Jordan Gross needs to step it up in pass protection

by bigdavis on Nov 14, 2009 11:03 AM EST Comment 19 comments

After half a season, the Panthers have allowed 18 sacks on the QB.

Jordan Gross has a whopping 7 (SEVEN) of those! Per this Fanhouse.com post, that ties for the league lead -- and he's giving them up quick, averaging, by their assessment, 2.6 seconds from the time the ball's snapped.

http://nfl.fanhouse.com/2009/11/13/between-the-lines-whos-allowing-the-most-sacks/#cont

15 of the 18 the Panthers have allowed are directly attributable to offensive linemen (3 each to Otah and Wharton, only 1 each to Vincent and Kalil) -- so the other 3 lie either on Delhomme or an unidentified RB or TE who missed a block on a blitz.

It's not acceptable to be an All-Pro, get an All-Pro's paycheck, and be leading the league in such an infamous category as this -- especially when he's protecting the blindside, and the sacks he surrenders often lead to lost fumbles.

The content of these posts are those of the person/idiot making the post only

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Agree

Gross needs to ease up on the verbal protection of Jake and concentrate more on protecting him on the field.

by Davejinxer on Nov 14, 2009 2:17 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Wow! I didn’t even realize that so many were coming from him. I supposed to “UGH SACK! AGAIN?!” anger was overpowering the “Who gave it up?” thought. lol

Yeah, I would have to agree, Gross really does need to step it up after seeing that.

People speculate on what comes next, in the afterlife. I just hope they serve collards.

by D-Ranged1 on Nov 14, 2009 2:37 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Agreed here as well.

by Holty_Panthers_Fan on Nov 14, 2009 9:01 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Frankly...

I don’t know how I feel about those numbers, given they were arbitrarily collected and analyzed by a single person.

Remember when the Panthers had a good offensive line? Yeah, me too.
--Darin Gantt

by MichaelProcton on Nov 15, 2009 11:35 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

This might be a better link:

http://nfl.fanhouse.com/2009/11/13/between-the-lines-whos-allowing-the-most-sacks/

I see no reason to doubt them — it’s been obvious to any Panther watcher that it’s been Gross who was surrendering numerous sacks.

Anyway, it’s moot now, and I feel almost guilty in calling him out, now that the poor guy’s out for the year.

by bigdavis on Nov 15, 2009 11:59 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

I'm relatively certainly that's the same link...

But, again, I wouldn’t just trust a guy with his unverifiable numbers.

Remember when the Panthers had a good offensive line? Yeah, me too.
--Darin Gantt

by MichaelProcton on Nov 16, 2009 1:19 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Then buy a DVR and watch it yourself

While we’re on stats not officially counted, here’s a site some of you might like, I got the CB metrics from here.

by Flowing Willow on Nov 16, 2009 2:21 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs

huh?

Remember when the Panthers had a good offensive line? Yeah, me too.
--Darin Gantt

by MichaelProcton on Nov 16, 2009 3:04 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs

where's the linky?

I blog the Carolina Panthers at www.catscratchreader.com

by Jaxon on Nov 16, 2009 10:57 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs

dang it

I hit the link button, put it in the box it showed, what the heck! I think it will show here. http://profootballfocus.com/home.php

by Flowing Willow on Nov 17, 2009 1:38 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs

As FlowingWillow said, this site verifies it

Gross, while excellent in run blocking, has been our weakest link in pass blocking, having allowed 7 sacks, 5 QB hits, and 11 QB pressures — each more than anyone else. Of course, I realize his man, the RDE, will usually be the defense’s premier pass rusher, but his figures are way above normal for any OL in the league.

Incidentally, this link nicely identifies Ryan Kalil as playing at an All-Pro level, easily he’s our MVP on the OL.

by bigdavis on Nov 17, 2009 9:22 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Sorry, here's the page link I omitted

http://www.profootballfocus.com/cstats.php?tab=by_team&season=2009&teamid=5&stype=a&stats=o

by bigdavis on Nov 17, 2009 9:22 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs

One other correction to what I said

It’s Jeff Otah, not Gross, who leads in allowing the most QB pressures, by 2.

by bigdavis on Nov 17, 2009 9:24 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Most interesting! Kalil would’ve never gotten my vote for OL-MVP! I guess positions talk as we, or at least I, hardly ever hear someone speak of a center unless he’s doing terrible.

People speculate on what comes next, in the afterlife. I just hope they serve collards.

by D-Ranged1 on Nov 17, 2009 2:57 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

I knew Kalil had been very effective in run blocking, but...

had never spent any time watching him grade out — these guys rate every play, and do a great job of quantifying a player’s relative value. Great site! A real eye-opener about a lot of players who are living on their reps, but not actually cutting it anymore.

Do some browsing, position by position, and compare a player this year with the past 2 years — for example, Chris Gamble. Ouch.

by bigdavis on Nov 17, 2009 11:48 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

I guess Gross won;t be stepping up after all

Now its up to Mac Bern to step up at LG and Wharton at LT

I blog the Carolina Panthers at www.catscratchreader.com

by Jaxon on Nov 16, 2009 10:58 AM EST reply actions 0 recs

I swear... if Gross doesn't step up I will break his ankle!

Sorry, had to bring some levity to a bad situation.

Happy to hear the surgery went really well, so he should be as good as new for 2010.

Cat Scratch Reader's resident optimist.

by James The Aussie on Nov 16, 2009 2:49 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

The injury was as good as it could have been, too.

A clean break is a very good thing. When you start getting into ligament and tendon damage, the long-term effects are going to be way bad.

Remember when the Panthers had a good offensive line? Yeah, me too.
--Darin Gantt

by MichaelProcton on Nov 17, 2009 2:57 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

The optimist in me says Carolina beats last years record, next year, by 2 games. 14-2. I feel like the crazy sh*t that happened this year has been fluke at best and has opened enough eyes that we come back like a beast next year HOPEFULLY with no injuries.

I also think we’ll have a top 3 defense overall.

Having a lesser schedule would help as well, of course. :)

People speculate on what comes next, in the afterlife. I just hope they serve collards.

by D-Ranged1 on Nov 17, 2009 3:05 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs