Want Analysis on DRob fumble, long throws

Submitted by StephenRKass on

Has there been discussion on the Board regarding both the fumble and the overthrown passes by Denard vs. Indiana? I know there were comments that our offense just didn't put the game away, but I haven't seen a thread devoted to this topic.

On the fumble, is that on DRob? On Molk? On both? On miscommunication on the play call? If we had punched it in, that would have changed on the game complexion.

I'm actually more interested in the overthrown balls. Did Denard overestimate the speed of the receivers? Does he need to work on timing more? It struck me that on those occasions, we would have scored touchdowns. Is this timing, or aim, or receivers being jammed at the LOS?

Regardless, if our receivers can get behind everyone, and DRob can drop a catchable pass just in front of them as they're going downfield, it will ratchet up the offensive effectiveness even more.

I want to be clear, I'm not complaining or kvetching about DRob in the least. However, given our lack of defensive prowess, I definitely want the offense to score a touchdown on every possible possession. One or two or three more touchdowns would have been a huge cushion, and taken away the unnneeded adrenaline in the last minute of the game.

Chris-sirhC

October 4th, 2010 at 12:09 PM ^

"Regardless, if our receivers can get behind everyone, and DRob can drop a catchable pass just in front of them as they're going downfield, it will ratchet up the offensive effectiveness even more."

Hellz yeah it would.

Wallaby Court

October 4th, 2010 at 12:18 PM ^

To me, it looked an error on Molk. It appeared that Denard was doing the pre snap hand flex and that Molk snapped the ball straight into his knuckles. This explains why the ball bounced so violently to the ground.

ElGuapo

October 4th, 2010 at 12:16 PM ^

Wow.... have we gotten spoiled.    The guy has connected on those passes all season long.   He simply had an off game with the deep ball.   It happens.

See Jay Cutler and Eli Manning last night.    Even Payton Manning and Drew Brees have been off and on with their deep passes this season.     

Knight

October 4th, 2010 at 12:17 PM ^

The fumble looked like it was Denard's fault because he started moving away from Molk too soon. As for the overthrown deep passes, Denard said after the game that he got a little too excited and put too much on it. Remember, he is still just sophomore with 5 starts under his belt.

umchicago

October 4th, 2010 at 12:33 PM ^

with the underthrow/overthrow comment.  i think it's better to underthrow a one-on-one deep pass, since the WR typically has the advantage; both in catching the ball and drawing a PI.  refer to junior's catch to cinch saturday's game as an example.  or the many braylon catches during his career.

Knight

October 4th, 2010 at 12:41 PM ^

In my opinion it depends on the cornerback- if it is a good one with ball skills it is better to overthrow the reciever. If it is a bad one (such as Indiana's) it is okay to underthrow it. It also depends on the size and jumping ability of the receiver too.

TXmaizeNblue

October 4th, 2010 at 1:06 PM ^

I've heard Hemingway regarded as one of the team’s best athletes, and Denard seemed to indicate that when he stated he knew Junior would catch it if he just threw it up (which he did).   If that’s the case, then he should never overthrow Hemingway. 

rlc

October 4th, 2010 at 12:19 PM ^

It was not such a bad thing overthrowing those deep balls, sure we like to hit the open guys. However, it was in the middle of the game and if you are going to miss do it where it will not be an INT. At the end of the game when it was on the line he threw a jump ball Hemingway instead of putting way out in front. I think he would have been more aggressive with those eariler throws if the situation warranted it.

MGoShoe

October 4th, 2010 at 12:20 PM ^

...please have a decaf next time.  

I can't help but read the OP like it's one of those ads where the announcer starts speaking at a normal pace, but quickly increases the pace until it's all an unintelligible blur.  My head hurts.

Dix

October 4th, 2010 at 12:24 PM ^

On at least one of the overthrown balls, I believe it was the first one, Denard didn't take enough time.  He pump faked to make the defender bite, and then he immediately chucked it deep.  He had time to pause a moment before sending the ball deep.  The receiver had already gained separation due to the pump fake. If he takes a second longer, he could have read the play a bit better.  Instead he just pump faked and airmailed it deep without really seeing the receiver.  That's my lay person's take on it. 

doughboy

October 4th, 2010 at 12:26 PM ^

My buddies and I also noted that both overthrown balls happened after Denard got his left knee shaken up a bit.  May have just been a coincidence, but we thought that might have contributed to the balls sailing on him.  We hadn't seen Denard do that yet in a game, so we were trying to blame something other then "excitement".

yossarians tree

October 4th, 2010 at 12:27 PM ^

Almost looked like he's being coached to get some air under the deep ball and it is messin with his timing (the one interception I believe was when he tried to drill it in to a guy who was two steps behind the defense and would have been six).

Michigan4Life

October 4th, 2010 at 12:32 PM ^

too excited with open WR and as a result, he overthrew them.  It's better to overthrow it than it is to underthrow it.  I would think that it's fairly common for most QB to overthrow a player if they're open especially when they beat them by a couple of steps.

ElGuapo

October 4th, 2010 at 12:34 PM ^

And lets not forget that he hit the deep ball when he needed it.    That deep pass to Hemingway with a 300 pound lineman about to tee off on him was money!!!

Denard has guts!   Most people would not have been able to get that pass off under those conditions. 

StephenRKass

October 4th, 2010 at 1:45 PM ^

Just a decent job? Awesome job by DRob at QB!

I just would love to see Denard make those deep passes too! I'm greedy, and want more. Actually, I think that against some of the remaining teams on the schedule, regularly completing the deep pass will be a necessity rather than a luxury.

jmblue

October 4th, 2010 at 1:43 PM ^

I would imagine that the snap was miscommunication.  I don't think Denard was expecting it then.  Those kind of things can happen, especially on the road.  I wouldn't read too much into it. 

On the overthrows, that's usually an issue of the QB throwing the ball too early.  Sometimes he's forced to do so because a defender gets in his face, and sometimes he just gets a little antsy (which again, can happen on the road when you're a little too hyped up).  Conversely, sometimes a QB will throw it too late and overcompensate by throwing a line drive instead of putting air under it.  At any rate, he showed great patience on that last one.  An IU guy was coming in free and Denard kept his eyes downfield and threw it at the right time.     

yossarians tree

October 4th, 2010 at 11:04 PM ^

He has been pretty damn good on deep balls just five games into his first season as the starter. What makes me even more encouraged is that they are actually going deep (did not do much deep throwing last year) and the guys are consistently open. An effective deep passing game makes this offense w/ Denard virtually unstoppable.

Bb011

October 4th, 2010 at 2:14 PM ^

I'mnot worried about either. The snap was a "fluke". And not every qb will hit the long ball everytime. As said above, its better he overthrew than underthrew. Also, the long balls did have touch, which is nice to see since has a tendency to gun it. He'll be fine, he's shown he can throw the long ball.