Tweet
In no particular order:
1). The playcalling needs to be versatile. I know a lot has been made about some of the playcalling last week, but again, you could see our defense tightening around the Bengals' necks like a noose (when was the last time you could say that), plus the weather conditions and the success of our run game dictated a lot of the flow of that game.
My major concern heading into Sunday is all the attention being made to how we want to control the clock, keep Manning on the bench, etc. All valid reasons, of course. And you can point to both meetings against Denver this year and that's exactly what we tried to do both times, being successful the second time we met them. My point is that the 3rd time around, there will be no surprises. Denver will be game-planning all week to stop that strategy. Now of course, planning and executing are two different things. But I truly hope Whiz doesn't just bang in their against their defense primed to stop us with a gimpy RM for the sake of "keeping with the gameplan" or because "we need to keep Manning on the bench." Reminds me of the 2005 AFCCG when the Steelers went into Denver (was Whiz the OC of the Steelers then?) and BRoth came out throwing all over the place, catching the Broncos off guard. Point being, the entire world knows what we WANT to do to Denver...and if we can execute it again...great, but if not, don't be afraid to change gears QUICKLY.
2). This sort of goes along with point #1....but don't be afraid to expose our young defense out there. Don't underestimate how much better these guys are playing, regardless of the us vs the world mentality, house money, etc. They flat out are simply playing better. I know we want to keep Manning on the bench but if we're forced to go to an air attack and start scoring "too early," don't be afraid to put the defense out there and in a position to make plays. I think Manning has thrown an INT or turned the ball over in 10 out of 11 games against the Chargers (or something similar to that effect).
3). More contribution from the WRs/TEs. Seems like both KC and Cincy took away everything over the top and just left the underneath game for us. This was more evident against KC, not so much against Cincy since we didn't really need to throw.
4). Pass rush, Pagano needs to find a way to keep dialing it up. Needs to call the game of his life the 2nd week in a row.
5). Somebody new needs to step up. Last week it was Ingram's coming out party. I hope his success continues. But part of a prolonged playoff run is having key contributors when you least expect it. Defense, offense, ST, whoever. I keep voting for Teo each week because I think he's close.
Feel free to add.
1). The playcalling needs to be versatile. I know a lot has been made about some of the playcalling last week, but again, you could see our defense tightening around the Bengals' necks like a noose (when was the last time you could say that), plus the weather conditions and the success of our run game dictated a lot of the flow of that game.
My major concern heading into Sunday is all the attention being made to how we want to control the clock, keep Manning on the bench, etc. All valid reasons, of course. And you can point to both meetings against Denver this year and that's exactly what we tried to do both times, being successful the second time we met them. My point is that the 3rd time around, there will be no surprises. Denver will be game-planning all week to stop that strategy. Now of course, planning and executing are two different things. But I truly hope Whiz doesn't just bang in their against their defense primed to stop us with a gimpy RM for the sake of "keeping with the gameplan" or because "we need to keep Manning on the bench." Reminds me of the 2005 AFCCG when the Steelers went into Denver (was Whiz the OC of the Steelers then?) and BRoth came out throwing all over the place, catching the Broncos off guard. Point being, the entire world knows what we WANT to do to Denver...and if we can execute it again...great, but if not, don't be afraid to change gears QUICKLY.
2). This sort of goes along with point #1....but don't be afraid to expose our young defense out there. Don't underestimate how much better these guys are playing, regardless of the us vs the world mentality, house money, etc. They flat out are simply playing better. I know we want to keep Manning on the bench but if we're forced to go to an air attack and start scoring "too early," don't be afraid to put the defense out there and in a position to make plays. I think Manning has thrown an INT or turned the ball over in 10 out of 11 games against the Chargers (or something similar to that effect).
3). More contribution from the WRs/TEs. Seems like both KC and Cincy took away everything over the top and just left the underneath game for us. This was more evident against KC, not so much against Cincy since we didn't really need to throw.
4). Pass rush, Pagano needs to find a way to keep dialing it up. Needs to call the game of his life the 2nd week in a row.
5). Somebody new needs to step up. Last week it was Ingram's coming out party. I hope his success continues. But part of a prolonged playoff run is having key contributors when you least expect it. Defense, offense, ST, whoever. I keep voting for Teo each week because I think he's close.
Feel free to add.
Comment