Category: The All-22

Anatomy of a Play: What Brock Purdy saw on his long touchdown pass to Deebo Samuel

Yes, Jamal Adams made a big mistake on Brock Purdy’s touchdown pass to Deebo Samuel, but he wasn’t the only one who didn’t get the job done.

Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll is not happy with his defense right now, and that amplified and multiplied after his team’s 28-16 loss to the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday. It’s the second time in three weeks that the 49ers have shown the Seahawks exactly who owns the NFC West these days, and as Seattle now sports a four-game losing streak for the first time in the Carroll era (which goes back to 2010), you can understand why the coach is a bit greased about how everything is going. The Seahawks have dropped from 18th to 31st in Defensive DVOA since Week 7, and the efforts of Kyle Shanahan and those darned 49ers have a lot to do with that tumble.

One of the most notable plays for Seattle in that loss was Brock Purdy’s 54-yard touchdown pass to Deebo Samuel with 8:26 left in the first half. At this point, Seattle was up 10-7, but neither Purdy, nor Shanahan ever since Purdy became his quarterback, are averse to explosive attempts in high-risk situations — it was third-and-11 here.

It was also notable because Purdy specifically targeted safety Jamal Adams on this play, and Adams hasn’t exactly been making a lot of friends lately.

“I saw Jamal Adams, he didn’t come down like really, really hard, but I sort of saw his feet coming down,” Purdy said. “He was sort of flat-footed, and I was like, all right, with Deebo moving, I was like, we can get over the top here. And so, I took my drop. He wasn’t necessarily the number one guy in the read, it was actually [WR] Jauan [Jennings]. But the way Jamal Adams came down, I was like, this could be a big one, so let it rip and let Deebo get under it.”

The Seahawks were playing Quarters coverage in the back, with linebackers Bobby Wagner and Jordyn Brooks rushing Purdy in a mug look through the A-gaps. San Francisco handled that perfectly, which gave Purdy the opportunity to not only identify Adams as a liability in coverage, but also to read through his progressions and make the right throw. Safety Quandre Diggs was playing deep to the other side to handle Brandon Aiyuk’s vertical route, and it looked as if both Adams and cornerback Tariq Woolen were set to jump Jennings on his comeback route. Once that was taken away, and Purdy threw the ball to Samuel, all Adams could do was to try and catch up.

So, the real heroes of this play were San Francisco’s interior offensive linemen — center Jake Brendel, and guards Aaron Banks and Jon Feliciano. Left tackle Trent Williams and right tackle Colton McKivitz could also help because Seahawks edge-rushers Darrell Taylor and Boye Mafe dropped into coverage on the play. With tight end George Kittle chipping before he released into his route, this was six-on-four in San Francisco’s favor.

Adams didn’t play the ball well, but it’s also clear that the Seahawks expected either Wagner or Brooks to get through, forcing Purdy to throw to a hot route. As it was third-and-11, that would have been an optimal strategy.

“I was sitting,” Adams said about the play, via Gregg Bell of the Tacoma News Tribune. “I was waiting on the dig [route, a stop-and-comeback pattern], because I kept seeing the dig behind me. And they went… Deebo over the top.

“I was too short. I was sitting flat-footed. And, you know, you kind of expect the ball to come out a little quicker. Obviously, it didn’t happen. Obviously, I take that heat. For sure.”

In this case, Adams wasn’t the only guy who didn’t get the job done.

4-Down Territory: Joe Flacco, Brock Purdy, concussions, and who was Patrick Mahomes yelling at?

In this week’s “4-Down Territory,” the guys discuss Joe Flacco, Jake Browning, Patrick Mahomes, and the NFL’s issues with head injuries.

With 14 weeks of actual football in the books for the 2023 NFL season, it’s time once again for Doug Farrar of Touchdown Wire, and Kyle Madson of Niners Wire, to come to the table with their own unique brand of analysis in “4-Down Territory.”

This week, the guys have some serious questions to answer:

  1. Why have Joe Flacco and Jake Browning, Ohio’s backup quarterbacks, been so successful?
  2. What will it take for people to wake up and understand that Brock Purdy is more than a system quarterback?
  3. Who was Patrick Mahomes really yelling at?
  4. What the NFL’s Worst of the Week for Week 14?

You can watch this week’s “4-Down Territory” right here:

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You can also listen and subscribe to the “4-Down Territory” podcast on Spotify…

…and on Apple Podcasts.

Jordan Love is beating the blitz, and he’ll need that ability against the Giants

Packers QB Jordan Love has become much better against the blitz in 2023, and he’ll need that against Wink Martindale’s Giants defense.

One of the most positive aspects of Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love’s development in the 2023 season is how he’s performed against the blitz. Against five or more pass-rushers this season, Love had completed 80 of 130 passes for 859 yards, 479 air yards, six touchdowns, one interception, and a passer rating of 93.1. Against the Kansas City Chiefs in Green Bay’s 27-19 Week 13, Love had 15 dropbacks against the blitz, and 11 completions on 15 attempts for 91 yards, 39 air yards, two touchdowns, no interceptions, and a passer rating of 128.1.

This will serve him very well when the Packers play the New York Giants on Monday Night Football, and Love has to deal with Wink Martindale’s pressure concepts.

Only the Vikings have a higher blitz rate this season (47.6%) than the Giants’ 41.0%. But while the Vikings have allowed 10 touchdowns to two interceptions and an opponent passer rating of 114.5 when sending five or more rushers, the Giants have allowed just two touchdowns to one interception and an opponent passer rating of 72.9 when sending six or more pass rushers. When sending five or more pass-rushers, the Giants have five interceptions, and they’ve allowed three touchdowns.

Now, two of those five picks came against the New England Patriots in Week 12, when Mac Jones threw a cross-body pick that Bailey Zappe later replicated, and a disasterbacle of a Jones throw to linebacker Bobby Okereke. Another was a Sam Howell WTF throw in Week 11 in the fourth quarter against the Washington Commanders. So, this is another case, as always, where you have to watch the interceptions. 

Still, it will be fascinating to see how Love deals with the Giants’ aggressive tendencies, because he’s not only playing well against extra rushers; he’s doing it against all kinds of pressure concepts. 

“With this defense, you never know when they’re going to bring it,” Love said post-game of Steve Spagnuolo’s Chiefs squad. “They do a really good job disguising their stuff, so you kind of always have to be alert for it, try to pick up on the little tells, little keys. On that one to Christian they did end up bringing it, we got to a protection that picked it up, was able to give me enough time to kind of buy some time and let Christian work. I put it up for him and he went up there and made a great play.”

Love was talking about his second touchdown pass of the game to receiver Christian Watson, which came with 5:38 left in the third quarter from the Kansas City 12-yard line. The Chiefs brought a seven-man pressure look with six rushers and linebacker Willie Gay Jr. dropping into coverage in a Cover-0 blitz look. Love had pressure from end George Karlaftis from his front side, so he had to abbreviate it throwing motion, and he still made a great throw to Watson over the head of cornerback Joshua Williams.

Love on the blitz overall:

“I think me personally, it’s just being able to see the stuff. I’ve got more reps, I’m more comfortable, understanding where I need to go with the ball. I think the O-line is doing a great job just being able to pick this stuff up. It’s not easy when they’re bringing all-outs, some of these blitzes, things like that, but they’ve been doing a great job giving me time and then receivers obviously, they’re having awareness of when they need to be open and how long I’ve got and then just going out there and making plays. It’s definitely something we as a team practice. We know some teams are going to bring it and we’ve got to be able to execute and go out there and make sure they don’t do it again.”

Love’s 27-yard throw to receiver Dontayvion Wicks with 13:41 left in the first half was another example of how he dissects those extra rushers. Pre-snap, the Chiefs had a four-man front with linebackers Willie Gay and Jack Cochrane showing off-ball pressure looks. Cochrane dropped and Gay blitzed, which made it four-on-four to Love’s front side. The Packers picked it up well, left tackle Rasheed Walker kept George Karlaftis at bay, and Love hit Wicks on a deep over route against Cover-3.

“There’s a lot,” Love concluded, when asked how he’s grown as a quarterback in the last two seasons. “Two years ago, we weren’t able to pick up the blitz and execute, myself included. I wasn’t playing great. I wasn’t able to capitalize on those moments and now I think we are. I think just from an execution standpoint we played a lot better tonight. We were able to put up a lot of points, which is great, which is something we weren’t able to do the last game. But overall, it was a great win.”

In this week’s “Xs and Os with Greg Cosell and Doug Farrar,” the guys got deeper into Love’s success against the blitz of late, and how it’s turned the Packers’ offense around.

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You can watch this week’s “Xs and Os” right here:

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You can also listen and subscribe to the “Xs and Os” podcast on Spotify…

…and on Apple Podcasts.

Jordan Love is beating the blitz, and he’ll need that ability against the Giants

Packers QB Jordan Love has become much better against the blitz in 2023, and he’ll need that against Wink Martindale’s Giants defense.

One of the most positive aspects of Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love’s development in the 2023 season is how he’s performed against the blitz. Against five or more pass-rushers this season, Love had completed 80 of 130 passes for 859 yards, 479 air yards, six touchdowns, one interception, and a passer rating of 93.1. Against the Kansas City Chiefs in Green Bay’s 27-19 Week 13, Love had 15 dropbacks against the blitz, and 11 completions on 15 attempts for 91 yards, 39 air yards, two touchdowns, no interceptions, and a passer rating of 128.1.

This will serve him very well when the Packers play the New York Giants on Monday Night Football, and Love has to deal with Wink Martindale’s pressure concepts.

Only the Vikings have a higher blitz rate this season (47.6%) than the Giants’ 41.0%. But while the Vikings have allowed 10 touchdowns to two interceptions and an opponent passer rating of 114.5 when sending five or more rushers, the Giants have allowed just two touchdowns to one interception and an opponent passer rating of 72.9 when sending six or more pass rushers. When sending five or more pass-rushers, the Giants have five interceptions, and they’ve allowed three touchdowns.

Now, two of those five picks came against the New England Patriots in Week 12, when Mac Jones threw a cross-body pick that Bailey Zappe later replicated, and a disasterbacle of a Jones throw to linebacker Bobby Okereke. Another was a Sam Howell WTF throw in Week 11 in the fourth quarter against the Washington Commanders. So, this is another case, as always, where you have to watch the interceptions. 

Still, it will be fascinating to see how Love deals with the Giants’ aggressive tendencies, because he’s not only playing well against extra rushers; he’s doing it against all kinds of pressure concepts. 

“With this defense, you never know when they’re going to bring it,” Love said post-game of Steve Spagnuolo’s Chiefs squad. “They do a really good job disguising their stuff, so you kind of always have to be alert for it, try to pick up on the little tells, little keys. On that one to Christian they did end up bringing it, we got to a protection that picked it up, was able to give me enough time to kind of buy some time and let Christian work. I put it up for him and he went up there and made a great play.”

Love was talking about his second touchdown pass of the game to receiver Christian Watson, which came with 5:38 left in the third quarter from the Kansas City 12-yard line. The Chiefs brought a seven-man pressure look with six rushers and linebacker Willie Gay Jr. dropping into coverage in a Cover-0 blitz look. Love had pressure from end George Karlaftis from his front side, so he had to abbreviate it throwing motion, and he still made a great throw to Watson over the head of cornerback Joshua Williams.

Love on the blitz overall:

“I think me personally, it’s just being able to see the stuff. I’ve got more reps, I’m more comfortable, understanding where I need to go with the ball. I think the O-line is doing a great job just being able to pick this stuff up. It’s not easy when they’re bringing all-outs, some of these blitzes, things like that, but they’ve been doing a great job giving me time and then receivers obviously, they’re having awareness of when they need to be open and how long I’ve got and then just going out there and making plays. It’s definitely something we as a team practice. We know some teams are going to bring it and we’ve got to be able to execute and go out there and make sure they don’t do it again.”

Love’s 27-yard throw to receiver Dontayvion Wicks with 13:41 left in the first half was another example of how he dissects those extra rushers. Pre-snap, the Chiefs had a four-man front with linebackers Willie Gay and Jack Cochrane showing off-ball pressure looks. Cochrane dropped and Gay blitzed, which made it four-on-four to Love’s front side. The Packers picked it up well, left tackle Rasheed Walker kept George Karlaftis at bay, and Love hit Wicks on a deep over route against Cover-3.

“There’s a lot,” Love concluded, when asked how he’s grown as a quarterback in the last two seasons. “Two years ago, we weren’t able to pick up the blitz and execute, myself included. I wasn’t playing great. I wasn’t able to capitalize on those moments and now I think we are. I think just from an execution standpoint we played a lot better tonight. We were able to put up a lot of points, which is great, which is something we weren’t able to do the last game. But overall, it was a great win.”

In this week’s “Xs and Os with Greg Cosell and Doug Farrar,” the guys got deeper into Love’s success against the blitz of late, and how it’s turned the Packers’ offense around.

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You can watch this week’s “Xs and Os” right here:

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You can also listen and subscribe to the “Xs and Os” podcast on Spotify…

…and on Apple Podcasts.

The NFL’s Worst of the Week: Jamal Adams, Kadarius Toney, and the NFL doesn’t care about concussions

This week’s Worst of the Week in the NFL features Kadarius Toney, Jamal Adams, and a league that still doesn’t care about head trauma.

Football is a wonderful, thrilling, inspiring game that can lift us to new heights in our lives.

But football is also a weird, inexplicable, at times downright stupid game that may force you to perform Keith Moon-level furniture destruction in your own living room.

So, as much as we at Touchdown Wire endeavor to write about what makes the game great, there are also times when it’s important to point out the dumb plays, boneheaded decisions, and officiating errors that make football all too human.

Folks, it’s time for the Worst of the Week for Week 14 of the 2023 NFL season. And we’re not covering officiating errors as we generally do, because we have a more important issue to discuss — the NFL still doesn’t care one bit about head trauma.

Anatomy of a Play: What were the Steelers thinking on fourth-and-2?

What were the Pittsburgh Steelers thinking on that fourth-and-2 play against the New England Patriots? After thorough examination, we’re stumped.

With 2:01 left in their Thursday night matchup with the New England Patriots, the Pittsburgh Steelers had fourth-and-2 from their own 49-yard line. Down 21-18, they needed to get within field goal range (at worst) to tie the game.

Instead of a high-percentage play, the call was for a backside fade throw from quarterback Mitchell Trubisky to receiver Diontae Johnson. The Steelers had no quick options to the sideline — receiver Allen RObinson and tight end Pat Freiermuth were running stuff over the middle — and given that the two-minute warning was coming up, maybe they get a pass for that one. But you need an easy completion and conversion for your inconsistent quarterback here, not one of the toughest throws in any quarterback’s arsenal. Johnson did get far enough away from cornerback Jonathan Jones to bring the ball in, but again, this is a VERY tough throw to make, and Trubisky couldn’t do it.

“It was,” head coach Mike Tomlin said after the game, when asked if Johnson was the primary read on that play. “We were down there. We play to win. We wanted to be aggressive. We just didn’t get it done.”

Trubisky told a slightly different story.

We had multiple options. The safety [Jabrill Peppers] was favoring GP [George Pickens, to the other side]. I liked the one-on-one with Diontae. I felt like I could throw a better ball.”

Well, Peppers was probably cheating to Pickens because Pickens is by far the team’s best fade and contested catch receiver, but we digress.

Defensive lineman Cameron Heyward was also asked about the decision.

“Go for it. I’m not running from it. You know, he wanted to see his playmaker make a play. Didn’t make it; so be it. As defense I look at like, man, we shouldn’t have been in that situation. You know, 18 points is plenty, and 21 is way too much.”

21 is certainly way too much when you bust on 18.

Jalen Hurts must fix this one issue to turn the Eagles’ offense around

Jalen Hurts has been bailing too quickly from the pocket too often, and the Eagles’ offense is suffering for it. Can he turn it around against the Cowboys?

In the Philadelphia Eagles’ 42-19 loss to the San Francisco 49ers last Sunday, Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts was pressured on 27 of his 45 passing attempts. That’s not only the most pressures any NFL quarterback has had on his attempts this season. Only Andy Dalton of the Carolina Panthers in Week 3 (27) and Daniel Jones of the New York Giants in Week 1 (28) have had more pressures in a game this season in their total dropbacks. While we know that the 49ers’ front six is probably the league’s best, and we also know that the Eagles’ offensive line hasn’t quite performed to last season’s standard, this wasn’t primarily about the 49ers winning the battle in the trenches, and the Eagles’ front five unable to hold up.

More than anything, it was about Hurts’ inability to adjust and reset under pressure. Some quarterbacks will drop their eyes to look at the pass rush, and if they can’t quickly get their eyes re-focused on their receivers, the play will fall apart.

The 49ers pressured Hurts with just four rushers on 20 of those plays, and as San Francisco edge-rusher Nick Bosa said after the game, the whole plan was about putting Hurts in positions where he would have to do just that.

“There was definitely an assignment focus — we had to make Jalen focus on the rush, and not look downfield,” Bosa said. “That was the key to the game. Our whole mentality was that we’re not trying to set the record on sacks — we’re trying to close the pocket, and we’re trying to keep his eyes on us. It’s obviously a really good offensive line, and he helps them out with how he evades. You can’t really pick a side with those guys, because you know he’s gonna get out of the pocket and win that way. So, I think we did a really good job of closing in on him.”

Bosa also commented on those plays where Hurts is running around and pointing at receivers.

“You get a push, and he sees that, so his eyes immediately go off his receivers. He’s dipping and dodging right in front of you, and you’re just trying to keep him in the pocket. It’s tough to be blocked for 10 seconds on a play, but it was an unselfish mentality from everybody, and it ended perfectly.”

It was different for Bosa and his linemates to train themselves to NOT go after the quarterback as they usually do.

“Yeah — I mean, there are so many different matchups in a week, and some weeks, you’re [trying] to hit your move and get the sack. This week, the entire focus was closing it in, making him do what he does, and it was effective.”

It was highly effective, and in this week’s “Xs and Os with Greg Cosell and Doug Farrar,” the guys got deeper into how Hurts is… well, hurting his offense by dropping his eyes and losing his reads.

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You can watch this week’s “Xs and Os,” featuring Week 14’s biggest NFL matchups, right here:

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You can also listen and subscribe to the “Xs and Os” podcast on Spotify…

…and on Apple Podcasts.

Now, let’s get into the details, and why the Eagles’ passing game is regressing this season.

Watching tape with Heisman Trophy winner Jayden Daniels

Before he found that he won the 2023 Heisman Trophy, LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels watched tape with Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar.

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There are those quarterback prospects who rocket up the boards in their final collegiate seasons to find themselves highly coveted by the entire NFL. We can point to Baker Mayfield, Kyler Murray, and Joe Burrow in recent years, and in the 2024 draft, LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels might be the one. In four seasons with Arizona State and LSU from 2019 through 2022, he was a good player, but not necessarily a first-round prospect.

Then, 2023 happened, and that all changed. Daniels, who is currently in New York City as a finalist for the Heisman Trophy, which will be presented Saturday at 8:00 p.m. EST, completed 236 of 332 passes (71.1%) for 3,811 yards (11.1 YPA), 40 touchdowns, four interceptions, and a passer rating of 143.7. Add in his 1,250 rushing yards and 10 rushing touchdowns on just 65 attempts (10.4 yards per carry), and you’re dealing with a player who seems primed for franchise quarterback status at the game’s most important position.

I was able to speak to the reigning AP College Football Player of the Year on Friday, while he was chopping it up with other Heisman Finalists — Oregon quarterback Bo Nix and Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr. at Raising Cane’s in New York City. Of course, Daniels did win the award on Saturday night.

(From L. to R. — 2023 Heisman Trophy finalists Michael Penix Jr., Jayden Daniels, and Bo Nix work a shift at Raising Cane’s restaurant in Times Square, New York City. Mandatory Credit: Raising Cane’s

We got into one of Daniels’ best pitches — the deep fade ball. Overall this season, per Pro Football Focus, Daniels completed 35 of 55 passes of 20 or more air yards (63.6%) for 1,347 yards (a ridiculous 24.5 YPA), 22 touchdowns, no interceptions, and a passer rating of 146.8. Paramount among those deep throws are the boundary fades and slot fades that set defenses on edge in the NCAA, and will likely do so in the NFL, given Daniels’ timing, velocity, and accuracy on routes that usually lead to low-percentage plays.

Not in Daniels’ case.

The Xs and Os with Greg Cosell: Previewing Week 14’s biggest NFL matchups

In this week’s “Xs and Os with Greg Cosell and Doug Farrar,” the guys preview Week 14’s most important NFL matchups.

It’s time for Week 14 of the 2023 NFL season, and Greg Cosell of NFL Films and ESPN’s NFL Matchup, and Doug Farrar of Touchdown Wire and the USA Today Sports Media Group, are here to get you ready for the most important games and interesting matchups:

Los Angeles Rams-Baltimore Ravens — The intricacies of Matthew Stafford’s 70-yard touchdown pass to Puka Nacua against the Cleveland Browns, and how the Ravens’ defense might give Stafford some intellectual headaches.

Seattle Seahawks-San Francisco 49ers — Can the Seahawks face up against a dominant 49ers team that took them completely out of their depth on Thanksgiving night? The battle between 49ers cornerback Charvarius Ward and Seahawks receiver D.K. Metcalf will be key.

Philadelphia Eagles-Dallas Cowboys — The Eagles are trying to recover from the 49ers demolishing them (it’s happening a lot to San Francisco’s opponents these days), and it’s time for Jalen Hurts to stop doing one thing that’s hurting his offense.

Green Bay Packers-New York Giants — Jordan Love is coming into his own as a franchise quarterback, and his ability to succeed against the blitz is a big part of that. How will Love fare against a Giants defense that blitzes a ton, and covers very well behind it?

You can watch this week’s “Xs and Os” right here:

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You can also listen and subscribe to the “Xs and Os” podcast on Spotify…

…and on Apple Podcasts.

The All-22: How the 49ers overcame a brutal start to demolish the Eagles’ defense

The Eagles had the 49ers’ offense on the ropes… and then, they REALLY didn’t. An all-22 appreciation of Kyle Shanahan’s coaching dominance.

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In their first two drives against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday, the San Francisco 49ers gained a total of minus-6 yards on two three-and-outs. It was the worst blip of the team’s time under Kyle Shanahan, who’s been San Francisco’s head coach since 2017.

Then, on their next six drives, the 49ers scored six straight touchdowns, pummeling the Eagles, 42-19, in what was supposed to be the matchup of the regular season, and turned out to be yet another Shanahan master class.

Clearly, the Eagles and defensive coordinator Sean Desai wanted to take away San Francisco’s passing game between the seams. And in the end, Shanahan had no problem with that. While Philly was defending the spine of the field, the 49ers simply went nuts either to the perimeter, or with concepts that took Desai’s defense out of their elements.

“Outside those first two drives, it’s like that’s the Niner football that we know,” Sa Francisco quarterback Brock Purdy said after the game. “That’s the offense that we know. Everyone’s doing their part, everything’s clicking obviously, some great play calls, and then everyone just makes plays and does it the right way. We protect the ball, defense does their job, that felt good. And that’s what we’re always trying to do. That’s the standard that we know and that’s the standard that we’ve set over the years. That’s what we expect out of ourselves.”

And here’s how it looked on the field.