Evaluation of our team after the beat down...

[bucfan12]

I don't want to go to panic mode just yet but here it goes:

Offense:

QB: Josh Freeman hasn't been the QB he was last year. When the throw wasn't there, he threw it away or put it high where only his WRs can get it and that was remarkable. However, this year he's played like a gunslinger. Trusting his arm and forcing throws. That's not the Josh Freeman we want to see and I think he'll rebound, but that's not all on him. THe WRs need to step up and I think that's a large part of why he's struggling to move the ball through the air. Plus, he's brought us back in 3 games, resulting in 2 victories. Still love him as our Franchise QB and is only 23.

GRADE: C

RB: Legarrette Blount has been the charge of our offense. He needs to be on the field more, but we still have no depth behind him. Graham doesn't scare anyone, and neither does Lumpkin. Maybe give Allen Bradford a shot. Mark Dominik, it's biting you in the @** failing to address our RB depth. Maybe we shoiuld have retained Caddy.

At Fullback, Lorig is a better option. Blount seems to run better behind him.

GRADE: B-. WIthout Blount, it's an "F".

WR/TE: WOW! I can't really find a lot of progress at all. So, I'll start with the positives with our WR core. Preston Parker has been solid in the slot. He's busted his a** to help Freeman out and he's done it a lot. Arrellious Benn is starting to come along after recovering from the ACL surgery and has shown signs of potential, but he's got to cut down on the drops, which has led to INTs. Mike Williams, wow. Have you caught the WR disease called Claytonitis? It seems it happens to those WRs that post gaudy numbers in there rookie year and absolutely tank the next. He can't get open and when he does, he drops passes. He's ran terrible routes and all the WRs have. And Dez Briscoe, wow. All Training Camp, I heard how much he was lighting it up. Now, he's invisibile. I think they should put him at #4 WR and limit his snaps. He's apparently splitting time with Benn at #2, and but he hasn't done much. Stroughter is always hurt and Spurlock sucks.

At TE, Winslow is showing he's descending. He's still 27 or 28 years old, yet, the knee injury is lingering. He's struggling to make an impact as well.

Luke Stocker has shown signs of his potential to be a starter, but he's playing like a rookie and has been hurt. I'm starting to see why Dominik felt it was necessary to get a TE in the 2011 draft.

GRADE: "F".

Offensive Line: Strong point to this team. Penn has been very good. Davin Joseph has earned every penny. That performance against Suh was better than I've seen anyone else defend him. And he's only gotten better. One analyst said he's playing like the best offensive Guard in football. Great. Faine has been solid, when I thought he would be terrible and Zuttah has been a huge upgrade over Larsen. Trueblood hasn't commited any boneheaded penalties and has been solid.

GRADE: A-.

DEFENSE:

Defensive Line: McCoy has been the anchor to our line. Consistantly in the backfield disrupting and blowing up plays. Playing like a beast out there. And others have stepped up huge. Clayborn is coming along and is a beast on the outside. Power rusher with speed and a non stop motor. Next year will be a year for this d-line to really develop. But right now, we're going to see inconsistancy, but the talent is there and once they develop, all these high draft picks will pay off.

GRADE: B+

LIne backer: Where to start. I guess with our bright spot. Rookie Mason Foster has been excellent even with the lockout, which I think hurt his growth of how much better he could have been at the beginning of the year. Can't wait to see how he develops. Next, I'll go with Dekota Watson. He's been very good for us when he's stepped on the field for Quincy Black. Good pass rusher and solid in coverage. Should have let Black walk. Speaking of Black, for 30 million, he's been a HUGE dissapointment. Can't stay healthy and hasn't really made an impact. Geno Hayes is most likely going to be replaced next off-season. His inconsistant play and inability to get off blocks in the run game is getting annoying to watch week after week.

GRADE: C-

Secondary: Awful. Disaster. I don't even know if there's been a bright spot. Talib, for how good he's been the past 2 years, has really slacked off. Where has he been? I know he can't do it all back there, but stupid penalties, getting absolutely owned by Roddy White and Julio Jones and Pierre Garcon. He needs to step up his game to 2010 level, where he shut down guys like Fitzgerald, Steve Smith, Roddy White, etc. EJ Biggers is a nickel CB, yet Rah has been trusting him to cover opposing number 1 and 2 WRs. Yet, he keeps getting abused. He should be in the slot. Myron Lewis has been hurt and why not get Anthony Gaitor on the field?

Safety play is definately at it's worst, maybe the worst in the league. Even before Grimm went down with the ACL tear, his play was well below average. Then Lynch stepped in and terrible safety play got even worse. Sean Jones probably wouldn't start on more than 20 other teams in this league. He's good in the run defense, but below average in coverage. If Tanard comes back, he should give them a spark, but right now, it's terrible.

GRADE: F

Coaching Staff: Raheem has had his ups and downs. He's done a nice job with the defense, but he needs to appraoch Greg Olsen and ask what the heck is going on. He's done the right thing before in lettings Jags and Bates go, and it paid off.

Olsen, wow. He needs to form a better game plan. Suggestion: Take a page out of the Packers playbook and spread defenses out wide. Make them play man to man. Get Blount more involved in the passing game. He's too predictable, kind of like Gruden's offensive schemes and playcalling.

Morris: C

Olsen: "F". If there was a grade lower, I'd give him that.

[bigbuc]

I love how everyone is beating up on Olsen. Maybe the guy knows Freeman is looking down his WR's or that Blount is are best way to win. I only thing I would like to see more of is maybe the no huddle out of the shotgun. Give Freeman the opp to do what he does. Move around keep the play alive and if not run for first downs.

[bucfan12]

Originally Posted by bigbuc

I love how everyone is beating up on Olsen. Maybe the guy knows Freeman is looking down his WR's or that Blount is are best way to win. I only thing I would like to see more of is maybe the no huddle out of the shotgun. Give Freeman the opp to do what he does. Move around keep the play alive and if not run for first downs.

You could have a point, but when you see the same predictable offense week after week, I think it's more Olsen than it is Freeman.

Plus, look at Olsens tract record. He failed as an offensive coordinator before, and we're seeing why now.

Plus, I doubt Freeman is staring down his WRs. There's reasons why Graham and Parker are our top recievers right now, and I'm pretty sure they both aren't his first reads.