Has Finley lost a step?

[cheesehurdler]

He's not catching the balls he usually hauls in. One example is when Rodgers threw the ball to a tightly covered Finley, and Finley couldn't make the catch, and it ended up getting intercepted. I also know of several other balls thrown his way that he should've caught but couldn't. Finley usually makes those catches in his sleep.

Has he lost a step or two? Or, did he ever have it? Would you miss J-mike at all if he was gone?

 

[3irty1]

Yes.

 

[armand34]

Gonna have to wait and evaluate his ENTIRE season first, but It's definitely getting annoying

 

[A12ROD903]

I think hes not concentrating. I think he gets so eager to get his shot, that he gets too excited. Needs to focus more.

 

[VolvoD]

too much swager.

 

[Croak]

I don't think he lost anything. He's always talked a bigger game than he actually plays.

 

[Gmcman22]

Not consistently involved in the passing game so its hard to stay in rhythm and maintain focus. He might only get a couple opportunities so he wants to make big plays... and ends up not making the routine ones. They need to get him going so he's a threat in the playoffs.

 

[Greenbayphil]

I still like him, and even with the drops still regard him as one of the best in the league, hopefully he can get it together and post a strong post season, he will be hyped up for this since he last the post season and SB run last year

 

[ExpatPacker]

I have a question: was that INT more of Finley's fault for not pulling it in, or was it just a great play on the part of the Raider DB? I don't think it could have been defensed any better than it was, but was it an unwise throw by Rodgers or was Finley not on the ball?

 

[98Redbird]

No, you can't lose what you never had. Finley is a slightly above average TE. He has always talked a far bigger game than he plays. Gates, Davis, Witten, Gronk, Graham, and a few others are better TE's. No, I would not miss him if he is not a Packer next season.

 

[FrankRizzo]

I have a question: was that INT more of Finley's fault for not pulling it in, or was it just a great play on the part of the Raider DB? I don't think it could have been defensed any better than it was, but was it an unwise throw by Rodgers or was Finley not on the ball?

The throw was simply not high enough to where J-Mike could use his height and reach advantage.
I gave Rodgers a D for the pass, and Finley a D for the effort.

Those need to be like rebounds up high away from the reach of the shorter DB.
The DB made a nice play. He gets an A on the play.

 

[Kitten]

I noticed those drops as well. The thing is with Finley is the amount of catches he does make by far outweighs those few drops. He's the kind of player who can afford to make a few drops every now and then. Also keep in mind that not all of those drops are solely his fault, some of that is on Rodgers as much as I hate to admit it. With Finley I think we notice and expound upon dropped balls far more than we would another player because Fins is more high profile. We have come to just expect him to catch those balls and when he misses one, it's like OMG, Finley dropped a pass! It also has a lot to do with attitude and the way Finley conducts himself. We expect somebody who is able to talk the talk to be able to walk the walk.

To conclude, I don't think Finley has lost a step, if anything, I've noticed improvements in his game. I think he is going through something all TEs or even WRs go through. It's part of the game. Something to remark upon with Finley is he doesn't let a dropped pass define his game and he doesn't let it unravel him. It looks like it makes him try even harder.

 

[slaughter25]

The drops are aggravating to say the least and as far as I am concerned he has not lived up to the hype all year long. With Jennings out for a few weeks we will really see if he can get his hands, eyes, and brain all on the same page and haul in a few of the big drops he has had in the last few games.

 

[Southpaw]

He's definitely been inconsistent lately. He definitely should have made that catch yesterday. That was all on him. Perhaps Rodgers could have put that ball up a little higher but yeah that was definitely Finley's catch to make.

With all that said, Finley is still a weapon in our offense much like a Jimmy Graham or Antonio Gates in that he has the ability to stretch the field and commands double coverage. He just needs to calm down and relax. It seems like when he finally gets a look, he's wound so tight he end ups dropping the ball. But man, when Finley is on, he's a big time play maker

 

[weeds]

Yeah.... he's been dropping a lot.

I think he's pressing too much, personally

 

[Eric87]

That play was pretty aggravating, but let's not overreact. Rodgers did need to put the ball a little bit higher, but Finley should have got a hand on it. The DB was only able to intercept it because it went through Finley's arms. But it was one play in a blow-out win.

The fans and the media commentators built Finley up because of his physical attributes and some flashes in 2009. He got blown out of proportion before he accomplished anything. Now that we've got a long look at him, he has looked like a top 10 tight end, but not a top 5 tight end. Let's not act like he's some big disappointment now.

 

[greenandgold]

I don't know about losing a step, but he seems to be losing his hands.

 

[GBMuskies]

It seems he's stopped catching the ball with his hands, and instead sometimes lets it get to his arms and body where he tries to cradle it. It used to be the ball simply disappeared in those huge mitts of his. He just snagged it out of the air. That seems to be missing. He still seems to run really well.