Round 5 - Pick 140 - Dorian Thompson-Robinson, QB, UCLA

[mAo_mAo]

What I love about DTR is he seems to love the game so much that he is overcome with emotions at the end of that game.

You could see this means so much to him that he will strive to get better.

 

[buzzdog]

DTR played great the first half. He was on time, on target, and moved the chains consistently. He drove us down the field for what really should have been two TDs, but the refs clearly were not going to call shit yesterday. The only saving grace - they were consistent on both teams. Browns and Steelers got away with some stuff on the field yesterday. Lucky both teams were coached well enough that didn't escalate into a fight.

Had the refs been calling the game appropriately, we would have went into the locker room up 16-0 at halftime. Alas, they did not, and we had to settle for 10.

DTR the second half was not great. The running game was getting stuffed, and 90% of the passes were either screens or quick outs to the flat. There were a few of those that honestly may have been on DTR. He seemed eager to go to his safe read almost immediately. Now what I suspect the game plan was - He was given one read, and if the read wasn't there, dump it out. It sure looked like Kev had him on a clock - 2 seconds to make a read, or bail. He took a few shots towards Amari and Njoku, and these ultimately failed due to good pass defense, errant throws, or drops (looking at you Njoku). There were some dumps out to Ford or Hunt where he probably should have challenged the defense. However, he did not.

Keep in mind - when Lamar played this same defense, he went 22/38 for 192 and an INT. Watson went 22/40 for 235.

Yet he played within himself, likely executed within the gameplan, and kept the offense from committing game wrecking turnovers. And for that last drive, the clock was clearly taken away. All of a sudden, he stayed longer in the pocket. Not all of those drop backs were clean by the way, and he had a propensity to hold onto the ball a bit when the play wasn't there - but sure as hell he clearly made the throws that counted and got us to the promised land. I wouldn't say he's a complete project, I wouldn't judge him on two games. I don't think there's any argument that he has significantly improved between the two starts, and there is nothing saying he can't build off of this.

People want prime Deshaun Watson driving the bus for this team. I get it. I'd love to have a top 5 QB leading the offense. That's not in the cards. But what I don't understand is people coming to a conclusion that DTR will fail. There's a reason they play the games. Are we likely walking away with a Lombardi? No - 31 teams will fail at that pursuit. But we are still in it right now, and if they pull it off, the most likely scenario is DTR evolving and growing quickly to take control of this offense. And what a fucking story that would be.

He has the command of the ship, let's give the kid a chance to get it done.

There seems to be a lot of knee jerk reactions based on the worst parts of the game, and people are sticking with that as their position. After the first game he was deemed to be a deer in the headlights, which was fairly accurate. But then people decided that was who he is, period. Now people decide he's the guy who can't throw past 4 yards. Based on some parts of the game that could be considered accurate. But then when they try to say he can't be more than that? That's where they're digging their heels in on a game-time kneejerk opinion.

Young players grow under the right circumstances until they hit their ceiling whatever that is. I think it's safe to say that DTR has not hit his ceiling. It's legit to wonder how fast he can progress and how high he can raise his level of play. It is not legit to assume he already is everything he will ever be, not even for the remainder of the season. He can definitely grow and learn from experience, even if he's drinking from a fire hose right about now.

 

[CBBI]

For what it’s worth, Denver’s defense has been very good for more than a month at this point. It’s been a significant turnaround.

Anyone just looking at their season stats which are obviously skewed significantly by that nightmare 70 point outing by the Dolphins are going to be surprised in a bad way when they come out and play well on Sunday.

The Browns very likely aren’t going to come out and just dominate their defense. I wouldn’t be surprised whatsoever if the game plan is once again supremely conservative.

 

[Vee-Rex]

For what it’s worth, Denver’s defense has been very good for more than a month at this point. It’s been a significant turnaround.

Anyone just looking at their season stats which are obviously skewed significantly by that nightmare 70 point outing by the Dolphins are going to be surprised in a bad way when they come out and play well on Sunday.

The Browns very likely aren’t going to come out and just dominate their defense. I wouldn’t be surprised whatsoever if the game plan is once again supremely conservative.

The Broncos have had a slightly above average defense over the last 3 or 4 games. Big improvement, but their rushing defense has been awful over that span. They've been fortunate to play a couple teams (Bills, Chiefs) that are anemic to running the ball in that span.

I don't think our offense is going to blow them away but we should see (and expect) some improvement, particularly since we just came off the Steelers/Ravens in back to back weeks. We should be able to run the ball better against the Broncos and probably pass better than we have the past 2 weeks.

 

[natedagg]

The Broncos have had a slightly above average defense over the last 3 or 4 games. Big improvement, but their rushing defense has been awful over that span. They've been fortunate to play a couple teams (Bills, Chiefs) that are anemic to running the ball in that span.

I don't think our offense is going to blow them away but we should see (and expect) some improvement, particularly since we just came off the Steelers/Ravens in back to back weeks. We should be able to run the ball better against the Broncos and probably pass better than we have the past 2 weeks.

Yeah if KEVSKI uses PA to suck in linebackers, then a working run game is important, as is throwing to the 2nd level and beyond. Theoretically this should work against the Broncos, even if our running backs are below average.

What you’d like to see is an economic game from DTR and a dozen Baldy clips of our guards pulling and mauling fools. Good red zone execution will probably determine whether we win or not, and it would help to have Juan MeSoThorny back.

 

[macbdog]

This was by design.

That's pretty clear, it clearly resembles a wiener dog.

 

[buzzdog]

I was listening to one of the Browns podcasts and and DTR's arm strength was discussed. Apparently he has a stronger than average arm, one of the best in his combine. I had no idea, I was under the impression his arm strength was below average. So passing downfield and deep sideline routes, etc. should not be a problem other than getting him to see them and hit them. I'm not sure how he ranked in accuracy?

 

[Amherstcavsfan]

I was listening to one of the Browns podcasts and and DTR's arm strength was discussed. Apparently he has a stronger than average arm, one of the best in his combine. I had no idea, I was under the impression his arm strength was below average. So passing downfield and deep sideline routes, etc. should not be a problem other than getting him to see them and hit them. I'm not sure how he ranked in accuracy?

He has some spotty accuracy, but overall it's not awful. I think, given more time to gain chemistry with the passing game, we might be pleasantly surprised by how good we may look in a few weeks.

Looking back at it, I didn't expect him to be able to process the game as fast as he did last week. He missed some reads but overall was pretty good at going to the open/correct read. Hes already one step ahead of most games Baker played here.

 

[buzzdog]

One other thought I had about DTR and the general reactions to his game. We know the ball came out quicker than it ever has for just about any Browns QB, ever. By extension that means the pass plays were short and quick hitting. Now I've seen DTR pretty much trashed over this.

I always though having a QB who can execute the short passing game where the ball comes out in under 3 seconds was a positive. Baker couldn't do this to save his life and that was used as a negative factor in his evaluation. DTR has shown he can execute this type of pass scheme. Isn't that a good thing?

Once the Steelers adjusted and took away the type of attack we used in the first half, then we really needed to adjust back and counter their adjustment. Stefanski seemed reluctant and slow to do that, erring on the side of caution because he trusts the defense so much. I can't say I completely disagree with that choice because in the end it worked even though I was wanting some double moves and longer routes called. KS saved that for the game winning drive.

I really think KS handled this kid well. I think overall DTR executed the offensive game plan well. I anticipate more downfield attacks as we see different defenses. I can make a case that things are on a good track with the offense. We'll see as each game unfolds.

 

[natedagg]

One other thought I had about DTR and the general reactions to his game. We know the ball came out quicker than it ever has for just about any Browns QB, ever. By extension that means the pass plays were short and quick hitting. Now I've seen DTR pretty much trashed over this.

I always though having a QB who can execute the short passing game where the ball comes out in under 3 seconds was a positive. Baker couldn't do this to save his life and that was used as a negative factor in his evaluation. DTR has shown he can execute this type of pass scheme. Isn't that a good thing?

Once the Steelers adjusted and took away the type of attack we used in the first half, then we really needed to adjust back and counter their adjustment. Stefanski seemed reluctant and slow to do that, erring on the side of caution because he trusts the defense so much. I can't say I completely disagree with that choice because in the end it worked even though I was wanting some double moves and longer routes called. KS saved that for the game winning drive.

I really think KS handled this kid well. I think overall DTR executed the offensive game plan well. I anticipate more downfield attacks as we see different defenses. I can make a case that things are on a good track with the offense. We'll see as each game unfolds.

I interpreted Stefanski’s consistent conservative calls as “do NOT get lured into Pittsburgh’s trap” in the sense that this is how a 6-3 team won half a dozen games. We could all feel the momentum well run dry by the time the score was tied, but if you start taking shots, you can f*ck around and find out just like the opponent wants you to.
With the game tied, we had a chance to take a more aggressive approach, and that 22 (?) harder to Moore was a big punch that gave us the cushion to say “even a pick and we are likely going to overtime” since the defense was so good.
But yeah if that drive stalled out, we probably would have tied.

 

[The Oi]

I interpreted Stefanski’s consistent conservative calls as “do NOT get lured into Pittsburgh’s trap” in the sense that this is how a 6-3 team won half a dozen games. We could all feel the momentum well run dry by the time the score was tied, but if you start taking shots, you can f*ck around and find out just like the opponent wants you to.
With the game tied, we had a chance to take a more aggressive approach, and that 22 (?) harder to Moore was a big punch that gave us the cushion to say “even a pick and we are likely going to overtime” since the defense was so good.
But yeah if that drive stalled out, we probably would have tied.

A tie? You kiss your sister with that mouth?

 

[Lee]

One other thought I had about DTR and the general reactions to his game. We know the ball came out quicker than it ever has for just about any Browns QB, ever. By extension that means the pass plays were short and quick hitting. Now I've seen DTR pretty much trashed over this.

I always though having a QB who can execute the short passing game where the ball comes out in under 3 seconds was a positive. Baker couldn't do this to save his life and that was used as a negative factor in his evaluation. DTR has shown he can execute this type of pass scheme. Isn't that a good thing?

Once the Steelers adjusted and took away the type of attack we used in the first half, then we really needed to adjust back and counter their adjustment. Stefanski seemed reluctant and slow to do that, erring on the side of caution because he trusts the defense so much. I can't say I completely disagree with that choice because in the end it worked even though I was wanting some double moves and longer routes called. KS saved that for the game winning drive.

I really think KS handled this kid well. I think overall DTR executed the offensive game plan well. I anticipate more downfield attacks as we see different defenses. I can make a case that things are on a good track with the offense. We'll see as each game unfolds.

So when we see a rookie start at QB especially to begin the season, they get all the 1st team reps in practice, they get a game plan taylored for them, they have every advantage.

DTR was 3rd string in camp, and 1st game he didnt now he was starting till and hour before the game and got no 1st team snaps. He has now been getting that, but between PJ and Watson starting and getting snaps, DTR is a couple of very important months behind in development.

From UCLA tape, he tends to have his balls sale, same thing i have seen from Lamar in the pros and at Louisville. He has the arm strength, and athletic ability is amazing, but better footwork on throws, but i am sure he and coaches are aware, and needs a better processing speed, which is why we simplified the offense. The offense has to be simplified for him, and it was, maybe over simplified at Pittsburg, but they will do allot of 2 route reads, based on what he sees pre snap, meaning some receiviers on certain plays will have almost zero chance to get the ball that play by design. There wont be as many WR option routes either, just to confusing for a kid that wasnt really given even 2nd string snaps in pre-season as a rookie.

But the kid is a gamer, and obviously well liked by his teammates. There is allot to like about DTR even if he is limited at this point, not his fault, just the situation as a 5th round rookie he came to a team with a franchise QB who was healthy at the team, not much you can do except what the coaching staff is already doing with him.

 

[natedagg]

Just saw this blurb on ESPN about Jordan Love. Too lazy to grab it but essentially he sucked for a month and got a lot better since. It’s just another reminder that rookie QBs who end up successful are rarely Strouds, often Aikmans.

 

[adam81king]

Just saw this blurb on ESPN about Jordan Love. Too lazy to grab it but essentially he sucked for a month and got a lot better since. It’s just another reminder that rookie QBs who end up successful are rarely Strouds, often Aikmans.

I wholly agree with what you're saying, but Love isn't a rookie...

 

[natedagg]

I wholly agree with what you're saying, but Love isn't a rookie...

I know but I didn’t think it nullified the point. I guess it could, depending on what you want to infer.
To me I keep it general - young QBs take a bit to get better. He doesn’t have a whole year to get to the decent tier, but I also think Stefanski and co have good results with QB whispering. Time will tell.
There’s a small chance, not *no* chance, that we can make a run at the whole thing. Very small but still.