Thoughts on QB situation after Game 5?

[Coach D]

For everyone saying to roll him out just know that it makes it much easier for the defense to defend. It takes away half the field. That’s what hurt Hurts his freshman year too.

 

[Cruloc]

For everyone saying to roll him out just know that it makes it much easier for the defense to defend. It takes away half the field. That’s what hurt Hurts his freshman year too.

Shhhhhh, don't mention that. 🤪

 

[GrayTide]

I agree with most posters on Milroe's abilities and his development as a QB. I do think he has shown marginal improvement, but IMO not enough to beat TAMU. The Aggies are going to force Milroe to beat them throwing which should be a sure fire recipe for a win. I do hope I am overestimating TAMU, but they presently look to be the best in the West.

 

[MikeInBama]

I agree with most posters on Milroe's abilities and his development as a QB. I do think he has shown marginal improvement, but IMO not enough to beat TAMU. The Aggies are going to force Milroe to beat them throwing which should be a sure fire recipe for a win. I do hope I am overestimating TAMU, but they presently look to be the best in the West.

This is where I am at too. I hope he can surprise us and take it to another level. A&M did struggle with a not great Hog team but maybe they spent the last 3 weeks preparing for us.

 

[RollTide_HTTR]

Honestly… I won’t feel very good until we get to LSU without another loss.

If we beat A&M I'll feel like we at least have a shot. But I don't know that I'll feel confident in anything until the regular season is over. I'd honestly be shocked at this point if we make it through the season without another loss.

But hey in some ways that makes this season fun. I have lower expectations and any level of success above going to a bowl game will be a nice surprise

 

[davefrat]

If we beat A&M I'll feel like we at least have a shot. But I don't know that I'll feel confident in anything until the regular season is over. I'd honestly be shocked at this point if we make it through the season without another loss.

But hey in some ways that makes this season fun. I have lower expectations and any level of success above going through a bowl game will be a nice surprise

This may sound weird, but for me being a Bama fan over the last several years almost became un-fun because of the crushing expectation of winning every game. For me, it just became exhausting.

So, I do find some comfort in looking at the team in a different way...not expecting perfection.

Like I said, that may sound weird, but it literally started to feel like a burden to me.

 

[Rush]

You know, I think our perceived vulnerability may be our strength in this game. Usually, we go to 8&4 with a top five ranking and favored by double digits. We are still Alabama but I get the impression that our guys know they need to be dialed in 100% to come out on top in this game. Not exactly sure what to expect but this game is not going to be for the faint of heart if you are a member of either fanbase.

Sadly, and some might say unimaginably, over the last couple of years, we've started to hear the word "anxiety" used when games such as this don't go our way...

 

[RollTide_HTTR]

This may sound weird, but for me being a Bama fan over the last several years almost became un-fun because of the crushing expectation of winning every game. For me, it just became exhausting.

So, I do find some comfort in looking at the team in a different way...not expecting perfection.

Like I said, that may sound weird, but it literally started to feel like a burden to me.

I definitely feel a little bit of that too. I still want to win it all and wouldn't hate if by next year we're back to our old ways or something.

But having a year like this definitely isn't boring

 

[CB4]

Well that wouldn’t be part of the plan. You roll him out and have guys coming coming from the other side of the field to the side where he is or usenplayers already on the side he’s rolling too. Don’t even give him that as a read.

I’m just saying that JM, whether flushed or part of planned rollout, can’t make that throw back across the middle. He got away with on the throw to Niblack on Saturday night. Certainly in planned rollout there should not be a read to back half of the field.
That throw was a dangerous throw and a most likely would have been intercepted by a good defense.

 

[Cruloc]

I’m just saying that JM, whether flushed or part of planned rollout, can’t make that throw back across the middle. He got away with on the throw to Niblack on Saturday night. Certainly in planned rollout there should not be a read to back half of the field.
That throw was a dangerous throw and a most likely would have been intercepted by a good defense.

 

[BamaMoon]

If my memory serves me right, most of the time when Jalen rolls out he gets tackled for a loss OR he runs out of bounds for a loss. And then when he throws it's a risky throw.

I disagree the answer is to roll him out. He sees the field best from the pocket and when it's not there he needs to run straight up the gut. It's my opinion, but I don't think he has very good peripheral vision and that's why he struggles out of the RPO.

 

[tusks_n_raider]

Just speaking for myself as long as CNS is here my expectations are his Standard.

That Standard is Winning NC’s.

I got my fill of low stakes games during the 3 Mikes eras.

2020 is what every Bama team should strive for…

Just Pummeling the Hell out of everybody from Whistle to Whistle.

If they play to that and still come up a bit short of it then we still probably have a great season.

Lowered expectations can just hit the bricks as far as I’m concerned.

 

[Cruloc]

Just speaking for myself as long as CNS is here my expectations are his Standard.

That Standard is Winning NC’s.

I got my fill of low stakes games during the 3 Mikes eras.

2020 is what every Bama team should strive for…

Just Pummeling the Hell out of everybody from Whistle to Whistle.

If they play to that and still come up a bit short of it then we still probably have a great season.

Lowered expectations can just hit the bricks as far as I’m concerned.

As long as everything is at full speed and the effort is there and the coaches and players are doing their jobs......but we come up short, I'm not overly concerned.

When we have a USF type game.....concern knocks on the door and breaks said door down.

Play to a standard, not with anxiety of thinking you might lose, but with confidence and thinking you're get kick your opponents butt.

 

[TIDE-HSV]

If my memory serves me right, most of the time when Jalen rolls out he gets tackled for a loss OR he runs out of bounds for a loss. And then when he throws it's a risky throw.

I disagree the answer is to roll him out. He sees the field best from the pocket and when it's not there he needs to run straight up the gut. It's my opinion, but I don't think he has very good peripheral vision and that's why he struggles out of the RPO.

I can see where that would be a tempting theory, but I don't really believe that's it. I think he sees just fine. I think it's processor speed. Understand, this is not a remark about general intelligence. He's obviously a bright articulate guy. It's football processor speed. Bryce Young was ultra fast, maybe the fastest I've ever seen. Nobody's processor works very fast if they're overwhelmed and in a panic mode, as he was against UT. That's when mind-numbing mistakes occur. "Seeing" a safety nearby a target and processing what that means to the pass are two different animals. Anyway, that's my theory, explained badly...

 

[JustNeedMe81]

I can see where that would be a tempting theory, but I don't really believe that's it. I think he sees just fine. I think it's processor speed. Understand, this is not a remark about general intelligence. He's obviously a bright articulate guy. It's football processor speed. Bryce Young was ultra fast, maybe the fastest I've ever seen. Nobody's processor works very fast if they're overwhelmed and in a panic mode, as he was against UT. That's when mind-numbing mistakes occur. "Seeing" a safety nearby a target and processing what that means to the pass are two different animals. Anyway, that's my theory, explained badly...

Earle is right. It's like Milroe is processing at i-3 processor when Bryce Young was i-5 processor. Both works just fine, it just take Milroe little longer to process the defense. He will get better at this.

Rollout isn't the answer. Just do what Miami did. Stretch TAMU defense. Find mismatch. Force them to use 3 or man rush.

 

[CoolBreeze]

I can see where that would be a tempting theory, but I don't really believe that's it. I think he sees just fine. I think it's processor speed. Understand, this is not a remark about general intelligence. He's obviously a bright articulate guy. It's football processor speed. Bryce Young was ultra fast, maybe the fastest I've ever seen. Nobody's processor works very fast if they're overwhelmed and in a panic mode, as he was against UT. That's when mind-numbing mistakes occur. "Seeing" a safety nearby a target and processing what that means to the pass are two different animals. Anyway, that's my theory, explained badly...

Nice post. I would also add decision making response time to that idea. If the kid would commit to a decision faster, whether it is throwing the ball away or committing to the run, then we would see a totally different threat at the QB position.

 

[Superdad]

I know the coaches have to do what is necessary given the situation. I just hate the thought of having to change the offense to fit a players strengths. Again, it may be necessary but we should have a QB that can run Bama's offense. If we don't have one (or more) of these, why are they on campus? But, I digress.

 

[davefrat]

I know the coaches have to do what is necessary given the situation. I just hate the thought of having to change the offense to fit a players strengths. Again, it may be necessary but we should have a QB that can run Bama's offense. If we don't have one (or more) of these, why are they on campus? But, I digress.

Sometimes recruits don't pan out.

Sometimes coaches fail to develop players.

Lots of reasons.

 

[CoolBreeze]

I know the coaches have to do what is necessary given the situation. I just hate the thought of having to change the offense to fit a players strengths. Again, it may be necessary but we should have a QB that can run Bama's offense. If we don't have one (or more) of these, why are they on campus? But, I digress.

All offenses adapt to fit their player's strengths which defines success. The Bama offense is an encyclopedia of plays as thick as a textbook but the on field production is characterized by who is on the field and the play caller working to fit plays to the player's strengths.

 

[BamaInBham]

Well, there's a lot of debate over the last 6 weeks or so about that. I don't know how much of the board/posts you've read recently, but CNS has always said something to the effect "the team chooses the QB."

We've always understood this to be a metaphoric type of quote to suggest the team usually coalesces around the one QB that gives the team the best chance to win.

I won't rehearse what happened after the USF game that involved a team meeting, but the concept of the team choosing the QB took on a little bit different meaning.

Members of the team said it's not rare that they have a team meeting. I assume that some or many are just not reported. The couple of player comments that I saw about the QBs was that they fully supported whoever the QB was. Ridiculous conspiracy theories have sprung up based simply on rumors, but they found a ready audience among those whose favorite was not chosen. (Maybe what's really happening is that Seth is sabotaging JM like he did Bryce last year. Did he deliver any bad snaps to TS or were they all on the money? That's the real question - right?)

What Saban has frequently said over the years is that "the QB needs to win the team". I assume that is only one consideration, though a major one, that Saban uses as input into his final decision. I don't think the team "chooses the QB". Neither do I believe that the team laid down on Buchner or Simpson. They were playing an inferior opponent and for typical reasons were not up for the game, but mainly, though improving, they just are not great in pass pro. Also, USF had some small quick pass rushers that were a real problem. The same OL issues that Milroe had faced were evident for TB and TS. Buchner actually processed the info quickly and got the ball out quickly but mostly threw very poor passes and a couple of pathetic ones. It was a remarkable display that I did not see in the SC game, though he had other problems in that one.

OTOH, though much better thrower, TS just could not process info quickly enough to get the ball out, nor did he have good pocket presence (that can change like it has with JM, whose poise in the pocket was terrible last year and though still not great, it has improved dramatically). Sometimes he had little time to throw, other times he had enough time but just seemed to freeze. Also, his athleticism was not as good as I had expected - just OK. He threw 2 good passes, 45 and 14 yds and threw 7 other passes, hitting 3 dump-offs or short passes for a total of 14 yds. He also hit a nice slant vs MTSU. That is a small sample size, so IMO, it's unfair to make an overall judgment on him. Some saw promise and others, me included, saw little to think he should unseat JM at this point.

But if the coaches had chosen him that would be fine with me, though I thought JM looked better from what I had seen, warts and all, some of which he still has. (JM has improved in other areas, especially hitting a number of intermediate passes, which he has done all along, though some insist they haven't seen them. But it's clear he has. He was 5-5 vs MSU on intermediate throws. Also, he scans the field now. True, he's still not quick but he's getting quicker. He's always stayed in the pocket some, as well as occasionally even climbing the pocket.)

Other than Haynes, this Alabama team only has decent RBs. Nothing special, though Jase is smart and has good top-end speed. But they are JAG type RBs. So, having a player like Milroe to supplement the OK running game with a long-ball running threat and a good deep ball threat is a needed component in this offense that TB nor TS are able to provide.

If JM flops (flopping doesn't mean making a mistake - Tua, Mac, Bryce, Tom Brady made them every game) at some point and CNS wants to go with someone else, fine with me. I just want to support whoever is the Bama QB and not nitpick every conceivable perceived shortcoming. Coker, with Henry, Ridley, Stewart and a Moore award winning OL) held the ball too long and threw ints at a rate in the same ballpark as JM (2.0 vs 3.4, which will likely improve by year end). There was the occasional grumbling but nothing compared to the vitriol (not all critics are vitriolic) that has been leveled by some fans towards JM.