Om Field: Review - Six Campbell Pass Plays

Review: Six Jason Campbell Pass Plays
August 15, 2009


A lot of people seem to think there was a football game played at M&T Bank Stadium Thursday night. I’m not one of them.

Don’t worry. I’m not going to go on about NFL teams approaching preseason games so differently, and using them for such different purposes, that projecting any regular-season meaning onto them—final score or otherwise—is a straight waste of time.

And I won’t get into how these preseason affairs are glorified scrimmages at best, and at worst, slickly packaged, almost criminally overpriced hype passed off as “games” to a football-starved public.

Not today. Today I’m going to parse the only thing I had any real interest in (Brian Orakpo and no injuries notwithstanding) ... Redskins QB Jason Campbell and the offensive line’s performance on passing plays.

There were six. Here’s how I saw them:

First Possession

1st-10, WAS 15. Ravens put four on the LOS. Redskins OL holds firm—no penetration. Campbell takes a 3-step drop, looks far right at Devin Thomas on a slant, short middle at Fred Davis, short middle left at Chris Cooley, then finally to Ladell Betts in the left flat. Four options. The OL is doing its job. Campbell might have chosen to go to Cooley at the first down marker (with a LB about a yard off left shoulder), but he chooses Betts instead, alone in the left flat with blockers. Campbell’s throw is on target as he leads Betts up field for 11 yards (-2 catch, 13 RAC).

Campbell and OL both solid.


2nd-9, WAS 27. Ravens put four on the LOS. Redskins OL holds firm—no penetration. Campbell takes a 5-step drop (play-action fake to Betts), then looks right side toward Thomas & Cooley ...

CLICK HERE (http://www.theomfield.com/2009/08/quick-review-six-campbell-pass-plays.html) to read more

Review: Six Jason Campbell Pass Plays
August 15, 2009


A lot of people seem to think there was a football game played at M&T Bank Stadium Thursday night. I’m not one of them.

Don’t worry. I’m not going to go on about NFL teams approaching preseason games so differently, and using them for such different purposes, that projecting any regular-season meaning onto them—final score or otherwise—is a straight waste of time.

And I won’t get into how these preseason affairs are glorified scrimmages at best, and at worst, slickly packaged, almost criminally overpriced hype passed off as “games” to a football-starved public.

Not today. Today I’m going to parse the only thing I had any real interest in (Brian Orakpo and no injuries notwithstanding) ... Redskins QB Jason Campbell and the offensive line’s performance on passing plays.

There were six. Here’s how I saw them:

First Possession

1st-10, WAS 15. Ravens put four on the LOS. Redskins OL holds firm—no penetration. Campbell takes a 3-step drop, looks far right at Devin Thomas on a slant, short middle at Fred Davis, short middle left at Chris Cooley, then finally to Ladell Betts in the left flat. Four options. The OL is doing its job. Campbell might have chosen to go to Cooley at the first down marker (with a LB about a yard off left shoulder), but he chooses Betts instead, alone in the left flat with blockers. Campbell’s throw is on target as he leads Betts up field for 11 yards (-2 catch, 13 RAC).

Campbell and OL both solid.


2nd-9, WAS 27. Ravens put four on the LOS. Redskins OL holds firm—no penetration. Campbell takes a 5-step drop (play-action fake to Betts), then looks right side toward Thomas & Cooley ...

CLICK HERE (http://www.theomfield.com/2009/08/quick-review-six-campbell-pass-plays.html) to read more

Good one. I feel a little better now.

Review: Six Jason Campbell Pass Plays
August 15, 2009

1st-10, WAS 24. Ravens put four on the LOS. The OL holds—no penetration. Campbell takes a 7-step drop (play-action to Betts). He steps and throws in rhythm to his first option, Randle El, in the intermediate middle, for 14 yards (14 catch, 0 RAC). Campbell had Cooley available in the right flat at the LOS with a 5-yard cushion to run, but elected to go with the deeper option. The pass was a little low, forcing a good to-ground catch by ARE, but the ball was on time and on target, covering 23 yards without ever getting more than 3 off the ground. The man has an arm.

Campbell and OL … solid.


On this play, Devin Thomas was streaking down the far sideline in single coverage. IMO, Campbell needs to find these match-ups more often instead of settling for the safe 5-10 yard pass. Campbell could and should have aired it out to Thomas, at least giving him a chance to make a big play. None of the Ravens safeties were even in the vicinity of DT. It could have even gone for a score, but we'll never know. Campbell, not solid.

Good work, Om. Pretty much spot on.

That Ravens zone blitz that ended the first drive had me fooled. I thought, initally, that I had seen a six man blitz, On future review, it's the same 4 man zone blitz the Redskins killed last year.

The offensive line did a pretty good job of picking it up, and I attribute the pressure on Campbell to a very veteran move by Ray Lewis. Rabach was beat off the snap, but to his credit, was able to recover and ride his guy past Campbell with no help from Betts, allowing Betts to release into the flat. With Samuels taking the RE out of the play, Dockery got the initial punch on Ray Lewis. But instead of trying to beat Dockery, Lewis just sort of waited (almost like he was waiting for Betts to leave), and as Rabach forced Campbell to step up, it gave Lewis a clean path to the QB.

This seems pretty unavoidable in the future. Campbell had enough time to get through his entire progression, which means the offensive line didn't screw up, but ultimately the throw was impossible to make while being drilled.

I guess that's why the Ravens are so good defensively year after year.

On this play, Devin Thomas was streaking down the far sideline in single coverage. IMO, Campbell needs to find these match-ups more often instead of settling for the safe 5-10 yard pass. Campbell could and should have aired it out to Thomas, at least giving him a chance to make a big play. None of the Ravens safeties were even in the vicinity of DT. It could have even gone for a score, but we'll never know. Campbell, not solid.Because the 15% chance at the 40-yd completion is obviously more valuable than the actual 13 yard completion on first down. Epic fail.

The other issue on that Devin Thomas overthrown ball is that, Campbell only seems to overthrow that pass when DT is running it. Not to argue that Thomas screwed up on that specific play, because nothing necessarily suggests that's true, but going back to last year Thomas is the only receiver who consistently turns the 5-yard hitch into a wasted play.

We can put it on Campbell for not giving Devin Thomas more chances, but then we're ignoring the elephant in the room.

Because the 15% chance at the 40-yd completion is obviously more valuable than the actual 13 yard completion on first down. Epic fail.

If they can only complete a pass in single coverage 15% of the time, they're in trouble. It's a pretty routine play for a lot of teams. A completion or a pass interference call on a 20-40 yard pass attempt is a better outcome than a pass in the dirt to a WR who has 4 defenders around him. If not in a meaningless pre-season game, when?

If they can only complete a pass in single coverage 15% of the time, they're in trouble. It's a pretty routine play for a lot of teams. A completion or a pass interference call on a 20-40 yard pass attempt is a better outcome than a pass in the dirt to a WR who has 4 defenders around him. If not in a meaningless pre-season game, when?Never. That's when.

Devin Thomas in single coverage is not a mismatch right now. It may never be a mismatch. I agree that you want to go vertical with a guy who isn't Moss every now and then, and probably at a 2:1 ratio (Moss to everyone else), but going deep for the sake of going deep is how offenses turn the ball over and get into second and ten situations.

There certainly will be shots taken this year, after a 13 yard completion is probably not the best time to complain.

The other issue on that Devin Thomas overthrown ball is that, Campbell only seems to overthrow that pass when DT is running it. Not to argue that Thomas screwed up on that specific play, because nothing necessarily suggests that's true, but going back to last year Thomas is the only receiver who consistently turns the 5-yard hitch into a wasted play.

We can put it on Campbell for not giving Devin Thomas more chances, but then we're ignoring the elephant in the room.

Tripp I watched Mark Sanchez do something that I've never seen JC do in 4 years of being a pro. Sanchez looked one way, pumped faked to the left and got the safety to move, then threw a perfect bomb down the right sideline for a huge gain. I know JC only got a few possesions but for an offense that can't score points, don't you think it's time to start taking more chances downfield? So why not start in a meaningless pre season game? Every first team offense I watched did it. Why can't we? Why did we drafted Malcom Kelly? To run pass patterns short of the 1st down marker? Let the guy run down field and try and jump over someone or get a PI?

Tripp I watched Mark Sanchez do something that I've never seen JC do in 4 years of being a pro. Sanchez looked one way, pumped faked to the left and got the safety to move, then threw a perfect bomb down the right sideline for a huge gain. I know JC only got a few possesions but for an offense that can't score points, don't you think it's time to start taking more chances downfield? So why not start in a meaningless pre season game? Every first team offense I watched did it. Why can't we? Why did we drafted Malcom Kelly? To run pass patterns short of the 1st down marker? Let the guy run down field and try and jump over someone or get a PI?Because, who cares? I'm not getting the viatrol towards the offense, specifically. I don't understand why the preseason is an ideal time to start airing it out.

As for Sanchez, beatiful ball, but my god, let's not put him in the hall of fame yet. Jason Campbell did that exact same thing on his first regular season NFL pass, but so far Campbell's story is that he's had to deal with the likes of Brandon Lloyd and Devin Thomas to date.

We obviously need to see some improvement from the receivers, but no, I would not say that taking more chances downfield is a cure all decision or even a step in the right direction. It's not a thing that this offense is very good at, so I don't understand why anyone would think that moving out of our comfort zone more often is for the good of the offense.