During the NFL season, Mondays are filled with overreactions.
The Monday after week 1 is the ultimate example.
After months of offseason preparation, roster changes, training camps, free agency and the NFL Draft, all preseason predictions are blown away and the action begins. The first Monday of the NFL season will see some incredible reactions and overreactions.
As Week 1 of the 2024 NFL season comes to a close, many are wondering whether quarterback play and the league's overall passing game is in crisis. Passing touchdowns are down from last season, passing yards are down from recent years, and there are even signs of a resurgence in the run game. Given the small sample size, it's reasonable to wait to see if these trends continue, but it's hard to find context and patience for overreactions like Monday's.
But given the anxiety fans of the passing game are feeling right now, I wanted to take a moment to highlight just one of the many great passes we saw on Sunday: We'll be covering many more passes this week, but here's a little excerpt from Trevor Lawrence.
on the other hand, Jacksonville Jaguars Lost Miami Dolphins The final score was 20-17, and this pass from Lawrence to Brian Thomas Jr. was perhaps a textbook example of “throwing to an open receiver.”
Midway through the second quarter, the Jaguars are down 7-0 and facing a third-down-11 situation at the Miami 14-yard line. Thomas runs a deep post route from right to left among three receivers.
The Dolphins will go into Cover 2, with linebacker David Long Jr. tasked with carrying Thomas vertically.
The full text of the play in question is as follows:
That's a crazy pass. Look where Thomas was when Lawrence made it.
Thomas is along the left hash marks of the goal line, but Lawrence sees the safety on the left side of the field crouching underfoot on Gabe Davis' curl route and knows Thomas will find open space if he can guide the ball into the back of the end zone.
He does it perfectly and has the trajectory of this pass right on target. Lawrence has to get it over the safety, but he has to get the ball down before Thomas goes out of bounds. This is one of those passes into triple coverage, where the end line and sideline are there on the play as extra “defenders.”
Let's look at this pitch from a different angle:
can't believe it.
Only time will tell if the running game will dominate this year, or if the passing game will remain the best way to generate explosive plays in the NFL.
But when he can make a throw like this, he can create an explosive play in the blink of an eye.
