Welcome to the first installment of Monday Thoughts for the 2023 football season. As always, I’ll try to bring something different here in MT. With so many writers producing such great analysis for us, there’s not really a reason for me to pore through the box score or re-watch the game in detail in the hopes of saying something football-brilliant.

That said, I’ll dip into that a little bit, because a few things did stand out to me about the stats in this game. But let’s start with some general comments.

What Changed And What Stayed the Same

The talent difference at wide receiver between this year and last year is stark. We knew these guys — Ali Jennings, Jaylin Lane and Da’Quan Felton — all came in with a bunch of career catches and accomplishments and physical prowess, but that’s all just talk. When the game finally kicked off, they delivered, both statistically and in the eye test.

The wide receiver talent was arguably the difference in this game. They got open, hauled in everything thrown their way and more importantly, broke tackles and extended plays.

...