Maybe time to reappraise the Passing woes

[London Vol]

The common consensus is that the coaches don`t trust Joe Milton to throw downfield because of Joe (this is odd when it is clear that Milton is the man for the whole season)

Not so fast

Maybe the primary reason is that the Wide Receivers simply don`t get open anything like last season (Jalin Hyatt was so open that one thought that maybe the defenders thought he still had COVID). To support this theory look at the two downfield catches, Squirrels TD and Keytons jump ball. Both were hardly open, In fact, thinking back this season and I can hardly remember moments when a WR is clearly open.

Its easy to forget we were spoilt last season as Hooker, Hyatt and Tillman were simply generational players on Knoxville, whereas Squirrel, is more of a close combat type, Keyton does not have the elite speed to blast past DBs and Thornton (who I believe is the biggest single factor for the drop off) is more unreliable that Joe Biden climbing the Air Force One steps.

We all knew before this season that Joe was not a surgical "dink and dunk" QB but more of a Howitzer, but the lack of 40+ passes has been a complete surprise and whilst it is easy to presume that the Coaches don`t allow him to throw downfield because of Joe maybe its because of the 2023 Wide Receiver Unit

GO VOLS

 

[Cartervol]

The common consensus is that the coaches don`t trust Joe Milton to throw downfield because of Joe (this is odd when it is clear that Milton is the man for the whole season)

Not so fast

Maybe the primary reason is that the Wide Receivers simply don`t get open anything like last season (Jalin Hyatt was so open that one thought that maybe the defenders thought he still had COVID). To support this theory look at the two downfield catches, Squirrels TD and Keytons jump ball. Both were hardly open, In fact think back all of this season and I can hardly remember moments when a WR is clearly open.

Its easy to forget we were spoilt last season as Hooker, Hyatt and Tillman were simply generational players on Knoxville, whereas Squirrel, is more of a close combat type, Keyton does not have the elite speed to blast past DBs and Thornton (who I believe is the biggest single factor for the drop off) is more unreliable that Joe Biden climbing the Air Force One steps.

We all knew before this season that Joe was not a surgical "dink and dunk" QB but more of a Howitzer, but the lack of 40+ passes has been a complete surprise and whilst it is easy to presume that the Coaches don`t allow him to throw downfield because of Joe maybe its because of the 2023 Wide Receiver Unit

GO VOLS

Play the kids then. I noticed Bama adjusted their coverage after halftime.. Probably should have went to the short dumps and throws to the TE. We're setting a lot of future talent on the bench right now. You'd think that at least one or two of them could help.. Need a better TE. Castles and Warren are serviceable and that's about it. Probably play for blocking purposes more.. We need a pass catcher in that spot.

 

[imbubbaspitcup]

Fant was our DEADLY REDZONE WEAPON last year! It seems like some of our Wr & Te routes are ran at half speed making them easier to cover!

 

[TNStudMuffin]

I don't ever make it to games to get a full field view, but my friends that still do go tell me they have see guys running wide open many times this year that get completely ignored by Milton.

 

[ftsandersvol]

It’s telling that Squirrel got the mismatch we wanted with an outside linebacker (WR on a LB) and he didn’t smoke him by 10 yards. I know the LB was probably a 5*, but no way he should be able to keep up with a WR. Is Squirrel just not as fast as advertised? Also, were we unable to exploit the same mismatch the rest of the game?

 

[MiramarVol]

The common consensus is that the coaches don`t trust Joe Milton to throw downfield because of Joe (this is odd when it is clear that Milton is the man for the whole season)

Not so fast

Maybe the primary reason is that the Wide Receivers simply don`t get open anything like last season (Jalin Hyatt was so open that one thought that maybe the defenders thought he still had COVID). To support this theory look at the two downfield catches, Squirrels TD and Keytons jump ball. Both were hardly open, In fact, thinking back this season and I can hardly remember moments when a WR is clearly open.

Its easy to forget we were spoilt last season as Hooker, Hyatt and Tillman were simply generational players on Knoxville, whereas Squirrel, is more of a close combat type, Keyton does not have the elite speed to blast past DBs and Thornton (who I believe is the biggest single factor for the drop off) is more unreliable that Joe Biden climbing the Air Force One steps.

We all knew before this season that Joe was not a surgical "dink and dunk" QB but more of a Howitzer, but the lack of 40+ passes has been a complete surprise and whilst it is easy to presume that the Coaches don`t allow him to throw downfield because of Joe maybe its because of the 2023 Wide Receiver Unit

GO VOLS

I've been saying it was the WR corps for weeks. Bru, Hyatt & Tillman aren't here any more. Squirrel saw some snaps& Keyton did too, but there is a drop off from last year's room to this years room.

 

[maxorange]

We had ZERO depth behind Squirrel and Bru. That is woefully apparent after 7 games.

Milton or Nico are obviously going to struggle when they have ONE reliable option.

You cannot beat SEC defenses for four qtrs without multiple options.


As for short yardage....get some new packages, coaches! You're killing the defense putting them in bad situations.

 

[maxorange]

It’s telling that Squirrel got the mismatch we wanted with an outside linebacker (WR on a LB) and he didn’t smoke him by 10 yards. I know the LB was probably a 5*, but no way he should be able to keep up with a WR. Is Squirrel just not as fast as advertised? Also, were we unable to exploit the same mismatch the rest of the game?

adjustments

they adjusted to the QB run too. Without more offensive weapons, what are you going to do?

 

[jason3713]

I still don’t understand why in the second half we didn’t do the stop and go. We had the come backer all 1st half. Second half the defense was trying to jump the route. All we had to do was run a stop and go. As soon as the defender broke in thinking he’s coming back blow right by him. There was no help over the top on the edge.

 

[Jrobin]

Keyton was running bad routes all game. Atleast he was Catching some of the balls.

 

[CAVPUT]

The common consensus is that the coaches don`t trust Joe Milton to throw downfield because of Joe (this is odd when it is clear that Milton is the man for the whole season)

Not so fast

Maybe the primary reason is that the Wide Receivers simply don`t get open anything like last season (Jalin Hyatt was so open that one thought that maybe the defenders thought he still had COVID). To support this theory look at the two downfield catches, Squirrels TD and Keytons jump ball. Both were hardly open, In fact, thinking back this season and I can hardly remember moments when a WR is clearly open.

Its easy to forget we were spoilt last season as Hooker, Hyatt and Tillman were simply generational players on Knoxville, whereas Squirrel, is more of a close combat type, Keyton does not have the elite speed to blast past DBs and Thornton (who I believe is the biggest single factor for the drop off) is more unreliable that Joe Biden climbing the Air Force One steps.

We all knew before this season that Joe was not a surgical "dink and dunk" QB but more of a Howitzer, but the lack of 40+ passes has been a complete surprise and whilst it is easy to presume that the Coaches don`t allow him to throw downfield because of Joe maybe its because of the 2023 Wide Receiver Unit

GO VOLS

Let's not forget that bamas DBs are legit. They've been recruiting at an elite level forever. Our WRs aren't at a level that can routinely win battles against that caliber of defender. Any team...cough, cough.... UGA...that can man up on our WRs will give us no end of trouble because they'll be able to control our ground attack.

 

[ftsandersvol]

adjustments

they adjusted to the QB run too. Without more offensive weapons, what are you going to do?

You can’t adjust for everything. Our OC should have been able to find mismatches to exploit. Good gracious, as long and often as there are TV timeouts in games, our OC could dissect the last 15 defensive plays before making a call.

 

[livefaith]

The common consensus is that the coaches don`t trust Joe Milton to throw downfield because of Joe (this is odd when it is clear that Milton is the man for the whole season)

Not so fast

Maybe the primary reason is that the Wide Receivers simply don`t get open anything like last season (Jalin Hyatt was so open that one thought that maybe the defenders thought he still had COVID). To support this theory look at the two downfield catches, Squirrels TD and Keytons jump ball. Both were hardly open, In fact, thinking back this season and I can hardly remember moments when a WR is clearly open.

Its easy to forget we were spoilt last season as Hooker, Hyatt and Tillman were simply generational players on Knoxville, whereas Squirrel, is more of a close combat type, Keyton does not have the elite speed to blast past DBs and Thornton (who I believe is the biggest single factor for the drop off) is more unreliable that Joe Biden climbing the Air Force One steps.

We all knew before this season that Joe was not a surgical "dink and dunk" QB but more of a Howitzer, but the lack of 40+ passes has been a complete surprise and whilst it is easy to presume that the Coaches don`t allow him to throw downfield because of Joe maybe its because of the 2023 Wide Receiver Unit

GO VOLS

Yes, Squirrel was open. The OC somehow got him m2m on a LB ... that's a match made in heaven for a play caller. Joe just put it over the wrong shoulder and Squirrel had to make a spectacular catch. Perfect throw and he catches in stride untouched.
I do agree w your Joe assessment tho. He needs to stretch the field for sho.

 

[papatomany]

I don't ever make it to games to get a full field view, but my friends that still do go tell me they have see guys running wide open many times this year that get completely ignored by Milton.

I've wondered all year why he never (until the first half of this game, at least) looked as loose and confident as he did against Clemson, and I've come to the (admittedly uninformed) opinion that they had simplified the reads against Clemson. With the full array of options, he just can't quickly get through his progressions. I find it hard to believe the proper read time and again was "throw it to the guy McKinstry's blanketing".

 

[Clad in Big Orange]

Fant was our DEADLY REDZONE WEPON last year! It seems like some of our Wr & Te routes are ran at half speed making them easier to cover!

We miss Fant dearly.

 

[OrangeBeachVol]

Shut down our running game you shut down the O. FL and Bama were able to do that. A&M schemed to do that but didn't work for them. Not sure why we could run on them but not Bama.

 

[Visidog]

It’s telling that Squirrel got the mismatch we wanted with an outside linebacker (WR on a LB) and he didn’t smoke him by 10 yards. I know the LB was probably a 5*, but no way he should be able to keep up with a WR. Is Squirrel just not as fast as advertised? Also, were we unable to exploit the same mismatch the rest of the game?

I think Squirrel is just as fast, but 30 yards isn’t all that far to show the difference between 4.3 and 4.6 speed. I thought that play call, route, throw, and catch were elite.

 

[posivol]

The common consensus is that the coaches don`t trust Joe Milton to throw downfield because of Joe (this is odd when it is clear that Milton is the man for the whole season)

Not so fast

Maybe the primary reason is that the Wide Receivers simply don`t get open anything like last season (Jalin Hyatt was so open that one thought that maybe the defenders thought he still had COVID). To support this theory look at the two downfield catches, Squirrels TD and Keytons jump ball. Both were hardly open, In fact, thinking back this season and I can hardly remember moments when a WR is clearly open.

Its easy to forget we were spoilt last season as Hooker, Hyatt and Tillman were simply generational players on Knoxville, whereas Squirrel, is more of a close combat type, Keyton does not have the elite speed to blast past DBs and Thornton (who I believe is the biggest single factor for the drop off) is more unreliable that Joe Biden climbing the Air Force One steps.

We all knew before this season that Joe was not a surgical "dink and dunk" QB but more of a Howitzer, but the lack of 40+ passes has been a complete surprise and whilst it is easy to presume that the Coaches don`t allow him to throw downfield because of Joe maybe its because of the 2023 Wide Receiver Unit

GO VOLS

nailed it,plus we dont have that dog (tillman) on 50/50 balls.

 

[Other_Guy]

1st half, us: wow the passing game sure is clicking!
2nd half, coaches: no they aren't.

 

[posivol]

1st half, us: wow the passing game sure is clicking!
2nd half, coaches: no they aren't.

started 9 for 9 until the thornton drop..dang that guy has let us down all year.

 

[Dadof2Vols]

The common consensus is that the coaches don`t trust Joe Milton to throw downfield because of Joe (this is odd when it is clear that Milton is the man for the whole season)

Not so fast

Maybe the primary reason is that the Wide Receivers simply don`t get open anything like last season (Jalin Hyatt was so open that one thought that maybe the defenders thought he still had COVID). To support this theory look at the two downfield catches, Squirrels TD and Keytons jump ball. Both were hardly open, In fact, thinking back this season and I can hardly remember moments when a WR is clearly open.

Its easy to forget we were spoilt last season as Hooker, Hyatt and Tillman were simply generational players on Knoxville, whereas Squirrel, is more of a close combat type, Keyton does not have the elite speed to blast past DBs and Thornton (who I believe is the biggest single factor for the drop off) is more unreliable that Joe Biden climbing the Air Force One steps.

We all knew before this season that Joe was not a surgical "dink and dunk" QB but more of a Howitzer, but the lack of 40+ passes has been a complete surprise and whilst it is easy to presume that the Coaches don`t allow him to throw downfield because of Joe maybe its because of the 2023 Wide Receiver Unit

GO VOLS

It is a lot of things including WR but as an opposing point to your post Joe missed wide open receivers too many times.

The offense both QB and WRs are not playing to an acceptable level. With both not playing to a high enough level the margin for error is too small in the SEC to win the big games.

 

[Sara Clark]

Coach has addressed this many times this year. Milton misses wide open players, then players missing their assignments as well.

 

[MiramarVol]

We had ZERO depth behind Squirrel and Bru. That is woefully apparent after 7 games.

Milton or Nico are obviously going to struggle when they have ONE reliable option.

You cannot beat SEC defenses for four qtrs without multiple options.


As for short yardage....get some new packages, coaches! You're killing the defense putting them in bad situations.

I wonder why Squirrel had 8 of the 1st 16 completions from Milton? Our WR's just aren't ready yet? No on can get separation. Hooker dropped passes in because Hyatt, Bru and Tillman could beat their man. Now, we can't connect on those same throws because this WR room is not bearing no one deep.

 

[Tnphil]

I don't ever make it to games to get a full field view, but my friends that still do go tell me they have see guys running wide open many times this year that get completely ignored by Milton.

Milton doesn't see the field well at all....Never has and never will.

 

[ALLVOL 4LIFE]

Coach has addressed this many times this year. Milton misses wide open players, then players missing their assignments as well.

Glad I read to the end before posting. Exactly what I was going to say.

But let me add. Joe CANNOT read a defense or even go through his progression. He calculates wayyyyy to slow and tries to make up for it with his arm and that’s never going to work out.

Need an example, watch the scoop and score. He looked the same easy the entire time never looked the other way. Said it to myself many times, I’m so ready for our next chapter. This is almost as hard to watch as Butch Ball….ALMOST!