Is this a Fail?

[oldno82]

Look, I know the playoffs are the goal here but so is entertainment value. We've got guys on offense that should be lighting up the scoreboard and providing us with entertaining games instead of watching a slow motion offense keep pressuring our D to hold the other team to one or two scores.

 

I've been watching a lame offense here for the last 11 years. Now we have the personnel and something is still definitely wrong.

 

Well, on second thought, maybe the O-line personnel aren't as good as I thought they were. Maybe that's where the problem lies.

[varaven45]

The Chargers have the # 1 offense...Houston is #3...both sitting home. Hell...the Chargers have the #1 D too!

 

The Lions and Chiefs are ahead of the Ravens in scoring.

 

Max,

 

Stats dont mean squat - I get that. But we arent doing it on the field. Our Oline is getting manhandled, the running game is nonexistent, the receivers disappear 3/4 of the game, and OC is out to lunch. You wont find that in the stats. Bottom line is that is our aging beat up D is outperfroming the O and we have essentially wasted another decent top 10 performance from that side of the ball.

 

Mark my word, in another week (or two) we will be be lamenting over the wasted D performances and how we "could have" won a SB or two with an actual offense.

Something has got to give.

I rest my case.

[ravinmaniac52]

Do fans fear pointing at Joe?

 

The biggest thing, or fail on the O-Line is the center. Watch his play, he doesnt have the speed any more.

[dc.]

Well you do know that if Joe's primary target is covered that he can oh I dont know - and I know this is crazy talk - look around for other open receivers. Well most QBs could. Yeah its Cam's fault. If Cam would line Boldin up as a RB for Joe to dump the ball off to, then he would get the ball more.

 

Spen, I still disagree with some of this hate on Joe.

 

In the last 6-8 weeks, I have seen Flacco drop back and - when time allows - clearly move from target to target. I mean, I have seen as many coverage sacks as OL-blame sacks. Am I to believe that Joe is floating in the pocket staring at one receiver for all 4 seconds? That he never glanced another direction?

 

I simply don't believe it.

 

I went to 4 games this year - mostly in the first half of the season - and even then, I rarely saw receivers who were wide open. Or mostly open.

 

What I did see a lot of - and what I continue to see a lot of - are stupid routes. I still distinctly remember a designed roll-out a few weeks back. Flacco rolled out beautifully to the right ... and found a SINGLE receiver on the side of the field. Meanwhile, Mason and Housh were running comebacks on the opposite side of the field. That's helpful.

 

I still see 3rd and 5's where every receiver except Rice goes 20 yards downfield. And I see 3rd and 10's where every receiver runs an 8 yard hitch. And I see plenty of 'long to develop' crap where every receiver has to double move and wiggle and waggle only to be 20 yards downfield with no idea what else has happened in a play.

 

Meanwhile, I see teams like the Pats and the Pack absolutely SHRED zone coverage by, seemingly, letting their receivers find the gaps. The Steelers run those too - where Heath Miller or Hines Ward will 'sit down' in a gap and find the ball. I don't ever remember seeing the Ravens run a play where Mason or Bouldin seemed to have the smarts (or the freedom?) to do that. Why?

 

Joe's not free of blame. He still needs to learn to throw the ball even when it's a little tight. He definitely needs to learn how to throw it away after 5 seconds. But I don't see open receivers and never have... so who's fault is that? (Actually, I have seen open receivers in our two minute drills - where everyone is running quick, hard, free routes. Where is that in Cam's offense? Oh right, the D might be 'expecting it' so we can't run it. They'll never expect us to throw it to Ngata so we MUST run that play.)

[ravinmaniac52]

I went to 4 games this year - mostly in the first half of the season - and even then, I rarely saw receivers who were wide open. Or mostly open.

 

Todd Heap running down the sideline sunday between a CB and safety. The safety didn't get over till Heap was at the goal line. Heap going aross the middle, alone. Joe never seen either. Even John came out and said the offense work, there are guys open down the field.

[Spen]

In the last 6-8 weeks, I have seen Flacco drop back and - when time allows - clearly move from target to target. I mean, I have seen as many coverage sacks as OL-blame sacks. Am I to believe that Joe is floating in the pocket staring at one receiver for all 4 seconds? That he never glanced another direction?

 

I have seen Joe watching the same receiver the entire play and never glancing in another direction. Just as often I have seen him look off the primary if covered then get happy feet and look back and forth not seeing anyone and throwing it away or running out of bounds, unless he dumps it off to the running back. And many of the replays show there are guys open that Joe just doesn't see.

 

To me often on the replays and the couple of games I went to I have seen open receiver sometimes near Joe, sometimes far, and Joe just doesn't see them. Or sees them too late like he did with Heap Sunday.

 

I am not saying everyone else on offense if tremendous except Joe, but I am not going to believe that Bolding and Housh suddenly forgot how to run routes when they came here either. The brunt of the passing offensive problems, and what will probably be our downfall in the playoffs, start and ends with Joe IMO.

[dc.]

To me often on the replays and the couple of games I went to I have seen open receiver sometimes near Joe, sometimes far, and Joe just doesn't see them. Or sees them too late like he did with Heap Sunday.

 

Was Heap the INT that he underthrew a bit? I don't know that he saw him late or if it just took him that long to set his feet as he was rolling out of pressure.

 

And Joe is hardly faultless. Just like the OL.

 

I don't ever like to cite Mike Preston - but his article today had a few interesting points. He said there was clear locker room tension directed at the offensive coaches - not the other players - and it was coming from both the offense and defense. And the most telling quote came from Mason who was trying to clear the air, but did a classic Mason and threw in a nice backhand, in saying that the play-calling wasn't going to change so they were just going to have to get used to it. It clearly has an undertone of "we all want it to change."

 

 

I think my final point - as we've beaten this to death over the course of the season - is that when Joe is pushed a bit in the 2 minute offense in either half, or when we are losing, he seems to be at his best. I honestly don't understand some criticism I read of his two minute offense; it's clearly far better than our normal offense. And that makes me wonder why... does he need the pressure? does he need the 'pace' that otherwise is lacking? is it because he calls the plays? are the plays simply different?

 

I lean towards the plays being different - less conservative routes and formations. They give defenses trouble. We spread the field and put options at all levels. So I just wonder where that 2 minutes of offense is the other 58 minutes of the game...

[ravinmaniac52]

maybe it is that there isn't time to think so much?