Fun Bunch Friday: NFL Week 13, 2023

This week's explosives are a masterclass in using formations to maximize personnel when attacking the defense, something this tree does better than any other!

FK 15 WIZZ Z AROUND

Last week, we covered the 49ers running an end around off of GF Counter action. This week, they hit the end around off of Split Zone action, and I love the presentation. The sweep motion bumps every second level defender over a gap. Generally, this motion is used to “block” the support defender by forcing him to honor the motion, helping to create a seam at the second or third level depending on how the defense adjusts to the motion.

In this case, it puts the first and second level in a position to be pinned inside the end around by the Offensive Line and the F receiver. Running this off of Inside Zone action instead of Outside Zone action helps this as well because the Offensive Line is going to get vertical more quickly. The Safety gets sucked in just enough by the inside run threat that he can’t adjust to pickup the Z on the end around before he crosses the goal line.

What I really love about this play is the fake sift block (Grizz) by the Y then leading for the end around. My two favorite ways to run end arounds have been executed to perfection by the 49ers in the last two weeks. The ability to get lead blockers for an end around off of base run action is a small part of what this tree calls the “Illusion of Complexity.”

15 WANDA

The Packers hit an explosive run off of what looks like a simple Inside Zone run, but if you’ve been following along this season, you know I love a simple play being executed to perfection, especially those that are run at my level of football like this.

Something the pros do a lot that I don’t see much at lower levels is using the Y aligned back-side to man block the back-side on a zone run. Oftentimes in high school, we want to read that defender for a zone read, but what if you don’t have a QB you want running the ball? This is one of a few ways you can handle the back-side of a zone run without a read option element. If you want to cover more ways or learn my rules for the Y back-side so you don’t have to give him a “Man” call in the play, I cover all of it in my CoachTube course on adapting the Shanahan/McVay offense to high school. There are some limitations to using the Y in this way, and the primary reason is you want to have an even box.

For most of the last decade, offenses would run what most called “Zone Lock” to man the back-side of the blocking surface and read an Inside Linebacker to even out the box. I am a firm believer that well-coached defenses have now taken the Inside Linebackers out of coverage responsibilities such that they can fit the run while other defenders cover the RPO window. What adding the Y back-side does for offenses is create an extra gap that the same well-coached defense will now need to account for. With the rise of the Fangio system, defenses want to play two-high Safety defense which means more often than not, a Safety is going to be responsible for that extra gap from the third level, evening out the box. Now we can put that Safety in conflict. One of the central tenets of playing two-high Safety defense is having an extra defender in coverage (having 3 defenders to cover 2, 4 to cover 3, etc.). If the Safety wants to maintain his coverage, then we have hats-for-hats with the blocking surface. If he fills in the run game, then we are one-on-one on the perimeter.

The Packers don’t run an RPO here. This is a teach-tape example of an RB being his own blocker. The Free Safety is the extra fitter as the unblocked player. He overflows to the zone action and gets sucked in so far that he can’t play the cutback lane, and the RB hits it big.

ATTACKING INVERTED COVER 2

Matthew Stafford called his own number on this one. After the game, Sean McVay said that Stafford came over to the sideline after the first drive and told him he was calling an audible to this play if he saw this specific look again, and he might have a future as an NFL play-caller after his playing days are over based on these results.

The Browns go with an inverted Cover 2 defense with the Cornerbacks playing the Deep Half behind a Creeper pressure, and Stafford’s call is perfect. The Browns try and disguise the coverage, but as we’ve discussed before, that can create leverage issues if the defenders can’t get to their landmarks fast enough. The CB is still aligned over the #1 receiver (F – Kupp), and he gets hopelessly out of phase trying to cap the Thru route by Nacua (Z). Nacua and Stafford are in sync, and the ball is layered perfectly between the hashes, over the LB carrying the vertical, and inside of the CB trying to catch up from outside-in.

The defense is incredibly outmatched on this play. I would expect a Nickel Corner to be able to carry a vertical, but the Creeper they run puts a Defensive Tackle on Higbee while pushing out the Linebacker to cover Nacua. Stafford definitely knew this was coming because the Out routes on the outside break away from the flat defenders and he gets Higbee breaking away from a Defensive Lineman. Disguised coverage is great – if your players can get there.

SPEED KILLS

If there is one player in the entire league that you want to ensure is capped vertically, it is The Cheetah, Tyreek Hill. The Commanders might be even more out-of-position than the Browns were against the Rams in our earlier clip.  I believe this is supposed to be Cover 1 Lurk, but the Weak Safety didn’t get the memo because he is dropping like he is playing the Deep Half.

The offense goes empty by motioning Devon Achane (HB) to the Weak #1 position, and he is followed out by a Linebacker, indicating man coverage and potentially the idea that defenses may just want the offense to score as a result because he comes just as wide open as Hill after dominating the release against a pressed up linebacker.

I am operating under the assumption that this is supposed to be Cover 1. The Nickel does his job by trying to force Hill inside to where his help should be, but between not having the help he expected and getting caught a little flat-footed, The Cheetah claimed another victim.

Our two featured plays this week show using motion to render defensive backs ineffective and using a stacked trips formation to dictate coverage.