Tag: All-22

The All-22 angle of Bo Nix’s throw to Devaughn Vele is amazing

This throw from Bo Nix was incredible!

Facing a 2nd-and-7 in the second quarter of Sunday’s game against the Atlanta Falcons, Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix threw a 33-yard strike to wide receiver Devaughn Vele to pick up a first down.

Nix threw over a linebacker and inside a safety to deliver a perfectly-placed ball for Vele. The All-22 film became available on Monday and the behind the end zone angle is absolutely beautiful:

“We got some shell and some two-deep safety looks today which opens up the middle of the field,” Nix said after the game when asked about throwing over the middle of the field. “I feel like we have been confident with those throws all year long. Today we got through the progressions and got to some of them. Two off the top of my head was Vele over the middle between the safeties. I thought that was extremely courageous to go through there knowing you can possibly be hit.”

This is presumably one of the Vele catches that Nix referenced:

Courtland Sutton (seven receptions for 78 yards) and Vele (four receptions for 66 yards) were Nix’s favorite targets on Sunday.

“Those two are just typical of what you get from them every day,” Nix said. “They are always battling to find ways to get open. They do not care if they are going to take a hit. They are willing to go through there for the betterment of the team. Football is a tough game played by tough people. We know that we are going to have to continue to do that kind of stuff in all spaces of the field to have success. Sometimes you have to take what they give you and they were giving us some over the middle shots today.”

Here are a few more angles of Nix’s two impressive passes to Vele:

Broncos coach Sean Payton praised Nix’s impressive pass during his Monday conference call with reporters.

“There’s never been — on his part — a lack of confidence, relative to his location,” Payton said. “He’s extremely accurate, but the windows are just quicker [and] faster in our league. They’re open for a shorter period of time. I think that’s one example of many, but one example where, ‘Does he make that throw Week 1 or Week 2?’ I don’t know, but certainly we’re all getting a chance to see growth as it plays out week by week.”

Nix finished the game 28-of-33 passing (84.8%) for 307 yards with four touchdowns and no interceptions. He has made huge strides from earlier this season and continues to make a case for Offensive Rookie of the Year.

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The All-22: Breaking down all 3 Vikings touchdowns

We broke down all three of the Vikings touchdowns with the all-22

Going into week five, the Minnesota Vikings are sitting with a 1-3 record and two games behind the division leading Detroit Lions.

On Sunday, they beat the Carolina Panthers by a score of 21-13 with three touchdowns scored for the second-consecutive game.

Justin Jefferson didn’t have a touchdown in the first two weeks of the season, but he has exploded over the last two weeks with three touchdowns, including two against the Panthers.

Touchdowns themselves are inherently random in nature, which is why you can see droughts from star players over the course of weeks. When they do happen, understanding the why behind it can help predict how the Vikings will attack in the future.

The all-22 is the best way to look at how the Vikings scored on the Panthers and we broke down all three touchdowns.

The Xs and Os: How the 49ers demolish offensive lines with loaded fronts

Loaded fronts are becoming more prevalent in the pass-rushing palettes of every NFL team. Here’s how the 49ers use them for Nick Bosa’s benefit.

San Francisco 49ers edge-rusher Nick Bosa is obviously one of the best players at his position in the NFL. Last season, he totaled 19 sacks, 31 quarterback hits, and 48 quarterback hurries. Only Micah Parsons of the Dallas Cowboys had more total pressures (106) than Bosa’s 98, and there are more than enough examples of Bosa destroying opposing blockers in single- and double-teams.

However, 49ers defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans and defensive line coach Kris Kocurek did some things last season to help a guy who doesn’t generally need help. San Francisco’s defense was one of the NFL’s best at defeating opposing offensive lines with the use of loaded fronts, and stunts off those overloads in which Bosa was set free to create even more havoc.

In this week’s “Xs and Os,” in which we continue our look at the schematic trends that have taken over the NFL in recent seasons, Greg Cosell of NFL Films and ESPN’s NFL Matchup gets into the details of this idea.

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“One thing we see a lot in the NFL, which relates to a five-man front look, is loaded fronts, where you have three defensive linemen to one side of the center,” Greg said. “You almost always see a stunt concept from that front look. What the 49ers often did is that they would line up in a loaded front, and they’d have Fred Warner lined up on the opposite side as standup 3-technique. And what they would do is, they would take Nick Bosa, a pretty good pass-rusher in his own right one-on-one, on a long stunt. He would loop around the two other defensive linemen who were on the same side of the center, so he’d wind up rushing through the A-gap in a long loop.

“And the reason they had Fred Warner on the line of scrimmage is so he could occupy the guard opposite the loaded front. Because he’s the only player on the opposite side of the offensive line who could help with a long stunt from a loaded front.

“Defenses are becoming more creative in how they want to rush the passer in their use of stunts, and that loaded front has become prevalent in the league — pretty much every team in the league lines up in loaded fronts now. They’re very difficult, because very often, what teams do is they’ll put the middle guy in that loaded front — he’s their best pass-rusher. Not always, but let’s say that’s Aaron Donald. Now, there’s a lot of room between Aaron Donald and the guard who has to block him. A guard’s friend is not space, and now, there’s a lot of space between Donald and that guard, and if Donald just rushes right at that guard from a distance, that’s a really difficult thing to [handle].

“I had this discussion with an [NFL] offensive line coach, and he told me that loaded fronts are really difficult.”

Two of Bosa’s sacks in the 2022 season came off this same concept.

There was this one in Week 4 against the Los Angeles Rams…

…and this one in Week 11 against the Miami Dolphins.

In both instances, you can see that the 49ers have loaded the front to Bosa’s side with an extra rusher, and that Warner is playing 3-tech to the other side. We detailed the play against the Dolphins to get into the complications this created for a Miami offense that was in empty after motioning running back Raheem Mostert out wide, and with tight end Mike Gesicki running a flat route after chipping off the snap.

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“The thing is, when you line up in that five-man front look, whether it’s five defensive linemen, or five true pass-rushers, like the Philadelphia Eagles often do, or whether it’s what the 49ers do with Fred Warner… and by the way, sometimes, Fred Warner would take two steps forward and then back out and drop into coverage. But he’s still occupying the guard. The kay is to make it a five-on-five, one-on-one situation for the offensive line, so no offensive lineman can help with somebody else.

“Those two plays where Bosa took the long stunt, or the ‘long stick,’ as they call it, came from outside in a wide-9 alignment into the A-gap, looping behind two other defensive linemen. Nobody in the backfield is going to be helping on that, even if it’s not empty. That’s what you’re trying to get accomplished — you’re trying to make sure that nobody on the offensive line can react to that long stunt through the A-gap.

Ryans is now the Texans’ head coach, but you can bet that new 49ers defensive coordinator Steve Wilks, along with Kocurek (one of the best defensive line coaches in the NFL) will be charged with making sure that those five-on-fives, and the one-on-ones, keep happening.

Anything to make Nick Bosa even more terrifying than he already is!

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

…and on Apple Podcasts.

Rookie TE Greg Dulcich could be the missing piece in the Broncos’ offense

Touchdown Wire’s Laurie Fitzpatrick goes to the film to see how Greg Dulcich can replace Noah Fant and become TE1 for the Broncos.

The Denver Broncos are quickly being labeled as a top contender in the AFC West after the addition quarterback Russell Wilson. Wilson’s current weapons include Javonte Williams out of the backfield, Jerry Jeudy as the ‘X’ receiver, and Cortland Sutton and Tim Patrick lining up at the boundary.

Right now, tight end Albert Okwuegbunam is the only viable starter, but with his injury history, rookie Greg Dulcich, selected with the 80th overall pick in the third round out of UCLA, should have an opportunity to shine in training camp.

“When you have a guy [like Dulcich] that can stretch the field like he can, it’s really exciting,” said new head coach Nathaniel Hackett during rookie minicamp. “From all of the stuff — it’s not just the intermediate stuff — but the [impact he makes] truly down the field. At the same time, the ability to strain and block in the run game. I think he showed a lot of stuff [in the pre-draft process].”

Since Dulcich seems to have all the tools to be the tight end of the future. Let’s go to the film to see how Dulcich can be productive in the Broncos’ offense!

Watching tape with Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan

Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan sits down with Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar to discuss his best 2020 plays, his new-look offense, and his excitement for the new season.

Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan is ready for his 14th NFL season, and his team is at a crossroad. Ryan has led the NFL in completions in each of the last two seasons, and the Falcons have won a combined 11 games over that time. Many of Atlanta’s losses have been of the bizarre variety, and though the Falcons were better than their 4-12 record indicated, change came all over the place in the offseason. Former Titans offensive coordinator Arthur Smith is now the head coach and offensive shot-caller, veteran Dean Pees came out of retirement to run the defense, and Julio Jones was off to Tennessee in a trade.

The team restructured Ryan’s contract in March, pushing his cap hits into the 2022 and 2023 with some rather large cap hits at that time. And while the team sent representatives to just about every draftable quarterback’s pro day before the 2021 draft, Ryan’s still the guy under center. He continues to earn it — last season, he ranked 15th in DVOA and 10th in DYAR in an offense that lost Jones for seven games and wasn’t always as dynamic as it could have been. The hope is that with Calvin Ridley as his No. 1 receiver (which Ridley has proven he can be) and the addition of Florida’s Kyle Pitts, the highest-drafted tight end in pro football history, all will be right again with Ryan and Atlanta’s offense.

Recently, I reviewed several of Ryan’s 2020 plays with him, and found that he’s quite excited about this offense. He was also interested in discussing his current promotion with Tide.

Doug Farrar: Tell me about your partnership with Tide, the commercial you recently shot with Stone Cold Steve Austin and Ice-T, and why this sponsorship makes sense for you.

Matt Ryan: It was a lot of fun shooting the commercial with Stone Cold and Ice-T, two guys… I grew up watching Stone Cold, and listening to Ice-T and watching him on Law & Order. It was cool to meet those guys, and I’m excited to partner up with Tide, which has partnered with the NFL to get everyone to switch to cold-water washing. It’s great for the environment, which is really good, and it saves money, which is really good. I’m a father of twin boys who are 3 1/2 years old, so our washing machine is constantly running at the house. Anytime you can do something that saves you a little bit of money, and reduced energy use, which is good for the planet, it seemed like a no-brainer to partner up with them, and I’m excited about it.

DF: You’re probably not getting a lot of sleep right now, either!

MR: A little bit of sleep. They’re starting to sleep for us right now, which is good.

DF: Well, let’s talk some ball. You have a new head coach and offensive play-designer in Arthur Smith. In his preference during his time as Tennessee’s offensive coordinator for two- and three-tight sets, play-action, boot-action, and pre-snap motion, Smith reminds me a bit of a guy named Kyle Shanahan, who helped you win the NFL MVP award in 2016. Do you see any similarities there? 

MR: Yeah, I think there are definitely similarities. I think they go about it in different ways, and in certain schemes that they use. But I think the belief in getting the run game going, and putting a lot of mental stress on the defense in terms of motioning pre-snap and giving you a lot of similar looks before the ball is snapped and making things look the same, run and pass, I think both of those guys believe in that. I certainly have played some of my best football in situations like that, so I feel really good about it.

Atlanta Falcons head coach Arthur Smith talks to quarterback Matt Ryan during their NFL training camp football practice Sunday, Aug. 1, 2021, in Flowery Branch, Ga. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)

DF: What you said about making everything look the same, run and pass, pre-snap… that seems to be more of a hallmark of modern offenses than it used to be. Sean McVay does that a lot, and I know it was a big part of Doug Pederson’s offenses in Philadelphia. Do you think that’s expanded as an idea in the last few seasons at the NFL level?

MR: Yeah, I do think so. I think that innovations in play-action protection really marry into the run game, and that’s gotten a lot better in the last handful of years. It puts a lot of stress on linebackers and nickel players to fit the run, because they’ve got responsibilities to fit the run, but it kind of exposes them in certain spots where you’re able to get the ball out with the play-action pass to get behind some of those zones that are voided. So, I do think it’s improved a lot in the last eight years… something like that. There’s been a heavier emphasis on those types of plays.

DF: Nickel is the new base, as you know.

MR: Correct.

DF: Speaking of pre-snap motion, there’s an interesting statistical thing about your recent career — over the last five years, per Football Outsiders, your pre-snap motion rate has decreased, and you average fewer yards per play when using pre-snap motion, and this goes back even to the Shanahan days. It’s unusual when motion is generally a cheat code for quarterbacks. Have you researched that, and do you have any thoughts as to why that is? 

MR: [Laughs] No! If you think about the last four years, it’s been a lot of [offensive coordinators] Steve Sarkisian and Dirk Koetter, and I think both those guys had a little bit of a different flavor in what they do. I think that the motion portion of it is a big part of putting mental stress on defenses. I think you’ll see more of that moving forward.

DF: Last season, the Falcons finished 4-12, but you ranked 16th in offense, 19th in defense, and 17th in Total DVOA, which would indicate that you were better than your record says. How encouraged are you about the team’s prospects for the 2021 season with that new look on offense, and the addition of defensive coordinator Dean Pees, who’s quite the genius?

MR: I’m fired up. Last year, I don’t know how many games it was, but we had a lot of games last year, where… the ball didn’t bounce the way we needed it to.

DF: Yeah, to an agonizing degree.

MR: Yeah, for sure. And it’s tough when you’re going through that stuff. I do think that we’ve got the players in the building that are capable of being successful. We’ve got guys who are working really hard. We’ve got a really good coaching staff. So, I’m excited about it, and I think that sometimes, when things don’t go your way, you’ve just got to stay the course, and keep your head down, and keep working at it. Eventually, that luck starts to go in your direction. It starts to turn the tide in your favor.

DF: With that, let’s get to the tape.

How Dolphins rookie receiver Jaylen Waddle separates himself from the competition

Dolphins rookie receiver Jaylen Waddle has the speed, elusiveness, and separation ability to make a huge impact on his NFL offense in 2021.

The ability to separate is one of the most important traits for a wide receiver, especially at the NFL level. Winning jump balls and running guys over in college? That’s nice, but it doesn’t always translate to the next level from an efficiency standpoint. Defenses are going to be bigger and stronger. Anyone with size can win with strength, so guys that are smaller, like Dolphins 5-foot-9 rookie receiver Jaylen Waddle, can win with separation, and he does this very well.

Whether an offense needs him to gain the separation at the snap, after the snap or in-route; Waddle has the skillset to get it done at every area. At the snap, bubble screens gives a ball carrier the chance to make a play in open space. This is the first aspect of Waddle’s game that makes him special — his elusiveness.

After the snap, Waddle has such quick feet that even when he’s lined up against press coverage and leveraged inside, he can get outside.  

Waddle uses a hesitation release to pause the defender when he is square, then attacking his outside hip with speed, forcing the defender to open his hips and lose any leverage to the outside that he was attempting to cut off.

If Waddle doesn’t get you off balance from his release, he does after the snap in his stem when working upfield. He is a professional when it comes to reading hips.

From the slot he makes two cuts, the first one is to sell the post so the safety creeps over and second is to separate from his defender who is running with him upfield.

Being able to maintain his speed when working upfield is not easy. Waddle uses his eyes, hips and speed to move defenders in open space.

Expect separation from Waddle in these three ways, at the snap, after the snap and in-route; not as much at the catch. The Dolphins will line him up in the backfield giving him flats & screens, on the outside where he can beat press coverage, or just one on one up the seam from the slot. Waddle can beat any defender from any location on the field. That is what makes him special. We already saw Waddle and Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa making these plays in training camp; now it’s about seeing them do that on the field.

Watching tape with Colts All-Pro linebacker Darius Leonard

Colts All-Pro linebacker Darius Leonard talks about his new foundation, his play on the field, and what makes him a unique player.

In just three NFL seasons, Colts linebacker Darius Leonard has become one of the most prominent players at his position. The 2018 AP Defensive Rookie of the Year, a two-time Pro Bowler and two-time All-Pro, Leonard has amassed 15 sacks, 42 total pressures, 322 tackles, 45 stops, and three touchdowns allowed to seven interceptions in coverage. Leonard recently spoke with Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar about his new Maniac Foundation, how he wants to help others, his NFL career to date, and what he still wants to prove. Then, we dove into Leonard’s tape to determine what makes him such a great player in several different ways.

Doug Farrar: Talk to me about the Maniac Foundation, and what you hope to accomplish with it.

Darius Leonard: Just thinking about the things I’ve been through in my life, and all the people who have helped me along my journey. My baseball coach told me to never forget where I came from, and I’ll always find a way to give back as much as possible. My goal is to help almost every family in need — every child in need. Right now, we’re trying to start our Math Maniacs, training kids to fall back in love with doing math. Sitting in front of a computer, sometimes you can get sidetracked, and you don’t want to do it, so we’re trying to find ways for people to have fun doing schoolwork. With COVID, and everyone being inside, trying to get people to go outside and focusing on their health. Health is one of the main things people fall asleep on.

The third thing is helping families in need with food. That’s just the dream — the dream is to help everybody. I come in, I do what I do, I try to make as much money and have as much fun as I can, and I try to give back as much as I can. I know that I wouldn’t be where I am today without the people around me who helped me out, pulling me up when I was down, and I’m just trying to return the same favor. I know what it’s like to not have too much, to not have food on the table, so I’m just trying to make sure kids don’t have to go through the same things I’ve gone through.

DF: You were a second-round pick out of South Carolina State in 2018, the fifth linebacker chosen in that draft after Roquan Smith, Tremaine Edmunds, Leighton Vander Esch, and Rashaan Evans. But you made an impact right away, led the NFL in combined and solo tackles in your rookie season, and won Defensive Rookie of the Year. What was it that allowed you to become such a crucial part of the Colts’ defense so quickly?

DL: Luckily, being drafted by the Colts. They play a 4-3, and the scheme is perfect for me — it allows me to run around and make plays. I think with me, I came in hungry. I didn’t have a big name coming out, and I wanted to prove a point. HBCU guys can play at the next level. We don’t get enough credit — people think that HBCUs don’t have athletes, so I had that chip on my shoulder to prove everybody wrong. I never got complacent. Going to work day in and day out, and each day, I tried to get better. I had a guy there, Anthony Walker, who helped me every step of the way, and I always talk about him when it comes to my success.

I remember in my rookie season, before training camp, when I popped my [quadriceps muscle], every day, before the day started, it was me, coach [defensive coordinator Matt] Eberflus, and [linebackers] coach [Dave] Borgonzi, we were in the indoor, just doing a walkthrough, and walking through every play, making sure I was fully understanding every play in the playbook. So, when I got on the field, it was just like, ‘Okay — now, I’ve got to compete. Now, I’m competing against the best of the best, and I’ve got to prove that I can play.’ That was the mindset coming in — earn a job, keep a job, and make some money for the family.

DF: Matt Eberflus became the Colts’ defensive coordinator the same year you came into the league, and I’ve always been impressed by the consistency and discipline of his defenses. What makes him a good coach, and do you think he’ll be a head coach eventually?

DL: Coach ‘Flus is very detailed. He never walks by a mistake. He’ll never let a player pass by a mistake. Everything he talks about — he holds you to a standard. There’s not a guy who comes in who doesn’t play hard. You’ve got to run to the ball, or you’ll be sitting on the bench. He holds everybody up to the same standard, no matter who you are. That’s what makes him a great coach, because you can have a big-time name, but you have to play for the team. You can’t play for yourself. He makes sure everybody buys into the system. Sometimes, you have to put your body on the line so someone else can make a play. He’s very detailed about everything he does.

Do I see him as a head coach? No question. I’m surprised he’s still a defensive coordinator now, because of how smart he is and how well he understands the game. After my rookie season, I thought he was gone, and each year, after the season, he’s having these head coaching interviews. I do see him as a head coach, and I do think he will succeed as a head coach. For me personally — it might sound a little selfish, but [Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker] Derrick Brooks had the same defensive coordinator his whole career [Monte Kiffin, from 1996 through 2008; Rusty Tillman was Tampa Bay’s defensive coordinator in 1995], and he played very well in that two-high scheme. Hopefully, I can have him my whole career, because I think it’s why I keep getting better. When you’re in the same system for so long, you understand it. You understand how people are trying to attack you. I wish him the best, but I hope he stays here.

DF: Modern linebackers have to do so many things, and you’ve been really effectively versatile in your career. Were there things you had to learn and develop when you got to the NFL — things about coverage, or playing from the slot, or defending the run?

DL: For me, especially on third down, it was my first time where I’m almost a defensive lineman. I have to make sure I know how to attack offensive linemen. I have to know how to pass-rush. And then when I’m outside, covering a slot receiver, you’ve got to know who you’re covering. You have to understand with quarterbacks, especially if it’s an Aaron Rodgers or a Deshaun Watson, they see a linebacker in the slot… not like it’s a mismatch, but they take their best receiver and put him in the slot, you have to understand that they’re going to pick on you. You have to understand what routes are going to come. You have to understand how they’re going to attack you. That’s where it comes down to film study.

And then, when you’re playing in the box, you have to be disciplined and make sure you’re reading your keys. Because there’s a lot of play-action and outside zone action. Then, it’s either boot, or play-action, or a dropback pass, and you have to make sure you understand that. Because if you get caught up in the run, they’re going to hit you right where you’re supposed to be. It’s like any other job — you’ve got to be disciplined, you’ve got to understand the game plan, and you’ve got to be sure that you understand how to attack the guy that’s in front of you.

DF: The Colts have made the playoffs in two of the three seasons you’ve been there. What do this team need to do to get to and win the Super Bowl?

DL: Be consistent. When you look at the games we lost, it’s nothing our opponents did — it’s everything we did. Especially on the defensive side of the ball, when there’s a bust or you jump offside — things like that. You can’t have that. If you want to be a Super Bowl contender, you cannot shoot yourself in the foot. We have to be more disciplined, trust in the game plan, play 110% every single play, and find ways to take the ball away. We want to be the No. 1 hustling team. We want to be the No. 1 takeaway defense. We want to be the No. 1 defense. And if we want to do that, that’s what’s going to help us win the Super Bowl, the division, everything we have to do.

DF: Is Carson Wentz the guy to help get you there?

DL: Damn skippy! He’s a monster, man. Just watching him in OTAs and stuff, he’s got a cannon for an arm, and he’s huge. He looks like a tight end. I was eating breakfast one morning beside him, and he was so big, I didn’t know it was him, because everybody had their masks on. Then, somebody said something to him, and I’m like, ‘Damn. This dude is huge!’ You would think that he’s been in this locker room for about seven years. He has this presence about him and his leadership role, and that’s what you need in a quarterback room. We have a great offensive line that’s going to protect him. We have the best backfield in the NFL, in my opinion, and we have these great skill guys on the outside. He came into a perfect place to have success. We believe in him. We know who he is, and we know what he can be. I can’t wait to see what he and [head] Coach Frank [Reich] are going to step up and do.

DF: Before we get into these five plays, is there a play that comes to mind for you that defines who you are as a player? If you could show the world one play that says, “This is Darius Leonard,” which one would it be?

DL: The best play I’ve ever made was definitely in my rookie season, playing against the Raiders. We were in a back-and-forth battle, there was five minutes left in the ballgame, we had just scored, but we were struggling defensively. We call up a blitz, and next thing you know, in the open gap, I punched the ball out. I think that’s one of the best defensive plays I’ve seen — it doesn’t get talked about much, but that’s definitely at the top of my list.

Emotions in Motion, Part 3: How Bill Walsh (accidentally) saw the future of pre-snap deception

Bill Walsh is known for all kinds of innovations. Add an elevated understanding of pre-snap motion to that list.

Part 1 of Doug Farrar’s “Emotions in Motion” series presented an overall view of the advantages of pre-snap motion, and some level of angst as to the percentage of coaches who refuse to avail themselves of this cheat code. Part 2 took a deep dive into Aaron Rodgers’ enlightened views on the concept through the eyes of head coach Matt LaFleur. In Part 3 of the series, let’s get into the Wayback Machine to discover how Bill Walsh (no surprise there) became the first offensive play-designer to make pre-snap motion a primary construct of his playbooks.

Though most professional football offenses were far more formationally stationary in previous eras than they are today, there were those coaches who experimented with throwing defenses off-kilter with pre-snap motion. Sid Gillman and Tom Landry were two in a small group, and the fact that those  coaches are among the game’s all-time greatest innovators fits nicely with the idea of thinking outside the box to throw off defenses that were also far more cookie-cutter in previous eras.

But it was Bill Walsh, more than any other coach, who brought the gospel of pre-snap motion to the field in highly effective ways. Starting with his time as the Oakland Raiders’ running backs coach in 1966 — where he worked under Al Davis, who ingested most of what he knew about the passing game from his earlier time with Gillman — and then as the Cincinnati Bengals’ offensive coordinator under Paul Brown from 1968 to 1975, and certainly as the San Francisco 49ers’ head coach from 1979 through 1988, Walsh saw no issue with using pre-snap movement as a force multiplier in an offense that was as much art as it was science.

But as voluminous and well-thought as most of his innovations were, this came from random chance. In his autobiography, “Building a Champion,” Walsh described how he started to use the tight end in motion from one side of the formation to the other.

“We used the tight end in motion first by mistake,” he said. “Cincinnati was playing the Raiders in Oakland. In the third quarter, Bob Trumpy lined up on the wrong side by mistake. He had to shift over quickly to the other side, and all hell broke loose. At that time, the Raiders had very specialized [defenders]. They had a weak-side linebacker, they had a strong-side linebacker, they had a defensive end who only played on the tight-end side, and they would shift their two inside linebackers. They all ran into each other in the middle of the field, trying to adjust.”

After the game, offensive line coach Bill Johnson suggested to Walsh that the Bengals put motion in the playbook on purpose. Walsh said that they looked at each other and doubled over laughing at first, but that’s how motion became a seminal part of the Walsh offense. And the motion concept was mostly nightmarish for the more static defenses of the time. Against defenses with specific linebacker designations (weak-side and strong-side, strong-side being the linebacker lined up over the tight end), Walsh could direct his tight end to create unfavorable matchups.

“If a weak-side linebacker was fast but had trouble handling a big, blocking tight end, we could force him to defend on the strong side anytime we wanted, simply by moving the tight end to his side,” Walsh said.

Of course, when Trumpy went in motion, quarterback Ken Anderson still had to throw the ball to the right team, which didn’t always happen when the Bengals faced the Raiders in Week 5 of that season.

And here’s receiver Isaac Curtis motioning from outside to the slot against Oakland in the 1975 divisional playoffs. A nifty concept that would have worked but for the fact that linebacker Ted Hendricks sacked Anderson — one of four sacks the future Hall-of-Famer had on the day.

So… it took a few minutes to work out the kinks.

In any event, Walsh started to split Trumpy outside of the formation, forcing those linebackers to stray from their preferred places and opening up other alternatives. By the time he was hired in San Francisco as the 49ers’ head coach in 1979, Walsh was using receivers in motion, backs in motion… everything was about getting the defense off-balance before the snap even happened. Walsh saw the defense as a moveable canvas onto which he would paint exacting structural concepts, and motion was a major part of this. Walsh discovered that by putting different players in motion, a quarterback could discern whether the defense he was facing was man or zone.

“If a back goes in motion and the linebackers begin to loosen, the quarterback can expect a zone,” he wrote. “If a linebacker immediately moves with the back in motion, the quarterback can see man-to-man coverage.”

Again, this worked at a basic level because defenses were relatively rudimentary in the 1970s — the substitutions and hybrid positions of the current era were rarely seen. Teams use motion to discern coverage concepts to this day, though disguised and split coverage concepts are the norm in the modern age. Back then? Teams didn’t know how to adapt.

By the early 1980s, Walsh was designing all kinds of new alchemies. This 23-yard pass from quarterback Matt Cavanaugh to running back/tight end Earl Cooper against the New Orleans Saints looked like something straight out of Andy Reid’s Chiefs playbook in any of the last three seasons, with Cooper as the motion receiver from left to right, and both guards pulling the other way. The pulling guards influenced the defense to head away from Cooper, and the motion — not to mention Cavanaugh’s bootleg to the right — helped to negate the Saints’ all-out blitz. (H/T to John Turney of the awesome Pro Football Journal site for the video assist).

“We called that play because we thought they would be blitzing,” quarterbacks coach Paul Hackett said. “That’s why we wanted Matt to be moving. We used the misdirect action to buy him time, but that pass is delivered quickly anyway.”

By the last game of his time as the 49ers’ head coach and offensive genius, Walsh had developed it to his usual standard — ruthlessly effective, incredibly multi-faceted, and with more wrinkles than anybody else would have considered. The game-winning touchdown in Super Bowl XXIII against Paul Brown’s Bengals was a play called “Red Right Tight F Left 20 Halfback Curl X Up,” and here’s Walsh drawing it up, Michelangelo-style:

As you can see, Jerry Rice is motioning from right to left pre-snap, and as Joe Montana told me this week, that was not only by specific design to open things up for other receivers, it also turned Rice into an option receiver, which just seems unfair.

“The one thing Bill noticed was that … I mean, we used [pre-snap] motion for a reason,” Montana said. “We’d used motions with Jerry [Rice] coming across the formation — this was right to left, but a lot of times, we’d run it the other way as fast as we could before the defender could catch up to him — the man trailing him. We’d bring him across again after throwing it to Jerry in the flat right away, and let him turn it [upfield]. The next time, we’d bring him over in the same look, and we’d start him into the flat, and he’d run an angle back in.

“So, we were hoping that if they were playing man-to-man, they would put him into that, but if not, that motion also kicked [the Bengals] into two deep safeties. That’s where the “X Up” comes into play, where J.T. [John Taylor] had to read. If there’s a free safety, he hooks it outside. And if they were split, and there was no safety in the middle, he does a little nod-out like he’s going to hook, and then he goes to the post. There’s not a lot of time and space between when he runs that hook and before he runs out of space in the end zone. You have to anticipate that.”

Montana also said that when Rice motioned and didn’t have a specific following defender, he knew he was facing a zone defense — one of the primary reasons teams use pre-snap motion to this day.

It’s not surprising that Bill Walsh was able to take something like pre-snap motion that was considered to be something between gimmickry and heresy for other coaches and turn it into a key element of his offensive designs. It’s also not a surprise that even to this day, a lot of coaches are still lagging behind his enterprising genius in this regard.

In Part 4 of the “Emotions n Motion” series, we’ll take a look at the teams who benefited the most in the 2020 season from pre-snap motion… and the teams who, despite that obvious advantage, used it at an unhelpfully low rate. 

How to run the perfect routes with Cowboys WR Amari Cooper

In a recent Film Session with NFL Films, Cowboys receiver Amari Cooper revealed why he’s one of the NFL’s best route-runners.

One of the best features of the NFL’s Game Pass site, beyond the ability to watch and analyze game tape from the overhead and end zone angles, is the “Game Pass Film Session” series, now in its second season, and hosted by former NFL players and current NFL analysts Brian Baldinger and Kurt Warner. The series, shot at NFL Films headquarters in Mount Laurel, New Jersey, gives viewers an intricate and intimate look at how the NFL’s best players do what they do.

Since the Raiders selected him with the fourth overall pick in the 2015 draft out of Alabama, Amari Cooper has been one of the NFL’s best and most complete route-runners. With both the Raiders and Cowboys, who traded for him in October, 2018, Cooper has helped his quarterbacks in ways a lot of receivers just can’t with his route awareness, technical perfection, and understanding of the passing game.

Cooper recently sat down with Warner and Baldinger to discuss the science of his work, and it’s fascinating to discover just how much a technically proficient receiver can complete an offense. In Cooper’s case, there are times when he’s able to go above and beyond his offensive coordinators to create explosive plays. This touchdown against the Eagles in December, 2019 is a prefect example — Cooper was tired of Scott Linehan calling stop route after stop route and exhorted Dak Prescott to do something different.

“It’s interesting because I actually had another stop route on that play and they were, if you were watching, really sitting on those stop routes,” Cooper said of Philadelphia’s defense. “And I was like, this is ridiculous. So when I broke the huddle I was kind of mad and I was like, Dak, come on. And he was just like, just run it bro. And I guess he thought about it again and he kind of signaled a go route and I was elated when he did that. And I took off, caught the ball, and scored.”

With Warner and Baldinger, Cooper went even deeper into the particulars that make him great.

Releasing off the line of scrimmage

In this touchdown against the Giants in Week 1 of the 2019 season, Cooper talked about how he was able to torch rookie cornerback Deandre Baker on an end zone fade throw from Prescott.

“So, this play? It’s a rookie out there,” Cooper explained. “The first game of the season. And I knew I had him, because he jumped before the play. And I’m like, ‘This guy’s kind of scared. The key to winning that route is — you see that I switched my feet at the line of scrimmage, because I want to give him that hard jab inside so he can jump inside. I want to show the quarterback that I’m open as early as possible, so he won’t come off me. So, I give him that hard jab inside, and that’s all for Dak, so he can see that separation.

“I like being really patient when I have go balls [routes]. I like to run under him [the defender]. Like, if I was to run a speed release right there, I would probably get past him, but the ball wouldn’t be dropping in that bucket yet. That’s why I chose that release.”

As Warner pointed out, Cooper got right up on Baker’s toes with the initial skip release to avoid any separation that would allow Baker to catch up to him once Cooper made his move outside.

Speed release on the slant

When you’re facing one of the best cornerbacks in the NFL — and Buffalo’s Tre’Davious White is certainly one of them — you have to combine the physical and the mental to beat your opponent. One aspect of this is changing up your approach based on the qualities of the cornerback you’re dealing with, as Cooper did here in Week 12 of the 2019 season. It’s a simple slant on tape, but it’s not so simple in Cooper’s head. White is a technician who could likely match up with any jabs and fakes Cooper tried from the line of scrimmage, so the strategy here was to use a speed release — the receiver’s equivalent of the bull rush.

“This is all because I was playing against Tre’Davious,” Cooper said. “Usually, on a slant, I would try to give him a jab inside, release outside, and then go. But he plays over the top [to guard against the deep vertical threat], so I just ran off, because I knew he would protect the go ball. So, I ran him off, crossed his face, used my strength, and caught the ball.”

Thinking three steps ahead

When asked by Warner what his greatest strength as a player is, Cooper said that it’s his ability to think three steps ahead of the guy he’s facing.

“My game as a receiver is to try to make my route look like a different route than I’m actually running.”

On the first offensive play of Dallas’ Week 3 game against the Dolphins, Cooper hit cornerback Xavien Howard with what looked like a “Deep 2” at first — a deep over route. Then, the route turns into a “Sail 7” — a sail route to the outside. You can see how it takes Howard, an above-average defender, right out of the play.

“I’m just trying to really make it feel like it’s a Deep 2 — I want him to feel a Deep 2. It’s all about creativity in your route-running. It’s all about really selling it. When you’re running a double move, or even a route that’s not a double move, you always want to make it look like it’s another route. So, when I’m running this fake Deep 2 to Sail 7, I’m looking at Dak like I’m about to catch the Deep 2. Now, he really feels like it’s a Deep 2.”

Cooper scored two touchdowns in that 31-6 win, and this was one of them — another example of how he’s able to sell defensive backs on one route, while giving them the okay-doke on the way to yet another big play. Here, he beats Howard once again on a little pivot for a five-yard first-quarter touchdown.

As Baldinger posited, Howard is trying to take Cooper’s inside release away, and Cooper still gets inside. Patience is the key here.

“It’s really like a slant/out,” Cooper said. “I’m really trying to make it look like a slant as much as possible, and he played it phenomenally. That’s the best you can play it. I tried to jab him outside a little bit to make it seem like one of those quick slants, went inside for a couple of steps, he kind of grabbed me a little bit — playing me with his hands, like what a good cornerback would do — and I just fought through it. I won this route at the top — just fighting through it.”

Warner pointed out another subtlety of this route combination — Cooper had to stay aligned to the line of scrimmage when he went inside, or he wouldn’t have been able to take Howard back outside. Then, Cooper’s vertical push back outside put Howard at a geometric disadvantage.

As Cooper then said, the consistency of the timing of these routes plays a major factor in a quarterback’s confidence.

“I’m trying to be open as soon as possible, because I don’t want Dak to come off me. If he gets a look that he’s not used to, or he hasn’t seen in practice as far as the relationship between me and the DB, he’s not going to feel comfortable with it. He’s going to go to the next read.”

Cooper said that when he first went to Dallas, his coaches didn’t have that route in the playbook. He had to show how it would work in practice.

“My first week there, we always do red zone one-on-ones. And I ran it, and I killed the guy [the defensive back in practice]. We put it in against Tennessee my very first game, and I scored on it.”

“So, it’s about showing the guys that it actually works. And once you show them that it works, you can go to them and say, hey, this is what I think will work.”

That probably had a bit to do with Prescott’s confidence in overruling Linehan against the Eagles. When Amari Cooper comes to you with a concept, you should listen to what he has to say.

Responding to disguised coverages

One very interesting thing that came up in this film session happened during Cooper’s touchdown against the Redskins in Week 2 of the 2019 season. Here, the Cowboys utilized pre-snap motion with receiver Randall Cobb, and based on the defensive back’s movement with him, Cooper thought Washington was playing man coverage. That’s generally what happens, and why smarter offensive coaches use motion to help their quarterbacks and receivers discern coverage before the snap. However, Washington had some trickeration in mind.

“I’ve been seeing a lot of that lately — a guy would follow a guy in motion, but it wouldn’t be man; it would be zone. So, yeah — I’m looking at Cobb, and I’m looking at the guy following him [cornerback Jimmy Moreland], and I’m thinking it’s going to be man, but it’s not.”

The theoretical problem with misdiagnosing coverage is that more often than not, receivers are told to alter their routes based on the coverage. As Cooper detailed, this was indeed the case for him as the outside man in this motion to a bunch formation.

“If I’m running that sit route versus man, I have to run it off him [the cornerback]. I have to win it if he’s pressed. But if it’s zone, I’m just reading it. I’m just trying to find an open spot. I kinda see him out my peripheral coming down, and I’m just hoping the ball beats him there. Luckily, it did.”

It’s been said that luck is the residue of design, and that’s often the case with the most technically proficient and mentally prepared NFL players. Amari Cooper has the physical gifts to be one of the NFL’s best receivers, but that’s not why he is exactly that. As this film session showed, there’s so much more that goes into the preparation for every position in football than you may think.

Game Pass is currently free through July 31, 2020, and I highly recommend that any football fan who doesn’t watch it now checks it out.

NFL offers fans free access to NFL Game Pass

The NFL is offering fans access to NFL Game Pass, which gives fans access to regular season games since 2009, as well as postseason games.

The NFL is now offering fans complimentary access to NFL Game Pass, which will provide fans the opportunity to watch the extensive library of football programming available.

This will include access to full replays of regular season games from 2009-2019 and postseason games, which will be commercial free. It also includes condensed 45-minute game replays as well, and All-22 access footage for those who want to watch from a coach or scout’s perspective.

Previous seasons of Hard Knocks and A Football Life, as well as exclusive NFL Game Pass Film Sessions, will be available as well.

Additionally, NFL digital platforms will offer fans full game encores on NFL.com, the NFL app and the NFL’s official YouTube channel. These will feature signature wins from all 32 teams.

This offer will be free of charge until May 31 to fans in the United States. To sign up for their complimentary access to NFL Game Pass, fans just need to create an account on the web at NFL.com/GamePass, or via the NFL app across mobile and connected TV devices.

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