ROOSTER RANT ALERT!
Chris Russell joined The Junkies Monday morning to discuss Sunday’s disaster at FedEx, and when the guys mentioned that Sam Howell has 123 plays involved in (99 pass attempts, 19 sacks, and five runs) versus 59 runs in three games…yeah, Rooster needs a little more balance.
“I understand the new age mentality in the dopey NFL is to pass to set up the run, and I get everyone wants points and thinks the running game is a placeholder – it’s all wrong,” Russell said. “You need to run the football to set up play-action, to help your offensive line, to give your quarterback easier reads and get your receivers different looks. You need to be a LITTLE bit more balanced – it doesn’t have to b 50/50, but I’m shocked Eric Bieniemy is more skewed pass to run.”
Rooster expects more of a pass-based imbalance later in the year once Sam Howell got more comfortable, but the Commanders’ identity right now is pass to run…and it’s not working.
“It’s partially because Sam holds the ball too long, and partially because the offensive line is not ood enough,” Russell said. “And, the other part is, quite honestly, some of the receivers haven’t gotten a ton of separation, especially on some of these sacks.”
Cakes is baffled by the receivers’ lack of production all things considered
“Why don’t we try to do more screen-type stuff?” Russell asked. “They do some, and I know wide receiver screens can get blown up when done too much, but why not try to get them in rhythm with some stuff early? Or, God forbid, a slant? Get them easy looks, easy throws, and easy reads – that’s what we haven’t seen enough of. They finally dialed up the running back screens last week, so I was hopeful we’d see what Bieniemy was seeing and thinking, but what’s wrong with getting the playmakers the ball quicker? That’s what they did in Kansas City, and they’re not doing it.”
Take a listen to the entire convo between Rooster and The Junkies about Sunday’s loss and the Commanders’ issues above!