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2nd and 7 at NYJ 27 (13:16) (Shotgun) G.Smith pass deep right to J.Amaro to CHI 30 for 43 yards (C.Conte).
Good decision, Extending Play
Here’s Smith making a decision to extend a play and getting a good result. I thought about saying that Smith left the pocket early but looking down the field and at the pocket at the time he left, it made some sense. By running to his right he gave himself some time to extend the play and also potentially run for a gain, or just throw it away at the end of his run. But he kept his eyes downfield and intended to pass and his movement uncovered Amaro who recognizes his QB was running in the opposite direction of his route and changes direction to find a wide open space. Smith places a good ball for being on the run and having to throw against his momentum. If this ball was thrown by Rodgers or Wilson it probably ends up ahead of Amaro and he might actually reach the endzone but that’s nothing to fault Smith for.
1st and 10 at CHI 30 (12:34) (Shotgun) G.Smith pass short middle to C.Ivory to CHI 26 for 4 yards (D.Williams, J.Bostic).
Cover-3 Zone
Smith’s facing pressure very quickly off the snap, so there’s not a lot to read into. I actually like that he waits until Ivory’s turned around to throw to him instead of throwing it earlier, he kind of risks it by taking a bit longer but like I mentioned before, Ivory’s not exactly known for his hands.
2nd and 6 at CHI 26 (11:57) (Shotgun) G.Smith pass short right to J.Kerley to CHI 15 for 11 yards (J.Bostic).
Cover-3 Zone
A much better screen throw. Nothing else to look at here.
2nd and 9 at CHI 14 (10:43) (Shotgun) G.Smith pass short right to J.Cumberland to CHI 10 for 4 yards (L.Briggs).
Cover-2 Zone
Another quick throw with little analysis to do. But there’s some theory-crafting we can do here and ask if Smith made this decision too quickly. In the redzone it’s important to be decisive but Smith sees what the defense is giving him, he has a man all the way on the right, right past his target of Cumberland that would have been the next read in his progression and is much more likely to get the first down. I can’t say that he did anything wrong here in fact he does the right thing by taking the curling TE on this Stick concept, but it’s worth asking that if Aaron Rodgers is in this exact situation, does he take this same throw just to move closer to the first down or does he take that extra look to the right?
3rd and 5 at CHI 10 (10:05) (Shotgun) G.Smith pass incomplete short middle to J.Cumberland (S.Paea).
Extending Play
Cover-2 Zone
It’s tough to criticize Smith on a play where he actually is the only reason why this play has a chance but another question that has to be asked is if he properly sets his feet here after he dodges the defender, doesn’t do that ‘jump pass’ motion that he does and instead throws the ball properly: does he get the proper drive on the ball to get it past Paea before his hands get to it? These are the tough questions that you have to ask when your projecting a players future.
1st and 10 at NYJ 23 (7:21) (Shotgun) G.Smith pass short left to J.Kerley to NYJ 39 for 16 yards (K.Fuller, T.Manning).
Cover-1 Man
Smith’s fake here isn’t perfect, but because he crouches the entire time while giving it, he sells it decently. You can tell that the MLB’s both had to respect it and took their first steps immediately towards Ivory’s direction before beginning to turn back into their zone. He throws this a little high for Kerley, but otherwise it’s well placed allowing him to grab the ball uncontested and brace for the incoming hit. If he threw it lower this could have resulted in a better gain though, it’s another potential play that’s being left on the field.
1st and 10 at NYJ 45 (6:54) G.Smith pass short left to D.Nelson to NYJ 45 for 6 yards (K.Fuller). FUMBLES (K.Fuller), ball out of bounds at NYJ 40.
Cover-3 Zone
Just a simple well timed Curl. Nothing to criticize.
2nd and 9 at NYJ 40 (6:18) G.Smith pass incomplete short right.
Cover-3 Zone
Nothing to see here either, the rusher isn’t held up long enough and is able to get in Smith’s face to force a throwaway.
3rd and 9 at NYJ 40 (6:12) (Shotgun) G.Smith pass short middle to J.Kerley to CHI 44 for 16 yards (I.Frey, C.Conte).
Hanging in The Pocket, Good Placement, Anticipation
Cover-1 Man
This is a nice play. Smith’s pocket isn’t holding up too well, but he’s hanging in it to deliver the throw. He throws the ball right on his step up, just as Kerley is turning his head and gives him a good ball. He also places the ball right on Kerley instead of ahead, which is a good move here. The player covering Kerley is too far off to make a play on it and if it’s thrown ahead the LB peeling off of Cumberland’s route might slam down on Kerley and knock the ball out.
1st and 10 at CHI 24 (4:32) (Shotgun) G.Smith pass incomplete deep left to D.Nelson.
Bad Placement
Cover-3 Zone
This ball is placed way behind Nelson. Smith doesn’t have a lot of space in this pocket, but his throwing motion looks pretty good to me. It looks like he just throws this to the wrong spot.
3rd and 5 at CHI 19 (3:50) (Shotgun) G.Smith pass deep middle to J.Kerley for 19 yards, TOUCHDOWN. PENALTY on CHI-D.McCray, Unnecessary Roughness, 15 yards, enforced between downs. N.Folk extra point is GOOD, Center-T.Purdum, Holder-R.Quigley.
Bad Mechanics, Bad Touch
Cover-2 Zone
Smith really refuses to throw the full motion despite having the space in the pocket to do so. Watching the endzone cam, you see that CB #31 Isaiah Frey is just slightly short of getting his hand on this ball. If Smith puts the full throwing motion into this throw, and drives his back leg forward (or his back hip further forward) as he throws, how much faster does this ball get there and how much less of a chance does that CB have on it? The answer is probably a minuscule amount but Football is a game of inches. A good result doesn’t excuse a bad process. Smith could have also just thrown the ball further toward the back of the endzone and taken the huge space over Kerley instead of trying to make a line drive to fit it into the window between Kerley and the trailing defender, which would have saved Kerley from the hit he took. Instead, Kerley is forced to turn back, slow down, and adjust while catching this ball.
1st and 10 at CHI 46 (1:30) (Shotgun) G.Smith sacked at CHI 47 for -1 yards (S.Paea).
Cover-3 Zone
A broken screen play, Smith tries to get something out of it but it just doesn’t happen.
2nd and 11 at CHI 47 (:59) (Shotgun) G.Smith pass incomplete deep left to J.Kerley [L.Houston].
Hanging In The Pocket, Bad Placement
Cover-3 Zone
Smith’s shown tendencies in games later in the season to leave the pocket for seemingly no reason or just show bad pocket presence altogether but on this play he steps up and hangs in to try and deliver this throw as it’s drawn up.. Someone might say he’s hit before he throws, but from the overhead view you can see clearly that he’s hit after he throws, so that’s not the reason for this poor throw. Smith’s just making this mistake himself, and it doesn’t look like it’s an issue of mechanics either.
3rd and 11 at CHI 47 (:54) (Shotgun) G.Smith pass incomplete short middle to B.Powell [S.Paea].
Bad Decision
Cover-2 Zone
Smith’s decisive when pressure is in his face and is quick to change direction in the pocket over and over again here. It’s much better than the previous time where he tried to stutter step after getting a second pressure. Smith can make the first rusher miss, but he isn’t expecting that both of the outside rushers are ready to make a move on him and he still gets out the ball quickly before anyone gets to him, throwing it to spot that makes for a safe incompletion. What’s obvious is that Smith has trouble when he sees that second man coming down on him, so he can’t do what players like Wilson do when they consistently make two or three people miss while behind the LOS. Smith could easily have found space to run if he had spun right after taking his right step and ran to the left, but he panics and turns his whole body towards Paea giving him a chance to go for the ball.
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