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Upon Further Review: What Was LaPorta Doing Out There

IowasLaw

All-Conference
Nov 19, 2019
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IowaLaw went back and rewatched the 7-3 barnburner to seek glimmers of hope that could be gleaned from this abysmal offense. What stood out came as a shock. The poor play by Sam LaPorta.

Most know that LaPorta hoped to declare for the NFL this past offseason. He had a productive year as the focal point of a WR-less offense benefiting from a check down QB who rarely throws to WRs. The scouts advised him to return to Iowa and prove he can catch and block. It was expected that LaPorta would be the saving grace to this year’s offense.

While most overlooked that he led the team in drops last year (more than even Tracey), hands appear to be a huge concern again this year.

Against SDSU, LaPorta had FOUR different passes bounce off his hands in the first half and dropped a FIFTH easy catch thrown right on the numbers in the second half (the play that was revised to see if he ever had possession before his drop out of bounds).

Granted, the passes were Petras thrown balls, so many were off target bullets that required some adjusting, but all were balls that directly hit Iowa’s top receiving threat in his hands. Of the 5 drops, 2 were extremely catchable 3rd down catches that would have moved the chains. The other 3 passes were poorly thrown balls that most NFL caliber prospects (like Hock or Kittle in years past) would have found a way to catch.

As for his blocking…yikes. LaPorta’s strength has always been on the receiving end. Petras was pressured and hit in multiple occasions vs this IAA opponent thanks to LaPorta whifs.

Has LaPorta lost focus or was this just an off game? Time will tell, but he certainly didn’t do Petras any favors yesterday.
 
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Agree - with the bullets - Petras couldn’t of sucked anymore ass than he did Saturday- remember when Stanley used to rocket a 5 yard pass about 200 mph? These are things that you can’t teach to an old dog… I think Petras has jitters in his nightmares every right… however the offensive line was no picnic - I am still scratching my balls 🏈 over the performance yesterday…
 
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Agree - with the bullets - Petras couldn’t of sucked anymore ass than he did Saturday- remember when Stanley used to rocket a 5 yard pass about 200 mph? These are things that you can’t teach to an old dog… I think Petras has jitters in his nightmares every right… however the offensive line was no picnic - I am still scratching my balls 🏈 over the performance yesterday…
Lol yeah I remember the days of Nate throwing those 100 mph fastballs on a 5 yd crossing route and nobody (not even the defense) having a chance to catch the ball because it was thrown so hard......
 
LaPorta didn’t have a chance to catch most
Of those. They weren’t drops.
But he does have issues with it. And yes his blocking is still an issue
 
Blocking issues, 100% can blame him for those. His blocking all game wasn't good.

His "drops"? That's a reach. LaPorta went up and tipped 2 balls he had zero chance catching unless he was 7+ ft tall and a vertical better than average. I'm not blaming him for a single missed completion.
 
LaPorta didn’t have a chance to catch most
Of those. They weren’t drops.
But he does have issues with it. And yes his blocking is still an issue

yes I agree, I didn't see drops...but I did see ball salling 3 ft over receivers head and some turf balls like
to Wick in 4th quarter.

I do think the one completion near out of bounds that Porta let the ball get knocked out, he was treating the
act of putting the ball away in a less than urgent manner.
 
Pro football focus just released grades for the game. They confirmed IowaLaw’s observation. He graded out profoundly low for a “star.” In fact, his 48 ranked second to last on the touchdownless offense, behind only the record low scoring Petras.

The guy definitely looked distracted and disengaged during the game.
 
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Which is why Charlie Jones and Tyrone Tracy Jr. are now at Purdue. It's pretty tough to stay focused when you know the QB can't get you the damn ball. And when it does show up, you're so surprised you're not prepared to catch it. If you've never played in a situation like the Iowa "offense," maybe it's difficult to understand, but it's real.
 
Pro football focus just released grades for the game. They confirmed IowaLaw’s observation. He graded out profoundly low for a “star.” In fact, his 48 ranked second to last on the offense behind record low scoring Petras.

The guy definitely looked distracted and disengaged during the game.
What was Petras’s QB rating yesterday?
 
He definitely didn't play well on Saturday and yes it is a trend going in the wrong direction for him. The way I see it, especially since its unlikely he has elite measurables, is that he's fighting to be a draftable prospect right now.
 
Had pretty high expectations after his freshman yr. Felt like a solid reload scenario following TJ and Fant. Gotta say 84 hasn’t been all that impressive since. Is the WB part of that? Absolutely!
However if Sam doesn’t start catching 90%+ of the catchables, and give more effort with blocking, let’s just say I hope he has his academics in order.
 
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Which is why Charlie Jones and Tyrone Tracy Jr. are now at Purdue. It's pretty tough to stay focused when you know the QB can't get you the damn ball. And when it does show up, you're so surprised you're not prepared to catch it. If you've never played in a situation like the Iowa "offense," maybe it's difficult to understand, but it's real.
Tracy can't catch either so there is that
 
Must have been watching a different game—-Sam got his hands on some passes that could not have been caught by Kittle, Hockenson, Clark, Fant, etc.——come on!
 
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I can't believe he still gets all the playing time. Suspect hands and poor blocking. The blocking is more of a concern for me.
 
Pro football focus just released grades for the game. They confirmed IowaLaw’s observation. He graded out profoundly low for a “star.” In fact, his 48 ranked second to last on the touchdownless offense, behind only the record low scoring Petras.

The guy definitely looked distracted and disengaged during the game.
Wait, have you been speaking for another poster this whole time? Are you the legal representation for this mythical IowaLaw that has never posted themselves? Is this a sovereign citizen case?
 
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Petras locked onto LaPorta almost exclusively against ISU. His 8 catches sound great in a box score, until you see he averaged just 6.9 yards per catch. By comparison, he averaged 15 yards per catch in 2019, 10 yards per catch in 2020, and 13 yards per catch last year. 6.9 yards is unheard of for a non-running back. His effort to break tackles and gain yards after catch just isn't there.

LaPorta has a huge opportunity this year. Unlike most tight ends, he is the team's only receiver. Let your fortunate circumstances help you go out and have an all-American season. Stop with the half assing it.
 
Petras locked onto LaPorta almost exclusively against ISU. His 8 catches sound great in a box score, until you see he averaged just 6.9 yards per catch. By comparison, he averaged 15 yards per catch in 2019, 10 yards per catch in 2020, and 13 yards per catch last year. 6.9 yards is unheard of for a non-running back. His effort to break tackles and gain yards after catch just isn't there.

LaPorta has a huge opportunity this year. Unlike most tight ends, he is the team's only receiver. Let your fortunate circumstances help you go out and have an all-American season. Stop with the half assing it.
It’s hard to have YAC when he’s constantly having to lunge towards the sidelines to catch inaccurate passes
 
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