Twitter Bears--Colts

There are open guys on almost every passing play around the league. Even Mahomes doesn't always hit the open guy. Big Ben talked about this, and I've heard Brady talk about it as well. QBs are taught to go through reads and hit the first open guy. The reads are numbered, and you simply follow the pattern.

Ben talked about a particular series of play calls built off a particular formation where the reads were numbered right to left. His reads went across the field starting on the right side of the field as he saw it and ran through the middle to read #4 on the left. He claimed he usually got to read 3 before the clock went off and he threw the ball. According to Ben, read #4 almost never got looked at, even if the guy was wide open running downfield unguarded (ABrown had a fit about this, which is why Ben was talking about it. and ABrown was like 10 yards open 20 yards downfield.)

Brady was even more explicit saying some guys running routes aren't even listed as reads. He would never look at them ever on that play. Brady also said if you aren't open when I look the first time, I'm not coming back to you. So a guy who wasn't open (even antisapatoryly--is that a word?) or whose route was going to take him into a zone defender wouldn't get a second look...even if his defender fell down and he was wide open. In the structure of the play, Brady had moved on. And multiple DBs and DC said that Brady moved through his reads quickly, the fastest they'd ever seen. Except for the Moss years, Brady worked in a quick passing game system. Ball came out almost as soon as he finished his drop, one read for each step and then throw.

All that to say, in hindsight we can claim player x was open, but in the structure of the play several elements might have happened where player x is either no longer an option or never was a read.

From the all-22 sometimes you can see Williams working the reads (when his OL gives him time). Look where Williams is looking to see what he might be seeing. Don't look downfield to the left and scream that Moore was open if Williams is looking to the right and moving from Rome to Carter to Kmet and then throwing to Kmet.

No QB ever sees every open player and to put that on Williams is absurd.