His first game was great and would have been better is a few catchable balls were caught. I posted that we had another Matt Ryan on our hands. I was wrong.
It would have been different behind a better O-Line and coaching. There were times in the Diaco era where no one was getting blocked at all. It was a total free for all. I don't think any "quarterback" could have succeeded during that dark era. They brought in a fullback (Sherriffs), who had the athleticism to move around and the bulk to take some crazy shots. IMO Sherriffs is way underrated for what he accomplished under extreme duress. The preparation of a quarterback is all about recognition and progressions. Guys who love the game work hard at it. During the Diaco era, it was totally backyard football and running for your life. None of that prep mattered. One of the criticisms of Bryant was he played that style even as the O-line started to improve.
I'm glad Tim Boyle is getting a chance to do what he loves. I hope he's able to keep getting better and he is enjoying the experience.
He completed 35% of his passes for under 150 yards his first game. Even grading on a huge curve accounting for him being a true freshmen making his first start for a dumpster fire team, his first game was not great.
To me, he's a practice/workout player. Guy who looks the part, throws a nice ball in controlled environments, but in game situations where he can get hit, he has to read the defense, make adjustments at the line, and everything else that goes into it he struggles. Casey Cochran was the opposite, overlooked in practice because his physical tools don't blow you away, but smart, with intangibles, knows how to run an offense. We looked like a completely different team that year once he got his shot.
Obviously Boyle was not in a good situation. Maybe if he had reshirted a year, spent 1-2 years as a backup, and then took over behind a good offensive line with weapons around him things would have gone a lot better. If the packers dvelop him well and he carves out an NFL career that would show that to be the case. But I would be surprised if that happens. I'm not overally surprised a team gave him a shot as an UDFA or that he had a couple good practices.