Cam's Most Important Offseason Yet

[WUnderhill]

No more classes. No surgery. No excuses. This will be the most important offseason of Cam's young career.

 

First of all, if you don't think Cam is a franchise QB, gtfo.

 

That being said, there's things he needs to work on:

1. He needs to consistently throw a more catchable ball. It seems like every game we see critical drops, the Seattle game was no exception with two critical third-down drops by Cotchery and Tolbert. I want to put every drop on the receiver, but at a certain point you have to look at the trend and say Cam needs to throw a more catchable ball. He's gotta develop that touch, it's nice to have that power when you need it, but not on every throw. Peyton Manning broke records with his noodle arm last year.

 

2. He needs to be more consistent in throwing where receivers will be, instead of where they are. Getting those YACs up starts with Cam right now. We've seen that he can do it, he just needs to do it more. Maybe somebody with stats can tell me how man YAC we had against Seattle, but I know it wasn't much. Part of that is a credit to their defense, but part of it is that our receivers are standing still or reaching behind them on catches far too often.

 

3. He needs to get his deep ball accuracy back. In his first year, he was one of the best deep ball chuckers in the game, but he's become much less accurate since then. The ball that Sherman intercepted should have been a touchdown. Philly had Sherman beat over top and Cam woefully underthrew him even though he had time to step up in the pocket and deliver the perfect ball.

 

4. Pocket presence and footwork. He actually looked tremendous in this aspect during the Seattle game, we just need it consistently.

 

5. He needs to take control of this offense. For all we complain about Shula, Cam needs to assert himself no matter who the coordinator is. And Shula actually called a pretty good game against Seattle. If it weren't for drops, the 2 interceptions which were 100% on Cam, and the lost fumble which was at least partially on Cam, then we would have had a great chance to win that game against a Superbowl defense.

 

For us to take the next step, Cam has to take the next step. This will be his biggest offseason because when next season rolls around there won't be any more excuses for him. No school, no surgery, no strike shortened offseason, no excuses. I think next season will be transcendent for him and I can't wait.

[chknwing]

its easy to say throw a more catchable ball but the fact is, the man hasn't had a lot of time to create chemistry with his receivers.  Look at some of the great qbs in the league.  They been throwing to their wr's their whole career.  Cam doesn't have that yet.  He needs time with the same group of receivers.  I see Cam, Philly and Benjamin creating quite a tandem in the future.

[TheRed]

Someone made a point not long ago in another thread, but Cam really only has substantial trust and continuity right now with Olsen. He has had to try and get that with this new group of receivers as the season went on while dealing with multiple injuries and missing two games.

 

That's a challenging situation for any quarterback.

 

We need to get aggressive in addressing the WR's this offseason. No excuses.

[davos]

It will be a big offseason for him and the whole team.  It's time to really grow as an organization this offseason.  Hopefully people don't make this a huge Cam debate thread but whatevs haha.  

 

The one point I want to reiterate is underthrowing deep balls.  If people want a shifty/speedy receiver for the long bombs, this needs to be corrected.  Receivers with hands & separation, Cam with better touch and anticipation.  We're close and I'm excited about how he can progress heading into his 5th year.  Damn...5 years already.  

[Cary Kollins]

Everyone blames Tolbert for that drop, but if Cam puts even the slightest bit of touch on the ball it's a huge gain.

[t96]

2. He needs to be more consistent in throwing where receivers will be, instead of where they are. Getting those YACs up starts with Cam right now. We've seen that he can do it, he just needs to do it more. Maybe somebody with stats can tell me how man YAC we had against Seattle, but I know it wasn't much. Part of that is a credit to their defense, but part of it is that our receivers are standing still or reaching behind them on catches far too often.

 

Did you see even ONE play call that made it possible to get YAC this season?

[TheRed]

Everyone blames Tolbert for that drop, but if Cam puts even the slightest bit of touch on the ball it's a huge gain.

 

I'll have to watch the play again, by that point I think I was full on beer goggling it.

 

The problem right now with our offense is that Newton has to be basically perfect, and even then that still isn't enough at times. Plenty of other quarterbacks in the league deliver less than precisely thrown passes, yet their WR's make miraclous plays for them.

[Nick_81]

Everyone blames Tolbert for that drop, but if Cam puts even the slightest bit of touch on the ball it's a huge gain.

Ball hits receiver in hands.  Receiver drops ball.  Blame QB....  Seems legit

 

Cam does need to work on some things, but there's nobody to blame but Tolbert on that play.  

[WhoAmI?]

There is no doubt that for this team to take that next step, Cam has got to get better in the areas you mentioned. However, without the proper coaching, it is pretty damn hard to progress by yourself. I have zero faith that Shula and Dorsey can fix these issues or progress Cam. There was a thread about 2 months ago where they posted an article about what Pep Hamilton and Clyde Christensen do for Luck. The article went into depth about how they have helped Luck identify coverages and what the defense is trying to do and how to attack it. There is none of that with our current coaches. We need somebody like that to not only help Cam identify what defenses are trying to do to him, but also help him with his footwork and mechanics.

[Mr Mojo Risin]

Everyone blames Tolbert for that drop, but if Cam puts even the slightest bit of touch on the ball it's a huge gain.

Tolbert has to catch that sure it was a fast ball but it hit him right in the hands in the chest region as an NFL player you have to make that play

[teeray]

Everyone blames Tolbert for that drop, but if Cam puts even the slightest bit of touch on the ball it's a huge gain.

If he puts the slightest bit of touch on that pass it is an interception.

[Cary Kollins]

Tolbert has to catch that sure it was a fast ball but it hit him right in the hands in the chest region as an NFL player you have to make that play

 

 

I agree. It's on Tolbert to catch the ball.

 

 

But something Cam could surely work on is his touch.

 

The drop to Jericho was also a laser that traveled about 7 yards. 

 

Cam could definitely work on his touch this offseason.

 

 

Look at Russell Wilson's first two touchdown passes.  They were throws you might see in a game of 500. 

[Cary Kollins]

If he puts the slightest bit of touch on that pass it is an interception.

 

 

nope, tolbert had a clear field in front of him

[Swan]

That Cotchery drop was on Cam. Threw it late, and rocketed a ball that only travelled 10-ish yards. Just no need.