NFL Preseason: Eli Manning, 5 biggest problems to fix

Through two weeks of the preseason we’ve now seen plenty to get giddy about, like Jadeveon Clowney removing opposing ball carriers from their cleats and/or underpants.

But there’s a whole lot to worry about too, with these five questions leading the list of concerns.

Will Eli Manning get his new offense right?

The Giants’ transition to an entirely foreign offense was never going to be smooth and lawless. They’re moving from Kevin Gilbride’s vertical madness with its many option routes (that led to many turnovers last year), to Ben McAdoo’s quick hitting west coast scheme.

So far there’s been some progress, but so much more confusion.

Entering Week 2 of the preseason the Giants had accumulated only 216 yards of offense with Manning under center, moving along at 4.2 yards per play. A west coast system is one that leans heavily on timing, and Manning simply doesn’t seem to have it with his receivers quite yet.

That was especially evident this past weekend against the Colts, when he completed only one of his seven pass attempts for six yards. So then through three preseason games (remember, the Giants played in the Hall of Fame Game), Manning has all of 49 passing yards at a pace of 3.1 per attempt.

As we’ve seen often with other quarterbacks adjusting to a new way of getting their O’s a win over opposing X’s, this will take time. There’s no quarterback pixie dust that instantly rights all the wrongs of a career single-season high 27 interceptions.

Can Eric Fisher block anyone?

Eric Fisher’s imitation of a creaky door could get maddening fast in Kansas City, where the Chiefs run their own west coast offense. The first overall pick a year ago has moved over to left tackle, occupying the space vacated when Brandon Albert left for Miami.

So far this preseason Fisher has spent a lot of time stumbling and staggering. He was knocked around most recently by Carolina’s Greg Hardy, and although the sample size we have from Fisher at his natural position is small, so is his margin for error after last year.

In his first season Fisher blew 33 blocks, whiffing once every 23.9 snaps, according to Football Outsiders. It was the worst pace of any offensive lineman to be on the field for at least 500 snaps. That’s not a good look for the anchor of a gutted offensive line (the Chiefs lost Jon Asamoah and Geoff Schwartz this offseason too).

Will Trent Richardson ever be able to see and hit a hole?

The Indianapolis Colts spent most of the offseason telling anyone who wanted to listen that Trent Richardson is a changed man. The problem last year, according to head coach Chuck Pagano, was a lack of familiarity with the offense after he jumped in right away following an early-season trade.

Fair enough, and there’s probably some truth to that. But you can’t toss away almost a whole season of nothingness quite so easily. In late December — over three months after the trade from Cleveland — Richardson had games when he averaged 3.4 and 2.7 yards.

He bounces, hesitates, stutter steps, bounces some more, and then misses running lanes. That’s continued so far this preseason, as Richardson has totaled only 34 rushing yards on 14 carries (2.4 YPC) over two games. With Vick Ballard out for the season and Ahmad Bradshaw a fragile mess, the Colts will be relying on Richardson heavily this year. That could end in a lot of tears.

Will the Bills ever use C.J. Spiller properly?

C.J. Spiller is actually having a pretty alright preseason. He had 22 rushing yards on three carries in the Bills’ second game, showing his burst. Then he wasn’t able to find much green grass against the Steelers, finishing with 16 yards on six carries.

If we see more of the struggling Spiller this year, the reason may be far removed from his control, though still frustrating. Doug Marrone’s coaching staff continues to misuse him, wasting his outside speed.

Instead of designing runs that get him to the outside or putting in space as a receiver, Spiller has often been strictly an early down pounder, and asked to run between the tackles. On passing downs Spiller is taken off the field and replaced by Fred Jackson, which we saw against Pittsburgh when he played 26 of the 47 first-team snaps, but none of them came on third down or in the red zone.

For a franchise facing ownership uncertainty and one that’s firmly in win-now mode after the Sammy Watkins trade, wasting the talents of your best offensive weapon isn’t a wise strategy.

Why do the 49ers think Blaine Gabbert is a professional quarterback?

They really do think that, because otherwise Blaine Gabbert wouldn’t be a Colin Kaepernick ankle tweak away from taking a meaningful snap for a team that’s yet again trying to be a contender in the vicious NFC West.

That alone is why a question about a backup is being addressed here. Are the struggles of Manning or the misuse of Spiller more concerning? Sure, simply because those worries involve key contributors who will see the field every week. In an ideal, best case scenario, Gabbert will watch for the entire season in San Francisco.

But a season isn’t always filled with roses and sunshine, and at the most important offensive position there are core qualifications for the backup: experience, and trust that he won’t commit repeated turnovers. So far through two preseason appearances (mostly against second-team defenses), Gabbert has thrown two interceptions while completing only 44 percent of his passes for 60 yards, an average of 2.4 yards per attempt.

With Kaepernick’s scrambling, sometimes chaotic playing style that exposes him to more hits and the greater potential for injury, the 49ers need to have one of the league’s best backup quarterbacks. Right now Gabbert is among the worst, and it doesn’t get much better if he loses his job to Josh Johnson.