Earl Thomas

[RiverDog]

Sometimes the runner just makes a great move.

It was a good cutback move, but not a great move. Gore got the defense flowing to the left, and Earl got sucked to the left with the rest of our D. He's a safety, and should have hung back and waited for the back to break. He should have seen the running lane and moved to fill it. Good safeties (not saying Earl isn't) see the running lanes develop in front of them and anticipate where the play is going.

I also want to point out that Sherman took a bad angle. He's as guilty as Earl. He got too close to the LOS when the play was going away from him.

 

[AbsolutNET]

First guy to put in the cross hairs for that run is Wagner. Overran the living bejeezus out of it

 

[Sgt. Largent]

Cant be an all pro safety and totally get burned on that run. Inexcusable

Earle was just one of like four bad defensive plays on that run.

1. Red shot the wrong gap, which took BOTH him and Mebane out of the play.
2. Irvin pushed too far wide, and was out of the play before it even started.
3. Wagner also went to far wide, and opened up the cutback.

If #1 doesn't happen, it's a two yard gain.
If #2 doesn't happen it's a 6 yard gain.
If #3 doesn't happen it's a 8 yard gain.

Earle makes that play 99.99% of the time, he should have never had to make it if the first two layers of defense don't screw up.

 

[RiverDog]

Bottom line is that there are a number of places to lay blame. Earl needs to take his share, but by no means is he the only guilty party.

 

[chrispy]

After one too many missed plays in Indianapolis, the Hawks went on a 7 game tear. I'd be willing to bet that Earl puts in a little extra time and he saves more games than he costs in the next 5.

 

[TJH]

Thomas misses a LOT of tackles. Last year he was one of the very worst safeties in missed tackles. It is what it is, but this shouldnt really shock anyone. One of the drawbacks to being small and rangy.

 

[Seaswab]

It would help if he didn't try a bunch of shoulder tackles/

 

[TJH]

It would help if he didn't try a bunch of shoulder tackles/

That's part of it. He always seems to just fling himself at people. He did it against jaquizz in the playoffs last year.


INB4 WHAT YOU WANT TO BENCH HIM HURRDURR NO CRITICISM ALLOWED

 

[SouthSoundHawk]

For whatever reason, the entire game Seattle played felt undisciplined.

The entire defense seemed overly aggressive on the Gore run (they gambled and it bit them, hard).

Props to Gore for making some real nice plays on Sunday (he was due).

 

[ClumsyLurk]

OP is ridiculous.

 

[tom sawyer]

He was denied dessert on the plane ride home. :141847_bnono:

 

[TJH]

OP is ridiculous.

Why is it so "ridiculous" for someone to call out a player who has obvious issues making tackles for missing a game-losing tackle?

 

[Ozzy]

Wagner seems to be in the mix on a lot of missed assignments honestly. He was flat footed and didnt even contest the TD to Davis. The guy plays hard but man he seems to be a target of opposing teams.

 

[RiverDog]

OP is ridiculous.

The only part of the OP that is ridiculous is that Earl can't be an all pro if he misses a tackle like that. Reed, Polomalu, and other all pros have missed on tackles before.

But it is spot on to point out that Earl blew it on that play. The safeties primary job in any defense is to prevent big plays, and that was obviously a big play. It's how the position got its name.

 

[Ozzy]

Thomas is the best safety in football. Part of his missed tackles is what makes him so great. He messed up along with about 3 other guys on this play. Inexcusable that they let Gore run wild on this play.

 

[TJH]

OP is ridiculous.

. Reed, Polomalu, and other all pros have missed on tackles before.

Sure have, but not at the rate of Thomas. Bottom 10 in safeties this year for missed tackles, 4th worst last year. Everyone wants to act like these are isolated slip ups, but those are some uncomfortable stats. There's no way around it, he needs to get better.

 

[RiverDog]

OP is ridiculous.

. Reed, Polomalu, and other all pros have missed on tackles before.

Sure have, but not at the rate of Thomas. Bottom 10 in safeties this year for missed tackles, 4th worst last year. Everyone wants to act like these are isolated slip ups, but those are some uncomfortable stats. There's no way around it, he needs to get better.

I'm not disagreeing with your assessment. Earl has always been weak at tackling. But he more than makes up for it in other areas of his game, particularly the amount of field he covers, his field vision, and his knack for being at the right place at the right time. It's his presence that allows us to play the tough man-to-man defense that is the lynch pin of our defense.

As a rule, Earl's almost always in position and if not make a tackle, impede the runner enough to allow the pursuit catch up. That time, it wasn't his tackling as much as it was his getting out of position and failing to diagnose where the play was likely to go that caused him to fail. I might add that Sherman was guilty of being out of position, too. Watch his first movement on the play. It was going to his right with no one coming around on the back side yet his first move was towards the LOS, and he got caught up in the wash.

 

[lukerguy]

ET tenancy it to be aggressive, and he gets burned by it in the run game every now and again. It was just a hell of a time for it to happen.

 

[ClumsyLurk]

Earl Thomas is a top safety - thats why it's ridiculous. Here you say he can't be one, but obviously (and I'm no expert, keep in mind) he is one.

The body of work ET has put togather thus far is not symbolic in just one play from yesterday. That wasn't a Bill Buckner-eque career defining play. Unless superb owls (we call them that right?) are played in December.

 

[Seaswab]

Listen, I love ET, but if you're going to dance around when making a tackle after 8 and 9 yard gains, then make this one at a big spot in the game. That's all I'm asking. Jeez, I didnt say cut the guy. The LOB isn't afraid to proclaim greatness, so they shouldnt be off limits for criticism when they screw up.