Tag: film breakdown

Film Room: Examining what Everson Griffen brings to the Detroit Lions

Lions Wire is back in the film room, this time examining what newly acquired EDGE Everson Griffen brings to the Detroit Lions.

Lions Wire is back in the film room, this time examining what newly acquired EDGE Everson Griffen brings to the Detroit Lions.

The Lions defensive philosophy has always centered around stopping the run first and pressuring the quarterback second. Their 3-3-5 scheme is designed to disguise where the fourth pass rusher is coming from, but for the first two years and four games of coach Matt Patricia’s tenure, their disguise has been fairly transparent.

But coming out of the Lions’ Week 5 bye, they shifted their approach upfront, have been extremely creative with their linebacker intentions/disguises and found ways to incorporate bigger defensive linemen on early downs.

This bigger approach to the defensive line has led to more success against the run and opened up more pass-rushing opportunities for EDGE rushers Trey Flowers and Romeo Okwara — and they’re getting to the ball.

In fact, the only flaw in the system right now is a lack of depth beyond Flowers and Okwara, as both reserve EDGE rushers are currently injured. Julian Okwara was placed on injured reserve and is out through at least Week 9 and Austin Bryant is practicing, but still on the PUP list while the team evaluates his health.

This lack of depth and re-focused attention for bigger bodies on the line led to general manager Bob Quinn searching the trade market for help, and he got it in a big way when he landed Griffen.

Griffen has a lot of similar traits to Flowers and Okwara, and his experience could fill a massive need with the Lions’ new approach.

In this film room, we’ve highlighted six plays from Griffen’s 2020 season with the Dallas Cowboys, that best illustrate a variety of ways he will be able to immediately contribute in Detroit.

Setting the edge against the run

  • Situation: 1st and 10, 4:28 into 1st quarter
  • Griffen: RDE, 7T
  • Assignment: Set the edge
  • Results: Sets the edge, reads the RB, pursues and makes the tackle

Note: Be sure to have your sound on the video for analysis 

Setting the edge against the pass

  • Situation: 1st and 10, 2:22 into the 3rd quarter
  • Griffen: RDE, 7T
  • Assignment: Set the edge 1st, rush the passer 2nd
  • Results: Engages TE, sets the edge, keys on the QB/RB exchange, recognizes pass, disengages from TE, gets a QB hit

Pass rushing from the 9-technique

  • Situation: 3rd and 4, 4:28 into the 1st quarter
  • Griffen: LDE, Wide-9
  • Assignment: Rush the passer
  • Results: Power to speed pass rush against the RT, pursue, and sack

Pass-rushing from the 7-technique

  • Situation: 3rd and 13, 4:08 into the 3rd quarter
  • Griffen: RDE, 7T
  • Assignment: Rush the passer
  • Results: Stresses the LT’s outside shoulder, gets upfield with speed to power, disengages, and sack

Pass-rushing from the 5-technique

  • Situation: 3rd and 9, 8:06 into the 3rd quarter
  • Griffen: RDE, 5T
  • Assignment: Rush the passer
  • Results: Takes on LG with swim move, recognizes screen, tracks the ball, and makes the tackle on the WR

Pass-rushing from the 3-technique

  • Situation: 3rd and 16, 9:45 into the 3rd quarter
  • Griffen: 3T
  • Assignment: Rush the passer
  • Results: Attacks the A-gap, escapes the wash, redirects pursuit, pressures the QB, forces the incompletion with a QB hit

Conclusion

Griffen has the size (6-3, 273), speed (4.6 seconds 40 y/d), strength combination the Lions love to lean on in their edge rushers, and the positional versatility to allow the Lions to run the same scheme with him on the field.

Once he clears the COVID-19 protocols, he will likely find the field quickly, and as a 10-year veteran, he should have no time getting up to speed.

He will shift from a starting role in Dallas (roughly 55-percent of snaps) to a reserve role in Detroit, but he has the talent to be an impactful player — even if only as a pass rusher early. His 2.5 sacks and 18 quarterback pressures put him second on the Lions defense, behind only Okwara.

He may not be the havoc seeker we saw in Minnesota, but there is plenty of juice left in the tank, especially coming into a situation where he won’t be asked to hold down a starting role and can instead focus his efforts/energy on situational work.

WATCH: Jonathan Taylor is a model for how running backs should pass block

When Jonathan Taylor came out of Wisconsin as one of the greatest running backs in the history of college football everybody knew…

When Jonathan Taylor came out of Wisconsin as one of the greatest running backs in the history of college football everybody knew what he could do with the ball in his hands.

That production, one which led the Indianapolis Colts to draft the running back in the second round, amounted to a total of 6581 all-purpose yards in college, 6.8 yards-per-touch and 55 total touchdowns. All-time stats.

One thing, though, that every running back must excel at if they want to stick around in the NFL is pass blocking and picking up blitzing defenders.

Taylor has the frame, the football IQ and the work ethic to develop well in that category, but if you want some video proof here is Brian Baldinger breaking down one of his impressive reps in pass protection.

“All you HS, CFB, NFL running backs who aren’t good at this skill need to study Taylor,” Baldinger wrote. High praise for a running back who has only played five NFL games.

His 307 rushing yards, 3 touchdowns, 12 receptions and 107 receiving yards are solid numbers for a rookie in his first five games. But if you want to really consider his staying power in the league the film breakdown above is what you should point to.

Taylor is a complete back and will only get better as he gains experience. I think it’s safe to say the Colts are happy with only having to use a second-round pick on the Badger great.

Tarik Cohen vows to stop running sideways, breaks down his game film

RB Tarik Cohen took some time Saturday to break down some of his game film, where he promised to make some changes to his play.

For the past three seasons, Chicago Bears running back Tarik Cohen has dazzled with incredible runs, catches and game-breaking returns that earned him All-Pro honors.

He’s also had frustrating moments in which he’s failed to gain positive yards more than a few occasions, resulting in stalled offensive drives. Now, entering his fourth season and final season in his rookie contract, “The Human Joystick” promises to make some changes to his play.

On Saturday morning, Cohen posted on his Twitter page that he was done running east and west, responding to critics who pointed out how he wasn’t getting upfield enough. “Imma stop running sideways this year. Issa wrap,” he tweeted using a couple of emojis.

The electric running back also interacted with fans, insisting they post videos of when they believed he screwed up on the field. Clips consisted of his memorable punt return touchdown against the San Francisco 49ers during his rookie season, to missed opportunities last year. Cohen then broke down his thinking and why those plays did or didn’t work.

Finally, during one of those interactions, Cohen revealed he prefers to be utilized in power and man schemes. This may come as a surprise given his ability to explode off the edge and beat defenders in a foot race, but the former North Carolina A&T back believes running inside will catch defenders off guard since he’s known for breaking runs off on the outside.

These clips are a reminder of how dangerous Cohen can be, but how quickly he can be shut down if a play goes sideways. He continues to be an integral part of the Bears offense, as he accounted for 170 and 143 touches in the air and on the ground in 2018 and 2019, respectively. While his touches didn’t dramatically drop off, his yardage did.

After totaling 1,169 yards from scrimmage during the Bears’ 12-4 playoff run two years ago, Cohen managed only 669 yards last season. His yards per catch also plummeted, going from 10.2 to 5.8. He had the reps, but didn’t do as much with them as he used to.

Cohen’s admission shows he knows what he needs to do to return to his game-changing self and his film breakdown proves he has a plan when the ball gets in his hands. All he needs to do is put it all together and he’ll continue to be a handful for opposing defenses.

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