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My thoughts on first preseason game

FordFairLane

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QB- Rudolph looked better than Haskins in my opinion. He made a couple of real nice touch throws and pushed it deep to Claypool on a single coverage mismatch. Haskins did lots of dump offs which isn’t bad but doesn’t win games either. Dobbs looked good vs mostly camp bodies. Imo Roethlisberger, Rudolph, and Dobbs with Haskins outside looking in.

RB- Harris looked good. Big and strong as expected. Did good in pass pro. But the guy I liked in the 2018 draft really shined. Kalen Ballage is a big, powerful back but he showed quick feet and burst. I’d have loved to see Snell to compare where he’s at but in my opinion Ballage has a shot at the backup role to Harris. McFarland showed a little speed but is so easily tackled I feel he brings little to nothing to the table. JaySam didn’t do a lot in mop up duty but imo his pass pro and ability to run inside and catch make him a more viable option than McFarland.

WR- Claypool looked in midseason form, DJ looked quick and his hands looked good, and we seem to have good depth. My surprise of the game was Mathew Sexton. He looked lightening fast and I feel has a good shot at KR/PR and maybe backup slot receiver.

OL- No major mistakes. I feel they could have been better in run blocking but there weren’t any major mental mistakes.

OLB- Alex Highsmith looked quick and had some good bend. He definitely worked hard this off-season. Marsh looked like a seasoned vet and gave the Cowboys offensive line all they could handle. Quincy Roche looked good using his hands and spin moves to get pressure. Hopefully they can build from this.

ILB- Spillane looked good and healthy. Gilbert looked a little lost but good to see him back on the field. Buddy Johnson looked fast but a little lost. Got some work to do but there’s still time.

DL- Did not look good imo. Cowboys really had their way upfront with our line. Now the guys they pushed around are the backups but it’s a little worrisome depth wise.

DB- James Pierre, Miles Killebrew, Donovan Stiner and Tre Norwood all stood out. Probably our strongest performance group in my opinion.

ST- Berry is all but gone. Bos has no competition. Sexton looked super fast and natural returning.
 

FordFairLane

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Nice write up, man.

Two huge pancake blocks by TE Rader also stood out. He *buried* dudes into the turf on both plays. Was great to see.
Yeah, forgot TE. But he could definitely kick Gentry off the team. He had a nice little catch and run too.
 

SteelerSask2

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Quality write up. Though I cannot see Sexton taking McCloud spot. If indeed Washington leaves it opens up a spot but needs to be filled with a legit receiver. Sexton is redundant to McCloud.
 

TDX27

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I really liked the Ballage pick-up. I just hope his injury doesn't have him miss time or he could get cut just because of that. I'm not sure when Tomlin will update the injuries since this isn't like a normal week of practice. Maybe we will hear something today or tomorrow.
 

bermudasteel

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Quality write up. Though I cannot see Sexton taking McCloud spot. If indeed Washington leaves it opens up a spot but needs to be filled with a legit receiver. Sexton is redundant to McCloud.
I think Ray-Ray is just as good as Washington is now plus he can separate and plays special teams.

Bye bye 13
 

mightyguru

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I liked Rader last year...looks like he's even better now.

Can anybody confirm that Loudermilk blocked that FG? I played it a few times but it's blurry.
 

slashsteel

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I am not sure I am seeing Buddy lost out there but I am sure that is splitting hairs. Oline and Dline had starters out so the run blocking I am not too worried about. Yet.... Moore could very well be the surprise of camp if he continues development. We could be looking at the LT of the future. Jaysam for me has declined to the point that I think he is a waste of a roster spot. But that opinion has been developing for some time. I think you could have RayRay and Sexton on the roster even being similar. RayRay could fill in for some of Washingtons reps but I think that would be a division of labor with Pat and Ebron and DJ and Mapletron gobbling up the rest. Sexton might be a good slot option with that quickness.
 

FordFairLane

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I guess I really never have seen anything that special from Ray Ray. I think he did a decent job returning last year but wasn’t something special. His skills at receiver are underwhelming for me as well. I see him being easily replaced. Washington imo has been underutilized so I really hope we can keep him. I feel when given the opportunity he’s performed well. In fact I kinda hoped he’d go opposite of Claypool to stretch the defense while DJ played slot if JuJu left.
 

TDX27

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I guess I really never have seen anything that special from Ray Ray. I think he did a decent job returning last year but wasn’t something special. His skills at receiver are underwhelming for me as well. I see him being easily replaced. Washington imo has been underutilized so I really hope we can keep him. I feel when given the opportunity he’s performed well. In fact I kinda hoped he’d go opposite of Claypool to stretch the defense while DJ played slot if JuJu left.
Ray-ray is a dime a dozen guy. The only reason he was on the team last year was because of special teams, not because of his receiving ability. Maybe with a full preseason this year, he can improve but if Sexton is looking as good as some say, he could easily beat Ray-ray out for the last WR spot, assuming Washington is staying.
 

topseed

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Offense: Dan Moore was pretty solid at tackle, could end up being a strong 4th round pick. Green seems mobile at center but got pushed back off the ball a few times when bull rushed. Ballage looked like a legit #2 back, then he got hurt.

Defense: Loudermilk started slowly, but seemed to be more effective as the game went on. He had good push on the interior, for the most part. Roche had the one nice move on his sack, but didn't impress me otherwise; I was expecting a bit more from him. Buddy Johnson made a fine instinctual play on a screen pass. Physically he reminds me of Earl Holmes.

Special Teams: Great job by the punter Harvin. Shakur Brown had outstanding coverage on kicks with two tackles (and could have been credited for a third, in my opinion), and also drew a holding penalty. I'm sure he made a huge impression with the coaches, and that's how you make an NFL roster as a 5'10" free agent cornerback.

Overall, I was sorry I didn't bring my roster with me to my buddy's house, because I had no idea who a lot of these guys were until I watched the game again with their numbers at my fingertips.
 

wig

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I think Ray-Ray is just as good as Washington is now plus he can separate and plays special teams.

Bye bye 13
Really? Washington had the 2nd best hands on the team last year behind JuJu, by a hair.

He aint sexy, but he does something Johnson hasn't yet shown he's capable of... catch the ball consistently. There's no way Ray touches Washington in terms of usefulness with a 10 ft pole, imo.

Course, I'm an admitted Washington groupie. I really do like him. He just doesn't have a real opportunity to play since everyone is bound and ******* determined to watch Johnson drop ball after ball after ball...
 

TDX27

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I definitely agree with Wig's Washington - Ray-Ray comparison. Washington was very reliable when they put him in games last year. There was a reason Ben made his comment about him getting more targets late in the year when he did. Ray-ray was only on the team for his special teams ability and then a few gadget plays. He wasn't there because he was one of our top 4 WR's. And, if Diontae continues dropping balls this year, it definitely should be Washington taking his place alongside JuJu and Claypool.
 

wig

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I definitely agree with Wig's Washington - Ray-Ray comparison. Washington was very reliable when they put him in games last year. There was a reason Ben made his comment about him getting more targets late in the year when he did. Ray-ray was only on the team for his special teams ability and then a few gadget plays. He wasn't there because he was one of our top 4 WR's. And, if Diontae continues dropping balls this year, it definitely should be Washington taking his place alongside JuJu and Claypool.
While I agree with this in spirit, and while I did say Washington won't see snaps because of the love-affair the coaches and fans have with Johnson's "potential", Washington in actuality plays a different position and really it's Claypool keeping Washington on the bench and I can't honestly argue too much with that.

Basically, North Montana would have to come up with some kind of weird formations and plays to really get Washington on the field consistently and I don't really see that happening.

Spike-light. 4 WIDE *******!
 

FordFairLane

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Steelworth

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Dobbs looked good vs mostly camp bodies.

Nice write up. FWIW, Koroza on Dobbs' progression:




Yes, that is just camp, but the previous numbers are camp as well.
 

FordFairLane

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Nice write up. FWIW, Koroza on Dobbs' progression:




Yes, that is just camp, but the previous numbers are camp as well.

Yeah, I just don’t see Haskins making the 53 man. I’m sure we’d love to sign him to the PS and bring him back to camp next year but doubt that happens
 
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