This was kind of false advertising with saying today was a scrimmage. There was no tackling, quarterbacks were still in orange jerseys. Today was just 11-on-11 two-hand touch just like all of training camp has been.
The same crew of guys were held out today: DT Jamal Milan, DT Kenyon Jackson, LB Jimmy Marchese, CB Dylan Wyatt, S Bennett Williams and OL Jordyn Slaughter.
Offense was moving the ball well once again. Lot of quick passes such as slants. Several RPOs and inside zone runs. Defense put up more resistance today than the previous days.
Your returners are looking like WR Dominic Stampley and RB Dre Brown on kick returns and WR Mike Dudek returning punts.
Surprising amount of fans showed up today. My "guesstimate" would be roughly 400 people in the stands.
OC Rod Smith will be calling plays from up in the box this year. Said there's no air-conditioning down on the sidelines.
Offense
A.J. Bush gave the fans a show. He did it all. He hit the short to intermediate throws on time and with perfect accuracy. Made some spectacular throws to WR Ricky Smalling down the field -- those two may have something brewing this year. Also showed off his speed, had a couple rushing touchdowns but it's hard to tell how far he would've gone since they aren't tackling.
M.J. Rivers looked like the second best quarterback on the field. Rivers shows a lot of poise in the pocket and delivers his passes accurately. His deep ball has been there also the last couple of practices.
Matt Robinson got some first team reps today, went three-and-out, but still a sign that the coaches have been liking what they've been seeing from him.
Smalling has dominated here lately. It seems if the ball is thrown anywhere in his direction, he's more than likely bringing it down. Arguably the best skilled position player on the team. His awareness to where the sideline is has been impressive, always making sure he gets one or two feet down after every catch by there.
The run game has improved so much since the start of camp. Could be the offensive line just getting more familiar with the scheme or just improved play by them as a whole, but either way, much better than before.
Got to see a lot of Ra'Von Bonner with the the first team. Just a solid all-around back. Smith said he really likes his blocking ability, which is how I think Bonner is going to see the field this year is in packages where he's blocking then maybe leaks off into flat. Or if it's a designed QB run, he becomes the lead blocker, that was the case today.
Rivers and WR Edwin Carter connected on a long ball today. I've mentioned it before, but I've really liked how Carter has progressed throughout camp. As soon as he adds some muscle to him, he'll see legitimate snaps.
Freshman OL Rueben Unije saw some second team snaps. He had been held out of a majority of camp and when he was playing, was running with the third team.
Defense
Took the defense a couple of series to get going, but once they did, it seemed like the offense and the defense were equally matched at times,
Guys like DE Bobby Roundtree, DT Lere Oladipo and DT Calvin Avery continued to shine with the defensive line. DE Ayo Shogbonyo had a really solid day, recording two sacks. He's made a good impression on the coaches since moving from LB to DE. With Roundtree adding more weight, you can already tell how much more of an all-around defender he is. We already know he can make an impact pass rushing, but he's really taking large strides in becoming a run stopper on the edge.
Tough for the LBs to really stand out when they can't tackle, but LBs Del'Shawn Phillips, Jake Hansen and Dele Harding are looking like a very solid LB corps.
Some strange things in the secondary potentially. CB Nate Hobbs has been getting bumped down from first team to second team and CBs Cameron Watkins and Tony Adams have been the first team CBs. Hobbs' name may be amongst the group of players that may be suspended come the fall.
CBs Sydney Brown and James Knight have been your nicklebacks. Brown will more than likely be the starter come Kent St. and Knight as the backup. Brown seems to make a play every day of camp. Athletic, tough DB that has speed to him too.
Defense had a pick-six today after a PD from CB Ron Hardge III was caught and taken to the house by CB Christian Bobak. Hardge is another freshman DB along with Martin and several others that the coaches have been very pleased with.
Speaking of Martin, he has been getting more first team reps lately, and picked off Bush on a pass that should've been thrown away. Athletic play nonetheless.
And that's it for your 2018 training camp notes. Hope you've enjoyed the content we've provided and be on the lookout for more here soon.
Thoughts and Questions?
The same crew of guys were held out today: DT Jamal Milan, DT Kenyon Jackson, LB Jimmy Marchese, CB Dylan Wyatt, S Bennett Williams and OL Jordyn Slaughter.
Offense was moving the ball well once again. Lot of quick passes such as slants. Several RPOs and inside zone runs. Defense put up more resistance today than the previous days.
Your returners are looking like WR Dominic Stampley and RB Dre Brown on kick returns and WR Mike Dudek returning punts.
Surprising amount of fans showed up today. My "guesstimate" would be roughly 400 people in the stands.
OC Rod Smith will be calling plays from up in the box this year. Said there's no air-conditioning down on the sidelines.
Offense
A.J. Bush gave the fans a show. He did it all. He hit the short to intermediate throws on time and with perfect accuracy. Made some spectacular throws to WR Ricky Smalling down the field -- those two may have something brewing this year. Also showed off his speed, had a couple rushing touchdowns but it's hard to tell how far he would've gone since they aren't tackling.
M.J. Rivers looked like the second best quarterback on the field. Rivers shows a lot of poise in the pocket and delivers his passes accurately. His deep ball has been there also the last couple of practices.
Matt Robinson got some first team reps today, went three-and-out, but still a sign that the coaches have been liking what they've been seeing from him.
Smalling has dominated here lately. It seems if the ball is thrown anywhere in his direction, he's more than likely bringing it down. Arguably the best skilled position player on the team. His awareness to where the sideline is has been impressive, always making sure he gets one or two feet down after every catch by there.
The run game has improved so much since the start of camp. Could be the offensive line just getting more familiar with the scheme or just improved play by them as a whole, but either way, much better than before.
Got to see a lot of Ra'Von Bonner with the the first team. Just a solid all-around back. Smith said he really likes his blocking ability, which is how I think Bonner is going to see the field this year is in packages where he's blocking then maybe leaks off into flat. Or if it's a designed QB run, he becomes the lead blocker, that was the case today.
Rivers and WR Edwin Carter connected on a long ball today. I've mentioned it before, but I've really liked how Carter has progressed throughout camp. As soon as he adds some muscle to him, he'll see legitimate snaps.
Freshman OL Rueben Unije saw some second team snaps. He had been held out of a majority of camp and when he was playing, was running with the third team.
Defense
Took the defense a couple of series to get going, but once they did, it seemed like the offense and the defense were equally matched at times,
Guys like DE Bobby Roundtree, DT Lere Oladipo and DT Calvin Avery continued to shine with the defensive line. DE Ayo Shogbonyo had a really solid day, recording two sacks. He's made a good impression on the coaches since moving from LB to DE. With Roundtree adding more weight, you can already tell how much more of an all-around defender he is. We already know he can make an impact pass rushing, but he's really taking large strides in becoming a run stopper on the edge.
Tough for the LBs to really stand out when they can't tackle, but LBs Del'Shawn Phillips, Jake Hansen and Dele Harding are looking like a very solid LB corps.
Some strange things in the secondary potentially. CB Nate Hobbs has been getting bumped down from first team to second team and CBs Cameron Watkins and Tony Adams have been the first team CBs. Hobbs' name may be amongst the group of players that may be suspended come the fall.
CBs Sydney Brown and James Knight have been your nicklebacks. Brown will more than likely be the starter come Kent St. and Knight as the backup. Brown seems to make a play every day of camp. Athletic, tough DB that has speed to him too.
Defense had a pick-six today after a PD from CB Ron Hardge III was caught and taken to the house by CB Christian Bobak. Hardge is another freshman DB along with Martin and several others that the coaches have been very pleased with.
Speaking of Martin, he has been getting more first team reps lately, and picked off Bush on a pass that should've been thrown away. Athletic play nonetheless.
And that's it for your 2018 training camp notes. Hope you've enjoyed the content we've provided and be on the lookout for more here soon.
Thoughts and Questions?
