Happy with Henning today.

[Dave Gray]

I was surprised to see all the hate for Henning today.  I saw a guy who put us in a chance to win and win big.  He incorporated the wildcat and backup QB in an effort to save Henne's arm.  He called some big plays.  He gave us both 300+ passing yards and nearly 200 yards rushing -- this was with a banged up QB and missing our biggest name offensive player in Marshall.

The one turnover (from a bad Henne decision) came in the red zone, we missed 2 FGs, and we had a non-call for a pass interference in the end zone, which resulted in a FG.  My point there -- poor execution left points on the field, but Henning put us in a position for even more.

To those that have been complaining about him today, tell me where you're coming from.

[Brian Fein]

Towards the end of the first half, they completely abandoned the run.  After running for 4-6 yards a clip.  Why?

Also, the wildcat/Thigpen switching constantly annoyed me, because they do all this crap, get nowhere, and then bring in Henne on 3rd and 11 to bail them out.  This happened twice, at least.

[Spider-Dan]

I don't think they were putting Thigpen in for sh*ts and giggles.  I think they were intentionally trying to reduce the strain on Henne, coming back from what was originally thought to be a pretty serious injury.

[Pappy13]

I don't think they were putting Thigpen in for sh*ts and giggles.  I think they were intentionally trying to reduce the strain on Henne, coming back from what was originally thought to be a pretty serious injury.

Ok, I didn't see the game only saw the box score and 1 thing that was very puzzling was that they brought in Thigpen on 3 and 12 from Oakland's 34 who then ran for 8 yards.  Was that a designed QB run just to get into FG range?  If so, I understand that call and actually like that call.

[Phishfan]

^^^ If I remember correctly it was a designed QB draw.

[Sunstroke]

Yep...it was drawn up that way, and the coaching staff knew that Thigpen had the better wheels at that point.

[Dave Gray]

Ok, I didn't see the game only saw the box score and 1 thing that was very puzzling was that they brought in Thigpen on 3 and 12 from Oakland's 34 who then ran for 8 yards.  Was that a designed QB run just to get into FG range?  If so, I understand that call and actually like that call.

Yes, and on top of that, Henne had no mobility, so they probably didn't want to leave him back there to get a sack.  It was a smart play, IMO.

[Pappy13]

Ok, another question, again because I didn't see the game only saw the box score and it's a little tough to tell from that, but did it look to ya'll like Miami had a more vertical passing game in this game?  I didn't seem to see as many 5 yard patterns.  Most of the incompletes were marked as "deep" passes.  Did they open up the game plan a bit or was it just because of the pass defense (or lack thereof) that the Raiders were employing that made them go down the field more?

The way it looked to me, the downfield passing seemed to open up the running lanes a bit which in turn made the play action pass a bit more effective.  This is what I had been wanting to see all year.  You think this is a trend or simply a one game aberration brought on by a below par defense?

[bsfins]

^^ They were stacking the line,8-9 guy's in the box,and using kitchen sink blitzes.They played Man to Man coverage the majority of the game,(According to what the announcers were saying,Spiderdan can probably confirm or deny that) Hence my HM the game ball thread.

[Dave Gray]

Ok, another question, again because I didn't see the game only saw the box score and it's a little tough to tell from that, but did it look to ya'll like Miami had a more vertical passing game in this game?  I didn't seem to see as many 5 yard patterns.  Most of the incompletes were marked as "deep" passes.  Did they open up the game plan a bit or was it just because of the pass defense (or lack thereof) that the Raiders were employing that made them go down the field more?

The way it looked to me, the downfield passing seemed to open up the running lanes a bit which in turn made the play action pass a bit more effective.  This is what I had been wanting to see all year.  You think this is a trend or simply a one game aberration brought on by a below par defense?

I don't know if it was that there were more designed deep plays, but Henne had more time to throw...better protection.  Even on his INT, it was because he had "too much" time and wasn't forced to get rid of the ball.  He was in the pocket with nobody coming after him for too long and didn't throw the ball away, since there was no pressure.