Guard play

rpiotr01

rpiotr01

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Going into camp this year there was a battle for the LG spot. LaFleur chose Lane Taylor to start but Elgton Jenkins got his first snaps yesterday against the Vikings. We are only two weeks in and it's a small sample size, but I will say this: Jenkins needs to be starting next week. He's strong, he's got length, he's got powerful lower legs and he gets after it. on Aaron Jones' TD he got under Lival Joseph's pads and walked him back two yards - no easy task. You also see the athleticism on display in the running game. He needs to learn how to find work in pass pro but he can learn that as he gets experience.

My second observation is that I don't think Lane Taylor should lose his job, I actually think Billy Turner should. He looks more like a back-up OT than starting RG. Taylor lacks length and athleticism but at the very least he's strong and competent. I think our best 5 right now is Bakh, Jenkins, Linsley, Taylor and Bulaga.

Anyone else been watching? Other observations?
 
Taylor can't block outside zone to save his life( Left or Right won't matter) and Turner sucks in pass pro. Spent the second half really watching the inside of the OL. I saw Jenkins get taken to school 2-3 times as well. Our offensive guards are just that offensive right now. sb(tc(
 
At this point, the guards aren't getting on their blocks and holding them. Linsley has picked up a lot of their whiffs, and so have our tackles. We're lucky that those three are experienced enough to know when they can offer help. Of course, this has opened us up to those outside blitzes, and you can see in his demeanor that it stresses Rodgers. It will get better, we hope.
 
Hopefully playing against two of the best D-lines in the NFL to start the season helps the staff coach up these guys to limit mistakes going forward, and we start to see things get better real soon.
These two first weeks were really trial by fire for the OL and new blocking scheme.
 
dannobanano said:
Hopefully playing against two of the best D-lines in the NFL to start the season helps the staff coach up these guys to limit mistakes going forward, and we start to see things get better real soon.
These two first weeks were really trial by fire for the OL and new blocking scheme.
Click to expand...

It's true about the talent they're facing but it can't be an excuse. They're all good. Chicago twice, Minny twice, Denver, Philly, Dallas, SD - where are the bad front 7s? They've gotta do better.

Anyway I value Mark's evaluations so I will keep that in mind with Jenkins. However, I didn't see him do anything that made me think he's outmatched or doesn't belong. Quite the opposite. In which case I don't see the point in sitting him especially during this long home stretch. Only get better by playing.
 
This is why not hardly playing together in preseason is a point of contention.
Assimilating a new guy, like Turner, into the OL doesn’t happen magically by waving a wand.
You just don’t know if it’s a good fit or not, so you have to wait until the regular season to find out? Yuck!
 
Interesting stuff, Mark.

Running the football was better yesterday. I also think we pass blocked better but have to go watch the tape. Agree that the guards continue to be our weak point. I really thought Taylor would be better this year being healthy but he has not been. So far, Turner has been unimpressive.

This is why I did not like the Gary pick. We could have gotten a solid guard and still gotten Savage and Jenkins.

We may be drafting o-lineman in the first 3 rounds next year.
 
Excellent video on outside zone blocking. Now you need guys who will execute those blocks. Watching our TEs yesterday was kind of painful. It's like they were like powder puffs out there. I cringed when I saw the one block by Jimmy Graham. He acts like he's afraid he's going to get hurt if he hits someone. He needs to unload on those blocks, and not let himself be intimidated.

We can only dream that our ballerinas will grow a pair, and handle their assignments without grabbing.
 
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