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Week 1Admirals @ Fire 17-15By: Velcro. |
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When oh when can we have a game where I am not going to end up with a heart attack. A performance by the Admirals that should have led to a much more comfortable victory than that which was finally achieved, but then again its week 1 and a win is a win - anything else is sour grapes. Some pictures of the weekend can be found on the Triple A site here. Offense  The offense looked good at moments and very ordinary at other times. We continue to run the Andrus Offense as we have in previous years. An injury to TE Taman Bryant removed some of the favoured plays from the game plan - when two tight ends were used. For a unit to dominate the opposition conclusively at times and then only score one TD is quite frankly unacceptable. The execution needs to be better in earning first downs to sustain drives. Too often Shaun Hill and David Rivers would take a three yard gain on 3rd and 6 or 7. Of course there were some breakdowns in the protection, which is to be expected in week 1, but still the ball has to pass the markers more often. I get the feeling that the offense is playing deliberately short instead of using our WR strengths. A really nice TD pass from David Rivers to Matthew Hatchette was a joy to see, and Shaun Hill excelled on the final drive to get us in Field Goal range. The running game was very ordinary, with only one good long run. Again it looked like the Offensive Line hasn't yet meshed well enough for our running game to work. Stat of the Day - No Turnovers, but only 1 TD, 2 Shovels. Defense  The cornerstone of the day. The Fire passing game went nowhere, but an average of 5 yards a carry is unacceptably high. One Sack and a Forced Fumble improve this somewhat. In the end they covered well enough to win, but we may struggle if we play against an accurate QB. They were very good in the 1st half, but in the second half gave up too many yards. I think this may be growing pains and this may actually be the best defense in NFLE this year. They certainly have a shot to be. It's difficult to be too critical when the unit gives up only 15 points in a game. They could be better though - and will need to be against the high powered attacks that Berlin and Scotland have shown. 4 Shovels. Special Teams  Three field goals including the first 4 pointer in Admirals history, and the last second game winner. The FG units proved themselves to be carrying on where they left off from last year. Top Stuff. Kick offs and kick off coverage were not very good. The punter had good distance but not a great deal of hang time. Allowing 16 yards on Punt Returns and 29 on Kick Off returns is too many. The Punt Coverage unit was quick to snap up a muffed punt in the 1st quarter that led to the first Field Goal. Steady rather than spectacular, apart from Messrs O'Donnell and Diliberto. 3 Shovels. Coaching We won; they managed the last possession very well. The defense was definitely ready to play. However they failed to exploit the mismatch that was available with the slot-receiver constantly getting the better of the Strong Safety. Too often Offensive Coordinator Jeff Lewis and HC Bart Andrus seem to want to go short when the medium stuff may actually work better. The two best passes of the day were the long completions and we could have made the game a lot safer by attacking more early on. The team assembled has the potential to be good. The coaching staff just has to bring them out of the players. 3 Shovels. Fan Support Steady. I though that we actually had fewer fans in Schalke that we had ever taken to the Rheinstadion. Not particularly noisy, but then again neither were the Fire fans. Pat on the back to fans who continue to understand the game better and better. |
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