NFL on Fox: Has the Game Passed Gibbs By?

James Brown and company weigh in (http://msn.foxsports.com/story/3066846)

Jimmy Johnson makes a very good point about the formations and sets that Gibbs is running plays from.

Gibbs runs most of his running plays from the Singleback Big set (1 runningback, 1 tight end, 1 H-back, 2 WRs), usually with the WRs in a "twins" look on the H-back side. From this look, he has three basic plays that he runs, with the most basic being a simple off-tackle play with zone blocking (http://espn.go.com/ncf/columns/davie/1440703.html). Off of that, he runs the counter and the cutback, which are designed to take advantage of overpursuit by the defense. Since he runs all of these plays from the same formation most of the time (occasionally throwing in some motion from the slot or the H-back), it becomes increasingly easier for the defense to diagnose the plays as the game goes on, particularly if they have studied their film-- as the Browns clearly did. It simply becomes a matter of looking for visual cues at that point.

The point that Jimmy Johnson is trying to make is that in his first tenure, Gibbs always ran the same basic plays, but he ran them from so many different looks, with pre-snap shifts and motion, that it was very difficult for the defense to key on anything. This time around, with the shorter playclock, Gibbs is having a hard time getting the play in on time, and Brunell simply doesn't have enough time to get the offense to the line of scrimmage and shuffle through a series of pre-snap shifts and motion. Gibbs has also tried to eliminate illegal motion and illegal formation penalties caused by receivers (cough, cough-- Gardner!-- ahem) lining up incorrectly. This makes Gibbs's offense much more predictable and readable for the defense, causing plays for negative yardage, and it's a primary factor in the offense's inability to move the ball consistently.

It's not on the damn coach, it's the execution by the players that's killing us. I couldn't be more sick of this fad of bashing Coach Gibbs.

Yes, Jimmy Johnson's remarks are astute. However, as Johnson points out, it is a simple matter to correct:

Jimmy: "They should be able to eliminate some of these looks and run more plays out of every formation this week. That's all it takes. To run two or three different plays from the same formation."

The reality is that Joe Gibbs does have catching up to do. He is the de facto leader of the organization, and he has come in and begun a dramatic remodelling of our team. The game strategy he is finding out needs adjustment, and it takes actual experience to see that.

Joe is the quickest of learners and adapters, however, and he will make the changes needed. He isn't alone in this either - the staff as a whole is learning and everyone will sort this out.

The players also have to learn this new offense and execute it, and it isn't easy to learn to do this with superb efficiency overnight, as we found out 23 years ago when Gibbs first arrived in Washington.

So this season is probably best looked at as parallel to the 1981 season. By the end of that season, though we didn't make the playoffs, we were one of the best teams in the NFL.

even if it had some truth?

I don't think they're bashing Gibbs, I think they're simply analyzing what has caused the offensive struggles to this point. Any honest evaluation of the situation would lead to the conclusion that, to some extent, the game has passed Gibbs by-- the shorter playclock; faster, smarter defenses-- but that doesn't mean he won't catch back up with it in short order. Let's face it-- the game has changed significantly since Gibbs' first tenure, and it's obvious that this offense will be a work in progress until Gibbs gains enough experience in the new NFL to respond effectively to those changes. Past experience tells us that Gibbs is very adaptable, and he will effect the necessary adjustments sooner rather than later.

Of course, this adjustment period has been extended and complicated by poor execution on the part of the offensive personnel. Gibbs has been forced to scale back his offense to accomodate the learning curve of his players. Receivers have struggled with the formations and motion, linemen have struggled to execute the zone run-blocking concepts, his runningback has struggled to get in-sync with his blockers, and everyone who's supposed to get the ball and hold onto it hasn't been able to do so.

It will take some time to overcome all of these obstacles, but Gibbs is more than equal to the challenge. There's nothing wrong with questioning Gibbs's performance, either-- after all, "it all starts at the top," doesn't it? He has made some critical strategical errors, that's for certain, and he is the first one to admit it. But mistakes are the catalyst of the learning process, and Gibbs is every bit as much a student at this point as his players.

Can we play the whole season before Gibbs' demise is reported?

If our offense was really that predictable, wouldn't we have known about this a week sooner from Parcell's defense...It seems odd that with such a "predictable" offense nothing was said about it after the Dallas game. Parcells knows Gibbs better than any current coach so why didn't he figure this out?

the game was simplified for the browns, AFTER dallas...

It takes some time to accrew enough film to predict trends. I'd say at least 3-4 weeks worth of it. Preferrably more than that.

Wilbon on some 'skins show with George Michael said he was in the Browns locker room and even they said they knew what was coming. The panel also seemed to agree that Brunnell is doing a horrible job.