I love the way Geno has been playing.. the guy is just tearing it up. But lets keep things into perspective and be patient in our evaluation. Is it not true that Geno has won what, 7 or 8 games? He absolutely playing well. He is absolutely looking like he is the answer to Seattles QB issues. But...
The truth is he has a lot to prove. He has won 7 regular season. games for the Hawks . Lets see how he does against top talent. Lets see how he does vs the Chiefs, Rams and the Niners. Lets see if he can actually win the division and make a play off run. If he does these things then yeah give him a big contract but until then he has a lot to prove to him self and his team mates.
Im rooting for him but for now im not seeing himvas anything but a strong QB who is having a decent year. Lets see what he brings for the rest of the season.
Thoughts?
If you are evaluating him based purely off of wins and losses or TDs to Ints... pure stats, i can see how you may feel as though the he needs to prove more. But if you watch what he's doing, play by play, how he's moving safeties, the accuracy with which he's placing passes and how solid his reads are... those things translate whether hes playing the no 1 defense in the league or the no 32 unit. That's why all the hand wringing and 'prove it' talk last year when he lit up the Jags was misplaced. When you watched the film, it didnt matter WHO he was playing because WHAT he was doing was 100% correct, play to play, read to read, and throw to throw. He did the same kind of things in that game that he's doing now against stiffer talent and teams that are 100% preparing for him every week and it doesnt matter.
An example of just how good the dude is playing - on his first TD toss to DK, DK starts inside and then turns out to the corner of the endzone. He has a 1/2 step on Hamilton and Geno COULD have tried to lead him to the corner and give him a ball to high point. Instead, just as DK turns to face the LOS, Geno gives him the ball INSIDE - an easier completion and one the defender cant see coming. DK recognizes the ball, stops his corner route, catches the ball, basically standing still, taps his toes... TD. A simple example of how the QB throws his wr open, leading him to the spot that gives him the highest percentage chance to make the grab, recognizing the advantage the WR has over the CB, in a moment the WR cant possibly know whether he's actually open or not.
The moment Geno releases the ball, DK is getting his head turned to see where its going. Instead of going outside, Geno hits him backside for an easy catch and toe-tap.
But Geno's performance isnt even solely about HIS ability. When you look at the way Shane is making his job easier, through play design and mixing up looks... even in the most stressed situations and against defenses that are more stout, the guy will STILL have as good an advantage as one could ask for. On Geno's 2nd TD, the play, right off the bat is designed to go to Tyler. The route concepts are designed to get Tyler isolated against the Safety. At the snap, Geno can pretty clearly see what the coverage is showing and who the D's man responsibilities are. Its a simple read and toss where the play does the work for him. The D is committed to doubling DK. Eskridge and DK run an out and an in respectively, creating a simple one-on-one between Tyler and Baker -Tyler wins that 110% of the time. TD. And given the 4 man rush, Geno also knows that if Tyler isnt open, he can break the pocket and pick up a few yards (maybe score) or that he has an outlet in the flat.
How good is the play design? DK is celebrating as Tyler is still going to the ground with the ball. Shane designed a 8 yard envelope for Geno and Tyler to work his 1v1 matchup. Perfect Iso. And the players on offense know its working and believe in it 100%.
Sure, much of the sport is a mental game - managing emotions, keeping an even keel... not getting overconfident, maintaining your preparation, etc. Those things are dependent upon an individual committing themselves endlessly to their craft and taking nothing for granted. We dont yet know how Geno will handle his succcess and the spotlight that's now on him. Will the playoff stage be too big? Would his composure break in a championship game? That, you cant know until he's in that situation, but the wk1 win against the Donks was a reasonable tell as to how he takes the entire world measuring him and his performance.
OR ... how he will handle situations where maybe things dont go well for a game or two (he acquited himself VERY well against the Cards after the pick 6, so thats a good sign).
But from an X's and O's perspective... from a pure Qb'ing perspective... he's shown plenty enough that he knows the game and how to play it at a very high level. If he continues to prepare the way he has and he has the supporting cast that he does and Shane working with him, I think he will only get better.
How good is the play design? DK is celebrating as Tyler is still going to the ground with the ball. Shane designed a 8 yard envelope for Geno and Tyler to work his 1v1 matchup. Perfect Iso. And the players on offense know its working and believe in it 100%.
