Seriously, people are going C-R-A-Z-Y in here. LOL
There are many reasons why we have seen what we have seen over the past two seasons:
1. Kevin Warren canceled our season and once it was back on we had 3 games cancelled. We only played 5 games last regular season, and when you combine that with the annual exodus to the NFL out of Columbus it left us with an inexperienced team in several position groups. What we are seeing right now is a product of not having a season last year. Not only did these guys not get meaningful reps, they didn't get reps at all!
2. Guys are playing out of position on both sides of the ball. Our O Line is jumbled and guys are not playing their natural positions and the same can be said for our defensive secondary (Ransom is a FS not an inside corner btw). And we have Steele Chambers at LB...let that sink in.
3. Our scheme defensively is abysmal. Knowing what we know about game reps, etc., you would think that our defensive scheme would be to "bend don't break" early in the season so guys could get a feel for the speed of the game. Instead, we're pretending we have Okudah at CB and Fuller as an eraser on the back end. Coombs is not putting players in a position to be successful and refuses to heed the simple advice of KYP (know your personnel).
4. And while we're at it, we have a new QB and new RBs and we decided to play hot potato with the O Line? Man, I would have thought we wouldn't gamble like that and instead of shuffling these guys around we would make sure we had the O Line settled so we could run the ball and protect the new QB.
5. We can pinpoint LB play, secondary play, etc. as issues, but I just think the learning curve is huge if you're asking brand new, never played a down, LBs to come in and do the same thing 4-year starters were doing. It takes time and again, rather than understanding your personnel and putting guys in a position to be successful, we are throwing them to the wolves. I'd say many of our players are bread dough...they may be good but they haven't been baked in the oven yet so they aren't ready. Yet Chef Coombs is putting them out on the dinner table like they are baked, warm, and buttery!
6. Stroud had a good game and make enough throws and plays to win. Again, without any meaningful snaps coming into this season you can't expect him to pull out a game like this. He played well and his future is bright IMO.
A lot of this loss is on inexperience IMO. I'm pissed, but I'm not going to cry about it. Hopefully we can get better each week but I'm a little unsure of that, not because I don't believe in our players, but because I'm not sold on this coaching staff (primarily on defense).
