Tag: baldy’s breakdowns

NFL analyst Brian Baldinger impressed with Sam Howell’s performance

Baldy came away impressed with Howell’s first performance.

Former NFL offensive lineman and longtime analyst Brian Baldinger does an excellent job on Twitter with his “Baldy’s Breakdowns” segment each week during the NFL season.

Now that the preseason is back, so is “Baldy’s Breakdowns.”

One particular area of interest from Week 1 of the preseason for Baldinger was the performance of Washington Commanders quarterback Sam Howell against the Cleveland Browns.

Baldinger was impressed.

Here’s his clip on Howell.

Like everyone else, Baldinger recognized the protection was an issue for Howell. He liked Howell’s ability to escape pressure and pick up the first down. Baldinger also loved the throw to tight end John Bates that was dropped.

But the play that stood out most was one we highlighted on Monday morning. It was Howell’s fourth-down completion to tight end Cole Turner.

Howell wasn’t perfect in the preseason opener. Baldinger pointed out the sack he took on the first drive. But, overall, Howell continues to show everyone why the Commanders are so high on him as the quarterback of the future.

Watch: NFL analyst Brian Baldinger highlights Saints WR Rashid Shaheed

NFL analyst Brian Baldinger highlights New Orleans Saints second-year wide receiver Rashid Shaheed, says he “didn’t see him drop a ball”

Talk about a diamond in the rough. The New Orleans Saints signed Rashid Shaheed as an undrafted free agent coming off a season-ending ACL injury, and the move paid off in a big way. He was one of their most consistent big-play threats and winner on critical downs in December and January, and his feats caught the eye of NFL analyst Brian Baldinger.

Baldinger highlighted Shaheed in his latest “Baldy’s Breakdowns” video series on social media, saying of the former Weber State standout: “First two touches were two touchdowns. You know there were 28 players drafted in the NFL in front of Shaheed, undrafted. But he’s got speed and he’s got moves.”

Shaheed finished his rookie year with 488 receiving yards in just 12 games, having converted a first down on 18 of his 28 receptions. Even if it’s a small sample size, a catch rate of 82.4% on an average depth of target at 11.6 yards is nothing to sneeze at. Shaheed has real playmaking ability. And, as Baldinger observed, he never dropped a pass on 34 targets.

“Like you watch him play and you go, ‘This is what you get when you’re undrafted?'” Baldinger said in disbelief, highlighting a 40-yard catch against cornerback Jamel Dean in coverage, who signed a $52 million contract extension with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers this offseason. Shaheed has the size to compete in the NFL at a listed 6-foot-flat and 180 pounds. He just needs to show he can give the Saints a full 17 games.

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Brian Baldinger loves what Kevin O’Connell is doing

Brian Baldinger believes O’Connell has this offense humming

When the Minnesota Vikings hired Kevin O’Connell to replace Mike Zimmer as their head coach, the idea was for him to fix the offense. So far this season, the offense is performing well averaging 23 points per game and making things easier for quarterback Kirk Cousins.

It hasn’t been without its flaws. They have had periods where the unit has stalled and not been able to deliver results in the middle part of the game.

Despite the flaws, the positive aspects of the offense and scheme have caught the attention of national analysts, including NFL Network’s Brian Baldinger.

The four plays that Baldinger broke down, which he said might have been 40 for how well they are executing this offense, were as follows.

  • Dalvin Cook’s first touchdown run
  • Justin Jefferson’s “Spray Fade”
  • Jefferson’s double pass to Cook
  • Jalen Reagor’s pop pass touchdown

All four plays had excellent precision and great execution. In the words of Baldinger, “O’Connell has this team humming.”

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WATCH: Baldy’s Breakdowns highlights Marshon Lattimore’s game-winning stop

New Orleans Saints cornerback Marshon Lattimore was highlighted on Baldy’s Breakdowns and NFL Next Gen Stats for his Mike Williams tackle.

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Few football games were decided by inches as strongly as the New Orleans Saints’ win over the Los Angeles Chargers on Monday night. The Saints needed a couple of bounces to go their way to pull it off after trailing L.A. 20-3, almost literally — a would-be game-winning field goal for the Chargers instead bounced off the upright, ending regulation and sending the Saints to overtime.

And Marshon Lattimore came up with the day’s biggest tackle in the final minutes, stopping Chargers receiver Mike Williams just shy of converting a first down. NFL analyst Brian Baldinger talked up the highlight reel-worthy moment in his weekly film study, pointing out the size disparity between Lattimore and Williams and saying, “The part of this play that’s amazing is he’s not even going to let (Williams) move forward. He’s driving him backwards, slamming him into the turf.”

“It’s like vectors,” Baldinger continued. “Mike Williams can’t get north-south when Lattimore’s driving him east-west. And then (Lattimore) changes his body to slam him backwards. That’s a great tackle, helps preserve a win for the Saints.”

Just how impressive was that stop? NFL Next Gen Stats gave Williams a 73.4% percent chance of converting a first down after he caught the ball, which would have extended overtime and given the Chargers a shot at winning the game. But Lattimore came through with the play of the game to send his team into the bye week with a win:

It was a great play, but Lattimore must start playing better before it’s time to tackle his opponents. He’s given up too many passes in coverage with lapses win focus or miscommunications with his teammates. That’s been an ugly trend throughout his NFL career, and he’s quickly running out of time to get it corrected. Hopefully the Saints make it an area of focus when they come out of their Week 6 bye.

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