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Re: How Jim Caldwell Elevated Joe Flacco to Elite Status and Saved Our Season
Disclaimer: The content posted is of my own opinion.
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01-23-2013, 09:20 AM #14Veteran Poster
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Re: How Jim Caldwell Elevated Joe Flacco to Elite Status and Saved Our Season
I can sure remember games in the early Cameron years with Boldin, where he was supposed to be the "number 1 " receiver and he would be targeted 3 times in a game. If you are going to bring a guy in who averages 80 catches a year and then throw him he ball only 3-5 times a game (and pay him all that money), you are certainly not utilizing the available talent to the best of it's strengths.
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Re: How Jim Caldwell Elevated Joe Flacco to Elite Status and Saved Our Season
Cam Cameron probably feels like a real dumb ass these days.
It hurts his rep big time for the league to see our guys thrive as soon as he gets canned.
I only wished they'd done it sooner...we could be at our 3rd or 4th SB instead of our 2nd.
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01-23-2013, 09:36 AM #16
Re: How Jim Caldwell Elevated Joe Flacco to Elite Status and Saved Our Season
I like how Flacco is now willing to throw the ball up if Boldin is covered one on one, and let him out physical the db for the ball. I hardly ever saw that in the Cameron offense.
I can't believe we stuck by Cameron for so long. He had to have been one of the worse offensive coordinators in the league. There is no chance any intelligent franchise hires him, except maybe as a running backs coach.
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01-23-2013, 09:43 AM #17Hyperbolic curmudgeometer
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Re: How Jim Caldwell Elevated Joe Flacco to Elite Status and Saved Our Season
Cam trusted Joe to throw the outs to a WR with reliable hands who ran precise routes. Partly IMO because Flacco's arm strength made those throws very low-risk. (I remember one sideline pass in the 2008 Cowboys game where the Dallas DB broke on the ball thinking he had an easy pick-6 & it rocketed right past him into Mason's hands.) He didn't trust him to throw over the middle, mainly (IMO) because of a couple of high-profile INTs where Joe didn't seem to see the coverage (I remember when they were driving for the go-ahead score vs the Colts in 2009 & Flacco tries to force the ball to Rice with no less than 3 Colts right in front of #27, & Brackett picked it).
Cam never trusted Joe. You could make the case that in years past (1) the offense was terrified of blowing games in which the defense had played well enough to win, & (2) he never knew when Good Joe would morph into Bad Joe & do precisely that. That 11/09 loss to the Colts is a classic example--the D picks Manning 3 times but the O can't get into the EZ & comes up short in crunch time with that incomprehensible pick.
What brought it all to a head this year was the combination of a tough schedule & injuries which made the defense much less reliable. Playing not to lose when on offense was no longer an option; they were going to have to rise or fall with Flacco, but Cam never trusted him enough to really let him loose. Caldwell trusts Joe & makes the adjustments to let him do what he says he can do & wants to do.
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01-23-2013, 10:30 AM #18
Re: How Jim Caldwell Elevated Joe Flacco to Elite Status and Saved Our Season
LOL, I like this. I can just see Cam Cameron as general during Antietam or some such:
Aide: "General Cameron, the rebels are covering both our flanks, but the middle is wide open for exploitation. We should make an adjustment to our battle plan and attack the middle of the battlefield".
Cam: "Meh. Adjustments are overrated. Shut up and stick with the plan. Have Colonel Flacco continue to press the flanks at all costs."
Northern Newspapers next day: "Colonel Flacco's inconsistency and poor execution caused the Union Army to lose it's third straight battle yesterday."
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Re: How Jim Caldwell Elevated Joe Flacco to Elite Status and Saved Our Season
World Domination 3 Points at a Time!
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01-23-2013, 11:23 AM #20iggyman555 Guest
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01-23-2013, 03:17 PM #21
Re: How Jim Caldwell Elevated Joe Flacco to Elite Status and Saved Our Season
Excellent analysis. The prior offensive inconsistency has to be relegated to several factors: Flacco's inconsistency when he feels pressure due to a porous offensive line, he panics under pressure; Flacco showing poor leadership skills (showing poor time-management skills and taking control of the offense in crucial situations) resultant from Cameron's lack of trust, his iron-clad control, and the OC's inability to analyze defensive vulnerabilities; The poor offensive line play limited Flacco's confidence to move around in the pocket; Flacco had a tendency to hold onto the ball too long and made himself vulnerable to sacks and hits because of a poor offensive line; and a big issue was Cameron not knowing when to adjust to the run game when it became obvious that bad-Flacco was on the field. Cameron stubbornly forced a passing game when it was not working as a result of poor offensive line play and/or Flacco overthrowing or under-throwing open receivers. Flacco's confidence has recently been elevated as a direct result of a better offensive line. Flacco is now moving in the pocket and is getting time to go through progressions and is hitting an open receiver over the middle when another wide receiver (Smith) is double-covered. The rest is history.
“Not bad for a running back.”
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01-23-2013, 03:41 PM #22
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01-23-2013, 03:55 PM #23
Re: How Jim Caldwell Elevated Joe Flacco to Elite Status and Saved Our Season
Caldwell was very passive in much of the fourth quarter and overtime in Denver, and in the first half in Boston. It was Harbaugh and Flacco who said at halftime Sunday that the offense had to be opened up. Caldwell then did as they suggested. The results were great.
Last edited by OriAl; 01-23-2013 at 04:01 PM.
Al
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01-23-2013, 03:57 PM #24Legendary RSR Poster
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