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As the 2018 NFL season continues in week 4, NFL.com's network of journalists collects the most popular news and notes from across the league, including:
– Why do the Browns have so much confidence in Baker Mayfield?
– The hand behind Ryan Tannehill's hot start.
– Carson Wentz's determination to stay himself.
But first, Jeffri chadiha looks at the growing pains – and the potential – of the Bears offensive and quarterback Mitchell Trubisky …
LAKE FOREST, Ill. – There is a lot of excitement in Chicago against a dominant Bears defense, an early lead on NFC North and an upcoming match with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. There are also sadly familiar questions about what's happening at the shift. For all those who think the Bears look like a playoff contender, many are wondering if the Chicago offensive will eventually let the team down. All this means one thing: quarterback Mitch Trubisky should grow better quickly.
All the game that followed the arrival of Trubisky as the second overall pick of the 2017 NFL Draft has now given way to predictable skepticism about whether he will become a real difference maker. He has made two touchdown passes against three interceptions this season, and his 77.8-player ranking ranks 25th among NFL qualifiers. Chicago averages 293.7 yards per game (26th in the league) and only 178 yards per game (28th). For a team that has invested a lot in offensive weapons during the off season – adding receivers Allen Robinson and Taylor Gabriel, as well as tight end Trey Burton – the Bears are far from fearsome.
That explains why there is a lot of talk this week about the simplification of some aspects of the system put in place by the first year head coach, Matt Nagy. Instead of pushing Trubisky to become something that he is not yet ready to do, the Bears are looking for a way to make success easier to achieve.
"I'm going to do everything that they decide to put on my plate," Trubisky said at a press conference Wednesday. "I have to make sure to study and do my job.If we have to withdraw and simplify to play faster, then that's what they're going to do." My job is to come here and do my best for the best of my abilities Coach Nagy always says it's the first year of the attack, and this is his first year as a coach. find a solution.
Trubisky actually has two problems with him right now. The first is the weight of the higher expectations imposed on him now that the Bears defended their defense at a 2-1 start. The other problem is the way the 2017 draft is played after Chicago traded to surprise him. The second quarter selected in this category (Patrick Mahomes, of Kansas City, 10th overall) scored 13 touchdowns and no interceptions this season, while the third-ranked caller (Houston's Deshaun Watson, 12th overall) scored 19 affected and eight choices. suffering a knee injury late in the season, seven games in his rookie season.
To be fair to Trubisky, it does not have to be Mahomes or Watson. He only needs to be the quarterback, the Bears need him to win games. He's lucky to have an offensive-minded head coach at Nagy, who was Kansas City's offensive coordinator last season, and who knows something about quarterbacks feeling comfortable. Nagy helped former Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith, who is now in Washington, to post the best passer-by last season, and that's not just because Kansas City had an assortment of dynamic weapons.
Nagy saw how Smith reacted by having a collection of pieces that he enjoyed running, even concepts used by Smith during his years of study in Utah in the early 2000s. The Bears are attempting an approach similar with Trubisky, who completed 59.4% of his passes with seven touchdowns and seven interceptions as a rookie.
"We can not put it in a situation where we try to do too much and we remove [the other players’] "If we do too much – and make him think too much – they will play slowly and not be effective. This is part of what we are paid to do as coaches – find out what this balance is. "
In addition to finding a better balance between the games that Nagy wants to play and the games Trubisky likes, the coaches stress the importance of a basic approach to the game. As reserve quarterback, Chase Daniel (who played for Nagy in Kansas City from 2013 to 2015) said: "In this attack, there are so many options on every game. On what he worked a lot, especially with all the controls – you focus on two things each time and you continue with that. Here is your side. Here is your side of the area. Do not think about it too much. Just finish and take what the defense offers you. "
The Bears understand the pressure that Trubisky is undergoing right now. He spent only one season at the university as a full-time starter before entering the repechage after his second year in North Carolina. He has only played in 15 games in the NFL, and he is learning a new system in his second season. Most players with this little experience would face the same difficulties they are currently facing.
The good news is that the Bears understand the situation. Nagy said that Trubisky was "where I thought it would be," and Daniel added that "everyone in this locker room trusts Mitch." The main thing for Trubisky is to avoid getting caught in the head. Said Daniel: "He's so hard on himself that I'm searching him for him to relax, do not worry about the outdoors, focus on one piece at a time."
Nagy has adopted the same approach. The question is: when will all this encouragement produce more production?
"I really appreciate it," Trubisky said of Nagy's support. "It means a lot to me, especially because of my difficulty, he has supported me and supported me, I believe in him and in this process and all that we are going through, we are going to have a breakthrough. will come, and I believe it. "
NOTES AROUND THE REST OF THE LEAGUE
NFL: fast receivers changing the landscape. In the first few weeks of the NFL season, we see the dramatic impact of receiver speed on how offenses exploit defenses. Chiefs Tyreek Hill and DeSean Jackson of the Buccaneers have changed game in one game or even just queuing.
At the start of the second week, Eagles goaltender Malcolm Jenkins said his number one priority before the match between Philly and the Buccaneers was to give Jackson an extra push to make sure than Jackson. In the first scrimmage game, Jackson scored on a 75-yard touchdown pass after jumping behind Jenkins and Eagles high school.
"They have to plan the game for such a fast guy," 49ers receiver Alfred Morris said of San Francisco's recipient (and Olympic athlete) and the 49ers-heads' clash of Week 3. and Goodwin. "They are preparing the match for Goodwin and we are planning for Hill."
All-Pro receiver DeAndre Hopkins told me this week that the speed of Will Fuller, the receiver of Houston, changes the way the defenses play against the Texans. He may notice the difference regarding the position of the secondary when he arrives at the line. "Everything is different, my life is so much easier when Will is on the field," said Hopkins. Notably, the Houston attack has changed dramatically when Fuller was injured for a long time last season.
"You can not sit on some roads," Morris said, referring to how the defenses are facing the Niners when Goodwin is on the field. "You have to make sure that the guy can not run on the field, and if you do not do that, it's at that point that the guy gets big touchdowns." And then you try to correct the next time, and it's open for guys, and for us, runners, let's say you put in guys hands and you double or something else. When you have guys who are attentive to WR and not backfield, Is a defender of less than we have to worry about in the racing game, at least, at least, [to] detach us from those extra eyes, because they have to respect a guy like that. "
Jackson, Goodwin and Hill are arguably three of the fastest players in the NFL, and they make life easier for each of their quarterbacks.
"You're going to either have a really deep security, or they'll start to favor Hill's team and still be in depth," said Chad Henne. "In singles, you do not usually get the turn roads or anything, we can bend them now, because the guy is so deep, we will not really bend them like a Cover 2, but those guys can adjust their routes accordingly if security is going to favor or do not want to be beaten deep. "Because of Tyreek, we can always attack the middle."
The penalties of the smugglers continued during the third week. In 2017, 109 penalties were imposed on smugglers. In the three weeks of the 2018 NFL season, there were 34 – placing the league at 181, an increase of 72 (66%). Time will tell if the efforts of the competition committee this week to clarify the NFL's focus on penalizing defensemen who find themselves with their weight on the shifts, bring about a change in this pace.
The Competition Committee, which plans to hold a conference call scheduled for next Tuesday, held a conference call Wednesday night, solely on criminal sanctions, commissioned by Commissioner Roger Goodell, likely to guide referees before the start of the conference. match. fourth week of games.
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CLEVELAND BROWNS: Mayfield's preparation sealed the deal. One of the reasons the Browns felt comfortable turning to Baker Mayfield, the No. 1 rookie in the repechage for the first time, is that he did an "excellent" prep work. , according to a staff member. This is important because during the training camp, coach Hue Jackson challenged Mayfield to be one of the first to come in and out. Mayfield accepted the challenge and showed his level of comfort on the field.
I am told that the Browns feel they can play their game with Mayfield, either by playing the tempo or controlling the ball. The Browns were aware of his mobility and arming when they recruited him, but another thing that impressed them over the weeks is his ability to quickly process information in the moment.
"He has a chance to be a good smuggler of progression," said a staff member.
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MIAMI DOLPHINS: The hand behind the resurgence of Tannehill. The Dolphins are 3-0 and quarterback Ryan Tannehill completes 73% of his career passes this season with a score of 121.8, 28.3 points higher than his best result of a season. He has thrown seven touchdowns and two interceptions, but he has no present in the last two weeks. What's behind his improved game?
Veteran Frank Gore points to coach Adam Gase, who was standing behind Tannehill even though the others did not. Some outsiders wanted the team to write a QB with their first pick last spring, but Gase was adamant: Tannehill was his guy. This type of support works wonders for a player, according to Gore.
"It reminds me of Alex Smith when I was in San Francisco," he said. Jim Harbaugh came over and said, "Alex is my guy, even if other people wanted someone else. Alex had great seasons and led us to the playoffs. It's Gase, man. I'm telling you. "
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NEW YORK GIANTS: Brees, Manning brings a lot of time to the showdown. Now, this Drew Brees, 39, and 37-year-old Eli Manning, who faced each other on Sunday in East Rutherford, combined 471 regular season games, completed 10,831 passes for 124,005 yards, and 838 touchdowns. He was sacked 754 times and won three combined Super Bowls, two by Manning.
"I do not know if any of us would have predicted that," Brees said.
Manning emphasized that "practices are no longer brutal" and that improving "arm care" contributes to longevity: "If you could always keep a strong arm while keeping your joints good health can continue to play. "
The last time Manning and Brees met in New Orleans in 2015, the Saints defeated the Giants 52-49. "Wild," said Manning this week. Even with a favorable weather forecast on Sunday, it is unlikely that we will see another shootout like this. But it could be fun.
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NEW YORK JETS: A big challenge for Darnold. Sam Darnold survived a first-ever rookie test: three games in the first 11 days of his NFL career.
"It was a different challenge that I had to face, but it was great to be able to play three games in such a short time," said Darnold. "It was a growing experience for me."
Darnold was great in the first game of the season, scoring 116.8 against the Lions. In both defeats since, in Miami and Cleveland, his score (59.0) has dropped and he has launched four of his five interceptions.
"(He) does not participate by himself, we're in a team," said coach Todd Bowles. "All he's learning is an experience, he's done good games, he had games he could learn from, and plays that he'd like to have in return." I think he's fine. Out of it. "
Since 2017, the quarterbacks with fewer than 10 career starts are 1-4 against the Jaguars, the Jets' opponent this week.
Darnold reflects on Allen's success. With four quarter-rookies (Darnold, Josh Allen of the Bills, Baker Mayfield of the Browns and Josh Rosen of the Cardinals), Darnold said he and Allen had been in touch. "Not too much, though," he says, "because, you know, we're focused on a lot of things, we have a lot on our plate right now."
In the future, there will be plenty of time to send SMS.
"It's cool that everyone has a chance and that their experiences are different," said Darnold. "I think it will be even cooler to look in four or five years and see where we are."
Darnold, the third overall pick in the project, said he and Allen (No. 7 overall) were close in the selection process. After the Viking discontent last week, Darnold said he did not text Allen because he knew his phone was "blew up".
Allen got internal approval from linebacker LeSean McCoy, who tweeted sunday (McCoy missed the Vikings game), Allen is his "favorite player".
On Wednesday, McCoy said, "As I said before, I'm not very strong in rookies, but some guys, you can see … He wants to compete at a high level, he wants to win, he poses his body on the line I'm sure a lot of quarterbacks would not do that, and it's no secret that he's our franchisee, I love it, it's all like a learning experience for him, but for the most part, he just has the natural feel of the game. It's a player, so I love it. "
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PHILADELPHIA EAGLES: Wentz wants to stay mobile.
Carson Wentz said before
triumphant return from last week to the
The Eagles' line-up, which "prolonged the games, was playing games in the pack – it will not change", even though he suffered a knee injury last December. And he proved by working some of his old magic tricks, scrambling in and out of the pocket against the
Colts.
As Eagles linebacker Nigel Bradham told me after the match, "He is still Houdini".
There is no doubt that Wentz experienced some rust, which was 25 passes out of 37 for a total of 255 yards and a touchdown, but also intercepted five sacks and fired on the goal. red areas lead to field goals on a rainy day in Philadelphia. Games like Wentz's third race and diving for the first time in the second quarter are reminiscent of what made him a MVP candidate before last year's injury.
"He kind of pushed everyone to believe that he was not going to change his game," Zach Ertz said in our field interview. "The guy is an electric player – we need him in third place to get by if something breaks down, and he does it – it's an amazing quarter, and we love playing with him."
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SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS: Let's go to Beathard at QB. The Niners refocus after Jimmy Garoppolo's ACL injury and head to Los Angeles to face the Chargers with center-back C.J. Beathard. Several veteran quarterbacks have been working with the team this week, including T.J. Yates, Tom Savage and Kellen Clemens, but no decision has been announced as to who will be added to the list.
The 49ers, including linebacker Reuben Foster, running back Kyle Juszczyk and offensive tackle Joe Staley quickly expressed their confidence in Beathard after San Francisco's loss to the Chiefs. Kyle Shanahan echoed the same sentiments on Wednesday, saying that there was no time to linger over Jimmy G's injury, that it was about the next man and that they had full confidence in Beathard.
Another injury to watch for: the pressure on the calf suffered by veteran corner Richard Sherman. On Thursday, he attributed the injury to the match wear and the absence of representatives for eight months after his surgery at Achilles last season.
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WASHINGTON REDSKINS: Adrian Peterson's Revival Tips? Washington appeared on faith in August when it signed veteran running back Adrian Peterson. After all, the 33-year-old played in a 2017 season where he was 33 yards or less in seven out of ten games.
However, the move has largely paid off for Washington so far, with Peterson rushing for at least 96 yards in two of his first three games, including a 120-yard two-touchdown in Sunday's win over the United States. Packers. I asked Doug Williams, senior vice president of the team of players, which made him so confident that Peterson could still be productive. His answer was succinct:
"We gave him a 30-minute workout and he was not sweating and showed no signs of fatigue."
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