GTripp0012
09-23-2009, 10:21 AM
Last year, the story of the Redskins-Giants game at FedEx Field was, in my opinion, the complete embarrassment of the Redskins' defensive coaching staff to adjust their gameplan for the field conditions, while the Giants defense took away the Redskins' running game and the Redskins ran right into it.
While certainly, revenge would have been more satisfying if it game against the Giants, the story of this game is the complete out-coaching of Steve Spagnuolo and Pat Shurmur by Greg Blache. In a game where both head coaches looked completely in over their heads, Blache brought some new tricks to the table that we had not yet seen from him as defensive coordinator of the Redskins. And trust me, no one was more surprised than yours truly when I reviewed the game tape.
That's right: on the fourth defensive play of the game, Greg Blache called a zone blitz. Sure, it looked really awkward to watch, but Brian Orakpo dropped to the area where Marc Bulger was trying to throw the ball. The pass was dropped and probably should have been completed for a first down, but the zone blitz is an easy way to generate pressure on the quarterback without actually costing the defense numbers in terms of coverage. What they got was a quick throw into zone coverage, and who knows if that caused a drop, but I think if you just blitz six guys, that pass is probably completed.
The Redskins ran a second zone blitz in the second quarter, and this one earned Marc Bulger a free expense paid trip to the grass at FedEx Field.
http://redskinshogheaven.com/assets_c/2009/09/Skins_Rams%20zone%20blitz-thumb-270x219-23482.jpg (http://redskinshogheaven.com/assets_c/2009/09/Skins_Rams%20zone%20blitz-23482.html)
Notice the image above (which can be enlarged with a click). On 3rd and 16, the Rams came out in a 4 WR gun, and the Redskins responded with a pretty standard cover three scheme, at least on the surface. The Rams ran a bunch of vertical routes with their receivers.
See how London Fletcher (#59) lines up right in the A gap? While this isn't uncommon for the Redskins, his presence there in this play threw off the Rams blocking scheme. On the snap, both Fletcher at DT Kedric Golston dropped into zone coverage. The Redskins also run a stunt: Haynesworth (#92) and Orakpo (#98) both slant hard to the left, as the stunt causes the Rams to use three offensive lineman on these two players. Rocky McIntosh (#52) did not show his blitz before the snap, and in this zone dog scheme, he comes free to the quarterback and gets a hit on Marc Bulger. Bulger floats a weak shovel pass out in the direction of Stephen Jackson, Horton makes the play, and the Rams punt.
The play was an excellent encapsulation of how Greg Blache went away from the vanilla defensive schemes this week, in a week where the Redskins really needed their defense to step up.
It didn't hurt that the players won their one on one battles. Mark Bulger was under duress all day long. Everyone on the defensive line got into the action: Philip Daniels, Andre Carter, Albert Haynesworth, Kedric Golston, Cornelius Griffin, Brian Orakpo, Rocky McIntosh, and Chris Horton all had plays where they affected the offensive rhythm. Griffin chipped in with two tackles for loss as well.
The Rams never ran the ball on 3rd or 4th down, although it was certainly the down where they enjoyed the most success.
Rams Gameplan
The Rams tried to get London Fletcher blocked and take him out of the game when they ran the ball, and the strategy worked pretty well: when they tried, they had success running on the Redskins D. When the Redskins stopped the Rams, it was because the defensive line rose up and made a play in the backfield. The only exception to this rule was the play of the entire game (in my humble opinion): a 2nd and 4 run by Stephen Jackson from the Redskins' 9 yard line in the fourth quarter. The Rams OL beat the Redskins DL at the point of attack, but Jackson indefensibly cut back away from where the play was supposed to go, and Fletcher met him in the hole, forcing a third down. On the next play, Donnie Avery fumbled.
It shows how tight the margin for error for a team like the Rams is against the Redskins. If Jackson had been perfect on the day, the Rams probably win. Jackson was merely close to perfect, and the Redskins held on.
Pass Defense is an issue, Vol. II
When Carlos Rogers has a bad day, it stands out. So what was his deal on Sunday? Best I can tell, it was just "one of those days". A few times, Rogers was in good position, and the Rams just ran timing routes where the ball came out before the receiver made the break. Other times, Rogers just slipped in coverage on plays that could have been defended. Both those things happen in the course of a football game, but rarely are they so exclusive as to contribute to a disaster of the day. Rogers did, however, get his revenge with a jarring hit on Avery on the last drive.
Rogers allowed 5 completions on 8 attempts--all completions for first downs--for 42 yards. You know what? At the end of the day, that's only 5.25 YPA, a very good figure for a corner. The 5 first downs can and will be improved.
DeAngelo Hall allowed 4 completions on 5 attempts--2 first downs and a touchdown--for 24 yards. That's 4.8 YPA, a very good figure. But like Rogers, if you are allowing first downs or touchdowns on more than half the targets at you, yards against are only part of the story.
Justin Tryon held his own in two pass attempts: 1 completion for 13 yards and a first down. 6.5 YPA.
Right now, the biggest issue in coverage is the gaping holes in it's zone coverage scheme. This has to be a good zone coverage team because of the limited man coverage ability of Hall and Tryon, and between London Fletcher, Brian Orakpo, and Chris Horton, they have to get it figured out. 25 yard completions on 2nd and 20 are completely unacceptable for an NFL defense.
The Bottom Line
Here are the macro-level defensive numbers for the Redskins:
4.66 yards per play
46% success rate against
3 negative plays created
There were a lot of zero yard plays for the Rams in this game, both incompletions and unsuccessful rushing attempts, and against a pretty darn good success rate, it probably made all the difference. I think the pass rush is a major factor, and the Skins were just one really stupid roughing the passer call from having four turnovers forced in two games.
While the coverage issues that surfaced at the end of last year still remain, the defense is making things happen when the opponent drops back to pass. If they are not going to be a complete shut-em-down defense, turnovers are the next best thing.
While certainly, revenge would have been more satisfying if it game against the Giants, the story of this game is the complete out-coaching of Steve Spagnuolo and Pat Shurmur by Greg Blache. In a game where both head coaches looked completely in over their heads, Blache brought some new tricks to the table that we had not yet seen from him as defensive coordinator of the Redskins. And trust me, no one was more surprised than yours truly when I reviewed the game tape.
That's right: on the fourth defensive play of the game, Greg Blache called a zone blitz. Sure, it looked really awkward to watch, but Brian Orakpo dropped to the area where Marc Bulger was trying to throw the ball. The pass was dropped and probably should have been completed for a first down, but the zone blitz is an easy way to generate pressure on the quarterback without actually costing the defense numbers in terms of coverage. What they got was a quick throw into zone coverage, and who knows if that caused a drop, but I think if you just blitz six guys, that pass is probably completed.
The Redskins ran a second zone blitz in the second quarter, and this one earned Marc Bulger a free expense paid trip to the grass at FedEx Field.
http://redskinshogheaven.com/assets_c/2009/09/Skins_Rams%20zone%20blitz-thumb-270x219-23482.jpg (http://redskinshogheaven.com/assets_c/2009/09/Skins_Rams%20zone%20blitz-23482.html)
Notice the image above (which can be enlarged with a click). On 3rd and 16, the Rams came out in a 4 WR gun, and the Redskins responded with a pretty standard cover three scheme, at least on the surface. The Rams ran a bunch of vertical routes with their receivers.
See how London Fletcher (#59) lines up right in the A gap? While this isn't uncommon for the Redskins, his presence there in this play threw off the Rams blocking scheme. On the snap, both Fletcher at DT Kedric Golston dropped into zone coverage. The Redskins also run a stunt: Haynesworth (#92) and Orakpo (#98) both slant hard to the left, as the stunt causes the Rams to use three offensive lineman on these two players. Rocky McIntosh (#52) did not show his blitz before the snap, and in this zone dog scheme, he comes free to the quarterback and gets a hit on Marc Bulger. Bulger floats a weak shovel pass out in the direction of Stephen Jackson, Horton makes the play, and the Rams punt.
The play was an excellent encapsulation of how Greg Blache went away from the vanilla defensive schemes this week, in a week where the Redskins really needed their defense to step up.
It didn't hurt that the players won their one on one battles. Mark Bulger was under duress all day long. Everyone on the defensive line got into the action: Philip Daniels, Andre Carter, Albert Haynesworth, Kedric Golston, Cornelius Griffin, Brian Orakpo, Rocky McIntosh, and Chris Horton all had plays where they affected the offensive rhythm. Griffin chipped in with two tackles for loss as well.
The Rams never ran the ball on 3rd or 4th down, although it was certainly the down where they enjoyed the most success.
Rams Gameplan
The Rams tried to get London Fletcher blocked and take him out of the game when they ran the ball, and the strategy worked pretty well: when they tried, they had success running on the Redskins D. When the Redskins stopped the Rams, it was because the defensive line rose up and made a play in the backfield. The only exception to this rule was the play of the entire game (in my humble opinion): a 2nd and 4 run by Stephen Jackson from the Redskins' 9 yard line in the fourth quarter. The Rams OL beat the Redskins DL at the point of attack, but Jackson indefensibly cut back away from where the play was supposed to go, and Fletcher met him in the hole, forcing a third down. On the next play, Donnie Avery fumbled.
It shows how tight the margin for error for a team like the Rams is against the Redskins. If Jackson had been perfect on the day, the Rams probably win. Jackson was merely close to perfect, and the Redskins held on.
Pass Defense is an issue, Vol. II
When Carlos Rogers has a bad day, it stands out. So what was his deal on Sunday? Best I can tell, it was just "one of those days". A few times, Rogers was in good position, and the Rams just ran timing routes where the ball came out before the receiver made the break. Other times, Rogers just slipped in coverage on plays that could have been defended. Both those things happen in the course of a football game, but rarely are they so exclusive as to contribute to a disaster of the day. Rogers did, however, get his revenge with a jarring hit on Avery on the last drive.
Rogers allowed 5 completions on 8 attempts--all completions for first downs--for 42 yards. You know what? At the end of the day, that's only 5.25 YPA, a very good figure for a corner. The 5 first downs can and will be improved.
DeAngelo Hall allowed 4 completions on 5 attempts--2 first downs and a touchdown--for 24 yards. That's 4.8 YPA, a very good figure. But like Rogers, if you are allowing first downs or touchdowns on more than half the targets at you, yards against are only part of the story.
Justin Tryon held his own in two pass attempts: 1 completion for 13 yards and a first down. 6.5 YPA.
Right now, the biggest issue in coverage is the gaping holes in it's zone coverage scheme. This has to be a good zone coverage team because of the limited man coverage ability of Hall and Tryon, and between London Fletcher, Brian Orakpo, and Chris Horton, they have to get it figured out. 25 yard completions on 2nd and 20 are completely unacceptable for an NFL defense.
The Bottom Line
Here are the macro-level defensive numbers for the Redskins:
4.66 yards per play
46% success rate against
3 negative plays created
There were a lot of zero yard plays for the Rams in this game, both incompletions and unsuccessful rushing attempts, and against a pretty darn good success rate, it probably made all the difference. I think the pass rush is a major factor, and the Skins were just one really stupid roughing the passer call from having four turnovers forced in two games.
While the coverage issues that surfaced at the end of last year still remain, the defense is making things happen when the opponent drops back to pass. If they are not going to be a complete shut-em-down defense, turnovers are the next best thing.