The 10 Best and Worst Performances from the NFL's Preseason Week 1

People say, "The preseason doesn't matter," or, "It's just preseason; it doesn't mean anything." 

Tell that to the people fighting for their jobs. Not just the players, either. The preseason is about installing both a playbook and a winning philosophy throughout an organization.

These are the players who have, thus far, either aided or hindered their respective organizations in this regard. 

These are the the 10 best and worst performances of NFL preseason Week 1. 

STUD: Quinton Coples, DE, New York Jets

Here are my observations after seeing Coples for the first time in a real NFL game situation. 

1) He was used all along the line of scrimmage, but during the snaps featuring first-team players, he was used predominantly as a 3-, 4- or 5-technique in the Jets' 4-3 sub package, depending on the offense's strong side.

He lined up at a number of positions, but I believe he was most dominant on the inside of the 4-3 package. Both "disruptive" pass break-ups came when he was lined up at the 3 or the inside 4. 

2) He lined up as a DE/DT with the first-team 3-4 base package twice—once in the standard front, once in the nickel package. The first time he came into the game as a member of the 3-4 package, he lined up at the 4. (Number 98-Photo)

He had to come across the left tackle's face (who knew the slant strong was on), and he got massive penetration on a BenJarvus Green-Ellis sweep play.

Unfortunately for Coples, Green-Ellis got the corner on him for the first down, but it doesn't matter. It was a total fundamental mistake; he gave up on his first angle. He will never do that again.

The angle he took incorrectly is actually harder to take than the one he should have. The penetration he got consistently (while engaged) was so dominant it almost looked ridiculous. That cannot be taught.

3) He had five tackles, two tackles for loss, a batted pass, a forced fumble and a sack. My goodness; talk about disruption. While he only got credit for one batted pass, he seriously messed up one other toss by shoving the right guard directly back into Andy Dalton's follow-through on an incomplete shallow crossing route.

4) When I say he lined up everywhere, I literally mean everywhere.

These different "techniques" are just numbers assigned to a defensive player's position along the line of scrimmage. A "0" is a nose tackle, lined up face to face with the center. A "1" lines up on the center's outside shoulder. "2" on the guard, "3" on his outside shoulder, "4" on the tackle, "5" on his outside shoulder, and on and on. Coples lined up from 1 to an angled 7, and on both sides.

5) The Bengals had a hard time going from a double-team on Coples to a chip block on the linebacker. Twice, on plays that would look relatively pedestrian to the casual eye, Coples absorbed both blockers, not allowing the second to chip off. This resulted in positive plays for his linebackers.

In this video, you will see that the prediction we made prior to the draft may be true. Coples could end up being the next Justin Tuck. He seems like a natural 4-3 DE who is perfectly suited to move inside and create disruption on the outside shoulder of the offensive guard or head-up on the tackle.

We knew Coples could be dominant working from the outside in; we have now learned he is perhaps even more dominant working from the inside out.  

DUD: James Starks, RB, Green Bay Packers

The Packers let veteran RB Ryan Grant walk (apparently into retirement) during the 2012 offseason. 

This lack of concern regarding Grant's presence led many to believe that James Starks had gained the confidence of the Packers coaching staff as a legitimate option to serve in the "featured role" at runner in Green Bay.

I say "featured" in quotation marks because the Pack hasn't truly featured a running back since Ahman Green left town. 

Still, we're talking about a team that is one of maybe five odds-on preseason Super Bowl favorites. Those carries have to go somewhere. Someone has to be Green Bay's version of what the Patriots hope RB Stevan Ridley will be in 2012.

Whatever confidence the Packers have in Starks, I don't care. He went for 16 yards on five very forgettable carries. No vision. Nothing instinctual, natural or explosive. Basically, James Starks. 

What we saw was a bunch of loafing around behind the line of scrimmage and slipping around on sloppy assignment execution.

Starks also managed to fumble and drop a pass that an NFL player at any position should have been able to haul in. To top off his exhibition of garbage, he left with a turf toe. 

As of last week, Starks was the worst starting RB in the NFL. This week, he won't be... because I have feeling he won't be a starter much longer. 

STUD: Andrew Luck, QB, Indianapolis Colts

Our grandfathers walked to school uphill, both ways through the snow, and Andrew Luck once threw a ball 75 yards at his rainy pro day into a blinding, misty wind. 

The Colts didn't get a new version of Peyton Manning in Luck. What they got is a potential Joe Montana. Yes, I am saying this after just a few series' in one preseason game. 

It's his rhythm. 

Luck's drop back and presence in the pocket through his progressions, his sense of calm under pressure and command of the offense took me back to my NFL upbringing. 

"Montana." 

I actually said it aloud without knowing what was coming out of my mouth. It was like the natural instinct that makes you come up for breath when your head is underwater. It took seeing Luck in an NFL uniform in a real-game situation.  

Physically, they are different. Luck is bigger and has a better arm, but I can't get away from the comparison. It hit me like a ton of bricks. 

Luck doesn't have a cannon for an arm, but he does have a tricked-out, sawed-off shotgun to pair with the football computer that resides in his dome. The touch, the accuracy. 

I was witness to a tweet exchange involving lead B/R NFL writer Michael Schottey regarding Luck's athleticism. I can't link the tweet in question as the original tweeter used profanity, but let's just say he was not happy about Schottey comparing Luck to Robert Griffin III as an athlete.

When we were in Indianapolis for the combine, Byron Lambert of RosterWatch made a similar comparison regarding Luck's athleticism: Cam Newton.

The hype is real. 

DUD: Mike Adams, LT, Pittsburgh Steelers

Rookie LT Mike Adams of the Steelers played nine plays in Pittsburgh's preseason opener before leaving with a knee injury. 

He looked awful.

Neal Coolong of Behind The Steel Curtain reports what our eyes saw. During those nine plays, Adams gave up 2.5 sacks. 

At the combine, an NFL media member who covers Ohio State called Adams a "marshmallow."

This was a fitting description of what I had witnessed at Senior Bowl practices and observed on tape. 

At the combine, Adams, who weighs 323 pounds, managed 19 reps on the bench press. That is two fewer than 5'10", 188-pound WR Ryan Broyles put up.   

He uses the length of his arms in all the wrong ways, and in short, it results in holding. He is suspect with his footwork and relies on his natural reach to be a part of the obstacle that defenders must overcome to get to the quarterback.

He overextends his prototypical NFL left tackle body and consistently leaves himself in precarious positions. 

If Adams turns out to be an All-Pro, I will have a lot of crow to eat, but to me, he has "bust" written all over him.

Arms and hands don't block NFL defensive linemen; hips do. Your core and positioning do. 

Adams will be positioning himself on the trainer's table during the upcoming weeks while losing out on much-needed reps.  

STUD: Julio Jones, WR, Atlanta Falcons

Oh my goodness Julio Jones. 

Just. Wow. 

Doug Farrar of Yahoo! Sports quotes Jones as saying:

"

It felt great. We've been working during OTAs plus the offseason; this is kind of my first offseason and OTAs. But just being able to go out there and connect like that was a really good feeling.

"

It felt great to watch, too, Julio. Matt Ryan, by my count, targeted Julio Jones seven times and connected with him on six of those for a grand total of 109 yards and a touchdown.

In one quarter. 

I almost can't even continue writing.

Julio Jones gets separation like no other player in the league. By that, I mean he gets his separation in a different way. 

I spoke with Rams rookie CB Janoris Jenkins in the week prior to the 2012 NFL draft and the subject of Julio Jones (who he faced in college while at Florida) came up. Jenkins said:

"

You know right off, he goes to try and out muscle you. He’s big and you know that he likes the post and the dig. He can run every route in the tree, but he loves those. But other than that, it's pretty much like preparing for a guy like A.J. (Green) except he isn’t gonna run a curl or a 15-20-yard comeback. He can’t come out of his cuts quick enough.

"

Whether or not Jones comes out of his cuts "quick enough," he does so with a smoothness I find exhilarating. Jenkins also didn't make mention of the end-zone corner fade, and maybe he should feel lucky he has never been on the receiving end of Jones' nastiness in that area of the field. Ask Ravens CB Cary Williams. 

You can have man-coverage against Julio Jones that looks like this to start, then ends up looking like this when all is said and done. 

Just an unbelievable display. 

DUD: Brandon Weeden, QB, Cleveland Browns

The Brandon Weeden era in Cleveland started with a 3-for-9 outing, resulting in one interception, 62 yards, a passer rating of 19.0 and exactly zero touchdowns. Oh, and he fumbled, too. 

Weeden looked terrible against the Lions in Cleveland's preseason opener. 

He doesn't seem worried, though. 

According to Browns beat writer Scott Petrak of The Chronicle-Telegram, Weeden said the day after the game: "Overall I’m upbeat about it. I think the way I felt and the plays we did make that were positive plays were good and we’ve got to build off those."

So, according to new franchise QB Brandon Weeden, the Browns will begin to build off of three completions. He also said in Petrak's interview:

"

At Oklahoma State we scored 60 points or we’d score 50 points. In the NFL it’s different. Taking care of the football is so important, field position is so important. We have one of the best kickers in the league. So getting him in range — three points is so valuable. That showed tonight. We had a game-winning field goal late in the game

"

Sounds like we need to be getting ready for a lot of field goals in Cleveland this season. 

I guess it's a start. 

STUD: Peyton Hillis, RB, Kansas City Chiefs

We know two things about new Kansas City offensive coordinator Brian Daboll. He hops around from job to job and he coaches up Peyton Hillis like nobody's business. 

Daboll was OC in Cleveland in 2010. That was the year that Peyton Hillis went so big that he made the cover of Madden. Along with the well-known "Madden Curse," which, sure enough, reared its ugly head in Hillis' absolutely abysmal 2011 season. 

Matt Conner of SB Nation quotes Peyton Hillis as saying:

"

To tell you the truth, I think that I'm on a very good team. With Coach [Brian] Daboll here from Cleveland and having a complementary back in Jamaal Charles...he's one of the best backs in the league. I feel like it will be good for me. I feel it will be good to have a tandem, somewhere I can fit in and don't have to carry the load. I'm looking at this as a new beginning and a new place where I can start.

"

Hillis rushed for 41 yards on four carries and also had a nice touchdown reception in the Chiefs' preseason opener against Arizona. Jamaal Charles will be eased back. That was not the entire point in acquiring Hillis, but it was a major bonus. We forget that Hillis can be really, really good. 

He is undeniably productive when healthy and not acting like a diva. His injuries last season seemed contrived and do not bother me. However, it does concern me that I am not concerned about his injuries, because I feel like he was dogging it all season in 2011. 

DUD: Chris Ivory, RB, New Orleans Saints

Chris Ivory is buried on the Saints' depth chart, and to be honest, he should be. 

I am not saying that Ivory is not a good NFL running back. The Packers could use a guy like him right now. I'm saying he is the fifth-best RB on the New Orleans roster, and he is playing like he knows it. 
After attending Saints camp last week, this is obvious. 

Ninety-three percent of first-team snaps were taken by the trio of Mark Ingram, Darren Sproles and starting RB Pierre Thomas in the practice drills I charted. The remaining seven percent were split between Chris Ivory and Travaris Cadet.

Travaris Cadet, in my opinion, is by far the better NFL back and will be a major steal off waivers if the Saints elect not to keep five running backs on their 53-man roster.

Ivory is already signed through the 2012 season before he hits restricted free agency in 2013, so the Saints won't be able to cut bait unless they find a trade partner, and there's a lot of ways that couldn't work. Even if they did, they would be dealing from a significant position of weakness. 

Chris Ivory has now played in two preseason games the same way he has practiced. 

At a sub-par level. 

STUD: Blaine Gabbert, QB, Jacksonville Jaguars

Blaine Gabbert started his 2012 NFL preseason by leading a six-minute, 90-yard scoring drive against the defending world champion New York Giants.

Maybe he just needed a haircut all along. 

He showed a confidence in the pocket (and in the sale of the play-action fake) that seems like a total 180 from anything we have seen from the second-year signal-caller thus far in his NFL career, especially given the absence of Maurice Jones-Drew.

Backup RB Rashad Jennings is an NFL player, but he does not command the level of respect from a defense that 2011's rushing leader does. Not by any stretch of the imagination. 

Let's be honest. Gabbert was so bad in 2011 that he was well on his way to attaining a status occupied by recent high-profile QB busts such as JaMarcus Russell, Matt Leinart and Brady Quinn. 

He was simply awful as a rookie with no substantive indicators of future development. 

It wasn't like Gabbert got great protection in 2011, and he still isn't so far in 2012. Look at this screenshot from Friday's game thanks to Rumford Johnny. That is a picture of a pocket collapsing and options going down the toilet. 

Still, Gabbert managed to do something we haven't seen out of him at the pro level yet. He didn't give up on his receivers running slow-developing routes. Even while his world was going to hell.

He stuck in there and he played tough, keeping his head up. He kept his vision and stepped into throws with confidence. He looked like a different Blaine Gabbert than he was in his rookie season. 

Then, in his next series, he got sacked and he fumbled. 

I don't care about that, though. I have seen that over and over. What I have never seen out of Gabbert was what I saw on his first drive. His coach was apparently pleased as well.

Sports Illustrated reports new Jags' coach Mike Mularkey as saying:

"

No more pressure on him than anybody in the stadium when he walked into that huddle. And to take a team 90 yards and the things he did on third down. To do it all right and not do anything self-inflicted and move the ball down there against that defense, I was very proud of him.

"

Was he a total stud? No. 

Did he prove he is progressing? Undeniably, yes. 

DUD: Kellen Moore, QB, Detroit Lions

I left the Senior Bowl this offseason with a million thoughts spinning through my head. One of which was an unpopular belief that was broadcast by RosterWatch on the third day of practices: 

Kellen Moore should not be drafted.

I feel like I am piling on here, but my goodness. If I go over everything that is wrong with what Moore continues to roll out against NFL competition, it will make me seem like a serious hater, and I am not. 

Let's just say I personally couldn't believe what I was seeing out of Moore at the Senior Bowl. Frankly, I was shocked by his lack of arm strength, sloppy footwork and inability to decipher the most vanilla one-high safety looks that he practiced against.

Lions HC Jim Schwartz blamed his offensive line for Moore's unbelievably awful, 9.8-passer-rating performance in his first real NFL game situation against the Browns.

I blame his arm and his skill set.