Icege

In a bubble, it most definitely isn't up there with Stroud's best game vs. Ohio State. However, I found it to be enjoyable/impressive for a few reasons: It's week 2 college football. Week 2 NFL football is ugly, and the kids aren't going to be any more in sync than the pros will be. So I'm expecting things like missed block assignments and defenses being more aggressive as the offenses gel. What I wanted to see under these conditions are how Bryce deals with the adversity and takes hits. He got hammered the entire game, such as the big hit queued up at the bottom of this post. Did this cause him to get happy feet, hurry up his mechanics, bail early, etc? The way he rose to the occasion instead of wilting under pressure was admirable. We have the luxury of hindsight in knowing that Bama's OL was statistically bad this season. They gave up more penalties than anybody else, struggled at times in the run game, and the pass blocking was so suspect that adjustments had to be made in the LA-Monroe game to get the ball out quicker. That latter part is a common theme for Bama's offense throughout the season: get pressured frequently in the first half and have the run game stall out, so go to a quick screen/out/underneath passing game. They also lacked a deep threat guy that they've been blessed with in the past, so they didn't have a weapon to take the top off of the defense with. I've also gotten to see LA-Monroe, which if you feel like questioning things further then turn that tape on. Seeing how he rose to the occasion and it took until Vandy for the offense to get firing on all cylinders allowed me to overlook a lot of things that happened with the offense looking so sloppy for those first 3 games This was a big hit Didn't phase him tho, and led to plenty of other highlight reel moments for Bryce!

vs. Vanderbilt When I mentioned that I felt that there were two games that Bryce Young had put out better tape than he did during the Texas game, one of those games that I had in mind was the one against Vanderbilt. After watching the rust get knocked off in game one against Utah State and the disappointment of game three against Louisiana-Monroe, the game four tape vs. Vandy is almost like Young is atoning for those let downs and showing scouts more of what they saw vs. Texas. The Commodores tried to use soft zone coverage early on and to say that Bryce carved them up is an understatement. The deep ball was finding its mark and everything looked like it was a full go. If you can't get passed the, "Well... it's Vandy" part, hopefully it will ease your concerns when you find out that they were 3-1 at that point and would later go on to defeat both Will Levis and Anthony Richardson later in the season. The play queued up below shows all of the traits that folks want to see on display: the NFL-caliber throw with strength and accuracy, how he calmly moves through his progressions, and of course... points on the board.

vs. Louisiana-Monroe Remember how much fun it was watching Bryce operate vs. Texas? Get ready to be frustrated as he plays what I considered his worst game of the season vs. Louisiana-Monroe. There was more than one play where QB & WR were not on the same page together and his accuracy seemed to be suffering as well. It didn't help that the LA-Monroe defense was constantly pressuring Young as well despite all of the helmet scouting some of his naysayers have done there. The play that I've got lined up for this game will likely make some fans of other prospects go cross-eyed with rage, but it's only fair that we highlight the bad as well as the good. This interception seems to be everything that Young gets criticized for: holding on to the ball too long, arm strength concerns, and I'm sure there's a way to factor his size into it somehow. Want to see what he looks like when he's off? This is the game to push through.

vs. Texas If I had to pick one game for somebody to watch and see what kind of player that they're getting with Bryce Young, it's this game. Texas brought pressure and knocked him down early and often. At one point the Bama offense had three consecutive three-and-outs! Bryce stayed calm though and made a variety of plays that directly led to his team getting the dub (one of which is queued up below). This is one of his top 3 games from the 2022 season and I'm willing to say that I don't believe that it's his best either. I've got two games where he wowed me on the tape even more than this game. The game itself is also just an absolute blast to experience again.

vs. Utah State The first game of the season is usually rough for offenses, and Bama's was no different. Overall, Bryce seemed out of sync with his WRs but his arm looked NFL-ready. His improv skills were teased as can be seen in the timestamped play below. This was good to see because Bryce took some punishment behind that suspect Alabama OL that would eventually lead the NCAA in penalties this past season. This doesn't end up being his best game of the season nor does it end up being his worst. If anything, it's a solid game to watch and get a base level idea of the player while also getting to see him adjust.

It's obvious when folks say they have "genuine" concerns about Young's size that they haven't watched anything outside of highlight reels and cherry-picked plays. Especially those that seem to only defend Stroud and/or AR. Bryce got the poo beat out of him during multiple games this season. Byron Thomas, a 3rd round graded edge rusher out of Tennessee for example, absolutely blasted him. There is PLENTY of examples of him getting his ass beat behind Bama's under performing OL this season to show that the kid can take a hit. Some folks are acting like a 350lbs NT is going to get a 40yd running start to Stinger Splash our soon-to-be-QB thru the frozen turf at BOA.

Damn... Ellis is really good. Gonna miss having him cover the Panthers.

Righteous. I knew that I was playing with the PHI offensive and DEN defensive playbooks in Madden because I'm psychic and not just some idiot that still gives EA $60 for a roster update every year!

I mean... Is there any response that's going to satisfy you that doesn't agree with you?

It's going to be ok.

Maybe see if Seattle wants to move up and grab somebody at #39 (510pts)? Take their #52 (380pts) and their #52 (175pts)? Seattle has 10 picks and is trying to run it back with Geno Smith, so they might be willing to move up and grab a second guy that they like if they've got a couple of players they covet when they pick at #37. Would allow the Panthers to move back and take Jack Campbell (Iowa LB) and Tuli Tuipulotu (USC DE). Chicago could be another option. They've got #53 (370pts), #61 (292pts), and #64 (270pts) that they can work with. I imagine Fitterer would want #53 & #64, but he might have to give up a future 4th or 5th to make that happen. They've got 9 picks as well, so they might be willing to give up some capital.

I wonder how many of the Stroud superstans are going to start pretending that they were okay with Young the whole time despite their post history showing otherwise. Less than 2 weeks until it's draft time!!!

I think that Fitterer is definitely eager to move back and recoup some additional draft capital. If he thinks that the guys they've got ranked 25 - 50 are about the same, then I could see him sliding back for sure.

17 game season with the top two guys being slight to me makes it good to have Corral as QB3. He could also benefit from the coaching upgrades.

Have been re-watching the last two seasons for Stroud + Young and figured I'd take a stab at creating discussion around "the tape." Going to go through each game and pull three plays that made me question a prospect and three plays that got me excited for them. CJ Stroud vs. Notre Dame (week 1) 3 Questionable Plays 00:06:14 CJ's first pass attempt of the season and he's sacked while staring down JSM. Never read the blitz despite the MLB creeping up and never took his eyes away from where JSM was heading. He had his TE open in the flat for the safe play, but got greedy seeing a potential big gain if he was able to get it to JSM. Ohio State does a good job of cutting the field down to one side for CJ and making the high-mid-low read. 00:37:24 2nd & 9 and down by 3 early in the 2nd quarter at around midfield. Notre Dame runs cover-2 man and the coverage is excellent. Stroud is in the shotgun and drops back about 5 yards more after getting the snap, which is something we've heard about Young doing so noticing it from Stroud caught my attention. What bothered me most about this play though is the forced throw into good coverage when he could have easily taken off and gotten the first down with his legs. Two of the biggest knocks on Stroud are how he's not the best off-script guy and his performance craters while under pressure from the defense. It also makes me curious to see whether or not he has issues on plays that are designed for him to throw on the run. Is it an issue of being off his platform, or is it strictly that he's not a strong improviser? 00:47:54 LT gets beat on the inside and Stroud flicks it out to the check down even though he's got a man coming wide open over the middle and has nothing but green grass to his left. Would have loved to have seen him spin out here and buy time or come back to the middle on his reads rather than staring down JSM. It is worth noting, however, that after this particular play CJ started doing much better when it came to spinning out to avoid pressure and keeping plays alive with his feet. 3 Exciting Plays 00:17:05 This is the type of play that scouts want to see CJ execute while under pressure. Two blitzers are coming and Stroud takes a moment to shift and reset his feet before delivering an absolute dime of a throw to Egbuka's outside shoulder away from the defender. The ball placement alone allowed his WR to avoid being touched and sprint for the score. This is what folks are talking about when they talk about his accuracy and how he puts it out there for his playmakers to grab and go. 01:08:44 I wasn't lying when I said that Stroud started doing much better with keeping plays alive after the play @ 00:47:54. Stroud feels the edge rusher on his back, spins out, and puts the ball right on his man. The throw looks like it was put out there to give his WR the ability to turn upfield for a few more yards, but Ballard's momentum was carrying him out. This is what we want to see more of. 01:36:03 CJ gets a mulligan from the 00:47:54 play as the edge rusher beats the LT inside again. This time, CJ spins away and keeps the play alive long enough for his WR to come back to the boundary to convert the first. This play stood out to me specifically because the play-call was a mesh concept which we have heard again and again that Reich loves to use

I really, really wanted it to be somebody here.

I like it. We've got Chark, Byrd, and Shi all with speed Thielen + TMJ for possession Shenault for whatever we can do to get the ball in his hands.

Where do folks keep getting the idea that Young's arm strength is suspect? He doesn't have the howitzer that Richardson and Levis have, but he had no problem throwing accurate deep balls after his shoulder sprain to start October. I've re-watched all of Young's and Stroud's games from the last two seasons and am about to do the same for Levis, and I just don't see reason for the questions that people are raising about Young's arm talent. Seems like just another knock on his size because "he's too small to throw it far."

It's definitely weird watching what would basically be the Blaine Gabbert fans telling Cam Newton fans that they're less intelligent because their preferred prospect has flaws.

It is kind of wild how the top 4 guys all shook out. Want the guy with the best tape? Young, but there's size concerns. Want the safe pick? Stroud, but there's concern with how he performs when pressured. Want that big time boom potential? Richardson, but he might bust. Want the prototypical build? Levis, but there's some questionable decision-making. All of them are flawed, so folks end up making their decision based on which of those traits they want the most and/or which of those flaws bother them the most.

There's a conversation to be had at the very least if they offer both thirds though. #2 + #65 + #73? Would allow us to recoup the #61 that was traded AND get an extra pick to package with #39 to slide back up into the 1st? Get another starter w/ a bonus year option? I could be convinced...

If the team is able to get Houston's #2 + #12 pick, you make that trade. Pair CJ Stroud w/ JSN or Anthony Richardson with another potential starter? I could live with that.

2022 Florida full games (some condensed!) Week 1: Utah Week 2: Kentucky Week 3: South Florida Week 4: @Tennessee Week 5: Eastern Washington Week 6: Mizzou Week 7: LSU Week 8: Bye Week 9: Georgia (neutral site) Week 10: @Texas A&M Week 11: South Carolina Week 12: @Vanderbilt Week 13: @Florida State Las Vegas Bowl: Oregon State Anthony opted out of Florida's bowl game.