Tag: Greg Cosell

The Xs and Os with Greg Cosell: Non-negotiable skills for QB, OT, EDGE, CB in the draft

In the debut of “The Xs and Os with Greg Cosell and Doug Farrar,” Greg and Doug discuss the non-negotiables for draft prospects at QB, OT, EDGE, and CB.

In this new show, Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar is joined every week by the great Greg Cosell of NFL Films and ESPN’s NFL Matchup. Greg has been with NFL Films since 1979, and he and Steve Sabol invented the concept of putting game tape on television with the Matchup show in 1984, so who better to get intricate with the game than Mr. Cosell himself?

Doug and Greg will be discussing all kinds of football things throughout the year, but as the draft is just around the corner, let’s start with the non-negotiable traits and attributes draft prospects must have at arguably the game’s four most important positions — quarterback, offensive tackle, edge-rusher, and cornerback.

You can catch this week’s episode of “The Xs and Os” right here.

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The Xs and Os with Greg Cosell: The non-negotiables for draftable QB, OT, EDGE, CB

In the debut of “The Xs and Os with Greg Cosell and Doug Farrar,” Greg and Doug discuss the non-negotiables for draft prospects at QB, OT, EDGE, and CB.

In this new show, Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar is joined every week by the great Greg Cosell of NFL Films and ESPN’s NFL Matchup. Greg has been with NFL Films since 1979, and he and Steve Sabol invented the concept of putting game tape on television with the Matchup show in 1984, so who better to get intricate with the game than Mr. Cosell himself?

Doug and Greg will be discussing all kinds of football things throughout the year, but as the draft is just around the corner, let’s start with the non-negotiable traits and attributes draft prospects must have at arguably the game’s four most important positions — quarterback, offensive tackle, edge-rusher, and cornerback.

You can catch this week’s episode of “The Xs and Os” right here.

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Greg Cosell highlights multi-faceted problems with Packers offense

Greg Cosell of NFL Films provided a detailed answer of the multi-faceted problems plaguing the Packers offense through seven games.

What’s wrong with the Green Bay Packers offense through seven games in 2022?

Greg Cosell of NFL Films, in a segment at BuffaloBills.com previewing Packers vs. Bills, put the issues quite simply in a two-minute answer.

Here is the transcription:

“When teams are struggling, there’s never one answer, despite the fact that people want there to be one answer. I think it starts up front. This past week, for instance, they started a five-man unit, it was the first time that group had started together in those positions. They’ve had a lot of movement with their o-line throughout the season, different players in different positions. Their run game has been at times good but for the most part not very good. No consistency to it. They have almost two different run games, one for Jones, one for Dillon. I think Rodgers, quite frankly, has not been the same player that he has been in years past. He hasn’t been as precise with his ball placement as we’ve seen and come to expect. He’s always been a precise thrower. He’s always been unique as a thrower in that he can drive the ball with great, great velocity to any level of the field with incredibly precise ball location, it was as if he was handing the ball to his receiver. He has not been that way with consistency this year. Clearly, and again, I’m only trying to interpret the tape now, I think there are throws that are probably there that he just doesn’t make, maybe that’s a lack of confidence in who he is throwing it to. Only he could tell you that, it seems he has told us that, I guess. There are times when he just doesn’t turn it loose when, I believe, the throws are there, based on my knowledge of routes concepts and defense. So I think there are many factors, and all that has led to an up and down offense that can make a play here or there but doesn’t generate any consistency over four quarters.”

Cosell also talked about the struggles of the rookie receivers, issues on first and second down and Rodgers’ avoidance of extending plays.

Entering Week 8, the Packers are averaging 18.3 points per game. During the three-game losing streak, Green Bay hasn’t scored more than 22 points in a game.

Can the offense finally erase some of the major issues and come alive on Sunday night against the Bills, who rank first in yards and points allowed in 2022?

Hop into the comments to continue the discussion on the Packers offense. Where is this thing going wrong? Does Cosell have it right?

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Greg Cosell breaks down Kyle Trask’s preseason performance vs. Dolphins

NFL film guru Greg Cosell shares his thoughts on Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Kyle Trask’s performance in the preseason opener

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers got a solid performance from second-year quarterback Kyle Trask in Saturday night’s preseason opener against the Miami Dolphins, as the 2021 second-round pick completed 25 of his 33 passes for 258 yards and a touchdown.

Trask bounced back from a pair of costly turnovers just before halftime to help the Bucs regain the lead in the second half, and engineered a drive in the final minutes that set up the would-be game-winning field goal.

NFL film guru Greg Cosell recently shared his notes from Trask’s outing, and they’re decidedly less rose-colored than many Bucs fans might like:

Trask limited arm strength lacking the velocity to drive the ball, In addition his deep balls showed a tendency at times to lose energy on the back end

Trask is a timing and rhythm pocket QB with above average arm strength but nothing more who needs a clean pocket to be successful, He does not possess second reaction movement ability

Trask well-thrown slot fade on Sterns 19 yard TD: Proper trajectory and touch and precise ball placement; That was Trask’s kind of throw: Defined read, decisive with timing and rhythm based on the route

Geiger 26 yards late in the 3rd quarter was Trask at his best: Route concept (flood) versus coverage (man) defined the read and throw allowing Trask to deliver with timing as soon as he hit back foot on his drop

Trask will have issues working out of contested pockets late in the down, He cannot sit on his back foot and make tough intermediate throws

Cosell obviously knows what he’s looking at, and it’s worth noting that many who questioned the Bucs’ selection of Trask in last year’s draft outlined how his lack of top-end arm strength seemed like an odd fit for Tampa Bay’s vertical-heavy passing game.

Trask still seems like a quarterback that needs a lot of things to go right in order for him to perform at a high level, rather than the kind of passer who can elevate his supporting cast regardless of what’s happening around him.

Thankfully, the Bucs do have a loaded roster, and that’ll still be the case next season, should Trask be tasked with taking over for Tom Brady.

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Greg Cosell offers his evaluation of Giants QB Daniel Jones

Greg Cosell breaks down New York Giants QB Daniel Jones and offers a surprisingly optimistic take.

Greg Cosell has been evaluating quarterbacks for over three decades. He takes a granular approach to his assessments and rarely leaves any stone unturned.

In recent appearance on the podcast Inside the Birds, which covers the Philadelphia Eagles, Cosell talked extensively about the New York Giants and their embattled quarterback Daniel Jones.

While many critics continue to bash Jones as he heads into his fourth — and possibly final — season with the Giants, Cosell dwelled on the positive that he saw in reviewing Jones’ tape.

“Daniel Jones is a big kid, throws it well, has enough mobility. We know that he can run,” Cosell said.

“I always felt that I couldn’t get a great feel for Jones. I went back and looked in some detail about Jones…and I kinda liked what I saw. Just so that people understand — I know that the numbers weren’t great because the Giants didn’t have a great offense.

“We know all that. I’m just looking at the player. I know from evaluating quarterbacks you have to put them in a vacuum. You have to look at that player. You can’t just go by purely numbers. That can be a function of many, many other things.”

What exactly did Cosell see that encouraged him?  Well, He believes Jones has the fundamental tools the new coaches can build on.

“At his core, he’s a pocket quarterback who is at his best playing with timing and rhythm,” Cosell said. “And he showed that pretty well on third down. He was very poised in the pocket, he knew where to go with the ball.

“In fact, I watched all of his third down drop backs. He was really efficient in the pocket, decisive with his reads and throws and the new coaching staff, that’s probably pretty exciting for them. I think when you watch Jones’ tape, you kind of feel like there’s something to work with and we can make this guy a quarterback.”

We saw some of these things over Jones’ first three seasons. The losing, the turnovers and the lack of points unfortunately are the aspects that have formed the narrative.

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Greg Cosell is high on multiple Washington players entering the 2021 season

Greg Cosell is one of the best. He had plenty of good things to say about several Washington players in a recent podcast appearance.

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Greg Cosell is one of the more respected voices in the media for evaluating college prospects and NFL players.

Cosell, who has produced the “NFL Matchup” show on ESPN since 1984, has also starred on the show for over a decade. A longtime employee of NFL films, Cosell is often one of the more insightful podcast guests in the NFL community.

Cosell recently joined The Athletic’s Ben Standig on his “Standig Room Only” podcast on an episode dedicated exclusively to the Washington Football Team.

Standig asked Cosell about several players on Washington’s 2021 roster. So, which defensive lineman does Cosell enjoy watching? Well, he likes them all, but it is Daron Payne who stands out to him.

“We know that Chase Young gets a lot of publicity, and it’s well-deserved, obviously,” Cosell said. “I’ve always been a big fan, and this is purely from a tape perspective of Daron Payne.”

What stands out to me is watching him, is his body type is short and stout, but yet I think he has really light feet and really good movement quickness and efficiency of movement quickness. He can bend, he’s flexible for that body type. He’s a really good athlete with light, quick feet and body flexibility for someone with that type of build.

Standig also asked Cosell about first-round pick Jamin Davis. And Cosell’s response was encouraging.

“I thought he was much better against Cincinnati than he was against New England,” Cosell said. I thought he played faster, had quicker reactions, and not as tentative as he was against the Patriots.”

Week-to-week growth is what you want to see from young players, and Washington is already seeing that from Davis.

“There’s not a lot of linebackers that are 6-foot-3¼”  with his kind of athletic movement,” Cosell said of Davis.

Another player Cosell enjoyed watching in the pre-draft process was cornerback Benjamin St-Juste.

“I thought he was a really fascinating projection to the league given his elite size and length,” Cosell said. “He’s more than 6-foot-3, he’s got a lean, linear body frame, he’s a smooth, fluid athlete.”

St-Juste is expected to serve as Washingon’s third corner when three corners are on the field, which is most of the time. St-Juste has impressed coaches and teammates since standing out at minicamp in June.

Finally, Cosell spoke about tight end Logan Thomas, and he feels we still haven’t seen the best of the former quarterback.

I think he’ll be an ascending player this year. I think that he’ll be utilized more in the intermediate and vertical passing game, and those, as we said, are foundations of Scott Turner’s offense. He did run some vertical routes; he made tough catches that demanded a wide catch radius and good hands, which obviously, being a former quarterback that was pretty impressive. I think he’ll be more and more involved in this passing game.

Quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick has seemingly developed a strong rapport with Thomas this summer, and he could be in store for an even bigger season in 2021.

Standig and Cosell discussed several other Washington players. Give it a listen; it’s outstanding.