Maize n Brew's Every Snap Analysis of Joe Milton at Michigan (Video Link)
Small sample (24 plays), but I found an old ~40 minute video on YouTube from Maize n Brew's Stephen Osentoski analyzing every Joe Milton snap at Michigan.
It's an interesting watch not only to analyze Milton, but also to get a better understanding of play design.
Some thoughts:
- Better athleticism and ability to escape the pocket than I would've thought, especially for a guy his size
- Not about Milton, but Wisconsin linebackers were really good at reading their keys to understand which direction a play would go
- Some bad decisions (not throwing the ball away, bad reads), but I think most of it he can grown out of
- Tiny sample size, but no repeated and glaring accuracy issues
- Seems to have good habits when on the run, keeping his eyes downfield
- Overall instincts about pocket integrity seem pretty good; he generally bugs out when appropriate
October 15th, 2020 at 8:35 PM ^
We'll see if Joe has what it takes.
October 15th, 2020 at 10:36 PM ^
Is Cain Able?
October 15th, 2020 at 8:44 PM ^
I think his best-case scenario as a runner is being able to grind out ‘annoying’ yards (in the defense’s eyes) here and there, like getting 6 on 3rd and 5. I don’t see him out-running many guys, but I’ll take enough mobility to keep defenses honest. I’m hoping he has a Roethlesberger-esque knack of having guys bounce off of him.
October 15th, 2020 at 10:18 PM ^
In a recent interview he claimed he runs a 4.62 now. If true, that would make him about as fast as Cam Newton and Dennis Dixon. I don't know how many fakes that 40 time gets, but if it's true he could be an effective runner.
October 15th, 2020 at 10:29 PM ^
It's not just that, it's his nimbleness. Cam Newton struck me as more of a bulldozer. Honestly, I thought Dixon was faster than that. But watching Milton duck and feint and weave his way through traffic, sometimes improbably unscathed, at 6'5--it's sublime.
October 15th, 2020 at 10:34 PM ^
Dixon is a little faster at 4.58, but it's a pretty small difference. FWIW Cam Newton ran a 4.59.
October 15th, 2020 at 9:23 PM ^
Ayyy thanks for the share! Took a while to make this vid!
Decision making is definitely the area that stood out as "he needs to improve upon this" but definitely tiny sample size, as you said.
October 15th, 2020 at 9:31 PM ^
Thanks for making this! I look forward to watching when I get the chance.
October 15th, 2020 at 10:17 PM ^
For sure. I really appreciated that you kept the football technical jargon to a minimum, or at least 'drew' where you were talking about (e.g. circling the position of a player you're discussing, drawing out the routes as you name the type, &c.). It was the best I've understood plays in a very long time.
October 15th, 2020 at 11:36 PM ^
Yeah I'm definitely not an expert. Scrub through enough plays and you can gather what the intent of the play was, think there's lots of value in doing that to better understand the game.
Glad you enjoyed it!
October 16th, 2020 at 10:48 AM ^
You got a shoutout on the MGoBlog Podcast -- everyone has watched this video (including me). Great stuff.
October 16th, 2020 at 10:47 AM ^
Yeah man that was really good content. Thank you for taking the time to do that. You have a good knowledge of the game and it was entertaining to watch.
October 16th, 2020 at 9:16 AM ^
My own analysis:
Every once in a while, magic takes place on the field. A young kid with something to prove shows up. No one much believes in him - but he believes in himself. They face a team that can't be beaten. 20 years of loss after loss. But the kid thinks they can do it. He drives the team bus himself down to Columbus. He steps onto the field, and ...
UM 28
OSU 24
His name is Joe Milton. And hell's coming with him.
October 16th, 2020 at 9:30 AM ^
holding them to 24 pts would be something
October 16th, 2020 at 10:10 AM ^
Matthew McConaughey, is that you?
October 16th, 2020 at 9:29 AM ^
If you have to throw an interception....make that DB pay for it with a bruise that shows the seams of the football!
October 16th, 2020 at 10:45 AM ^
What struck me, first and foremost, about this clip is the lack of a quick, first-read outlet that is available to the QB in the face of early pressure. Almost every play was slow developing and assumed there would be solid, 3 second pass protection. Clemson, Alabama, OSU, Oklahoma...usually have a quick slot or RB dump off available for the QB to bail to immediately.
Michigan's offense is predicated upon every player winning every battle every time-and guess what...that is a faulty premise-even against Rutgers. Michigan has Jackson, Sainristil, Henning, Wilson, Corum...excellent speed in space guys who can take a 10 yard pass to the house-use them for Pete's sake.
October 16th, 2020 at 10:45 AM ^
My favorite play of his was the last play of the Florida game, where he runs for about a 15 yard gain. After the play, the Florida DB's were jawing at him, and he puts his helmet right against theirs, towers over them and stares them down while talking back to them.
We need Alpha QB play. I think we're about to get it. I don't think Joe will have the level of fear that prior QB's have had.
October 16th, 2020 at 11:19 AM ^
To me, he's similar to Josh Allen. If Michigan gets the current version of Josh Allen, they're in a great shape. If he's a Wyoming version of Josh Allen, then they're in trouble.
October 16th, 2020 at 1:55 PM ^
Fantastic video! I also completely agree with the original post. Well said!
One thing to keep in mind regarding decision making is that there are three different aspects that come together to produce on field results. There's the cognitive ability and time put into film study to understand how to read the field and understand what the offensive design is trying to accomplish on each play. There's live game experience to be able to apply that knowledge. And then there's simply the ability to quickly make good decisions when the pressure is on.
We can see Milton's obvious struggles with decision making but it does look as if he isn't going to cognitively freeze up when the bullets are flying. He keeps his eyes downfield when he should and showed quick processing ability when the play design quickly broke down. That's not nothing. There have been countless smart, hard working quarterbacks at the collegiate and even NFL level who nevertheless struggled when the pressure was on. We also know Milton came in very raw in all aspects of the game, so early struggles were expected. There's a lot of reason for optimism.
October 16th, 2020 at 5:04 PM ^
I really hope Joe Milton blows up for us. He’s got the cred to bring in big time recruits and JJ is waiting in the wings.
October 16th, 2020 at 9:16 PM ^
That is really good analysis and eases some of my concerns with him heading into the season opener, a reserved excitement for sure