Week 9 2015: Thoughts after rewatching the game...

More fun to rewatch after a win....

1) Gabbert: OK, I have to admit I NEVER thought I's start a thread typing "1) Gabbert". How did he look? He looked like a guy who got his confidence back and didn't get a ton of pressure. He made some good throws as I'd expect from a guy selected at 10 in his draft. Physically, Gabberts always had the tools.

His issues have come when he sees pressure. It should be noted that Atlanta has an almost historically bad pass rush. I'm not jumping on the Gabbert bandwagon and I'd expect he gets the start vs Seattle and probably starts to look like Blaine Gabbert again.

Should be interesting though. :D



2) Celek: Vernon who? Yeah...Mr. "THEY are 2-6", guess what? Celek just did something you were NEVER able to do...run conventional TE patterns and be a QB best friend. Vernon was a physical freak and if you need a guy to run past a safety or a LB, he's your guy. If he need a guy to be an outlet and find open space in the middle of the field, Celek can be that guy.



3) Simpson: Dude. CATCH. THE. BALL.



4) Bowman: He's still not the same guy, but he seems to think about that knee less and less with every week. Really encouraged by him and looking forward to see how good he'll be NEXT year.



5) Droughns: OK, I don't want to overstate as Atlantas D isn't all that impressive (tho statistically good against the run), but Droughns put together some good runs there. Might be the slashing type back that can work in a backup role in a ZBS. At the very least, I'm intrigued.



6) Run D: Great performance against a guy who had put up 666 yards and 8 TDs in his last 6 games.



7) Tartt/Ward: Yeah....I don't think Bethea is getting his job back. Niners got a good one in in Tartt in round 2. For all the things people say about Ward...he had himself a nice game. He's always been undersized, but he plays fast and makes tackles...even on big bodied TEs.



8) CB: I gotta give a hand to Ward as I said above, but also Johnson, Cromartie and even Davis. Who the hell thought thay's play THAT well against Matt Ryan and Julio Jones? Yeah, they got some stats, but at the end of the say they gave up ONE TD, and it was to a RB. The kids played well.



9) O-Line: Really don't know what to make of it. Atlanta has a horrible pass rush. Still, they gave Gabbert time and they opened a few run lanes.



10) Do I want them to win?: I really hate this time of year with this kind of record. The answer is of course I want them to win. Of course THEY want to win...but does winning serve them in the long term? Does winning this game preclude them from taking a QB they may need later? Ugg. That's why I hate this. Mediocrity is the worst. Be bad enough to have a chance at the top of the draft to improve, or be a playoff team. Being mediocre breeds more mediocrity.

Nice again, Marv.

Re-watched the game again this morning as well, so just some thoughts on your thoughts (by your numbers; anything not mentioned I just totally agree on with nothing to add)

1. Gabbert -- Agreed, although on the re-watch there were another two times (in addition to the int) when he faced internal pressure and threw blindly into double coverage. I liked what I saw from him (definitely better than I expected and better than what we've seen from Kap for awhile), but really need to see him against a functional pass rush to consider him anything more than a curio at this point.

2. Celek -- The route (in particular) and sure hands on the 2nd TD pass was everything that Vernon just can't do. Really nice to see.

4. Bowman -- Getting a ton of credit as being "back" after this game and he had some really nice downhill splash plays, but on the second watching he still missed a ton of tackles. Still doesn't look like he trusts his knee when breaking down in space, and he still ends up lunging and missing. So, I'd say a very good game for Bowman, but not really a qualitatively different one than what we've seen so far this year.

5. Droughns -- In another thread someone evoked Terry Kirby. I thought this was a GREAT comparison. I think the line (and Marcus Martin in particular) aren't good enough for it to matter, but already I prefer him as a back that can do something in space to Reggie Bush.

6. Run D -- The line and Bowman are getting all the credit here, but Johnson, Cromartie, and Tartt deserve a ton of love for this too.

7. O-Line -- On the rewatch some of this was Gabbert moving around in the pocket well too. While he still threw off his back foot too much if there wasn't a hole a to step into, unlike Kap, he didn't run into sacks or just brain fart and let them happen.

10. Winning -- kind of torn on this too. While they're not making the playoffs and a top pick would be nice, if they lose out it would also mean that all these recent draft picks are playing like crap. TBH I'd much rather the 9ers be one of those "just need a qb" teams than a team that's just awful from top to bottom which has a 50/50 chance of not busting on a QB.

A good summary as always Marvin... But I must disagree on point #5 regarding Draughn. Outside of his long run of 30 yards, he carried the ball 15 times for a total of 28 yards, less than 2 yards a pop! At best, I see him as a #3 back that could function effectively in open space and perhaps his upright running style is best suited for punt or kick returns. However, at the age of 27 I'm not sure he has a future with our team. How was he in pass protection?

Originally posted by OldMort49:
A good summary as always Marvin... But I must disagree on point #5 regarding Draughn. Outside of his long run of 30 yards, he carried the ball 15 times for a total of 28 yards, less than 2 yards a pop! At best, I see him as a #3 back that could function effectively in open space and perhaps his upright running style is best suited for punt or kick returns. However, at the age of 27 I'm not sure he has a future with our team. How was he in pass protection?

Wasn't paying attention to pass pro with him, but bear in mind the line that was blocking for him. 49ers RBs this year average .97 yard before contact. That didn't really change. Even on his long run he was getting hit at the LOS.

What I liked was seeing him get downhill quickly, break a few tackles, and not go down on first contact.

I'm not selling him as a franchise back (do those exist anymore?), just sayin' he looked better than I expected and might stick as depth.

^^^ Don't recall seeing him in pass pro either, although I do recall two times that he would be in pass-pro that he leaked out pretty quickly.

Edit: Another thing about him (all in the context of the run blocking being pretty terrible), is that unlike Thomas and Gaskins he appears to just barely be quick enough to hit the small holes that open.

With Gaskins and Thomas I counted at least three or four times in which holes opened up and it looked like there was a clear first down to be had, but it took both of them too long to get there and 4-6 yard gains ended up as 1-3 yard gains.

Marvin, what this did prove is that it isn't ALL the OL. Even with a shiddy OL, QB CAN get the ball out. I was sure of that watching kap. He just flat out cannot get the damn ball out. Blaine did. And that pretty much ends the story. What do we have in blaine...aside from being miles better than kap? Well, that is a good question, and the answer will come out over the next 7 weeks. I just hoped he could be our bridge QB so we could first fix OL(3), OLB passrusher, DT, and CB....all starters. That is 6 guys we just have to have and need two #1 picks for, plus nailing 2 OLs(pounce, mack) and a OG in FA, all starters. If we could push the franchise qB back to 2017, fix the OL first, that would be a huge benefit. But no more hoorahs for blaine based on one game. He was huge improvement over kap...but this was just one game against inferior D. To judge Gab we need a body of work, maybe 7 games, some of which we lose based on lesser talent. But our QB situation is not lost. There is hope, but it still is early to know.

Finally, please tell me the 2nd hand quote of JT was in error: " I don't know who we will start in our next game. " Please tell me he did not say that, because if he did, it was incredibly stupid.

really, all I can think of while watching the game was all OTHER 49er fans how didn't wanna give Gabby a chance and how often they say that he is Garbage, and would be worse than Kaep....

Now, I hope that all and each of them are thinking what it may have been had Gabby was given a chance much earlier.

Originally posted by pasodoc9er:
Finally, please tell me the 2nd hand quote of JT was in error: " I don't know who we will start in our next game. " Please tell me he did not say that, because if he did, it was incredibly stupid.

No different than him refusing to say who the starting CBs would be (even though everyone already knew) or if Hayne was going to be the PR (even though everyone already knew) before Week 1.

I imagine he hopes that there's an incredibly small chance that by not saying Blaine is starting that the Hawks will spend some time preparing for the read-option (read: Kaepernick).

The only thing I can say for certain after Gabbert's performance yesterday is that if they do start Kaepernick against the Seahawks after the bye, they are absolutely, unequivocally trying to throw him under the bus.

Originally posted by pasodoc9er:
Marvin, what this did prove is that it isn't ALL the OL. Even with a shiddy OL, QB CAN get the ball out. I was sure of that watching kap. He just flat out cannot get the damn ball out. Blaine did. And that pretty much ends the story. What do we have in blaine...aside from being miles better than kap? Well, that is a good question, and the answer will come out over the next 7 weeks. I just hoped he could be our bridge QB so we could first fix OL(3), OLB passrusher, DT, and CB....all starters. That is 6 guys we just have to have and need two #1 picks for, plus nailing 2 OLs(pounce, mack) and a OG in FA, all starters. If we could push the franchise qB back to 2017, fix the OL first, that would be a huge benefit. But no more hoorahs for blaine based on one game. He was huge improvement over kap...but this was just one game against inferior D. To judge Gab we need a body of work, maybe 7 games, some of which we lose based on lesser talent. But our QB situation is not lost. There is hope, but it still is early to know.

Finally, please tell me the 2nd hand quote of JT was in error: " I don't know who we will start in our next game. " Please tell me he did not say that, because if he did, it was incredibly stupid.

Couple things...

1) Gabbert was able to get the ball out against a nearly historically bad pass rush. Kap threw for over 300 yards against the Ravens. Did he do that against everyone? Obviously not.

Lets see how Gabbert handles Seattle.


2) I think Gabbert will start but Tomsula isn't going to come out and say that until he's talked to both men. Tomsula not telling the press or fans what is going to happen doesn't mean he hasn't already made the decision. It just means he's choosing not to tell us.

Originally posted by Marvin49:

Originally posted by pasodoc9er:
Marvin, what this did prove is that it isn't ALL the OL. Even with a shiddy OL, QB CAN get the ball out. I was sure of that watching kap. He just flat out cannot get the damn ball out. Blaine did. And that pretty much ends the story. What do we have in blaine...aside from being miles better than kap? Well, that is a good question, and the answer will come out over the next 7 weeks. I just hoped he could be our bridge QB so we could first fix OL(3), OLB passrusher, DT, and CB....all starters. That is 6 guys we just have to have and need two #1 picks for, plus nailing 2 OLs(pounce, mack) and a OG in FA, all starters. If we could push the franchise qB back to 2017, fix the OL first, that would be a huge benefit. But no more hoorahs for blaine based on one game. He was huge improvement over kap...but this was just one game against inferior D. To judge Gab we need a body of work, maybe 7 games, some of which we lose based on lesser talent. But our QB situation is not lost. There is hope, but it still is early to know.

Finally, please tell me the 2nd hand quote of JT was in error: " I don't know who we will start in our next game. " Please tell me he did not say that, because if he did, it was incredibly stupid.

Couple things...

1) Gabbert was able to get the ball out against a nearly historically bad pass rush. Kap threw for over 300 yards against the Ravens. Did he do that against everyone? Obviously not.

Lets see how Gabbert handles Seattle.


2) I think Gabbert will start but Tomsula isn't going to come out and say that until he's talked to both men. Tomsula not telling the press or fans what is going to happen doesn't mean he hasn't already made the decision. It just means he's choosing not to tell us.

I'm interested to hear what Cossell says about Gabbert...whether or not is was a one-read responsibility or did he actually need to make some reads in order to get the throw he needed off.

Originally posted by Marvin49:
Couple things...

1) Gabbert was able to get the ball out against a nearly historically bad pass rush. Kap threw for over 300 yards against the Ravens. Did he do that against everyone? Obviously not.

Lets see how Gabbert handles Seattle.


2) I think Gabbert will start but Tomsula isn't going to come out and say that until he's talked to both men. Tomsula not telling the press or fans what is going to happen doesn't mean he hasn't already made the decision. It just means he's choosing not to tell us.

The most telling thing about this game to me is how inspired the entire team played despite the way things have become. Could it be the change at QB solely ? I understand that some of the guys that played were auditioning and that just seems to trickle down to everyone. It raises their level of play. I just don't see us sustaining that level of play going forward unless we get healthy fast. Players always have something to play for regardless of us fans feel about winning meaningless games.

I am really intrigued by Tartt. He is looking like a force back there. Maybe our version of Kam Chancellor?

"The coaches said a cornered dog barks loud," said Cromartie, who finished with three stitches in his upper lip. "I wanted to make sure I barked my ass off."

I think a lot of the guys who hadn't played recently, including Gabbert, really wanted to bark their asses off. An entertaining game to watch. As much as I'd like a higher draft pick, I like to see them win.

Originally posted by Boagrius49:
I am really intrigued by Tartt. He is looking like a force back there. Maybe our version of Kam Chancellor?

IMO he has a higher ceiling than Chancellor (less one-dimensional) but is a long, long, long, long way from getting there.

Originally posted by Marvin49:

Originally posted by pasodoc9er:
Marvin, what this did prove is that it isn't ALL the OL. Even with a shiddy OL, QB CAN get the ball out. I was sure of that watching kap. He just flat out cannot get the damn ball out. Blaine did. And that pretty much ends the story. What do we have in blaine...aside from being miles better than kap? Well, that is a good question, and the answer will come out over the next 7 weeks. I just hoped he could be our bridge QB so we could first fix OL(3), OLB passrusher, DT, and CB....all starters. That is 6 guys we just have to have and need two #1 picks for, plus nailing 2 OLs(pounce, mack) and a OG in FA, all starters. If we could push the franchise qB back to 2017, fix the OL first, that would be a huge benefit. But no more hoorahs for blaine based on one game. He was huge improvement over kap...but this was just one game against inferior D. To judge Gab we need a body of work, maybe 7 games, some of which we lose based on lesser talent. But our QB situation is not lost. There is hope, but it still is early to know.

Finally, please tell me the 2nd hand quote of JT was in error: " I don't know who we will start in our next game. " Please tell me he did not say that, because if he did, it was incredibly stupid.

Couple things...

1) Gabbert was able to get the ball out against a nearly historically bad pass rush. Kap threw for over 300 yards against the Ravens. Did he do that against everyone? Obviously not.

Lets see how Gabbert handles Seattle.


2) I think Gabbert will start but Tomsula isn't going to come out and say that until he's talked to both men. Tomsula not telling the press or fans what is going to happen doesn't mean he hasn't already made the decision. It just means he's choosing not to tell us.

Just to chip in here on the line, I'd like to see the snap count but I am concious that we finally had Devey on the bench more with Tiller in and Brown even got some snaps as well. Someone posted that Pears also played some snaps at guard when Brown was in, presumably so it was't 2 rookies on the right side together.

It's a good sign if true, but why wait until you bench Kap before making changes to the line and removing the worst player?!