the first person to post about the first overthrow in the GDT lmao, but your post did make me think about Williams.

 

[Ross12]

I agree w you; but still fear then being 0-4 when we take training wheels off.

I can definitely draw some parallels to this situation and Vrabel's time in Tennessee.

When he became HC in TEN he inherited Marcus Mariota, who was also a very highly drafted QB that hadn't really proven himself yet. Granted, he was on his fourth year instead of his second, but still. Vrabel stuck with Mariota that first season, but then in year two he benched Mariota after a few weeks and started Tannehill instead, which is what lead to a couple years of success and making the playoffs.

So I think he is definitely doing all he can to help Maye, but if Maye doesn't get it this year, Vrabel won't be scared to pull the trigger and replace him next year. Not sure with whom; Dobbs sucks, but maybe he likes DeVito, or will try to find a different free agent or draftee next year. But, I am sure "Plan A" is to just ride with Drake.

 

[Real fan 02]

I will say, watching Williams after their decent start had some ROUGH accuracy at times. **** was going into the ground, sailing over.

Not saying this to disagree, in fact I was the first person to post about the first overthrow in the GDT lmao, but your post did make me think about Williams.

Agreed there was some head scratches there.. like wtf where was he going.. the. You see the big plays and you know Drake has the tools.. we just need him to do that with some more consistency

 

[PatsFan2]

I will say, watching Williams after their decent start had some ROUGH accuracy at times. **** was going into the ground, sailing over.

Not saying this to disagree, in fact I was the first person to post about the first overthrow in the GDT lmao, but your post did make me think about Williams.

Yeah I saw them too his inaccuracy gave the Vikes life.

 

[Ross12]

One of my favorite movies lol

 

[Bill Lee]

Yup.

I think people are shaped and influenced by the environment they grew up in and their experiences. Work ethic. Competitiveness. Urgency, etc. Specific to sports, I believe "you are who you are" and can't be changed. That doesn't mean said person can't change but IMO it's highly unlikely they do.

I don't know what kind of a competitor and leader Drake is or if he has a maniacal work ethic but as part of the "reps" he needs for proper evaluation to determine if he is "The Guy", those traits also need to be evaluated with equal importance.

In that regard I don't expect him to be Tom but if he is falling short in those areas then IMO the team needs to revisit their quest to find a franchise QB.

Funny you say that because Bedard followed up by saying he knows it's almost cliche to do so but it is helpful to compare Maye to Josh Allen.

He said Josh Allen was also raw and didn't display urgency and was also working on his fundamentals his first few seasons without it being very visible to people outside the team. We saw improvement year by year, but it took a few years to see it come together. And he says now Josh has become an absolute maniac about mechanics. He says he works in the off season with guys like Jordan Palmer to improve his mechanics.

Bedard also said he doesn't have much of a read on Maye's personality but said he's going to make it a priority to try to dig deeper as time goes on.

Bottom line, though, is Bedard thinks guys can change, and says we need to give things time to play out.

Note this does not mean "Maye will be the next Josh Allen" like simpletons feel the urge to say. It just means he's young and there's at least one example of how some players take time to get comfortable, and once you're comfortable it's easier to display more confidence, urgency, intensity, etc. Of course we have the counter example of Mac Jones who never got comfortable so that can happen too.