| 05 August 2009
You guys probably know DSA Hawker, he's been around the blog for almost as long as the blog has been around. He posted this excellent wrap-up of his experience at Training Camp. Thanks!
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OFFENSE OBSERVATIONS
- There are a ton of multiple TE packages and even using the TE's as traditional H back type role, putting them into the backfield
- Tons of plays with guys in motion, even if it's a TE going in motion and then returning to his original position
- Carlson is used as a TE, motions into a WR, or even as a WR motioning into a TE. They mix this up a lot, especially with run plays.
- Housh was put into motion a lot, especially from the slot position.
- The offense was settling on far too many curls and dumps to the RB/FB/TE. Now if this was during a game...I'd be okay because they'd be positive plays. However this is practice and I feel we need to get the WR/QB on the same page on routes longer than 5 yards. Take shots down field and letting the WR's work the defense and defenders keep up with the WR's. If we play it too safe in practice then how are we going to be able to perform longer plays to the best of our abilities?
==For much, much more, click "Read More" below.
QUARTERBACKS:
Jeff Rowe: Looked like a scrub to be honest. Definitely just cannon fodder and I'd be surprised if he stays on the team's roster. He over threw 90% of his passes and then on a streak he actually under threw it. Not a terrible pass, but definitely one an experienced CB or a safety in the area could easily pick off.
Mike Teel: He appeared to have a rough day, overthrowing and just not hitting his mark. He was picked off I believe a few times including once by his former teammate Courtney Greene. That was actually one of his 2 good passes...just a nice play by Greene. The other good pass was incomplete due to an error by Cameron Morrah.
Seneca Wallace: Had an okay day overall but was sluggish during the scrimmage. He did have one BEAUTIFUL deep pass to Hass up the left side. Led him perfectly and dropped the ball in front of Hass and the DB. Flawless.
Matt Hasselbeck: No news to report here since Hass was on the mark today. He looked great, he looked healthy and even had a few nice deep throws, one leading Deion Branch perfectly. That was nice to see since the deep ball definitely isn't Hass' strong suit.
OFFENSIVE LINE:
Nothing really to report since I wasn't really studying the OL. But I do have a few notes:
- Botched snap by Spencer and Hasselbeck, not sure what happened
- Early snap by Vallos to Wallace
- Sack given up by Locklear to Tapp
- Sack given up by Williams to Reed
- Nice lead blocking in open space by Williams on a WR screen to Butler
- Someone gave up a Micro-Sack to Redding...whoever was RT/RG at the time (Teel was QB sooo *shrug*). Crazy good play by Redding.
RUNNING BACKS:
Julius Jones: Didn't see anything from him worth noting
TJ Duckett: Had one good run, the rest he seemed to just run into a pile of guys
Justin Forsett: Looked great out there, wasn't fast but was very quick and had good vision. Was pretty consistent except for a few plays that were thwarted by good defensive executions. Had one really nice run up the gut on a semi-delayed hand off...jetted up the middle and then zipped through a group of 4 defenders untouched and off to the end zone. Was very nice. He then had another impressive run coming off the left side where he actually worked his way through the defense with quick cuts but while maintaining his speed. Was impressive.
Devin Moore: This kid fired up the crowd a few times. He had one nice run up the middle where he just blew past the OL and DL and into the heart of the defense. There was a bit of contact after a few yards and then the typical RB carrying on with the run. But the explosiveness and the rapid chunks of yardage gained was very nice. He this had another quick run up the left side where he was greeted by Courtney Greene who laid a nice hit on Moore with a loud "THWACK". Moore took it like he was barely touched and continued on. He's got a lot of speed but he is no weakling. Definitely a nice hit by Greene and even nicer job by Moore who was pumped and so was the crowd. I'm still keeping my eye out for this kid.
Owen Schmitt: None of the FB's really did anything besides Griffin dropping a pass. One thing that a FB did was Owen Schmitt where during a passing drill was streaking down the field and running after a overthrown pass. Instead of letting it by, he dove, laying out completely and then fell to the ground with a nice thud. I just want to note his effort since there was a number of overthrown balls to the WR's and none of them layed out for them even though they were actually more on target than Schmitty's.
TIGHT ENDS:
Cameron Morrah: Didn't do anything to impress...actually looked kind of slow and sluggish. He did have one play where he ran a nice route working a LB and Safety and then cutting into an open zone. Right out of his break Teel delivered a nice on-target pass. Only issue is that Morrah wasn't looking at all and completely let the ball sail through him. If he had kept his head up it would have been open field for a quick jog for the TD. GJ by Teel, bad job by Morrah.
John Tereshinksi: He did nothing...oh besides completely man handling Russell. Yeeahh a 5th string TE manhandling Russell...I'll get more to that under Russ' segment. And this wasn't a blocking drill either.
John Carlson: Made everything look effortless. Had some nice grabs and then one play that was a vintage John Carlson (are we allowed to say that yet?). Goal line play and Carlson did an out route in the end zone. He was covered nicely by the LB (Hill or Laury) and Hasselbeck put the ball up and over his head going out of bounds (nice throw to keep LB out of play). Carlson fended off the LB, turned and jumped, stretched out for the ball and caught it over his head, while the LB is draped over him and then Carlson hit the ground on his back, holding onto the ball, staying in bounds for the TD. It was a beauty.
WIDE RECEIVERS:
Deon Butler: Looks tiny out there. Didn't get a real chance to showcase his speed but he did show off his cutting ability. Had some nice out/in and curl routes where he stopped on a dime creating a good cushion between him and the DB. A few allowed for just a catch, but a few more allowed enough room to pick up a good amount of YAC. He also ran a nice WR screen that could have easily picked up a nice chunk of yards with the backup oline doing a good job with their down field blocking.
Michael Bumpus: Had one great catch. It was a streak down the left side and he was constantly in battle with the DB. He did a good job fighting the DB while tracking the ball over his shoulder. Right before the ball got to him he slowed, causing the DB to slow and then accelerated again giving him just enough room to catch the ball. Not sure if that was on purpose or if it was just him trying to catch up to the ball, but it worked. It was pretty awkward looking, but that is due to the good coverage and the DB being all over him. Good play overall.
Mike Hass: Caught a beautiful pass from Seneca down the left side for 40 yards. Hass did a perfect job shielding the DB and keeping him out of the play while effortlessly tracking the ball over his head (not over his shoulder...looking straight up) and then catching it cleanly with his hands. He also had a nice really nice, aggressive jump catch in the middle of 3 defenders and another really nice curl route, stopping on a dime and getting nice separation.
Logan Payne: Knee looks fine. Had some very nice routes that he made some really crisp cuts and did so at a quick pace. Did a good job getting separation and caught most balls thrown his way. He did have one bobble/drop after a really nice slant that could have turned into a huge play. I wouldn't be worried about him making that drop again. He also had a nice effort trying to make a toe-tapping-falling-out-of-bounds catch but wasn't able to hold on.
Nate Burleson: Knee looks fine. Showed good speed. Had one nice route, streak up the left side against Kelly Jennings. There were stride-for-stride until Hasselbeck threw up a beauty leading Burley perfectly. Burleson actually accelerated mid-route gaining separation from Jennings...it was awesome...but then he dropped the easy catch. It was a great throw...great route...bad drop.
Jordan Kent: His jog is faster than my sprint. Made a really good heads-up play where Big Red got a nice tip, ball went up in the air and Kent, who was coming out of a break saw that, came back to the ball and did a textbook rebound...boxing out and jumping up and catching the ball at it's highest point for a few extra yards. He then had another very nice catch on an in route versus two defenders...he stuck in there and made an aggressive catch in traffic. That was good to see coming from him, not as fragile and willing to fight for the ball. Oh and he had a drop coming off of a simple curl route.
Deion Branch: Knee looks good. He's good at tracking the deep ball...had a beautiful one during 1v1 drills from Hass and then another during the scrimmage. He ran working the CB and the S while tracking the ball in the air and catching it in traffic between the two. Very nice.
TJ Houshmandzadeh: HOOOUUUSSHHHHH!!!!!!! If you were there you would have heard that many times and probably screamed it many times (I did). He looks great and cannot wait to see him in the season. He just simply fights for the ball and doesn't take shit from any defenders. Had a nice hangman route (up,out,curl?) where the ball was getting to him as a defenders was all up in his business. He caught the ball while the defender was seriously ALL OVER HIM, easily shed him like he was tissue paper and then worked up the field for a good amount of YAC. It was great. He then had another out route where he caught it while being heavily contested by two guys and he handled it like it were nothing. So psyched we have HOOUUUSHH.
Courtney Taylor: Bobbled a punt return but did have one very nice play where he was on the left side, ran an in route vs Marquis Floyd. He actually run up into Floyd's grill and then put on a very nice swim move to the inside and then instantly sped past him leaving Floyd in his dust. It was nice.
Ben Obomanu: Didn't really do a whole lot.
LINEBACKERS:
To be honest I didn't see a whole lot out of the LB's though I'm sure there must have been something I missed, so if anyone saw, please add in here.
Will Herring had a good blitz and got the QB fairly quickly
David Hawthorne made a very nice play on an inside run, sniffing it out quickly and then laying a nice THUMP to stop the RB for 0-1 yards.
Hawthorne then made another great play while covering Justin Griffith. He had good coverage on Griff and then did a great job tipping the ball into the air which was eaten up by Babineaux who intercepted it and put on a little return. Will Herring was applying a good amount of pressure on Seneca during the throw.
DEFENSIVE LINE:
Darryl Tapp looked okay, nothing too spectacular but he did make one great play simply beating Locklear to the outside. He was able to get the edge and then circled in and would have CRUSHED Hasselbeck for the sack but of course he just jotted by while Hass made a completion down field
Lawrence Jackson wasn't really visible but he did have one good play with good penetration and a tip
Nick Reed also had a sack coming against Kyle Williams to the outside. If not a sack he would have easily tipped the ball from the QB. However outside of this play Nick Reed was shut down by Williams the entire day. He doesn't look too small while on the field...that is until you see him stop moving and standing next to other players. Owen Schmitt is bigger than him. He didn't look too fast/aggressive or mobile to me, didn't show any real pass rush moves other than a classic Craig Terrill...IE: Run into offensive lineman...then spin in one spot while the OL plays patty-cake on you and keeps you from going anywhere.
Michael Bennett had a nice inside strip of Mike Teel. I couldn't tell from my angle but it looked like he pushed inside in between the RG and RT, was able to help collapse the pocket a bit and was able to poke the ball out of Teel's hand while winding up
Red Bryant looks huge and got some good penetration on a few plays and even had a very nice tip. This was the tip that resulted in Kent's nice catch, but could have easily been eaten up by a close LB or DB.
Brandon Mebane is always the quickest guy off the line. His first step is crazy compared to everyone else. He had some good penetration, thwarting some runs and then causing the QB to move a round a bit. Can't wait for him to be able to go at it for real and tear those O-Linemen apart.
Cory Redding had an insane play, not even sure how it happened. But the second the ball was hiked he cut in between the Guard and Tackle and got the sack which resulted in killing the 2 minute drill. I wish I had instant replay so I could describe it better to you guys.
Colin Cole was able to squirt through the line and chased down Hasselbeck who was forced to retreat about 15 yards before throwing it away
Mebane and Cole would rotate a lot after initially lining up. Cole would be on the left and Mebane on the right, then before the snap, they would swap. Not sure if their roles would change...IE Cole double while Mebane pressures or Mebane double while Cole pressures, but it for sure would mess up the O-line...those are two beefy scary dudes. I'd hate to be the guy going unexpectedly up against Mebane.
DEFENSIVE BACKS:
Courtney Greene had a few good plays. He looked comfortable at safety and did a good job staying back while not biting on play action. He was in a on a few tackles including a nice hit on Devin Moore and then had a GREAT play for a INT. He was playing up a bit in his zone and allowing the WR's to work their routes...he appeared to be burning a hole into Teel's chest. a WR came open to the front right of Greene so Teel fired away into an open area for the WR to catch. Well it wasn't so open because Greene was reading it the entire way and the second the ball left Teel's hand Greene was all over it, cutting hard in front of the WR and intercepting it with sure hands. The crowd didn't really react a whole lot because I don't think most of them know the #37 other than Alexander. Took me a second to get over that myself.
Babineaux had the best coverage during the 1v1 drills versus Obomanu...until he fell and gave up a catch. He also had that nice interception off of the Heater's tip. More of a good-high-tip-and-right-place-right-time type of deal, but still a good play none the less.
CJ Wallace once again laid a big hit...but don't get too excited. In my opinion it was a cheap hit. Okay ...maybe not cheap, but unnecessary for sure. Dan Curran caught the ball up the left side and was pretty open minus Wallace a few yards in front of him. The coach blew the whistle and then 2 steps later ( a generous 2 steps since it wasn't full speed) Wallace decides to lower his shoulder and plow Curran who is half-trot after his catch. It was a nice catch, but everyone was playing nice out there then Wallace pulled this. I'm all for big hits, but come one...its a teammate, its practice and it was after the whistle. I'm not impressed. JRuss could have laid that hit.
Didn't see a whole lot out of the CB's.
BRIAN RUSSELL....soooo...he wasn't all bad...he didn't do anything glaring besides the previously mentioned play...but his one play was pretty damn sad. He was lining up against our nice 5th string TE Mr. John Tereshinski. They were on the right side vs. 1v1 drills and Shinski came out of the gate at a slow pace and Russell was all excited and in a hurry to meet him head on. Shinski started to make a lazy curve to the inside when Russell jammed him. For half a second their arms were tangled when Johnny T decided to cut a little bit more while ripping his left arm and swimming with his right. This basically caused both of Russell's ankles to snap, his knees to give and him to kind of wiggle there like jello for a second or two while JoTer slowly chugged away from him for the catch. It was sad.
KICKERS:
There is no exciting news on this battle at all...there was a FG competition with Mare and Coutu taking turns from different spots at a fairly quick pace. Both Mare and Coutu went 6 for 6 with their longest field goal coming from 40 yards out. The only differences I could notice is that the ball seemed to jump off Mare's foot and looked a lot more lively while Coutu's was pretty soft. Not saying Coutu was weak, he hit it almost exactly as Mare...just Mare's ball seemed less patient, while Coutu's took it's time, lofted up and carried. They both hit their mark straight down the goalposts.
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