Upon Further Review: Shea Patterson vs Alabama
[Bryan Fuller]
CONTEXT NOTES: This went a little less well than the Vandy game. It was a blowout from the drop and finished 66-3. FWIW, Bama was the #5 pass defense last year and was #29 in adjusted sack rate. Neither of those numbers do this outing justice.
OLE MISS OFFENSE NOTES: lol nope
Oh, there is one thing of note: Ole Miss ran a lot of max pro even on things like all slants, so if those were covered Patterson did not have checkdown options. Also some of their plays didn't look like passing concepts so much as presnap read sorts of plays where you've got a screen on one side but can decide to hand off or take a shot at a downfield fade. On these plays Patterson was locked into one guy in a route if he chose the fade, even if that fade got wrecked by a DB.
As a result of these two tendencies, Patterson ended up throwing into tight coverage a ton. Only rarely was this a bad decision; most of the time he either literally had no choice or the guy he was throwing at was the least bad option.
Ln | Dn | Ds | O Form | RB | TE | WR | D Form | Box | Type | Play | Player | Yards | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
M13 | 2 | 9 | Shotgun 3-wide | 1 | 1 | 3 | Nickel over | 6 | Pass | TE flare screen | Knox | 5 | |||||||
I have nothing QB related to say about this. (CA, 3, screen) | |||||||||||||||||||
M18 | 3 | 4 | Shotgun 3-wide | 1 | 1 | 3 | Nickel even | 6 | Pass | Fade | Metcalf | Inc | |||||||
Everyone jammed into the boundary again as Miss wants that space for their solo WR. Fake flare screen, fake handoff, none of this impacts the decision here to go solo backside. Presnap read with the flare option? I don’t know. Post-snap result is that there's one guy in a route and Patterson has to throw it. Metcalf gets destroyed by the CB and Patterson’s accurate-seeming fade ends up yards too long because of the CB jam. (not charted, 0, protection 1/1) | |||||||||||||||||||
M15 | 2 | 8 | Shotgun 3-wide | 1 | 1 | 3 | Base 3-4 | 7 | Pass | Throwaway | N/A | Inc | |||||||
7 man slide protection as OM tries to go deep; slightly delayed blitz gets through clean and Patterson has to bug out before it seems like any of his routes develop. He tosses it away as he gets to the sideline. (PR, N/A, protection 0/2) | |||||||||||||||||||
M15 | 3 | 8 | Shotgun trips | 1 | 0 | 4 | 3-2 Dime split | 5 | Pass | Comeback | Metcalf | Inc | |||||||
Time for one quick read and then RT gets run over so another bug out. Patterson finds Metcalf for a first down but Metcalf leaps to catch a ball that hits him in the chest and doesn’t get a foot down on a sideline catch he should really make. (CA+, 2, protection ½) | |||||||||||||||||||
M24 | 1 | 10 | Shotgun empty | 1 | 0 | 4 | Dime even | 4 | Run | QB draw | Patterson | 6 | |||||||
Draw ends up wide open as the closest thing to a LB in the box here is a safety at ten yards. Patterson again slides down before contact when he could probably get the first down here if he’s more aggressive. RPS +1. | |||||||||||||||||||
M30 | 2 | 4 | Shotgun 3-wide | 1 | 1 | 3 | Nickel even | 6 | Pass | Fade | Lodge | Inc | |||||||
LB shows blitz and comes, getting through untouched up the gut. Patterson chucks up a fade in response. That fade is too far inside but the DB is focused on the WR and the ball hits the turf harmlessly. PR? IN? MA? I punt. (MA, 0, protection 0/2) | |||||||||||||||||||
M30 | 3 | 4 | Shotgun 4-wide | 1 | 0 | 4 | Nickel over | 6 | Pass | Slant | Lodge | INT | |||||||
Multiple issues here as Patterson doesn’t see that his slot WR is much more open here than the outside guy, Lodge. Lodge then gets beat up on the route by the CB a bit and Patterson wings the pass a yard wide. CB deflects and then INTs; Lodge thinks it’s incomplete and stops, TD results. (BR, 0, protection 1/1) | |||||||||||||||||||
M33 | 1 | 10 | Shotgun 3-wide | 1 | 1 | 3 | ? | 7 | Pass | Skinny post | Metcalf | 17 | |||||||
Miss part of this play, come back with PA fake and Patterson setting up. Metcalf breaks inside of the DB and runs a skinny post; Patterson throws a lovely soft toss directly to his hands that arcs over the DB for a chunk. (DO, 3, protection 2/2) | |||||||||||||||||||
O45 | 2 | 5 | Shotgun 3-wide | 1 | 1 | 3 | Base 3-4 | 7 | Pass | Stop and go | Lodge | Inc | |||||||
Delayed release from Lodge; he gets inside of the CB and jets past him. S to this side busts, probably because of the delayed release, and Patterson has a wide open guy for a 45 yard TD… who he misses. (IN, 0, protection 2/2) | |||||||||||||||||||
O45 | 3 | 5 | Shotgun empty | 1 | 0 | 4 | Okie one | 7 | Pass | Sack | N/A | 0 | |||||||
Another untouched rusher up the gut. (PR, N/A, protection 0/2) | |||||||||||||||||||
Ln | Dn | Ds | O Form | RB | TE | WR | D Form | Box | Type | Play | Player | Yards | |||||||
M25 | 1 | 10 | Shotgun 3-wide | 1 | 1 | 3 | Nickel even | 6 | Pass | Hitch | Metcalf | 25 | |||||||
Quick hitch turns into a big gain because of a missed tackle. (CA, 3, protection 1/1) | |||||||||||||||||||
50 | 1 | 10 | Shotgun 3-wide | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4-3 under | 7 | Pass | Improv | Lodge | 35 | |||||||
Orbit motion for Brown from the slot discombobulates Bama D, with the FS running to cover Brown on a flare route. Nobody replaces him. Patterson has time to see that and hit the should-be-open post route but hesitates, and then an unblocked edge rusher has him in his sights. Patterson breaks the pocket and finds a receiver for a deep gain… the same guy he should have thrown it to in the first place. (CA+, 3, protection ½, RPS +2) | |||||||||||||||||||
O15 | 1 | 10 | Shotgun 3-wide | 1 | 1 | 3 | Nickel over | 6 | Pass | Circle | Brown | 6 | |||||||
Another dink throw that the WR turns into something. (CA, 3, protection 1/1) | |||||||||||||||||||
O9 | 2 | 4 | Shotgun 3-wide | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3-3 stack | 7 | Pass | Slant | Jefferson | Inc | |||||||
Similar to the INT except Brown is very not open and the throw is on target. CB wins route and gets a PBU. Nobody is open so this was the best option despite the low probability of success. (CA, 3, protection 1/1) | |||||||||||||||||||
O14 | 2 | 9 | Shotgun 3-wide | 1 | 1 | 3 | Nickel under | 6 | Pass | Stop and go | RB | -5 | |||||||
RB out of the backfield, flare screen pump fake and then Patterson wants to hit the one dude in a route over the top. He’s blanketed. Patterson throws the flare screen now, way too late for anything but doom. (CA, 3, screen, RPS -3) | |||||||||||||||||||
O9 | 3 | 14 | Shotgun trips | 1 | 0 | 4 | Nickel even | 6 | Pass | Dig | Jefferson | 10 | |||||||
Solid protection for a while until a big guy gets through on a stunt; Patterson can still hang in the pocket and step into a dart across the middle for Jefferson, who is a few yards short. Down 21-0, OM kicks a field goal. (CA, 3, protection 2/2) | |||||||||||||||||||
M25 | 1 | 10 | Shotgun 3-wide | 1 | 1 | 3 | Nickel over | 6 | Run | QB arc keeper | Patterson | 6 | |||||||
Edge is open as the playside DE sucks inside too far. LB does a good job to beat a block and scrape out to help cut it down. Patterson’s part in this is to run reasonably fast and get cut down by the LB from behind. RPS +1. | |||||||||||||||||||
M32 | 2 | 3 | Shotgun 3-wide | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4-3 under | 7 | Pass | Slant | Lodge | Inc (Pen) | |||||||
Patterson again gets an unblocked edge rusher; he stands in and fires an accurate ball to Lodge, who has the CB draped all over him. Dude gets a fairly iffy PI, but the throw was the only place it could be and was made with a dude bearing down on Patterson. (CA, 1, protection 0/2) | |||||||||||||||||||
M42 | 1 | 10 | Shotgun 3-wide | 1 | 1 | 3 | Nickel over | 6 | Pass | Throwaway | N/A | Inc | |||||||
Seven man protection against a four man rush; one very covered short route and two deep guys who looks bracketed. Patterson should probably LIVE MAS at this point down 28-3 and take a shot but it’s more prudent to bail out when the pressure comes, which is way too early, and then throw it away. (TA, 0, protection ½ | |||||||||||||||||||
O39 | 2 | 6 | Shotgun 4-wide | 1 | 1 | 3 | Base 3-4 | 6 | Pass | Fade | Metcalf | Inc | |||||||
Another completely unblocked guy off the edge as nobody bothers to block the backside DE on a PA. Ole Miss is again using this fake screen action that Bama isn’t falling for and they absolutely do not have the blocking for so there’s again one guy in a realistic route, the backside fade dude. CB is over the top of this and the ball is way long and OOB. (PR, N/A, protection 0/2) | |||||||||||||||||||
O39 | 3 | 6 | Shotgun trips | 1 | 1 | 3 | Nickel under | 6 | Pass | Sack | N/A | -7 | |||||||
This time two guys come scot free as OM tries to set up a screen and Bama engulfs the back in the backfield. Nowhere to go but down. (PR, N/A, protection 0/2, RPS -2) | |||||||||||||||||||
Ln | Dn | Ds | O Form | RB | TE | WR | D Form | Box | Type | Play | Player | Yards | |||||||
M13 | 1 | 20 | Shotgun 3-wide | 1 | 1 | 3 | Nickel even | 6 | Pass | Sack | N/A | -2 | |||||||
Not as bad as some other pressure events as pocket mostly holds, but Patterson has happy feet by now. He tries to run up in the pocket and gets tripped up by his own man, who got driven back in the pocket. (TA, 0, protection ½) | |||||||||||||||||||
M11 | 2 | 22 | Shotgun 3-wide | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4-3 under | 7 | Pass | Sack | N/A | -1 | |||||||
PA, trying to go deep, DT gets around his man to flush Patterson. A second guy is coming from the outside so Patterson can’t step and fire; a third contains and #2 sacks. Patterson’s got the ball out like the proverbial loaf of bread(?) and fumbles(-3). (PR, N/A, protection 0/2) | |||||||||||||||||||
M12 | 3 | 21 | Shotgun trips | 1 | 0 | 4 | 3-2 dime | 5.5 | Pass | Flare screen | RB | 3 | |||||||
Meh (CA, 3, screen) | |||||||||||||||||||
M37 | 1 | 10 | Shotgun trips | 1 | 0 | 4 | 3-3 stack | 6 | Pass | Flare | RB | 4 | |||||||
More jogging off the line by the OM WRs; free rusher and Patterson just dumps it to the RB for a few. (CA, 3, protection 0/2) | |||||||||||||||||||
M41 | 2 | 6 | Shotgun 4-wide | 1 | 1 | 3 | Nickel even | 5.5 | Pass | In | Metcalf | Inc | |||||||
Metcalf gets zero separation and this is going to be a dink at best; Patterson throws it well behind his guy and it gets PBU’d. (IN, 0, protection 1/1) | |||||||||||||||||||
M41 | 3 | 6 | Shotgun empty | 1 | 1 | 3 | Okie one | 7 | Pass | Sack | N/A | -11 | |||||||
Yet another unblocked guy right up the gut. (PR, 0, protection 0/2) | |||||||||||||||||||
M16 | 1 | 10 | Shotgun trips | 1 | 0 | 4 | Nickel even | 6 | Pass | Sack | N/A | -6 | |||||||
PA, unblocked guy unthreatened by run, cover-2 corner on the quick out, Patterson hesitates and is sacked. (PR, N/A, protection N/A, RPS -2) | |||||||||||||||||||
M10 | 3 | 16 | Shotgun trips | 1 | 0 | 4 | 3-3 stack | 6 | Pass | Flare | RB | Inc | |||||||
DE instantly through the line, Patterson checks down and misses but really at this point it’s 38-3 and he’s about to get killed on every snap. (MA, 1, protection 0/2) | |||||||||||||||||||
M28 | 2 | 7 | Shotgun 3-wide | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4-3 even | 7 | Pass | PA TE wheel | Knox | 23 | |||||||
Virtually unblocked guy up the gut, VUGUG. Patterson drifts away from him to buy time and the TE actually gets open as he sells an out and then breaks upfield. Patterson puts it right on him. (CA+, 3, protection 0/2) | |||||||||||||||||||
O35 | 2 | 9 | Shotgun 3-wide | 1 | 1 | 3 | Nickel even | 6 | Pass | Throwaway | N/A | Inc | |||||||
Time! Patterson actually has a lot of it here. I can’t see if anyone’s open. One guy on a fade really isn’t. Patterson gets pressure eventually, rolls, keeps looking, and finally dumps it. (TA, 0, protection 2/2) | |||||||||||||||||||
O35 | 3 | 9 | Shotgun trips | 1 | 0 | 4 | 3-2 dime | 5 | Pass | In | Metcalf | 4 | |||||||
Patterson checks down on third and long because a three man rush gets through clean and he can’t let it develop. Immediate tackle. (CA, 3, protection 0/2) | |||||||||||||||||||
Ln | Dn | Ds | O Form | RB | TE | WR | D Form | Box | Type | Play | Player | Yards | |||||||
O31 | 3 | 5 | Shotgun trips | 1 | 0 | 4 | Nickel over | 6 | Pass | Improv | Jefferson | Inc | |||||||
Patterson probably bugs out too early here and just needs a little patience to let it develop, but how could you have patience at this point? He breaks forward, gets a spy in his face, and misses Jefferson at the sticks on a flick because he’s getting tackled as he throws it. (BA, 0, protection 2/2) | |||||||||||||||||||
O32 | 2 | 12 | Shotgun 3-wide | 1 | 1 | 3 | Nickel even | 6 | Pass | In | Metcalf | Inc | |||||||
It’s 52-3 so grain of salt on decisions here as Patterson tries not to get killed. FWIW, this is another zero-good-options throw; he throws an in to a FR WR who’s lost the route and DB PBUs. (CA, 0, protection 1/1) | |||||||||||||||||||
O32 | 3 | 12 | Shotgun 4-wide | 1 | 0 | 4 | DIme even | 5 | Pass | Hitch | Brown | Inc | |||||||
Reasonably good protection; Brown open a few yards short of the sticks as Bama is playing soft; good throw, dropped. (CA, 3, protection 1/1) | |||||||||||||||||||
O32 | 4 | 12 | Shotgun trips | 1 | 0 | 4 | 3-3 stack | 6 | Pass | Improv | N/A | INT | |||||||
VUGUG. This time RG ole blocks the NT. Patterson drifts back and just chucks it in the direction of a guy; S undercuts for the INT. This isn’t even a bad decision given the situation. (PR, 0, protection 0/2) | |||||||||||||||||||
M23 | 2 | 8 | Shotgun 3-wide | 1 | 1 | 3 | Nickel over | 6 | Pass | Fade | Lodge | 37 | |||||||
Three man rush by Bama’s second unit just gives Patterson enough time to chuck a fade down the sideline that is very well covered and dead on the money; Lodge goes up to make a tough catch. (DO, 2, protection ½) | |||||||||||||||||||
O44 | 2 | 14 | Shotgun 3-wide | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4-3 over | 7 | Pass | Dumpoff | RB | Inc | |||||||
VUGUG. Patterson does a good job to avoid the guy and finds his RB wide open on the sideline but wings it over his head. (IN, 0, protection 0/2) | |||||||||||||||||||
O44 | 3 | 14 | Shotgun 4-wide | 1 | 0 | 4 | Nickel even | 6 | Pass | Out | Jefferson | 4 | |||||||
Decent protection; at this point whatevs. Ball is high and forces a good catch. (MA, 2, protection 1/1) |
Probably a lot of useful information from this game against one of the nation's top defenses, right?
nooooooooope
Why not?
Imagine last year's Michigan OL playing Bama.
No.
Fair enough. Since we're not imagining things, here's Patterson's night in a nutshell:
During one stretch Patterson was sacked on five of eight dropbacks. If you're not a chart-reader, about halfway through the game (but most of the way through the chart since the 4th was irrelevant) I got frustrated by typing the same thing about a Virtually Unblocked Guy Up the Gut and started typing VUGUG when that happened.
This was a debacle from the start, out of hand by the end of the first quarter, and very little of it had anything to do with Patterson. He did show some happy feet and miss some throws after moving around in the pocket, but the environment was such that it would have been a shock if he did not.
But enough about Michigan's pass protection.
Yes, the flashbacks to various Michigan QBs laying crumpled under a pile of bodies were persistent and severe here. For the record, I had Ole Miss's pass protection at 22/55, probably a UFR record low 40%, and on many Ole Miss dorfs I thought about a third protection negative because the pressure was coming directly up the middle of the field.
This wasn't a guy coming around the edge and sacking the QB after he maybe had time to get the ball out. This was someone running inside the tackle, usually untouched. Patterson frequently had to start moving before he'd even set up to throw.
Did this exercise produce anything at all?
One hell of a Poor Damn Shea Patterson passing chart, for one:
SHEA PATTERSON
Good | Neutral | Bad | Ovr | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Game | DO | CA | SCR | PR | MA | BA | TA | IN | BR | DSR | PFF | |||
Alabama | 2 | 15(3)+++ | 8 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 64% | - | ||||
Vandy | 5 | 16(4)+ | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 4(1) | 1 | 74% | - |
These pressure-heavy games become hard to chart as I try to suss out what is a reasonable grade for any particular throw when you have the dread certainty someone's about to take your head off. FWIW, one interception—a fourth and twelve heave after VUGUG—got marked a "marginal" throw because the right thing to do was fling the ball in the general direction of one of your guys. The other one could have been either an IN or a BR; I went with the more judgy BR. This is bad but it's not throwing it to a linebacker's chest:
Given the situation, Patterson's part in this debacle is at worst neutral for Michigan's prospects. And it might be positive? He was put in a number of no-win scenarios, like this incomplete slant on Ole Miss's best drive.
That's destined for a PBU, but all options are bad here. It's a seven man protection with only three guys in the route. The slot's covered, the solo WR to the bottom of the screen is getting jammed to oblivion, and the targeted Van Jefferson has lost his route badly. At least this time Patterson wasn't running for his life.
Patterson duly threw these passes even if it was clear the WR—frequently for some reason true freshman DK Metcalf—was getting his face pressed off.
He had no other choice unless being buried under 500 pounds of Bama lineman counts. Metcalf in particular had a rough game, unable to get off the line of scrimmage with any consistency and poor when given an opportunity to catch a ball.
For Patterson to (mostly) maintain his accuracy and not do anything truly egregious is impressive. Probably the worst thing he did was miss Lodge when he busted open for a 45-yard TD, and he did pepper in a couple pretty throws:
And while he had this without rolling out, this escapability and ability to put the ball on the money 30 yards downfield while on the move is impressive:
Lord knows Michigan's going to need that next year.
So… punt?
More or less. Patterson had very few opportunities to do anything and was being chased all night. I don't think any QB could have been effective given the chaos around him; this is no more meaningful than Patterson torching UT-Martin.
because last year all of our QB's left me saying WTF were you thinking.... I expect a huge uptick in the QB play this year, with whoever wins the job.
Better QB play will make a huge difference next season. Just from clips I have watched I am getting excited for Shea and the athleticisim, arm strenght and escapibility he brings to the position.
his third INT was right to the Cal player and was definitely a WTF??? moment but 2 of the INT's were deflections that hit the receiver in the hands and they failed to bring in. And by the 3rd quarter it looked like his O-Line was gassed because Cal was in the backfield on almost every snap.
The amount of false starts by the ole miss O line is staggering.
Man he throws a beautiful ball to all parts of the field and he showed some real composure for a true Soph.
polishes him up some, it will be awesome.
The play at 0:35 into that video is all I need to see to convince me that Shea will perform better than the QB's we had last season. Add expert Michigan coaching and another season of spring/fall camps into his experience and I think we'll be pleased as fans.
videos of his offensive plays last season and the number of times he hits receivers in the hands and they dropped it was staggering. That has to be frustrating for a QB. He's good. Hopefully great.
He's got that Fran Tarkenton fearlessness.
Interesting to go with "punt" on this one, especially given some of the truly horrific QB performances we've seen in Ann Arbor lately. I will grant that there's a limit to what one can extrapolate from this tape, but this still looks to me like a major upgrade over basically everything we saw last year.
Maybe that's just me being a bit of a homer/optimist, but a QB who can keep his head above water like this, under very adverse circumstances, wins us the MSU, Wisconsin, OSU, and SC games last year. Keeps PSU a bit more respectable, but not enough to flip that. Still, looks pretty good to me. Do want, happy we have.
'Wow! He hasn't completely lost his $hit despite all the pressure' QB play is a big improvement for us.
We still have to be frightented of the O line. But if our O can just be competent. Not great, competent. Just score a bit, and don't give the ball away.
People need to keep in mind that UM's Run game is much better than what he had at Ole Miss and that is what will make a world of difference for the Oline/protection.
You combine a QB like Shea with what UM is bringing back in the run game and the whole Offense is going to make a giant leap forward. The Oline is going to look a lot better as a result too.
Watch the Cal offense video. At the 1:10 mark, he hits a reciver dead in the hands for the touchdown and the dude dropped it. That happened so many times last year and you know that has to be frustrating as hell for a QB. 2 of the CAL interceptions where balls where the receiver got the hands on it and dropped/tipped/missed it. Black, DPJ, the rest won't drop a lot of passes. They'll get open when Ole Miss receivers could not. And, as you mentioned, the O-Line. Cal's O-Line was as bad as UM's was. The O-Line will be coached up (thanks Coach W!!) and will be leaps better. God Bless I'm getting excited when I promised myself I wouldn't...
That's probably all true. I do think Peters was demonstrably better than O'Korn last year, or at least not as combustible, which you notice outside of the SC game he didn't get to play in/finish.
I think Patterson will be a solid QB at Michigan. But he doesn't feel like a savior quite yet, and I think this team's problems go much deeper/broader than the guy who throws the ball.
So two key parts of the offensive line, plus perhaps one guard spot if Onwenu's fall to end the year meant something beyond an injury. I mean, that's 3/5th of the offensive line, and says nothing about the changes at the coaching spot (even if Warriner does produce a massive turnaround, expecting it to be seamless is a bit optimistic).
The leading receiver on this team last year was Sean McKeon with 31 catches for 9.7 ypc; Gentry was the only guy with more than a couple of catches to crack 15 ypc. Everyone is super-excited about the prospects at that spot, but until they actually perform on the field that's a huge question mark.
They also don't have a particularly dynamic running game. I really like Higdon and Evans, but almost 2/3 of his season total came against Rutgers, Minnesota, and Indiana; he struggled just as badly as Peters did in that bowl game. Same with Evans, who seemed snakebitten running the ball but still didn't crack 100 yards except against Minnesota. I thought they looked much better running the ball to end the year, but it's still an open question how good they'll be.
Defensively it's a really stout unit and should be solid as ever, but the QB spot has little to do with that outcome either way.
Again, I'm optimistic about this team. But "drop a couple of games" could well mean 10-3 again, and while I'd be fine with that my guess is a vocal contingent around here wouldn't be, and that level of success wouldn't be completely due to the QB spot.
That happens when you have way below acceptable QB play and new receivers and your best receiver goes out. The receivers will be better. The O-Line will be much better. The QB is going to be way better. Above average to good maybe even great. Add those in and you have a significantly better season than last year. Last year where we couldn't breathe easy even against the low rated non conference teams will be a bygone era during and after this season IMHO.
"I do think Peters was demonstrably better than O'Korn last year."
Based on what? He QBd the team when Michigan ran for nearly 900 yards against 3 tomato cans on defense. He led the team to 10 points against Wisconsin and was hateful in the bowl game.
Watching those two QBs, I can see why the coaches hung with O'Korn for so long.
Last year Ole Miss adj sack rate was 58th at 108..6 and pass downs sack rate was 92nd at 9.5.
Our adj sack rate was 117th at 69.7 and pass down sack rate was 104th at 10.2.
So despite the blocking in the videos, our advanced stats say Michigan is worse.
Some possibilities:
1. Shea is so mobile that he was propping up their sack rates despite their oline actually being worse than Michigan's.
2. Being down so much caused them to constantly be in passing down situations, where Michigan and Ole Miss are pretty similar.
3. Alabama is just better than any d-line we faced. Making the clips look especially bad.
4. Michigan's oline is truly much worse than Ole Miss's (which has NFL prospect Greg Little at LT) and every game is going to be a disaster where Shea is running for his life.
Qb's who move around in the pocket as much as Shea does can actually raise sack rates because they tend to hold onto the ball longer (not a problem in the bama game since holding on to the ball longer wasn't an option).
Ole miss had a better pass protecting line than we did last year but if they get to ole miss level last year only OSU will cause them extreme problems, maybe wisconsin too. What this really shows is how far Michigan is from a national title. If we face Bama or Clemson in the playoffs its going to look a lot like Washington did against Bama a couple years ago, we won't get blown out but at no point will it seem like we have any shot to actually win the game.
DL is better than OSU DL. OSU is better in terms of pass rush and they have just as many NFL players as Bama.
OSU defensive scheme is one gap while Bama is more of 2 gap scheme so they are more concentrated on stopping the run first. Bama doesn't have the pass rush prowness that OSU has like Hubbard, Lewis, Jones, Bosa and Young.
Beat Notre Dame. GO BLUE
There were so many times where he hit a receiver in the hands and the dude dropped it. I have to think that Michigan's receivers will be a step up for his throws and that will make him more confident and a better QB too.
For another UFR may I suggest Ole Miss offense @ Cal defense? The game was a toss up to the very end and, IMO, shows two teams relatively evenly matched. Spoiler alert, Cal won the game but Ole Miss did have the halftime lead and didn't lose the game until late in the 4th Q.
that Hugh Freeze was around to experience that one.
He'll fit in just fine here.
Putting to rest the myth that a mobile QB can make a poor OL look passable.
Not necessarily....this is Bama which is basically a pro team. That's not a team to base generalisations on one way or the other.
'Bama also had a ridiculous secondary. Imagine if Michigan gets a sophomore leap from DPJ, Black, and maybe Martin, with the TEs doing some amazing things? There's probably at least one guy who wins his battle on a given play or 50% of plays, and here's to hoping Michigan's QB can find that guy.
It's pretty obvious that the O line is just as important as the qb.
I'm rooting for a great O line and Mr. Peters.
Ohio State has a 'Bama-level OL. If Michigan ever had a chance to get that OL on track, however, it was with Warinner putting things together. Here we go.
Most probably I'll actually read it a few days before ND. So if you would please distill it to essence, given Patterson, are we or are we not going to win all our games and the NC this season? Just pretend I won't read this and skip forward to January 7, 2019 thanks.
Why would you assume a guy who still has two years left has already hit his ceiling?
tacklng ability?
great plan on the one pick
Man, Ole Miss receivers give up on balls early.
Considering what he had to deal with, I think he actually did good to pull off some beautiful throws.
If your O-line sucks, you can have a good QB and still get blown out. He'll chart better but it won't matter.
Well, that's good to know.
While this video makes me think better of Shea, and better of our chances next year, it also brings to me the reality of what a National Championship team looks like. With Our O line last year, yeeshh... We would have been embarrassed by Bama. And while I think the O line will improve this year it's by degrees.
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