PATRIOTS OFFENSE V. BILLS DEFENSE

Maroney showed the ability to make the unblocked defender miss, a critical attribute that he has not consistently exhibited
Maroney ran hard downhill, More north-south; He has evolved into a sustaining downhill runner with power – He’s not vertically explosive
Connelly started at RG and Volmer at RT for the Patriots
Brady interception was an inaccurate throw under pressure, He had Welker on the shallow cross but pressure from Schobel impacted the throw
Patriots went deep to Moss on designed big play opportunities twice on the first 2 series, The second one would have been a TD (PI was called on S Whitner) but Brady was hit on his plant leg by blitzing S Wilson as he delivered and the result was an underthrown pass
Brady great throw under pressure on Moss 13 yd TD, LT Light by beaten quickly to the inside by blitzing LB Scott
Patriots continued to utilize both unbalanced OL formations and 6 OL personnel
Brady was [...]

COLTS OFFENSE V. JAGUARS DEFENSE

Mathis back at LCB for the Jaguars, Middleton was the nickel corner over the slot
Allen started at LB for the injured and inactive Ingram
LB Smith at times aligned at DE in the nickel package; Jaguars clearly groping for any kind of pass rush – Smith often dropped out into coverage as part of zone exchange and zone blitz concepts
Jaguars blitzed consistently on the Colts first possession, mostly out if their 3-3-5 package with Smith at DE – Zone blitz and zone exchange concepts
Jaguars very multiple with pressures and coverages on the Colts first possession, Tried to show Manning different looks
Collie 23 yd TD was an unbelievable throw by Manning: It was “cover 2” with nickel corner Middleton locked man-to-man on slot receiver Collie; Manning threw the ball to the back shoulder of Collie, which was the only place the ball could be thrown
Colts only had 2 possessions in the first half, and they scored [...]

PANTHERS OFFENSE V. PATRIOTS DEFENSE

Butler and Chung played in the Patriots nickel package
First impressions watching Moore: A little impatient in the pocket, not comfortably going through his progressions, bailing mentally and physically a little early; Tendency to be a little wild high, missing open receivers
Patriots base defense in this game was the 3-4; They went to a 4 man DL in their nickel package
Moore threw with a low arm angle, did not come over the top; Inconsistent release point, which produces erratic accuracy
Smith 41 yd TD came out of “22” personnel with Smith the only WR, Patriots “cover 3”; Post/cross combination, a great route combination versus “cover 3” – Springs played with outside leverage versus Smith, clearly expecting inside help; Deep safety Meriweather jumped the cross, and back side CB Butler carried the cross too far, leaving Springs with no help
Panthers utilized the “Wildcat” with Smith taking the direct snap in the shotgun
Wilfork a dominant force at [...]

BENGALS OFFENSE V. VIKINGS DEFENSE

Winfield back at LCB for the Vikings; Sapp was the nickel corner over the slot – Sanford started at S in place of injured Johnson
Greenway and Leber were the nickel LBs, Leber replaced Henderson in the nickel
Bengals OL continued to really struggle with pass protection, Palmer clearly expected and perceived pressure in this game, He was not consistently firm in the pocket
Robison aligned at DT in the Vikings nickel package, Had a sack to end the Bengals first possession
Rookie OL Smith again played in the 6 OL personnel package
Vikings played press consistently against Ochocinco, especially Griffin at RCB
Bengals clearly did not game plan to throw the ball down the field, No designed explosiveness to their passing game, A function of their inability to pass protect with any consistency
Interior of the Bengals OL had a tough time blocking Pat Williams in the run game
Vikings consistently double-teamed Ochocinco, and Palmer at times forced the ball to him – Palmer [...]

COACHING TAPE – WEEK 14

VIKINGS OFFENSE V. BENGALS DEFENSE

With Harvin inactive, Lewis was the Vikings 3rd WR
MLB Jones stood out: Recognition and instincts in the run game, What he lacks is change of direction as a pass defender
S Ndukwe very active in the run game as an add-in box defender in the first quarter
Vikings often utilized Shiancoe in the slot in base personnel packages, Another way to use 3 WR formations
Bengals a lot of man coverage concepts, especially in long yardage situations
Favre ability to extend plays a big positive in the red zone, Often breaks down coverage discipline: Rice 9 yd TD
Maualuga must do a more consistent job of contact, control and release; Tendency to run around blocks rather than take them on
Bengals defense looked disciplined and fast, Not a lot of mental mistakes
Bengals defense more aggressive with blitz in the red zone area, They even played some “cover zero”
Vikings clearly more base personnel packages, with “12” and “21” personnel – [...]

REDSKINS OFFENSE V. SAINTS DEFENSE

Jenkins and McKenzie started at CB for the Saints, Dunbar started at OLB in place of Fujita, Evans also got snaps at OLB in the base 4-3
Jenkins does not have the skill set to play press man corner in the NFL: No suddenness to his movement, Not the necessary lateral quickness or change of direction, Lacks recovery speed
Redskins clearly went after Jenkins on their first series, and they had success with a 32 yd PI penalty and a 10 yd pass to Thomas on 3rd + 7 from the slot
When the Saints went with 3-3-5 as their nickel package, Evans was the third LB with Vilma and Shanle – Jenkins played in the slot in the nickel
Campbell very robotic and mechanical in his reads and throws, Does not recognize and react to coverage on his drop, Strong tendency to throw the ball where the play is designed to go
Campbell not a move and re-set QB, That’s when [...]

DOLPHINS OFFENSE V. PATRIOTS DEFENSE

Butler started at LCB for the Patriots; In the nickel, Wilhite predominantly played over the slot
Chung was a nickel safety, replacing starter McGowan
Dolphins utilized unbalanced OL as a significant part of their offense, including long yardage situations when they threw out of it
Seau played some snaps at ILB for the Patriots, in place of Guyton
Patriots played primarily 3-4 in this game
Henne excellent arm strength, He snapped the ball with good velocity – He threw the ball well to the outside, with consistent accuracy
Camarillo 29 yds on 3rd + 4 came out of an unbalanced OL, Patriots “man free” coverage with press across the board, Camarillo beat Butler on a fade route – Great throw by Henne
Patriots matched up to the Dolphins “22” personnel package with 3 safeties, Chung was the third safety
Bess 13 yd TD on 3rd + 5 came out of 4 WR personnel versus Patriots “cover zero” blitz; Great poise by Henne handling a [...]

GIANTS OFFENSE V. COWBOYS DEFENSE

Scandrick was the Cowboys nickel corner, Carpenter and James were the nickel LBs
Jenkins is the Cowboys best corner, especially in man-to-man coverage; His growth as a very good NFL corner has been evident throughout the season
Cowboys always want Ware on the open side of the offensive formation
Giants clearly tried to establish a physical presence running the ball with Jacobs; Jacobs at this point only gets what’s blocked, nothing more
Manning did not look comfortable early in the game, A little jittery and frenetic in the pocket
Cowboys a lot of man coverage concepts; Jenkins aligned predominantly in press position, while Newman’s tendency was to play 4-5 yards off the receiver
Smith at his best working from the slot, A mismatch favoring the Giants when matched against Scandrick
Ware was not a defining factor as a pass rusher: Giants a variety of tactics to deal with him that involved both single blocks by tackles McKenzie and Diehl, and at times TE Boss, [...]

COACHING TAPE – WEEK 13

CARDS OFFENSE V. VIKINGS DEFENSE

Sapp again started at CB in place of the injured Winfield
What was immediately evident was the Cards gave DE Allen a lot to think about: On 5 and 7 step drops, they always had a second body to his side, whether it was a TE or a back
Cards did not match up LT Bridges on Allen one-on-one; Depending on the Vikings DL alignment, there were times LG Wells helped Bridges on Allen
The hat on the Cards OL was worn by RT Brown, He often was matched one-on-one with Edwards and Robison as a result of the focus on Allen
Allen was the Vikings nickel corner, aligned over the slot – In the Cards 3 WR sets, that was predominantly Boldin
When the Cards went 4 WR personnel with Doucet, the Vikings matched up with dime personnel: Paymah was the fourth corner, He played on the outside with Sapp and Allen on the inside
Warner timing and [...]

VIKINGS OFFENSE V. BEARS DEFENSE

Bears clearly game planned more man coverage concepts, especially early in the game, and single high safety schemes – A more aggressive and less predictable defensive approach
What I notice every week is how Favre moves and manipulates coverage defenders with his head, his eyes and his body – That opens passing lanes, and often leads to critical 3rd down conversions
Hicks started at RG in place of injured Herrera, He’s a journeyman with an average skill set
Bears really tried to do more from a coverage standpoint in this game, Become less predictable; They got their underneath coverage defenders more involved with the wide receivers, buzzing them out to try to take away passing lanes, but still predominantly playing zone concepts like ”inverted cover 2” – They were trying to get defenders from atypical locations into underneath coverage to try to slow down Favre’s decision making or create a forced throw
Shiancoe a movable chess [...]