Why so much emphasis and pressure on Cade?

Jul 30, 2024, 9:46 AM

Deshaun Watson certainly threw his share of interceptions while at Clemson.

I think the main differences in Cade's case are two:

1) When Watson had a turnover, his play led to confidence that he would more than make up for it. And, usually his mistakes were not in the red zone. Cade's turnovers seem to come at the worst possible position on the field, and to date, he has not shown the firepower to make up for those mistakes on a consistent basis. NOTE that that inability is certainly not all on him, the rest of the offense bears some of the responsibility.

2) Watson made the right decision most of the time on offense. Cade has really made some boneheaded audibles, sometimes to the point that he would have been in the coaches doghouse if we had a valid backup option. Therein lies part of the problem. Nobody was really pushing Cade, and we do not know if anyone really is, even now. He must take it on his own to get better, and from all outward appearances, he is trying to do that.

This is going to be a breakout season for Cade, and a re-emergence of the real Clemson offense. Either that, or we may see a different option under center, sooner rather than later. With the talent on this team, I do not believe that Dabo will ride with Cade and see another season go down the tubes if he thinks he has a better, or even equal option if mistakes continue to proliferate.