kearly wrote:Sorry Rob, but yes I do think this topic is reactionary. Don't forget that 2/5 of our drops were by RBs. We are talking about 3 drops by our WRs tonight. That sucks, but they also made some really nice plays- Rice and Baldwin especially. It's a shame that Tate's hands sucked, but that is VERY out of character for him. Piling on after this game on Tate is a lot like when Mora let Mare have it after he missed a couple kicks in 2009. Hopefully the aftermath is similarly ironic.
I'm not excusing anything- I think clearly the drops made the difference in the outcome of the game. How can a rookie QB build momentum when he's got almost as many drops (5) as completions (6) with just 5 minutes left in the game? Wilson actually looked very composed for a while and then the entire team just unraveled after that horrible drop by Tate on 3rd down.
This game screamed "growing pains" to me. Our running game is great, our recievers have talent, our QB has talent... but there is an awkwardness to this offense right now. The Dallas game was the only game where every aspect of the offense clicked at the same time. It really felt like Wilson was on pace for a special game before those drops and some very questionable non-calls for DPI threw a wrench in things.
Oddly enough, I thought Seattle looked like the more talented team in this game. The defense had SF on lockdown in quarters 2 and 3 and the offense came so freaking close to finishing drives countless times before the 49ers seemingly always caught a huge break to avoid points.
Excuse me... 3 drops by our receivers???? Tate dropped 3 catchable passes on his own. Edwards had another drop that hit him in the hands, Rice had a drop that hit him in the hands and I'm pretty sure Obomanu dropped a catchable pass in the 3rd quarter if my memory serves me correctly. Granted... Edwards and Rice dropped a couple tough catches they had to go up for, but they got both hands on the ball and they didn't make the catch. In the NFL... If the ball hits you in the hands... It's a drop, regardless if you're in double coverage, going up for the ball or diving for a ball. 2 hands on the ball that doesn't end up caught is a drop. Our receivers accounted for multiple drops and Tate accounted for 3 of them.
I can cut Turbin a little slack because he's a rookie and he probably had some jitters early in the game. Not to mention... The wheel route is one of the hardest catches for a back to make because they're typically not downfield receivers. Lynch has never been known for being a great receiving back, so I expect him to have a drop or two in a game if the ball's thrown his way.
As for the interception... If you get a chance... watch the replay on that. I don't think Wilson intended to throw it in the field of play. I think he was trying to get it out of bounds near Edwards to avoid intentional grounding and came up lame on the throw due to pressure. That's why it was way over Edwards and a lot closer to the sideline than Edwards was.
For immediate assistance, I'd really like to see us sign Plaxico this week. I'm done with Tate. I've been waiting for him to develop into a solid reliable receiver that gets open and makes plays consistently for 3 years now. It's always one thing or another with him. Either he has a hard time getting open, he drops passes when he gets open or he doesn't make a play after he catches the ball. Tate is vastly overrated in my opinion. He's a great athlete that can play receiver, but I want a great receiver that's athletic.
As for Edwards... He's been notoriously inconsistent throughout his career. One play he'll make an amazing catch and then he'll drop the easiest catch a receiver could make the next 2 or 3 times he's targeted. It's been a well publicized knock on him throughout his career. Again... Could care less if he stays on the team. I was actually hoping we'd keep TO over Edwards and give TO some time to work himself into the offense.
I'd trade Edwards and Tate for Nate Burleson in a heartbeat and that's not saying Burleson is a great receiver. It's just saying he's a hell of a lot more consistent than Edwards and Tate are combined.
Also... Who the hell is our receiver's coach??? I'd say he's on the hotseat at this point. Last, but not least... Does Bevell know how to use a f#@&^! screen? The only screens I've seen him use are slip screens and bubble screens to our receivers. Here's a thought. Maybe run a play-action screen pass that allows Robinson, a good receiving FB, to leak out and get a lot of space to work with when he catches the ball after the front 7 have closed in on the HB and the secondary is downfield with our receivers.