Question, is a missed assignment when our guy physically does not make the block, or that he did not block the right guy. In the image of the Georgia game, it looks to me like the issue of that play was not missed blocks. It looks like TM did not move toward the line, thus drawing tacklers to him before making the pitch.
A missed blocking assignment is when a blocker targets the wrong man. On the other hand, when a blocker wiffs, it's either poor execution or just getting beat. We had all the above last season, but I think it's getting a little blown out of proportion. It happened more in the second half of the season and for a myriad of reasons.
Lack of depth due to injuries played a big part. It's tough to focus when you're gassed because we can't rotate guys in. Also, the quality of opponent increased dramatically. It's much tougher to execute blocks against guys bigger/stronger/faster than you are. And then when you're gassed, you lose focus and start making mental mistakes (blown assignments.) And then there's the DL movement that caused problems. So, it was a bunch of things.
The good news is we'll have a bunch more experience
and depth going into next season. And anther year of offseason weight training and just plain ol physical maturation that comes with age. All of that spells a better OL for '18!!!
*Another point I'd like to make is that when the qb misses reads, it can make an OL look bad when it's not their fault. Some of that was happening, too.
