Beefs

[DmoneyDuck]

Thread to air out any frustrations*

*Note this is not a thread to call for coaches to be fired, nor do I think any should be on the "hot seat" four games in.

On paper, this is one of the most talented rosters we've seen at Oregon, but they leave you wanting more after every game.

- Can we please find Evan Stewart more often? This one I think falls more on Gabriel than Stein. DG, like Nix with Troy and Herb with Dillon Mitchell, only has eyes for Tez and is missing Evan. I'm hoping with more reps this becomes less of an issue. BUT, I also think the lack of height from DG cuts down on his time in the pocket.

- Where is Saddiq? All camp long we were told he's "Oregon's Brock Bowers." And while I think he's awesome and can be that player, we've relegated using him only in TE flats and screens. Why are we not lining him up against other team's LBs and making them pay? I don't think this is something we would need to "hide" from a team like Ohio State. Either you have a defender who can cover him or not.

- Offensive subs at the skill positions. This is something I've noticed during Lanning's tenure so far -- he finds a group and keeps them in there all game long. We have a ton of talent at receiver and yet 95% of the time, it's only the Big 3 getting reps out there. Same with the RBs. I know there's a loyalty to Noah, but I don't see the same explosiveness from him as I did pre-injury and would like to see a little more of Jayden and Jay.

- Pass Rush. This is slowly improving, but given all the talent returning and recruited, along with bringing in some beef in the portal, I expected more of a dominant pass rush, especially considering our opponents. Burch definitely stepped up against UCLA, so I'm hoping that is a sign of things to come.

- Offensive play-calling. Can we please open up the damn playbook? Way too many quick screens and short passes. Not every play has to be a streak downfield but this team is littered with way too many playmakers to not unleash them. The second-half (offensively) against UCLA was damn near unwatchable.

[dthomas=ddixon]

In general, it seems like really smart coaches have a problem with being too smart for their own good. It feels like we're always trying to reinvent the wheel instead of just finding an identity and leaning into it.

Sadiq is a perfect example. Like you said, the dude is a matchup nightmare but we only use him sparingly in gimmicky gadget plays that work maybe half the time. Why would you not just force the other team to stop him? We're doing the other team a favor by only using him in these goofy situations once or twice a game.

The first half against the beavers was another perfect example. A one dimensional offense that's decent at one thing (running the ball) and we spent an entire half giving them exactly what they wanted. They were able to dominate TOP and keep our offense off the field with the run and dink and dunk passing. I don't understand why it took an entire half for us to "adjust" considering there's no mystery to who the beavers are and what they do. Why didn't we just start the game playing like we did in the 2nd half? If there was ever a game where you could pin your ears back and dominate from the jump that was it, but instead we played scared for an entire half.

[rsbgduck]

I agree they are not utilizing Sadiq enough or the way he should be. He is a LB matchup nightmare and there are only a handful of Safeties that have the height or reach to match up with him in man coverage. As for the D issues, look at the Alabama vs Georgia game, the first half Georgia couldn’t do a a damn thing to stop Alabama then held them to 10 points in the second half. It’s not just Oregon that’s having that issue, it’s all over CFB. I haven’t watched a team yet that has played a good 4 quarter game. Tennessee is the only top 5 team I haven’t watched an entire game yet.

[UOducksTK1]

Offense is vanilla but hard to know all that goes behind that decision.

Saving more playbook for the Ohio states of the world?

Also while the screen /short passes can be boring to watch, it did help setup a couple of our deeper passes.

[webfoots2001]

A’Mauri Washington has lined up as a fullback a few times and has zero carries so far. Stein is really wasting his potential. Hopefully they are saving that for tOSU.

[Everythingsducky]

A’Mauri Washington has lined up as a fullback a few times and has zero carries so far. Stein is really wasting his potential. Hopefully they are saving that for tOSU.

I don’t think it has anything to do with him getting a shot at running the ball, possibly depending on the scenario. But I think it has more to do with an average unit up front blocking on run plays. The O-line has been surprisingly average so far in the run game. They need to call in some extra beef. Wish they could employ at least a true FB on occasion. The Forty-Niners have a great blueprint. Their FB isn’t just a great blocker, but can leak out for passes, and even fields punts! He punishes people.

[gogreen55]

Do we know if Sadiq is actually good at consistently catching the ball on down field routes? Do we know if he is a good route runner? I have no idea if he is adept at these things or not, but the coaches that see him every day in practice have a much better idea. There are all sorts of potential reasons for why certain decisions are made that people not behind the scenes have no clue about.

[gogreen55]

Wish they could employ at least a true FB on occasion.

Zach Grace looks like he could potentially carve out a role similar to Max Bredeson at Michigan.

[GrantDuck]

Thread to air out any frustrations*

*Note this is not a thread to call for coaches to be fired, nor do I think any should be on the "hot seat" four games in.

On paper, this is one of the most talented rosters we've seen at Oregon, but they leave you wanting more after every game.

- Can we please find Evan Stewart more often? This one I think falls more on Gabriel than Stein. DG, like Nix with Troy and Herb with Dillon Mitchell, only has eyes for Tez and is missing Evan. I'm hoping with more reps this becomes less of an issue. BUT, I also think the lack of height from DG cuts down on his time in the pocket.

- Where is Saddiq? All camp long we were told he's "Oregon's Brock Bowers." And while I think he's awesome and can be that player, we've relegated using him only in TE flats and screens. Why are we not lining him up against other team's LBs and making them pay? I don't think this is something we would need to "hide" from a team like Ohio State. Either you have a defender who can cover him or not.

- Offensive subs at the skill positions. This is something I've noticed during Lanning's tenure so far -- he finds a group and keeps them in there all game long. We have a ton of talent at receiver and yet 95% of the time, it's only the Big 3 getting reps out there. Same with the RBs. I know there's a loyalty to Noah, but I don't see the same explosiveness from him as I did pre-injury and would like to see a little more of Jayden and Jay.

- Pass Rush. This is slowly improving, but given all the talent returning and recruited, along with bringing in some beef in the portal, I expected more of a dominant pass rush, especially considering our opponents. Burch definitely stepped up against UCLA, so I'm hoping that is a sign of things to come.

- Offensive play-calling. Can we please open up the damn playbook? Way too many quick screens and short passes. Not every play has to be a streak downfield but this team is littered with way too many playmakers to not unleash them. The second-half (offensively) against UCLA was damn near unwatchable.

-Not worried about Stewart. Think you'll see him have more production going forward as teams take away Tez.
-Sadiq is getting lots of touches, just not downfield.
-Agree about Noah. We simply don't have an "explosive" back on the roster this year IMO. Recruiting misses by the previous RB coach that will change big time in 2025.
-Edge position has developed a little slower than I would have thought overall, both in the run and pass game.
-The playbook will open

My biggest concern is consistent offensive line blocking/running game. They still just are not in synch.

[StevensTechU]

Wide receiver and tight end blocking, and pulling guards being unable to execute are my biggest gripes. Those are your recipe for big running plays and we just don't do them well at all, relegating the running game to "block the man in front of you" plays which generally mean your RB has to make both linebackers and safeties miss to spring a big one.

Less a gripe and more of a bummer, Tuioti and Blake Purchase haven't made the leap forward in year 2 that I was expecting. I generally see how Bradyn Swinson at LSU gets talked up as this all-Southeastern Conference edge and chuckle because I don't think I'd want him over our edges, but the performance of our guys through four games makes that less obvious of a take. They're not getting to the QB and not stuffing the run.

[OregonFan4Life]

Regarding the playcalling against UCLA, I saw a fan theory that Lanning and Stein just tried to run out the clock in the second half with the offense to avoid any further injuries to any of the WR’s and TE’s with how dirty the UCLA secondary was playing, and they trusted the defense to keep UCLA from making it a close game. Part of me wonders if there is any accuracy to that, though part of me thinks the best thing to do to start the half would be to throw deep and try to get two quick touchdowns then bench the starters.

Plus I've heard the theory that Lanning and Stein are simply saving their best for Ohio State multiple times, so maybe that also played a role in the second half playcalling.

[QuackininBama]

I honestly think we are just not a championship team. We have a darn good team, but we are not beating Ohio St, Texas or Alabama. Doesn't mean we won't have a good year and win a ton of games, but we are not a playoff team. I think the bottom line is, we just drew the short straw on our O-line decisions. I don't blame Dan and company, hell the entire national media thought we were a monster at every position, but like so many other coaching staffs, the portal giveth, and the portal taketh away. They just were not as good as we assumed.

Could be worse, we could be Florida State?

[hslack]

Honestly, I understand the gripes against the fronts on both sides of the ball. I thought DL had a ton of pressure against UCLA just couldn't get home. I'm wondering if the ammount of talent on the DL is playing a role in lack of development. Too much of one thing can be bad. As far as OL, I think they are steadily progressing, although UCLA is cheeks they were good in pro and had a good run game in 1st half. I would like to think they used conservative play calling in second half but at the same time, I think that encourages playing down to your opponent... which is like the kiss of death

[buckmarkduck]

My beef is our WR, outside of Holden, and TE suck at blocking. And blocking is a want to more than a talent. People complain about Sadiq not playing enough, but he also is a major liability in blocking.