FOOTBALL

USC Sunday Buzz: We Were Promised A Better Defense

A few more thoughts on the San Jose State game:

Remember Lincoln Riley said right after last season he would spend more time with the defense? Did you notice a difference? The defense on Saturday looked like a typical Lincoln Riley defense. Unfortunately.

If you want to blame Alex Grinch, remember it was Riley who insisted on bringing him back.

  • There were four holding penalties on the USC secondary. Frankly, holding and grabbing has been a trademark of the secondary under Donte Williams.
  • It could have been worse. There were a couple plays where the San Jose State running back was completely uncovered and would have scored a TD if the QB had only seen him.
  • Riley said USC put a spy on QB Chevan Cordeiro. Maybe some assignments were busted because it was Game 1 but it didn’t look like there was a spy on some key plays.
  • Cornerback Domani Jackson played in seven games last season. I mention this because I still tend to look at him as a freshman. But he’s not. So that made his mistake on the touchdown pass at the end of the first half worse. It also appeared to be a coverage USC had not played before, which didn’t help.
  • I really don’t like the number of times Caleb Williams got hit, especially in the first half. Williams is the franchise and needs to be kept healthy especially in these games where we know the outcome.

Worse, I’ve heard from some within the program that Williams running more this season is actually part of the plan.

90 thoughts on “USC Sunday Buzz: We Were Promised A Better Defense”

    1. This Trojans team will be 7-5 at best, let’s not fool ourselves.. lol 😂 Lincoln Riley ignores line of scrimmage dominance, so until he changes his philosophy, the Trojans will never advance in the playoffs if they happen to qualify.

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      1. Caleb needs to roll out of the pocket (the collapsing one) and not trust this line too much too soon. More room to make plays in the flat.

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      2. There was another coach who didn’t give a shit about the either line, who was that coach ???? Oh, that’s right, FUCKING HUGS HELTON

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      2. Jim Leonhard seems to want to stay within CFB and the Big Ten footprint including i would think west coast. I could see Leonhard and Riley getting together next off-season.

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      4. I remember Pete Carroll’s first year when he said, “We are going to have an attacking style of defense – turnovers are the other guy’s problem.” Troy Polamalu was just coming into his own and there was some talent – not a lot. But the scheme and the coaching made up for that. Grinch has been given a great deal of rope here and he will hang himself with it if he under achieves.

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  2. Riley isn’t interested in defense, never will be.

    Great head coaches see a weakness on their staff and fix it, Riley had a top flight DC he could have hired, Leonhard but chose to keep his buddy. His DB coach SUCKS, but he’s still employed .

    See a trend ?

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    1. Karma:
      Riley IS interested in a top flight Defensive Coordinator. Top Flight Defensive Coordinators aren’t interested in him. It’s important to remember Grinch wasn’t his first choice when he came over. That tells you everything you need to know about Grinch —he’s second choice.
      #AndHeCoachesLikeIt
      #[AndDon’tEvenGetMeStartedOnTheGuyCoachingTheCorners]

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  3. I DVRd the game last night and it was comical and sad at the same time at the amount of ball washing Yogi Roth did on Alex Grinch and “The New and Improved USC Defense” this year and how they couldn’t wait to get out on the field to show people what they got. Well, for four quarters we saw a rinse and repeat of last year on defense with players missing assignments, being out of position, missing tackles, and going John Wayne and doing their own thing. Imagine, scoring 56 points and feeling like the game was in doubt the entire night. Simply embarrassing.

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      1. Last night’s problems weren’t on Roth —wish they were. The corners are playing the kind of football we old men on Maui play at Whale Park—- grab the receiver before he makes the catch. Donte is coaching that —it isn’t simply happening by accident over and over.
        #IfYouCan’tTeachTechnique,Teach”RecreationPark”Holding

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      2. The consensus this morning on the sports radio talking heads was that Celeb Williams can’t survive the season if he continues to take that many hits each game.

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  4. Unless he was injured, why didn’t Raesjon Davis with his speed get into the game. At least he could have caught the Qb, where neither of the other LB’s could. Grinch is over schemeing. He has talent but they are tied up in schemes instead of playing hard nosed football. Domani was a perfect example. If Riley cannot see it then he is as bad as Grinch.

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    1. I don’t know, that San Jose quarterback was pretty quick on his feet

      And the little No. 32 being tackle-flipped, first time I have seen an involuntary football flip, and it was neat how both players shook hands

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  5. Speaking of Wiley, “What was his deal” with the teenage-like tantrum.
    He was ahead 56-28 in the waning moments of the game
    and he holds it up for several minutes while he screams at the refs
    And he was wrong!

    And Celeb once again pouting and carrying on after a big sack near the end zone.

    These are the leaders?

    And most of the Trojan supporters got ahead of themselves anointing this team as an’ undefeated possibility’ when it is only year-2 in the rebuilding of the Trojan football team.

    Even McKay and Carroll needed 3-years

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    1. In his first season PC lost 5 games by a total of 19 points, only ” bad loss was at ND by 9 points, and he had little talent to work with. Next season he’s 11-2, both loses on the road to ranked teams by a total of 10 points. PC actually knows and cares about defense, Riley, not so much.

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    2. I think he is smart to take it to the refs. Last year they had a huge number of intentionally wrong calls that flipped the first Utah game against USC. If I were Riley I would make a big deal of all their mistakes, so they know they cant get away with it.

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      1. Implied premise: If Riley gets on the refs now we’ll get better officiating down the road.
        #IWish
        #GetReadyForTheWorstCallsYou’veEverSeenIn2023

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    4. He argued the ball has to go forward 10 yds before the kicking team is permitted any blocks – the ball hadn’t gone 10 yds when the Spartan took down the SC linesman – Riley was right to argue the call esp as San Jose was give the ball on that onside kick.

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  6. I thought the D line was much better. Both Byrd and Lucas were in the backfield repeatedly. Gentry had some big plays. The problem appeared to be the players were out of position and gave up big plays. Same as last year but at least they weren’t being pushed around. This is fixable and Grinch needs to fix it.

    Why can’t Caleb find an open primary or secondary receiver within 3 seconds and deliver him the ball. At times he was standing around for 5 seconds as if none of his four receivers were open. Did the same thing last year. The offense did not play in rhythm. I would rather see Caleb scramble and throw on the run then stay in the pocket for 5 seconds. He makes big plays when he throws on the run.

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    1. Agree with your points. The d-line is better, but coverage and linebackers are still a big problem. I didnt think Mason Cobb was that great. Better than Lee, but not great. And Tackett is not ready yet. Let’s see more Raesjon.

      I cant believe they didnt work with Caleb on speeding up getting the ball out over the off-season. I am not a big fan of Kingsbury, he is overrated. If he is working with the QB then that might not be helpful.

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    2. Helton [and his brother] screwed up Sam by forcing him to stay in the pocket in 2017 after his great scrambling performances in 2016.
      Caleb looked uncomfortable throughout several series. Why? Cuz —like every other dual threat QB —he likes to follow his impulses and take off when a play is breaking down. That’s his genius — knowing when and how to save a bad play.
      #ItWouldBeNiceIfTheyLetCalebBeCaleb…
      #…ButSomethingTellsMeTheyWon’t..
      #[HeLookedOverCoachedThroughoutTheEntireGame]

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      1. He stayed in the pocket after tossing a TD in a busted play. He earned an intentional grounding and a sack around the two yard line.
        #Don’t yell at the quarterback after he saves your butt on a busted play.

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  7. Does anyone believe that having the same unqualified DC and awful DL and DB coaches result in better play than last year or the previous OU years? Yes, even if you sprinkle in a few good players, it’s not gonna happen.

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  8. Lightem up fellas!!

    It is Game 1, would you rather have Helton et al?

    The CFP predictions by the Rah Rahs was always over the top and maybe wishful thinking.

    This team “has” a chance to be really good especially with returning heisman winner, solid running game and Z Branch on special teams.

    I liked aspects of the defense but yes there was troubling coverages, stupid penalties etc. The transfer portal group is good. Imagine if portal didn’t exist, we would be really bad with all of Helton’s jr’s and sr’s.

    If this team is 9 and 3 or better playing in final P 12 championship game in Las Vegas than I am satisfied. The ND, Oregon, Washington and UCLA game will be a nail bitter. I predict during those games some idiot on here will want CLR tarmacked.

    Overall, had a great time last night at the Coliseum and can report there was no Wolf sighting.

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      1. If we’re only 9-3 at the end of the regular season—with Heisman winner Caleb and the best receiving corps in the country [and Vegas favoring us in every game]— something is wrong….
        #AndYouWouldn’tBeAn”Idiot”ForWonderingIfIt’sTheCoaching

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  9. There you have it “from the horses mouth,” an actual patron–
    The SC fans had a great time at the game last night
    It’s mere entertainment, and “That’s all folks!”

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    2. We were back & forth between the game & Daytona.

      Watching Ryan Preece walk away from his crash was the highlight of our evening because a loss is just a loss. But a life is a life.

      If you haven’t seen it, check it out on YouTube. They kept him overnight merely as a precaution, but he was released this morning.

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    3. LJ

      Big fan of yours.

      Not sure you can a season ticket holder since 1985 a “patron.”
      Maybe nutz to keep tockets so long.

      Anyway after the deaths in my family this year, I needed an escape/diversion.

      Peace LJ.

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      1. YoungDole, I certainly meant no disparagement using the term “patron” which to me means someone who is devoted to a cause and gives financial support to it.

        Sorry for your family deaths; I just buried my brother Saturday last

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  10. By the way, those who posted scores that exceeded the betting line of SC winning by more than 30.5 points was–
    11 losses
    3 wins
    So even if there were a formal “betting” contest those 11 would already pretty much be out

    I know why my wife and I enjoyed the game so much-
    SC was never truly threatened,
    So we were rooting for the offense for both sides
    We didn’t want to see any old pesky defense.
    We leave that up to the real Trojans fans to dissect.
    Besides, I wanted to win my San Jose bet

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      1. I don’t think I have ever rooted for the opposing team’s offense
        against SC like I did last night, Michael, but the game was in hand
        and it was liberating and much more exciting than rooting for
        only one team

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  11. “Hold the presses,” one last comment from Wolf who in effect wrote, ‘Who else in L.A. besides him exclaimed how the SC Trojans
    had trouble in the offensive line and defense?’

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  12. Hold up let’s get it straight. Grinchy you gave up 400 yds 7.0 per play 5 run plays of 20 yds and occasional pressure on QB. Lucas, Muhammad are the speed studs. Manning can you teach countermoves like spin moves or hand placement. Tired of seeing RE just using speed to get to the QB. If this keeps up we will not get to CFP. LR start finding a DC who has a proven background Oregron? Vennables? I say Vennables because if Oklahoma goes 8-4, they will not retain him.

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    1. If Venables goes 8- 4 [or worse] he’ll be unavailable in 2024 ….while taking an extended vacation in North Korea….

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      1. MG, we need a DC who can bring a staff who develops or one who meshes a scheme that does not require meanless Omaha movement before the snap. Your coaching like they have ADD, then revert 2 Bi-polar comments at the presser . Hopefully by the Stanford game you will have a real depth chart and set rotations.

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  13. Watched some highlights of the game this morning and I think some of the o-line transfers are in trouble. Multiple plays where Jarrett and Tarquin just whiff on blocks, hitting only air. Opportunity for Murphy and Quinones.

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  14. MG, we need a DC who can bring a staff who develops or one who meshes a scheme that does not require meanless Omaha movement before the snap. Your coaching like they have ADD, then revert 2 Bi-polar comments at the presser . Hopefully by the Stanford game you will have a real depth chart and set rotations.

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    1. I think that’s the way Lincoln is looking at these first 2 games —some players [guys dropping passes or arm tackling or missing blocks] are gonna get themselves more or less eliminated from the rotation by the time we face Stanford….

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  15. Here we go again, SC by 38.5 points over the Nevada Wolf Pack
    How do the players get up for such an uneven talented team?

    Branch showed once again that the best play in football for sustained excitement is not the long pass completion but the long run

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    1. Yeah, exactly, John! You don’t get that “oh, fuck, he’s going all the way!” excitement on a long completion…
      #ThatLastCutToTheInsideWasAThingOfBeauty

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  16. Football, it’s starts on the line of scrimmage. It ends with blocking and tackling.

    This team has little drop-off between 1st and 2nd teams.

    This team actually has 3rd stringers who are better than other teams 1st string

    The coaches are making adjustments faster and in game, not waiting for end of periods.

    The Trojans won by 28 points. In spite of playing the most players in Lincoln Riley’s coaching career.

    Players understand that if they don’t take ownership of their opportunities, then they will be stuck in the bench.

    I love the Trojans team motto this year.

    Fight On and stop worrying.

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    1. TW, I agree the more players the more bad film, you must evaluate. TW, the more you have to see how bad your teaching habits are. This week work on DB’s recognizing who covers the WR on the wide side of field. Stop them from jolding

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      2. Eric, the issues for the secondary comes from over-coaching. Grinch and Williams need to get more consistency from everyone but Roland-Williams. Stop putting Wright on an island do much, don’t run inverted cover 2 in passing situations and mix bump and run with mirror man-to-man coverage. And fix the zones. Blitz responsibility was all over the place. No one criticizes Brian Odom like they do Donate Williams. All the d coaches should be skewered. I will give the whole staff the benefit of the doubt. They have their “we told you” videos to improve the assignments. Now it’s time to build up fortitude.

        Bear and Lucas could be the best defensive linemen in the conference this year. Lucas, Alexander, Barrs and Sullivan. I saw that group twice. Those four and Gentry, Cobb and Roland-Wallace should be seven in the box with Branch paired with Bullock on 3rd downs.

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  17. And what is up with having ‘Celeb’ running?–
    It’s ok if he sometimes sees he has got yards of free green grass available and can slide to a stop
    but no more planned option plays, please.
    He has a $50-million+ NFL contract waiting for him
    and more importantly, how far SC goes is depends on him
    remaining vertical

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    1. I don’t know about you John….but…..I’m more worried about Caleb getting blindsided than him taking off on short scrambles & sliding when he sees somebody in front of him….

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      5. Cowardly Gabby aka TebowObama aka The Guy who posts as So Cal's Wife & LawyerJohn & Pudly & Plow Horse & steveg49 & DOJ & Scott Wolf and Frank Young's avatar Cowardly Gabby aka TebowObama aka The Guy who posts as So Cal's Wife & LawyerJohn & Pudly & Plow Horse & steveg49 & DOJ & Scott Wolf and Frank Young says:

        When are you meeting to fight Plow Horse like you promised, Cowardly Gabby aka TebowObama aka The Guy who posts as So Cal’s Wife & LawyerJohn & Pudly & Plow Horse & steveg49 & DOJ & Scott Wolf and Frank Young ?

        Plow Horse
        JUNE 22, 2023 AT 8:02 PM
        Gabby:

        Explain how a policy of hiring the best person for the job is racist. You brought it up. Please answer instead of being a chickensh*t.

        Also, I note that when you want to really denigrate the wife of someone you don’t like on this board, presumably a white person, you say that she has a black dildo. Or you suggest that she is cheating with a black man. To you a white woman with a black man is the ultimate denigration. Is that racist? Frankly, I think you are the only truly racist person who regularly posts on this board. Like most leftists, you accuse others of doing the very thing that you do -treat black person as incapable of competing on equal terms with white people. I invite you to explain yourself but predict you will be a chickensh*t.

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    1. San Jose IS real…. but I know what you mean: we gotta be a whole shitload better on defense by the time we meet up with a certain team in South Bend…

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  20. One thing we haven’t talked about was that San Jose was a pretty good football team and that Qb lived up to the hype about him. I think USC pretty easily beat a good team that could win their conference if they stay healthy. Being the first game of the season it was great to see so many different players on the field getting valuable playing time early in the season, especially all the freshmen. They got a taste of D1 game speed. Some did better (Branch) than others (Noa) but hopefully they will get a little more game playing time next week. Not worried about the stupid polls this week as nothing matters till we get into late October.

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    1. There were 6 missed tackles on that ONE long San Jose run in the second half …actually the runner was NEVER tackled —the refs blew the whistle with 4 or 5 USC players grabbing at his arms……
      #….WeNEVERGotHimDown…
      #..HeWalkedAwaySmiling

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      3. Cowardly Gabby aka TebowObama aka The Guy who posts as So Cal's Wife & LawyerJohn & Pudly & Plow Horse & steveg49 & DOJ & Scott Wolf and Frank Young's avatar Cowardly Gabby aka TebowObama aka The Guy who posts as So Cal's Wife & LawyerJohn & Pudly & Plow Horse & steveg49 & DOJ & Scott Wolf and Frank Young says:

        We hoped the habitual liar and coward had disappeared forever but you have returned like herpes, Cowardly Gabby aka TebowObama aka The Guy who posts as So Cal’s Wife & LawyerJohn & Pudly & Plow Horse & steveg49 & DOJ & Scott Wolf and Frank Young . We know you lied about knowing Dana White.

        When will you keep your word and fight Plow Horse?

        Plow Horse
        JUNE 22, 2023 AT 9:57 PM
        Gabby:

        You have offended my wife, my mother and my father. All sexual inferences. I let the first two go because they are both deceased but not my wife. You are the one who offended my family, not visa versa. I have never brought your wife or parents into anything. It is therefore my call – boxing gym in Pasadena CA, Mr. tough guy. Give me a date and I will make the arrangements. Stop being a chickensh*t.

        And nobody believes you are friends with Dana White. If you ever read the news, he is a staunch conservative who left the country during Covid so that the Dems. couldn’t shut down UFC. He wouldn’t allow a pussy leftist like yourself anywhere near his octagon. Rummaging the dumpster outside of the premises for plastic bottles redeemable for 20 cents doesn’t mean you know Dana White you leftist, racist, pussy.

        Give me available dates.

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  23. This was a scrum. Long time ago college teams would face a JC team or cross town team for practice. That is what the SJ vs USC “game” was. Riley and Grinch operate on a policy of “show me”. They demand recruits show up for try outs where they can assess them first hand. Now they want to gauge players by who shows up for games. I would say Darwin Barlow is a “gamer” for example.

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    1. Yes…unfortunately we need 11 “gamers” on offense …and 11 more on defense….
      #WeHave8Or9OnOffense..
      #And6Or7OnDefense

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  24. I am not sure if there is a National player of the week for week “zero”. My pick is Zach Branch, who Austin Jones called “showtime”. He’s not “Adoree 2.0, he’s Zach 1.0. What a thrill to see a hometown(Vegas) kid light the Coli up.

    #FIGHT-ON

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    1. Cowardly Gabby aka TebowObama aka The Guy who posts as So Cal's Wife & LawyerJohn & Pudly & Plow Horse & steveg49 & DOJ & Scott Wolf and Frank Young's avatar Cowardly Gabby aka TebowObama aka The Guy who posts as So Cal's Wife & LawyerJohn & Pudly & Plow Horse & steveg49 & DOJ & Scott Wolf and Frank Young says:

      Your hometown is Skid Row, Cowardly Gabby aka TebowObama aka The Guy who posts as So Cal’s Wife & LawyerJohn & Pudly & Plow Horse & steveg49 & DOJ & Scott Wolf and Frank Young.

      When will you finally keep your word and fight Plow Horse you Coward?

      Plow Horse
      JUNE 22, 2023 AT 8:33 PM
      Gabby: I didn’t use the term “white guy.” The CEO of Ocean Gate used the term white guy. I suppose that reading comprehension isn’t one of your strengths. But since you brought my wife into it, something that you would never do if we met face to face, let’s meet up Mr. keyboard tough guy or are you going to chickensh*t out like you normally do. I work out at a boxing gym in Pasadena, CA. Name a date and time and I will make a reservation.

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  25. “Remember Lincoln Riley said right after last season he would spend more time with the defense? Did you notice a difference?”
    Yes! I did notice a difference. They’re going to be better this year. But I still think that they should gave Grinch the boot. They may after the season.
    “I really don’t like the number of times Caleb Williams got hit.” A number of times he got hit simply because he couldn’t find anyone open. You can’t protect him forever. What are the receivers doing when they see the QB in trouble?

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