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News and Notes : 3.22.13

We’ve reached the portion of the off-season in which legitimate news that will actually matter come September is hard to come by but tabloid-style flashy news is everywhere.

It’s kind of fun.

Plenty of other things happened over the course of the last week, but these are the five categories of events that stood out most for me:

Weirdest: Last Friday, I was sitting on a friend’s couch, catching up on the week, when my iPhone lit up with “Elvis Dumervil takes pay cut to stay in Denver.” No big surprise there. Then, no more than a minute or two later, this: “Elvis Dumervil cut from Denver after missed contract deadline.” And that was quite the big surprise.

In what has to be one of the weirdest sports stories ever (although there have been quite a few hum dingers lately), Elvis Dumervil’s now former agent didn’t get his contract faxed over in time to meet the deadline, and the Broncos had no rational business choice but to cut him. Now, this isn’t quite as devastating as it might seem, because they can resign him if they want to (and most signs point to that happening), but still…wow. It raises a variety of thoughts. Among them: 1) Fax machines? 2) The business side of football in all it’s cut throat glory is the same for all players with few exceptions.

3) Fax machines.

Who knew?

Saddest: It takes a lot for me to say this as a Packers fan and thus a non-fan of the Bears and all their constituents…but it’s sad to me that the Bears wouldn’t resign Urlacher for a measly $3 million. I realize that I just used the phrase “measly $3 million” but when you’re talking about keeping one of your veterans for the duration of his career and the difference between giving him a one-team legacy and cutting him loose is about $1 million (they offered him 2, he said he would negotiate 3)…it just seems like class should prevail over business at that point.

And now we have Exhibit 700 as evidence to why I would be a terrible GM.

Angriest: Greg Jennings is now the millionth Packer to don the Purple. And who helped him reach that decision? The Vikings other recent big-time NFC North steal: Brett Favre.

You’re really not helping to orchestrate your hero’s welcome back to GB, 4.

Three guesses as to which team is reportedly trying to grab Urlacher now that he’s on the market?

The Purple We-Can’t-Find-Our-Own-People Eaters.

Seriously…burns my biscuits.

Best: Praise the Lord and Hallelujah, the Tuck Rule is no more. I think it’s safe to say that no one is more pleased than Charles Woods0n.

Best Intended: The new helmet rule is taking a lot of flack from fans and players alike, and it’s easy to see why. At first glance, it seems like this new rule – which is trying to increase player safety by penalizing running backs who make contact with the crown of their head in the open field – is the latest stop on the train to football’s demise, at least football as we currently know it. Trying to make an unsafe sport safe is a tall order. It’s also an impossible, highly important, order. And when changes are made to the fabric of the game, it’s an order that causes mass hysteria.

But as a few level-heads have pointed out, this rule doesn’t change anything. No running back has ever been taught to hit with the crown of his head. Besides not making safety sense, it doesn’t make football sense. So this rule really shouldn’t be that big of a deal; in fact, it should be celebrated.

However, and this is an elephant of a however, the celebration pauses when we consider how in the world this is going to be officiated. The rule makes sense on paper, and it even makes sense on tape, but at game speed? When officials are keeping track of other factors and are trying to make their best judgement in real time in the mass of humanity that is stopping the run? That’s going to be rough. There will be lots of flags, lots of disgruntled people, and lots of throwing the baby out with the bathwater to the tune of, “They’re killing football!!!”

Don’t give up on this rule – or the future of football – quite yet. These changes aren’t being made to kill a game we love; they’re being made to make sure it doesn’t die of it’s own volition: an inherently violent nature and a refusal to adapt.

What do you guys think of the new rule?

History Lessons : The Ice Bowl

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With the recent blast back into frigid temperates, I thought it would be appropriate to talk about the Ice Bowl this week.

The Ice Bowl isn’t a catchy name descriptive of the surrounding area like the Rose Bowl in California or the Orange Bowl in Florida. The Ice Bowl was one fateful championship game in which everything literally turned to ice as temperatures plummeted from 10 to nearly 20 degrees below zero – without adding in the windchill.

It was the classic setting for a classic game.

It was 1967 and the Cowboys and Packers had earned a trip to the NFL Championship game. The temperature at the start of the game was 15 degrees below zero, making it the coldest game in league history. You’d think that would deter a few fans from showing up that day, maybe persuade the commissioner to postpone it.

However, that’s not how Green Bay rolls. Over 50,000 fans were in attendance – an attendance which has become the ultimate badge of honor for Packers fans. (If only I had been born two decades sooner!)

The Packers had won the title 4 of the past 6 years and were primed for another victory over the warm-weather-based Cowboys. It certainly started in the Packers favor: Green Bay had a 14-0 lead at halftime. But the Cowboys came back in the second half, piling up 17 points to the Packers 14. Led by iconic coach Vince Lombardi and future Hall of Fame quarterback Bart Starr, Green Bay claimed the victory in the final seconds to earn a trip to Super Bowl II, which they would win.

It’s a good story, but words won’t do it justice until you see just what kind of conditions we’re talking about:

However, if there are words to do it justice, Mike Juley’s would be my pick. His memories of going to the Ice Bowl with his dad are priceless:

Whenever the Packers scored, the famous “thwump, thwump, thwump” of mittens hitting mittens permeated the stadium. Dad was happy to clap. It assured him that his arms were still working.

We made it through most of the first half, with the Packers leading, 14-10. Seeking warmth, we left our seats late in the second quarter for the concession stand, where Dad ordered a coffee — they had run out of hot chocolate. In the minute it took the attendant to bring back change, the coffee had turned ice cold.

Numbed, we decided to spend the third quarter thawing out across the street in the office of a service station. Amid gasoline fumes, we listened to the radio broadcast of a touchdown pass by the Cowboys that gave them the lead early in the fourth quarter, 17-14.

Returning to the stadium — the gate attendants had fled from their positions shortly after the game started — we reclaimed our seats in time to see the final Packers drive, culminating in Starr’s dramatic quarterback sneak with 13 seconds remaining that won the game.

By then, we couldn’t feel anything. Yet, Dad and I hugged each other, two clumps of frozen clothing jumping up and down. It must have been quite a sight.

It sure must have. But a good one, for sure.

If possible, this bit of history makes me love the Packers even more.

Film Room : An Intro to Coverage in the Colts vs. Titans Game

Funny story: we actually talked about one of the plays that proceeded this play way back in Week 8: Vic Ballard’s twisting flip into the end zone. Today we’ll get to see how that play was made possible.

So what went right here? Let’s recap:

1. Blocking the Twist

Using what we’ve learned about defensive alignments, we know that the Titans are lined up in a 4-3 defense. How do we know that? AT the snap of the ball the Titans have 4 defensive linemen aligned on the line of scrimmage, with 3 linebackers hovering a few yards behind. Those two interior linemen, the defensive tackles, are the two who are running the twist stunt: pushing to the outside corners and crossing instead of tackling straight ahead. Except they never get to the full crossing part because the Colts picked up on the twist and blocked it. Right guard Mike McGlynn is assigned to block the oncoming defensive lineman directly in front of him. When the DT starts to move inside to twist, McGlynn doesn’t try to throw him outside by himself. He makes the smart move of punching inside toward the Center, so that the center and the left guard can help to pick up both of the twisting defensive linemen.

2. Stepping Up in the Pocket

This is my favorite attribute of Andrew Luck’s. He is never rattled by pressure. His eyes are always downfield, waiting for the right window to open while he expertly avoids oncoming defenders. I love watching him play.

In this play, the defensive ends get outside and get to Luck in no time flat. But because he trusts his offensive line (even though he usually shouldn’t…they need some help on O-line in Indy) and never panics, he just steps right up into the pocket with his head up and arm ready to fire. See all that open field in front of him? Most QB’s would be tempted to just take off and run. But Luck knows that he’ll get more yardage out of a pass than a QB run, so he stays patient and waits for Reggie Wayne to get open. “Open” might be a generous classification for a receiver who is flanked by two defenders, but for Reggie Wayne, that’s open. He’s such a pro.

3. Adjusting to Coverage

“Traditional wisdom says wide receivers run away from man coverage and sit down in the hole versus zone.”

Let’s break that down a little further:

Man coverage is when each defensive player is assigned an offensive player to cover. In most situations, this means that cornerbacks will come up to the line of scrimmage to cover wide receivers and linebackers and safeties will cover running backs and tight ends. Man-to-man coverage requires strong match-ups that favor the defense; if the offensive players are winning the match-ups in man coverage, they’re going to win the game.

Zone coverage is when the linebackers and defensive backs are assigned to cover specific parts of the field, or “zones.” They aren’t covering individual players, they are protecting an area of the field and making it difficult for the offense to complete passing attempts.

Pretty easy, right? Man coverage = defending men; zone coverage = defending zones.

Next step:

“Wide receivers run away from man coverage” doesn’t mean that they run away and hide, it means that they run with the coverage and fake the defender out with cuts and breaks to gain an advantage and run “away” from the defender. When a receiver is running his route, he needs a burst of speed when he makes his final break so that he can get safely away from coverage. “Sitting down in the hole” would be an entertaining choice if taken literally, but what it actually means is that receivers read zone coverage, find the “holes” in the zones – where there are no defenders – and try to stay open (“sit down”) in the hole.

In this play, we see that Reggie Wayne both runs away from his man coverage and finds the hole in the zone. While most of the Titan defenders are playing man coverage, the inside robber (a free safety who is playing down low) is playing zone coverage (as is the deep safety, who is not pictured). Here’s what that looks like:

The robber thinks that the tight end is getting the ball and abandons his zone. Reggie Wayne knows that he’s getting man coverage and cuts inside to break away from his man. He also sees the hole in the zone after the inside robber goes after the tight end and stays patient in the hole to give Luck a chance to get him the ball. Which he does, brilliantly.

Two plays later, the Colts went on to score the winning touchdown in overtime. All of which was made possible by this fantastic play.

Off the Field : Walter Stewart

This story. Oh my word.

Even though this is different than what we’ve usually been doing for Off the Field – giving virtual high fives to players who do as much to help people off the field as they do on the field – I had to share Walter Stewart’s story with you guys after reading this outstanding article about him last week.

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You’ve probably never heard of Walter Stewart, the standout defensive end from the University of Cincinnati. That’s because he hasn’t made it to the NFL yet. Yet being the operative word. Someone who has endured what he has might be tempted to throw in the towel, but Walter Stewart hasn’t stopped fighting.

Not when he was 12 and had to run away from home after another violent interaction with his mother, not when he had to adjust to life as a foster child, not when he was told he could never play football again as a senior in college, not when he was invited to the Combine but not allowed to participate.

He is singularly focused on one goal: keep moving forward.

Stewart was projected to be a first round pick before the x-ray that would change his life during his senior season in Cincinnati. Just five games into the season he learned he had a congenital spine abnormality located in his C1 vertebra which put him at extreme risk for substantial injury should he continue to play football. He was medically prohibited from playing the rest of his senior season.

For most, that would have been the end of it. But not for Stewart.

He addressed his college team and comforted them when they found themselves dismayed at losing one of their teammates and captains. He then, with the help of his foster parents, sought additional medical advice about his condition. Most doctors agreed with the diagnosis, but were unsure about the actual risk factors. He even got a few go-aheads from doctors who had seen other players with the same condition. But it didn’t much matter what the doctors said. Stewart decided that whatever the risk factor, he is willing to take it.

His prestigious collegiate career, though incomplete, was enough to get him an invite to the Combine so that teams could judge for themselves whether or not they are willing to give him a chance.

Only they weren’t allowed to see the full picture. After months of training for an invitation he had earned, he was medically prohibited from doing drills at the Combine. (However, something tells me that his spirit of perseverance spoke for itself in all of the interviews anyway, which was a win for Stewart without even stepping on the field.)

No Combine? No problem. Stewart had his Pro Day at Cincinnati on March 13th and showed himself to be the solid player he’s always been. Mike Mayock, draft guru, has said that as long as he passes the team’s medical evaluations he could go as high as a Top 10 pick.

That will be the final hurdle for Stewart: passing the team physical, the only obstacle that has kept him out of football ever since those initial x-rays were revealed. It’s hard to know whether teams will proceed with caution or throw it to the wind in order to add an extraordinary player to their roster.

History would tell us that the latter is true. History also tells us that whether or not Stewart makes an NFL roster, he’ll keep moving forward, undeterred.

Fundamentals : Option Offense

Chances are you’ve heard a thing or two about option offenses recently, maybe through terms like “pistol” or “zone-read” or “triple option,” or maybe through the breakout players who run these systems, guys like RG3 and Colin Kaepernick and Russell Wilson, or college-turned-pro coaches like Pete Carroll and Chip Kelly, who are bringing these offenses into the NFL. The general consensus is that these types of option-based offenses are just fads and will take a back seat, as all fads eventually do, to the traditional pocket-passer model.

But whether option systems are here to stay or just here for a season, they will undoubtedly play a huge role again in 2013 since they were so successful last season. Today we’re going to spend some time looking at the basic basics of option systems (because to do an in-depth look would require me to quit my job and study playbooks full-time). (Which I would totally be up for, in case anyone is looking to hire for that position.)

So..what is an option offense?

An option offense isn’t so much a specific system as it is a blanket term for a variety of systems that use option principles.

So…what does that mean?

In a traditional, pro style offense, the offense goes to the line of scrimmage knowing what the play is going to be, unless the quarterback decides to audible (change the play at the line of scrimmage). One way or another, unless it’s a designed quarterback-keep play, the quarterback is going to give the ball to someone else after the snap.

In an option offense, the quarterback goes to the line of scrimmage with the option to run/pass the ball or hold onto it himself.

Traditional Offense = Quarterback Hands Off or Throws

Option Offense = Quarterback Hands Off or Throws or Keeps It Himself

So far so good, right?

You can see right from the get-go why NFL teams haven’t liked this system in the past – it puts their quarterback, who is often the livelihood of the entire team – at much greater risk for injury. When he’s handing off or throwing he’s protected by the offensive line. But when he keeps the ball and runs down the field he becomes a running back, making it legal for defenders to tackle him just like any other runner.

Thus the concern over whether RG3-esque quarterbacks who take frequent hits will be able to achieve longevity in the league. It’s something we won’t know for a few years yet, if these systems stick around that long. (And for what it’s worth, I’m guessing they will.)

Moving on: from this basic option principle we now have a litany of option offenses with accompanying formations and plays, each with their own individual spin on the concept. We could be here until next week going over each and every one, so let’s take a look at a few of the most popular.

*Note: You won’t find an NFL team that is exclusively committed to one scheme. Teams and schemes are polygamist marriages. A team blends together several different schemes that best fit their players and their objectives. Even the teams that run predominately option offenses, like the Seattle Seahawks, still run quite a few plays out of a pro-style offense. That being said, most of what we’re going to be talking about it run out of a spread offense scheme.

The Spread Option

The spread option offense is what it sounds like – a system that spreads players out across the field. Offenses running the spread option will typically have multiple wide receivers lined up in a wide alignment that spans the field with few to no running backs in the backfield. It’s all about numbers with the spread: if the offense can put 9 guys up front spread out across the field and then further confuse a defense through misdirection and a mobile quarterback, then it’s going to be a tall order for the defense to prioritize which part of the field and which players it’s going to protect most. In the spread, the quarterback takes the snap from shotgun – a formation in which he is aligned at least 5 yards behind the center.

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The Pistol

In the pistol, the quarterback lines up closer to the center and has a running back directly behind him. This way he is much closer to the line of scrimmage and can read the defense from up front, choosing to either hand the ball off, drop back and pass, or make a quick sprint through a hole in the defense while keeping the ball.

(I’m sad to say I know the latter all too well after watching Niners QB Colin Kaepernick annihilate the Packers front 7 in the divisional round of the NFC Championships.)

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The Zone Read

Once again, the name is indicative of what’s going to happen here: the quarterback needs to read the defense to decide what he’s going to do with the ball. What is he reading? Primarily, the defensive end on the side where he plans to run. If the defensive end “crashes” – runs straight into the backfield in anticipation of a quarterback keep – he gives the ball to the running back. If the defensive end “stays home” – stays toward the outside where he’s aligned – the quarterback keeps the ball.

(Whew.)

What do you guys think of the option offense? Is it here to stay?

News and Notes : 3.15.13 (Free Agency Edition!)

As predicted, news this week was not hard to come by. I was working from Panera when free agency started at 4pm on Tuesday and TweetDeck became a waterfall of updates.

It was awesome.

Since there’s so much to discuss, let’s get right to it:

Free Agency Highlights and Lowlights : Division by Division

AFC EAST

Highlights: I’m not sure that “hog-wild” is the right expression for an aquatic-themed team, but whatever the comparable phrase would be, that’s what Miami is doing in free agency. So far Miami has signed WR Mike Wallace (Steelers), LB Dannell Ellerbe (Ravens), LB Phillip Wheeler (Raiders), and resigned their own DT Randy Starks and WR Brian Hartline. However, as we’ve seen all too often in the recent past, he who wins free agency does not automatically win the regular season (Philly, I’m looking at you).

Lowlights: I don’t know if it gets any lower than the Patriots letting Wes Welker get signed by the Broncos after offering him a low deal and then offering the Rams’ Danny Amendola a comparable deal as the Broncos offered Welker. There are a lot of unhappy people in New England this week.

AFC NORTH

Highlights: The Browns signed LB Paul Kruger (Ravens) and OLB Quentin Groves (Cardinals), so their linebacking core just got a whole lot better.

Lowlights: Enjoy this Super Bowl offseason, Baltimore fans, since the entire first string has been dispersed in free agency. Ray Lewis, of course, retired, as did Matt Birk, but losing Boldin and Kruger and Ellerbe and Pollard and Williams and almost definitely Reed…it’s mind-boggling.

AFC SOUTH

Highlights: Jets S LaRon Landry to the Colts is among the best deals of the AFC South so far, although the Titans breaking away from their traditional “sit back and watch” model to sign G Andy Levitre (Bills), RB Shonn Greene (Jets), TE Delanie Walker (Niners), and DT Sammie Lee Hill (Lions) made an equal or greater splash in the division.

Lowlights: S Glover Quin to Detroit looked like bad news for the Texans, but they are currently entertaining Ravens S Ed Reed, which could more than make up for the loss.

AFC WEST

Highlights: The Broncos getting WR Wes Welker for practically nothing has to be the best deal of the bunch here (they also signed DB Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie from the Eagles, which is nothing to sneeze at, either). Watching how he and Manning work together will be one of the most anticipated parts of the 2013 season. As if the Broncos at Patriots game needed any more hype than Manning vs. Brady…

Lowlights: The Raiders…just the Raiders.

(Although they did get a slight nod from the world and all karma now that the Tuck Rule might be on it’s way out.)

NFC EAST

Highlights: It’s been crickets over in the NFC East so far in free agency, although the Giants signing DT Cullen Jenkins (Eagles) was a good pick up for them after losing DT Chris Canty to the Ravens.

Lowlights: Did I miss something? Why isn’t anyone more alarmed that the Giants cut their beloved kicker Lawrence Tynes, who single-leggedly sent them to two Super Bowls with winning field goals in the NFC Championship games? Perhaps I regard him with more awe since it was his game-winning kick that stole the Packers Super Bowl ticket in that first NFC Championship game, but really, I don’t understand this move at all.

(Lawrence, we’d welcome you into Lambeau with open arms…no hard feelings about 2008.)

NFC NORTH

Highlights: Da Bears signed two big names right from the get-go: TE Martellus Bennett (Giants) and T Jermon Bushrod (Saints), while resigning DT Henry Melton. The Lions getting RB Reggie Bush from Miami and S Glover Quin from Houston are huge signings for Detroit, too.

Lowlights: Minnesota, or the place where former Packers go to retire. Seriously, this bothers me to no end. Here’s the short list of former Packers the Vikings have highjacked or attempted to highjack: Brett Favre, Ryan Longwell, Darren Sharper, Robert Ferguson, James Jones, Aaron Kampman, William Henderson. And now they’re going after Greg Jennings. Let me tell you…it gets my blood boiling.

If Jennings does end up in Minnesota, looks like he’ll be receiving passes from QB Matt Cassel (Chiefs), who was brought in on Thursday to be the starter, demoting former starter Christian Ponder to the backup role.

NFC SOUTH

Highlights: The Falcons get to keep TE Tony Gonzalez for another season, which is without a doubt the best action in the division so far. They are also keeping LT Sam Baker, which is huge for them, and just signed Steven Jackson (Rams) as well. The Bucs have had a pretty impresive free agency, too, signing S Dashon Goldson from San Francisco and are the leading contender for CB Darrelle Revis (Jets).

Lowlights: I might have overlooked something, but there really isn’t much to report here. It’s been all quiet on the Southern front as far as (apparent) jaw-dropping errors in judgment are concerned.

NFC WEST

Highlights: And we’ve saved the best for last! I love it that there is always room for another rivalry in the NFL, and the one brewing between the Niners and the Seahawks continues to get better and better. Aside from the fact that the head coaches have been career-long enemies, the teams are now sitting atop the NFC West as the best teams in a division that was once laughably bad. That rivalry was shown in full force when the Seahawks signed WR Percy Harvin from Minnesota…and the Niners answered by signing WR Anquan Boldin from the Ravens. Touche. Next: the Seahawks signed DE Clif Avril (Lions)…while the Niners signed DE Glenn Dorsey (Chiefs). And the arms race has officially begun.

Lowlights: Losing WR Danny Amendola to the Patriots and RB Steven Jackson subtracts some of the offensive prowess the Rams might have been able to boast previously, but then again, it hasn’t really done much for them in the past few seasons, anyway.

And undoubtedly by the time this gets posted at 6am tomorrow morning…there will be even more signings to report.

That’s free agency: better than any award winning movie! Enjoy the craziness while it lasts!