clawman said:
Our running game has been anemic this year. I know there have been some injuries at the running back position but that does not seem to be all of the problem. With the depth and experience we have on the O line we should be able to create some space. Is it the runners, the play callers, the plays themselves, ??
An more effective running game sure would help out the passing game.
I think there are some pretty obvious factors on why our rushing attack hasn't panned out YET this season.
Injuries: The OL has had 3 of the 5 starters OUT for a few games or more, sometimes two out at a time. That has led to some matchup problems and If we can just get our starting 5 out on the field consistently I think that would be the single biggest impact on positive growth in our rushing game.
More injuries: Although the OL injuries have been our biggest problem (IMO), our RB's health has been just as bad. Every single RB on our roster has missed at least a couple games due to injuries. That might not sound like much, but we are talking Moore, Wilson, M. Williams, McPherson, and Kindle. That's every RB on the active roster.
Hennessy's injury: This was the QB I favored early, mostly in part to his elusive nature as a QB. West has played well this year and I'm not surprised by that, but I did think (still do in fact) that Hennessy's passing is plenty good enough and his movement will create more big plays, more long plays, and more rushing yards that are EXTREMELY difficult to defend. Part of why Vernon had such an easy passing game (IMO) is that coaches that played EWU were reluctant to drop everyone all the time, and took risks to bring pressure a variety of ways that often left them open to more big plays. We haven't seen much of that with West and Hennessy can scramble and extend plays.
It's tough to have consistency running the ball when you go through so many key players at RB and on the OL. Let's face it EAG fans, if we'd seen the future in regard to all the injuries alone, we'd have lowered our expectations for our rushing game. I know I expected for our rushing game to have a monster year, and thought Wilson in particular was in for an amazing season; but the injuries definitely impacted those hopes.
How the games have gone: Having seen our team fall behind so early has also hurt our rushing game. Mix that with all the injuries and it's easy for me to understand why we are seeing the play selection and focus on the passing game. We do afterall have an All Galaxy WR. He's a safe bet and his stats are what they are because our rushing game has had it's struggles. That said, there is no better play call than any play that puts the ball in Cooper Kupps hands. Falling behind too btw has led to us needing to score quickly, and passing is the best way for this team to do that because Kupp, Bourne, etc are our best scoring threats on any given play, especially when Wilson isn't on the field.
Silver lining: We have the staff, players, and scheme to have a great rushing attack. We just need to play better early in games, and get healthy come playoff time. Sometimes struggles like this build character and team toughness like nothing else can. If we find ourselves healthy and in the playoffs, I think we might see our best football peaking at the perfect time. Stay optimistic EAG fans, this team may surprise us this week and beyond! :clap:
