WEEK 1 -- LET'S TALK ABOUT IT....

After giving it a couple of days, and some thinking, I'm ALMOST convinced that this game was not as bad as the score indicated. Of course, there are those who would say "We lost..!! Nothing else matters." And they'd be right - up to a point. But I'll play the part of the 'devil's advocate' here and point out a few things that give me pause, and seem to indicate (at least to me..) that all is NOT lost, and we could actually be in decent shape for the season -- IF nothing else goes drastically wrong and a few corrections are made in a few places.

So, here are a few thoughts and some reasoning... Just a small dose of reality.

** Our BIGGEST emphasis pre-season was to start faster and not fall behind early in the game. THIS we accomplished.!! The start was solid and we held our own for most of the first half at least, with the exception of a couple of things which I will get to...

** Our run game was not terrible, although it seemed a little "uninspired" ... maybe..??

** Our passing game was surprisingly good, considering we have a "smurf" QB with a so-so arm and no real "run" threat.

** Our ST play was solid (with a notable exception..). I honestly was shocked a just how good our coverage team played and the gunners/tacklers made multiple solid, teeth-rattling, almost instantaneous stops. Our kicker was mostly perfect with one blocked PAT (which was NOT his fault).

** The O-line held up very well, especially considering we were all worried about Freeling et.al.. But it was seriously decent overall.

** We scored 37 points on offense, which is enough to win against almost ANY opponent in ANY game -- Just not this one.!!

** Our 'star' RB prospect, Jonathon Brooks, looks very tentative in the trenches. However, he DID show up in the passing game.  The BY to JB connection was a thing of beauty, although I seriously expected him to rumble into the end zone. Nope. Not happening. Permit me to say -- IF that had been Miles Davis, that would have been a TD. Davis is seriously "quick" on his feet and is NOT scared of anything. Brooks caught the ball and made some headway but failed at point of contact. Maybe he will progress and get better..???

** Jalen Coker showed up. He def outplayed T.Mac (in THIS game). He looks like a genuine threat out there.

** NOTE THIS: I believe we have a genuine OC out there. Brad Idzik called a good game; had the play calls lined up and ready on time; seemed to be inspired about the job.

** Our TE play was VERY solid overall. They just were NOT targeted much in the pass game.

SO ... Given all of that ^^, What happened..??

Indeed ... That is the question.