Denzel Mims and Zach Wilson struggled on Day 11, but have bounce back days on Day 12. The scrutiny both have faced throughout the early stages of camp/pre-season to me are ridiculous. We just learned today that Mims lost 20lbs due to food illness. What is your take on these two players? To me, Zach is using the 100% correct approach to these practices. Make mistakes and learn what you can and can’t get away with. Practice isn’t meant to be perfect, but it can make perfect.
Besides the reports of Mims running with the 2nd & 3rd units which I believe are true, what unfair ridiculous scrutiny has he gotten?
Penny, thanks for all your updates. As far as Zach holding on to the ball for 5 seconds during a couple of plays, it matters a lot why he held on for five seconds. In a game, obviously, you typically want to throw it away or run/slide rather than hold it that long so you don't risk a sack. But this is practice, and neither Zach nor his receivers learn much by throwing it away or running/sliding. If the reason he held it for five seconds was that he just didn't know what to do, that's a problem. If the reason he held it for five seconds was that plenty of guys were open but he didn't see them and sat nervously twitching in the pocket, that suggests a problem. If Zach was thinking, "I would throw it away now in a game but this is just practice, and everyone is blanketed, so let's see if a receiver breaks free enough to create an opportunity so we I can throw it and we can all learn something here," then that may be exactly what the coaches have asked him to do. None of us know what Zach was thinking, so none of us know what the 5 seconds means. If he's regularly holding on to it 5 seconds in a game, that's a problem. But this is practice.
There isn't just one kind of practice. Practice sessions can be used in a variety of ways, although they're all about learning. I'm certain that during the season, Zach will practice in a very different way than he is now in TC. At that point, they're preparing specifically for an opponent, and working on their game plan. In TC one is working on fundamentals, experimenting and seeing if/how it works, seeing what one can get away with, adjusting/adapting to the NFL/tighter coverage, learning the plays/system and developing timing & chemistry. Practice can also be used for conditioning and strength/coordination building, working on one's quickness, etc.
There was talk of him potentially being cut and not being a scheme fit. That would be the ridiculous scrutiny.
Thanks for the response! I’m not necessarily worried about him holding the ball for 5 secs, but that was what I read in the reports. To me, it is a non-issue as he is still learning. As we get closer to the season, we definitely want to see him get it out quicker and I am confident that he will!
There realistically isn't such a thing as consistently holding on to the ball for five seconds because the quarterback will be sacked before it gets there. But there's an old rule in football practices that you let the quarterback throw the ball no matter what in team periods. So I believe you are correct in your assessment. They want to see the quarterback, secondary and receivers finish the play regardless if the box players have theoretically ended the play. It'd be more important to see how quickly he's getting rid of the ball in seven on sevens but no one really will be tracking or reporting on that.
If you look at the tape you see someone very proficient in getting through reads decisive with a quick release. Yes defenses were weaker than a lot of the hyped QBs but that’s who he is. I take the learning from practice quotes at face value at this point. Josh Allen held the ball way too long in college look at him now. Let’s not get too worried about this until there’s real game tape to show we should be worried about it.
Josh Allen still holds on to the ball. He had the worst snap to throw numbers of any full time starter last year. Moral of the story is that holding on to the ball is not a death sentence just like a quick release does not mean stardom.
that’s why I made a comment about the Bills stacked roster. If you’ve got good weapons to throw to and a good OL you can get away with stuff. He was given every advantage while Sam was given none. If we took Josh Allen we’d probably be sitting here now wondering if he’s actually good or not with a new front office and Sam would be a middling starter on the Bills. Teams and schemes make or break QBs a lot of the time. I want to see Zach come out and trounce Sam week 1 just on adrenaline. If he does that I couldn’t care less about the next 5 games. Then if there’s progress mid to late we got what we paid for IMO. That’s not the only path to success but it’s certainly the best one from where I’m sitting. I think Zach is a gamer and I think that’s what he’s eyeing so week 1 is going to be even more important than usual.
The detail and criticism reported to us on an hourly basis these days needs to be taken lightly. In the old days you'd read a personal profile piece on a player trying to make the team in the paper the next day, that concluded with some notes about who is standing out in practice, or if there was a fight. That was about it. Not much negative criticism. So, in some ways we are spoiled by all the info, but in other ways it's detrimental because it seems like villains and heroes are created for storylines on a daily basis. Mims has been one, of course Zach has been one.... Remember that these storylines come from a reporter tweeting not a coach. I am hoping to see Zach for more than two series Saturday. He needs as much time to play as he can get IMO.
I'll be surprised - and disappointed - if Zach doesn't get rid of the ball out of bounds or throw it away quickly if there isn't a play to be made. While it's true that part of his game is to try and make things happen, I believe his quick release enables him to wait until the last split second to make that decision, unlike Darnold who also had that mentality, but his lengthy wind up/release took longer than his brain estimated to get rid of the ball. I'm hoping Zach quickly learns what he can and can't get away with, but that's going to come from actual game experience.
Those of us who follow these guys on twitter know about every single pass that Mims didn't haul in, and it appeared as if he was the only players whose drops were published in that manner. I for one would like to know more about some of the fringe guys - like the undrafted TE trying to make the team. (see? I forgot his name since no reporters mentions him) Edit - sorry, I replied to the wrong post.
I wonder if anyone said this to Namath... It is a fine line to coach a player when to give up on a play... isn't it? On one hand you want to cut down on the negatives... loss of yardage... loss of a down... interceptions... injury. On the other hand you don't want to stifle creativity and the effort to push the ball downfield. You need that spark in key situations... and it's far more entertaining than "three yards & a cloud of dust"...
