Posts tagged dynasty leagues

UDFA QB Adam Froman

The most athletic QB in the 2011 Draft Class? Newton? Gabbert? Locker? Taylor? Maybe. But Adam Froman belongs near the top of this list. He can throw, too. Photo by algaedoc http://www.flickr.com/photos/by-ken/

Due to the lockout, 2011 could be more difficult than usual for undrafted free agents trying to make it in the NFL. Yet, there will be players with the talent, the skill, and the work ethic to enter a camp and make the most of their limited opportunities.

This week, I’m profiling offensive skill players who I believe have the ability to develop into quality professionals if they have been training hard enough in this crazy offseason to hit the ground running. Profiles of these players are excerpts from my publication, the 2011 Rookie Scouting Portfolio, available at Footballguys.com

Adam Froman 6-4, 219:  Froman is a JUCO transfer who really didn’t become a passing quarterback until he went to a junior college in Santa Rosa, California. He devleoped into an efficient JUCO passer and carried over that 60 percent completion rate during his next two seasons at Louisville.

There are other numbers that are even more impressive in the spring: 4.55 and 4.08. These times are his 40 and 20-yard shuttle numbers and they are among thebest of any QB in this class loaded with impressive athletes like Newton, Gabbert, Locker and Tyrod Taylor. Continue reading

Emerging NFL Talents: WR “Big” Mike Williams

Seahawks receiver Mike Williams emerged in 2010, showing the talent that once made him an elite prospect. Photo by camplommer http://www.flickr.com/photos/44836202@N02/

Although my takes on the players in the next series of posts might be useful to fantasy owners, this isn’t a fantasy football article. I’m not projecting stats. I’m writing about talented players whose portfolio of work reveals techniques and behaviors that I think translate well to the NFL game. At the end of the year, you might look at the stats and conclude that the quantity of the production wasn’t eye-catching for each of these emerging talents. However, I believe their work will be impressive enough for opposing teams, fans, and more astute fantasy owners to take future notice.

Mike Williams technically “emerged” last year when he finally arrived at an NFL facility in football shape. He ascended from camp long shot to starting receiver and in 13 starts he accumulated 68 receptions, 751 yards, and 2 scores.  Not bad for a guy who hadn’t played competitive football for two seasons.

Fortunately, Williams’ offseason workout regimen demonstrates that he has figured out what it takes to become a professional football player. At age 27, Williams could produce at a high level for another 7-8 years if he maintains this new-found work ethic. Considering the Seahawks lacked a quality veteran receiver with a strong, multifaceted game to start opposite Williams in 2010, I believe last year was a promising sign for things to come. Continue reading

Emerging NFL Talents: RB James Starks

What most people don't think about with James Starks is that he hadn't played football for nearly two seasons. Photo by tyle_r http://www.flickr.com/people/tyle_r

Although my takes on the players in the next series of posts might be useful to fantasy owners, these aren’t fantasy football articles. I’m not projecting stats. I’m writing about talented players whose portfolio of work reveals techniques and behaviors that I think translate well to the NFL game. At the end of the year, you might look at the stats and conclude that the quantity of the production wasn’t eye-catching for each of these emerging talents. However, I believe their work will be impressive enough for opposing teams, fans, and more astute fantasy owners to take future notice.

Let’s play a game.

Below are the career stats of every starting running back (not counting short-term subs) for the Green Bay Packers since former running back coach Edgar Bennett was himself a Packers running back.  Look at the stats of these four runners and see if you can find a broad pattern when it comes to the team’s organizational decision-making. Continue reading

Emerging NFL Talents: RB Ryan Mathews

Despite an injury-plagued rookie year, Ryan Mathews led the NFL in rushing touchdowns greater than five yards. Photo by Garrett Johnson.

Although my takes on the players in the next series of posts might be useful to fantasy owners, this isn’t a fantasy football article. I’m not projecting stats. I’m writing about talented players whose portfolio of work reveals techniques and behaviors that I think translate well to the NFL game. At the end of the year, you might look at the stats and conclude that the quantity of the production wasn’t eye-catching for each of these emerging talents. However, I believe their work will be impressive enough for opposing teams, fans, and more astute fantasy owners to take future notice.

Unlike Eric Decker and John Beck, Ryan Mathews’ 2011 breakout potential is a no-brainer. If not for a high ankle sprain in Week 2, Chargers head coach Norv Turner foresaw a 250-carry, 40-catch rookie year from the heralded Fresno State prospect. Last year, Mike Tolbert did a fine job splitting the load with Mathews as the lead back. But for those people who believe Tolbert will be a hindrance to Mathews’ production, consider the skills both runners bring to the team. Continue reading

Emerging NFL Talents: QB John Beck

Mike Shanahan thought John Beck was the best quarterback in a draft class that included JaMarcus Russell, Kevin Kolb, Brady Quinn, Troy Smith, and Trent Edwards. Hardly a great group in hindsight, but you could say the same about Tom Brady's class with one noted exception, Brady's fellow sixth-round classmate. Photo by simplistic.designs http://www.flickr.com/photos/simplistic-designs/

Although my takes on the players in the next series of posts might be useful to fantasy owners, this isn’t a fantasy football article. I’m not projecting stats. I’m writing about talented players whose portfolio of work reveals techniques and behaviors that I think translate well to the NFL game. At the end of the year, you might look at the stats and conclude that the quantity of the production wasn’t eye-catching for each of these emerging talents. However, I believe their work will be impressive enough for opposing teams, fans, and more astute fantasy owners to take future notice.

Prologue

Once upon a time there was a Division I college quarterback. He had the minimum physical dimensions for NFL consideration, but he wasn’t an athletic phenomenon. The school he played for was a major program, but it was not a known commodity for quarterbacks. The lack of these quality bullet points on this player’s resume contributed to a lower draft stock. A noted exception were those who study film closely. These tape grinders saw a quarterback with an exceptionally quick release, good accuracy, and solid decision-making. Some of these analysts, (specifically this one) rated this quarterback among the top 3-4 in this class.

It didn’t make much of a difference. The quarterback was a sixth-round pick for a team that needed a better passer. But as with most sixth-round picks, that quarterback was waived.  The team didn’t regarded him as a player to develop. While this is speculation on my part, said player likely didn’t receive enough reps to even make an impression. Six years later, the team that cut our hero made a trade for a signal caller who turned this franchise around – much in part to a new head coach who I think might have taken a greater interest in our hero if the timing were right. But reality dictated that for the next five years this team would falter in large part to inconsistent quarterbacking. Continue reading

Emerging NFL Talents: WR Eric Decker

Eric Decker's rookie total was the grand sum of 6-107-1, but he's an emerging talent to remember. Photo by Jeffrey Beall http://www.flickr.com/photos/denverjeffrey/5300408094/

Although my takes on the players in the next series of posts might be useful to fantasy owners, this isn’t a fantasy football article. I’m not projecting stats. I’m writing about talented players whose portfolio of work reveal techniques and behaviors that I think translate well to the NFL game. At the end of the year, you might look at the stat-lines and conclude that the quantity of the production wasn’t eye-catching for each of these emerging talents, but the quality of work they did was impressive enough for opposing teams, fans, and more astute fantasy owners to take notice.

WR Eric Decker, Denver Broncos

One of my favorite receivers from the 2010 draft class, Decker’s game is well-suited to the NFL because he consistently demonstrated skills at the University of Minnesota that are commonplace requirements for a successful NFL receiver. What you’re going to see repeatedly from Decker in this highlight package is the following:

  • Good initial set up of breaks
  • Defeating press with use of hands and shoulders
  • Winning real estate early in the route
  • Maintaining real estate later in the route
  • Receptions after contact
  • A “my ball mentality”
  • Functional strength
  • Functional speed

Most people during the 2010 NFL Draft were enamored with Decker’s classmate DeMaryius Thomas. Personally, I have always thought Decker was the better player. Continue reading

Execution

Tony Gonzalez has enjoyed a long and productive career because as his athleticism has declined he still executes strong technique. Photo by Chemisti http://www.flickr.com/photos/chemisti/457300762/

While researching YouTube highlights for my last blog post, I came across a series of short videos on fundamentals for wide receiver and tight end. One set of these videos features former Packers, Chiefs, and Vikings tight end Paul Coffman, who does a fantastic job of demonstrating fundamental techniques for blocking, releases, routes, and pass catching. The other set has current NFL pros demonstrating the same fundamentals.

The difference between the two is that Coffman’s videos feature middle school and high school students executing these techniques. This may seem boring in contrast to the NFL stars, but there’s something to be gained from watching both, which is the vast difference in execution.  This seems obvious, but it is vitally important when evaluating players. Coffman’s kids are still learning these techniques while the pros make everything look easy and effortless. 

But “simple” and “easy” aren’t synonymous without years of practice. This is something to remember every time you watch a college athlete or young NFL player. Those prospects who make fundamentals look easy closer to becoming refined pros than those who are simply athletes with raw positional skills.  Continue reading

YouTube Chalkboard: Six WRs Who Will School You

My vote for college football's 2010 catch of the year: A.J. Green's gritty catch vs. Tennessee. Green has the potential to join the ranks of elite NFL receivers because he's a budding technician in addition to an athlete. Photo by Tennessee Journalist

Wide receiver can be a difficult position to evaluate because there are three general factors that contribute to a player’s success in the NFL: Athleticism, technique, and the mesh of his skills within the team’s offensive system. Here are six NFL WRs with lessons to share through the lens of YouTube highlights. 

Welcome to a master class on receiving. Our guest lecturers will be Tim Brown, Isaac Bruce, Austin Collie, Derrick Mason, Sterling Sharpe, and Reggie Wayne. You’re familiar with their body of work. Now it’s time to examine them under the microscope.

At first glance, these six receivers appear to have different games to the naked eye. Brown and Sharpe were often seen as physical wide outs with strength, balance, and speed. Tackle breakers who turned slants and crosses into long scores. Collie is regarded as a slot weapon with great hands and smarts to find openings in zone to get yardage after the catch. Mason and Bruce are seen as crafty route specialists with dangerous speed and quickness. I believe most people see Wayne as the ultimate possession receiver.

What I did not fully realize was that during their careers they were all listed between 5’10”-6’1″ and 188-201 lbs.

In an NFL environment where there is a demand for the impressive size-strength-speed combos of Miles Austin, Vincent Jackson, Terrell Owens, Andre Johnson, and Calvin Johnson,  is it necessarily a slam dunk that you take these players’ best seasons over the ones who will be teaching class today?

You can nitpick minor differences in stats or take into account the surrounding talent and arrive at a different opinion. However in most cases, you’re making a mistake if you do.  With the exception of Collie, whose career is too brief to compare, the career portfolios of Bruce, Brown, Sharpe, and Wayne indicate that “bigger-stronger-faster” doesn’t mean “better.”

Buying Back Real Estate

Our first instructor is Sharpe, who 3-5 years ago delivered a coaching session to an Oklahoma State receiving corps that included pupils Dez Bryant and Adarius Bowman. The former Green Bay star demonstrates on this YouTube excerpt that “open” shouldn’t be defined as only a clear gap of space between the body of a receiver and a defender. This is a fundamental truth you will see played out with the other receivers’ highlights in this post.

[youtube=http://youtu.be/uxYmGYMr01g]

Notice how Sharpe emphasizes the importance of a receiver catching the ball with his arms away from his body. Another tendency Sharpe mentions is the common response young receivers have that is false: we’re comfortable with this technique. Sharpe is correct; annually we’ve seen early-round receiving prospects who cannot manage to execute this technique successfully.

What Sharpe is essentially saying is that in college football, receivers are more frequently targeted when they have a definite gap between themselves and a defender. One of the reasons is the lower skill level of quarterbacks throwing to them.  Pinpoint accuracy is more often a bonus rather than a requirement at the college level.

Another factor is that most college receivers don’t get a consistent chance to make plays in tight coverage. With the collective accuracy of quarterbacks at a lower level than NFL passers, there are fewer opportunities for receivers to hone this technique in college football. The result is naturally a greater adjustment curve for those receivers who do enter the pros.

Derrick Mason: A Crafty Agent of the Sterling Sharpe Real Estate Firm

Sharpe’s lesson about “buying back” position from a defender after the break is an important part of route running. Since Sharpe’s career doesn’t have a lot of highlights on YouTube, Derrick Mason has some great examples. Note how frequently he gets position on the defender in tight coverage.

[youtube=http://youtu.be/-3dWoak69HM]

1:29 – Although not shown in this video, Mason trails the Vikings CB after his break. However, you can get a glimpse of what he does to get ahead. First, Mason places his hand behind the back of the corner and lags just enough at the defender’s back shoulder to force the CB to consider a back shoulder throw. This setup gives Mason the opportunity to burst ahead of the corner. Paired with a small shove to the chest, Mason’s move jerks the CB’s head back and this helps the Ravens receiver get position as the ball arrives ahead of the defender. This technique was far more craft than athleticism.

On this touchdown reception against the Steelers, watch how Mason doesn’t bring his arms away from his body until the last moment of the pass. Imagine those nature videos of a frog catching insects with its tongue and you’ll see how it closely resembles the refined technique of a polished receiver. This practice allows a receiver to cover more ground at a faster rate than holding the arms out for the ball while tracking its trajectory.

The base athleticism of quickness and leaping ability are certainly there in this reception, but most of this is technique refined through years of coaching and practice. To the naked eye it’s an athletic play. To the football-savvy, it is great execution of technique.

Tim Brown: Setting up breaks 

You’re going to notice on several of these highlights similar hands techniques that Mason demonstrated.  But the primary focus is to watch how effectively Brown sets up his breaks early in his routes. Brown’s highlights reveal that effective pass receiving in the NFL has a lot to do with getting the early advantage in tight coverage.

[youtube=http://youtu.be/KyazfF5vkFM]

0:17 – Brown earns separation in this wheel route within the first five steps.  The Raiders WR forces the DB to account for his inside move before breaking hard to the sideline. The most important thing Brown does on this route is to initially break hard in an east west direction rather than veering down field. Most younger receivers with a less refined game will make the mistake of breaking vertically too soon.

Brown’s horizontal break does two things:

  1. If the DB tries to close the gap down field by angling his chase diagonally to get ahead of or cut off Brown, the WR can adjust his route inside for a big play. These contingencies are often a part of a pass and catch combo’s rapport.
  2. If the DB follows Brown horizontally as shown on this highlight, the WR should consistently establish separation with his back to the chasing DB as Shannon Sharpe coached Dez Bryant and Adarius Bowman.

Brown then catches the football just like Shannon Sharpe demonstrated early in the video; extending his arms outside and away from his body to snare the pass.

0:27 – This simple slant is just a quick demonstration of a release technique I’ll cover in a forthcoming post: forcing the coverage to account for his outside contact with a jab step outside before bursting inside and across the defender’s chest.

0:54 – This route is against off-man coverage. The defensive back is playing about seven yards off Brown. This play is a great example of how a receiver is trying to get the defender to raise or turn his head. When a DB raises his head or turns his head in the opposite direction of the eventual break, the WR earns an advantage.

Brown initially drives hard off the line of scrimmage with his head down and shoulders forward. This form influences the defender’s back pedal. As the receiver approaches the top of his route he raises his head and shoulders and begins the slightest turn of his upper body to the outside.

This movement, and a very quick head fake coordinated with a jab step with his outside foot forces the DB to bite outside as Brown turns inside on his break. The receiver’s move turns the DB around and he crosses the middle of the field wide open.

1:26 – This is a classic double move that most college receivers don’t do very well because they don’t carry out the initial move well enough to sell it. Watch how Brown initially sells the out by making a hard jab step inside to set up the initial break outside. This is what forces the DB to bite hard on the initial move and sacrifice his distance and reaction time to Brown’s second break to the inside. Few young receivers sell the initial move as if it is a real route. They think of a double move as two moves when it is actually more like three or four.

1:34 – Although the CB in off-man coverage is back-pedaling with his back to the sideline early in Brown’s route, the WR doesn’t simply turn outside. He reinforces the CB’s position by giving a shoulder fake inside before breaking outside. This is what gives Brown so much open space after his break. These small shoulder fakes, head fakes, and jab steps are simple techniques that almost every receiver uses, but with varying degrees of success.

When I post some of the instructional links that I’ve found, you’ll see aspiring high school players who use these moves but their execution is far less refined and it makes them less believable. It should reinforce the point that “simple” is not always synonymous with “easy.”

Isaac Bruce: “Hands, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes (Knees and Toes)”

The producer of these highlight compilations of Bruce’s 14-year career begins with a great find of Bruce playing special teams. The rookie blocks a punt against the Packers something I’ve seen from former rookie gunners like Hines Ward and Brandon Lloyd.

The best part of the blocked punt is that Bruce reveals a technique often used to beat the jam: slipping the shoulders under contact. Watch these videos and learn how a smaller player uses technique to beat the jam as well as any big-bodied receiver in the game.

[youtube=http://youtu.be/A357wjcgOBw]

2:28 – At the right end of your screen you’re going to see Bruce releasing from the slot and dip his outside shoulder under the DB in coverage on this corner route that breaks to the back of the end zone. The shoulder dip is set up with a hard-driving release from the line and the combo of these two techniques puts the DB in trail position early.

This early trail position forces the DB to focus on making up ground with Bruce inside of him. The WR’s subsequent break outside forces a harder change of direction for the DB and creates the separation. However, as with many of the routes we saw from Tim Brown, it wasn’t what happened at the break, but how the break was set up.

5:45 – While we won’t see the receiver’s break from the first camera angle, Bruce runs a deep post from the slot that results in a 27-yard completion and a 77-yard touchdown. However what you do see is how Bruce sets up this break with a sharp dip outside, getting his head, shoulders, knees, and toes pointed diagonal to the sideline long enough to force the shallow coverage to turn outside as well as the safety over top.

If you pay attention, you’ll notice a lot of star receivers in the college game that don’t create this alignment with these four body parts when they try to set up a break. Maybe you’ll see a head fake, a shoulder fake, or a jab step. However, a complete sale of a seam route that forces the safety to widen his zone isn’t common. It requires patience, confidence, and attention to detail.

We don’t see the safety over top turning outside with the first look, but when the camera angle following the trajectory of the pass returns to Bruce, it is easy to see that the safety misses Bruce because the set up of the receiver’s break took him out of position to cut off the play. The safety is already trailing Bruce’s break inside as the ball arrives and the  last line of defense misses the diving wrap for the Rams receiver’s legs.

[youtube=http://youtu.be/9pARL8uMRcA]

0:55 – This is a replay of a touchdown pass against the Jets against off-man coverage. Bruce runs through contact using a variation of a rip move that you’d see a defensive tackle use to get past a blocker. Bruce economizes this move by using the same arm to hit and rip the defender to run through. This is a practiced technique that is clearly second nature to Bruce based on its execution.

Austin Collie: Winning Early

Austin Collie was not regarded as a fast prospect. But I saw a lot of examples of him open on vertical routes at BYU. Collie also had one of the fastest 20-yard shuttles and 3-cone drills of the 2009 draft class at the position. Most importantly, that quickness shows up on the field in pads.

The highlights below illustrate the importance of “winning early” in the NFL and then a receiver using his body to maintain that advantage through the length of the route. You’ll see this on plays in this highlight package other than the one I detail below. When a receiver capable of getting behind a defender early is in sync with Peyton Manning – one the most prepared, aggressive, and accurate passers in history – it is an example of what a great fit within an offensive system looks like.

[youtube=http://youtu.be/9Inl0bEJHUU]

1:22 – Collie has the initial speed to get the DB to trail him early from the slot and this helps the receiver sell his break inside by demonstrating great form with his knees and hips as he goes into his break. At the same time, Collie uses a great head fake to the outside once he reaches the top of his break.

This move leaves the Patriots defensive back on the ground. Once again, the head fake is a simple, fundamental technique, but Collie’s mastery of the move in terms of its timing on this play in conjunction with other crisp technique is the difference.

Reggie Wayne – A Master Practitioner Putting it All Together

Wayne is one of the best technicians at his position playing today. I could spend all day marveling over the  rare physical feats of players most other media profile and Wayne would never be in the conversation.  However, the Colts primary option rightfully belongs in the elite tier of NFL wide receivers.

[youtube=http://youtu.be/pll6vzSeyHw]

0:32 – Wayne demonstrates why being the first to establish contact in man coverage often gives the aggressor the advantage in the battle. The Colts receiver gets behind the defender quickly because he foils the CB’s position to jam with his arm. Wayne’s use of his arm to block the CB’s path allows him to run through contact to get behind the opponent early.  Since Wayne and Manning both recognize this single coverage, the pass is thrown quickly down field so enough touch can be used for the receiver to run under it.

0:39 – Wayne’s knowledge of the zone coverage (appears to be Cover-2) and how to play it is key on this play. Less polished receivers will simply run to the open spot and rely on the quarterback to thread the needle. Instead, Wayne sets up his ultimate destination by faking the slant. This draws the CB inside before Wayne releases down field.

This initial fake of the slant forces the safety to maintain his original position and it delays the defender’s reaction to Wayne long enough to give the Colts receiver an extra step or two in the open zone. Although Wayne has to dive for the ball because of his initial fake, he gains extra room to make the play.

It’s the little things like this extra fake that separate young players like an Austin Collie or a veteran like Wayne who had a promising start to his career from a Jacoby Jones, a Craig Davis, or a James Hardy, all prospects who had more desirable physical skills but weren’t immediately or consistently productive.

The best part of the play might be Wayne’s hands technique. Look at the hand position with palms up and fingers forming a web-like pattern that converges on the football. This slight angle of the hands helps a receiver cover a greater surface area of the ball with his hands because the quicker more fingers can touch the ball, the faster his hands will slow the ball’s movement to grip it.

This is why on this diving catch that Wayne could manage to tuck the ball with one hand under his arm while in the air and parallel with the ground. Without this angling of the hands, the ball only touches the first two fingers of each hand (at best) and the ball is more likely to slip through the receiver’s grasp.

1:09 – Look at the angle of Wayne’s hips and knees as he drops into the top of his break on a perimeter timing route against the Jaguars corner in off-man coverage. Good form.

1:15 – This post route for a TD versus the Cowboys is  another great example of Sterling Sharpe’s words of wisdom regarding body positioning. Wayne gets his back to the defender, shields the opponent from the ball, and then attacks the ball at the last moment with his arms extended from his body with an explosive reach.

2:21: This might be one of the better examples of technique versus athleticism that I will show you in this post. Wayne’s opponent is Champ Bailey, the star cornerback whose athleticism prompted the saying, “Water covers two-thirds of the earth, the other third is covered by Champ Bailey.”

Bailey is bigger, faster, and as experienced as Wayne. But the WR and Manning know how to turn Bailey’s physical advantages against him. The key is the location of the throw.

Manning throws Wayne open on this route by placing the ball behind Bailey. One of the reasons this strategy succeeds is Wayne, who baits Bailey into trying to cut off the route at the top. Wayne finishes the play with the late hands technique we’ve discussed with Mason and Brown, but used with a different purpose.

Wayne doesn’t bring his hands to meet the ball until the pass is close enough to catch. In this case, the late hands aren’t used to help Wayne continue running to meet the ball; the technique is used to avoid tipping off Bailey to the placement of the throw.

3:00 – Wayne double-clutches the ball on an over the shoulder catch against Cortland Finnegan of the Titans, but because he used his hands first to catch the ball rather than immediate go for the trap to the chest, the ball bounces off his hands rather than his chest. This gives Wayne a second chance to control the ball. Good technique with less than perfect results breeds optimal second chances.

3:02 – Wayne scores on this fade-stop against the Giants, setting up the reception by looking to the ball as if he’s going to catch it over his inside shoulder. This look sets up the last-second break back to the ball.

There is nothing physically imposing about Wayne, Collie, Mason or Bruce, and neither Sharpe nor Brown were considered big receivers for their time. Their games were built on executing the offense with precision and that rapport comes from the smarts and technique built on consistent and intense preparation.

Prospects entering the NFL with a higher level of technician in them are more favorable to me than most elite athletes without these tendencies. The reason should be more obvious: if they have the base level athleticism to compete in the NFL and they’ve already shown evidence of their smarts and work ethic to hone the craft of playing the position, then they are more likely to make a smooth transition to the rigors of professional football.

YouTube Chalkboard: Three `90s RBs to Learn From

Marshall Faulk perhaps had the best run of production of any back at the turn of the millennium.

Walking into the lobby of the Pro Football Hall of Fame a couple of weeks ago, the banner of 2011 inductee Marshall Faulk got me thinking about the runners who came into the league in the mid-to-late `90s.

Runners who had hall of fame ability but aren’t likely to be first-ballot inductees, if enshrined at all. Backs with specific skill sets worth filing in your mental Rolodex and using to compare to college prospects. Here are three I would recommend watching because I believe in their prime they all had complete games in terms of interior/outside running, big play burst, good feet, excellent after contact skills, and strong third down techniques as pass protectors and receivers.

Priest Holmes, Jamal Anderson, and Terrell Davis certainly are worth mentioning but I have a feeling at least two of those three backs will find their way to Canton before at least two of the three backs below. The point of this post is to think about what factors contribute to a starting-caliber NFL runner. It is the technique and conceptual skills behind vision (decision-making, patience, etc.) that earns a runner with the minimal required athleticism a chance see the field. It is the athleticism, consistent health, and great supporting cast that can make a good NFL runner great. Today we’re removing some of the icing to look at the cake.

Eddie George

Many people only think of Eddie George as an upright runner behind a huge Titans offensive line that allowed him to bully defenders into submission as a part of Tennessee’s conservative game plan.  Because he only had two seasons out of nine with a four-yard-per-carry average, George’s Hall of Fame bid will probably need a Floyd Little-like supporter to earn serious consideration.

However, watch this vid and take note of some skills that I think could be the model for any aspiring power runner:

  • Always talked about as an upright runner, watch this compilation and you’re going to see his body lean is consistently at a terrific angle to get yards after contact in every situation except when no defender is within five yards of him. Although Ray Lewis heaped praise on Texans runner Arian Foster with a stylistic comparison to Roger Craig, Foster’s pad level and smooth gait that belies his height reminded me of George since the Texas a junior at Tennessee.
  • Note the way he dips his shoulders into contact or greets a defender with a forearm or stiff arm punch.
  • As with any great power runner, he sets up angles with good footwork. George frequently uses a stutter step or fake to ruin a defender’s direct angle and then exploit that off-balance player by running through the less optimal angle of contact that results from George’s quick footwork.

[youtube=http://youtu.be/sK3c4GzN4pE]

Eddie George lost a lot of his change of direction due to a toe injury that occurred in the middle of his career, but prior to that injury he had big-play ability on an offense that lacked a true threat in vertical passing game and allowed defenses to stack the box to make the run its primary focus.

Edgerrin James

I believe Edgerrin James had the talent to make a run at Emmitt Smith’s record if not for the ACL tear in the third year of his career that took away some of his explosion as a cutter and most of his big-play ability. Including Marshall Faulk, I think James was the best all around back to enter pro football in the past 15 years – edging (no pun intended) Terrell Davis for that honor.

The clip below is the only one on the Internet that I could find with pre-injury footage of James. What you should carefully watch is his footwork to change direction in tight spaces and bursts without losing his balance. In contrast to a back like Eddie George, who had good feet to make a defender miss, he still often tripped over his own shoes as he pulled away from that first opponent. A pre-injury Edgerrin James is a different story.

[youtube=http://youtu.be/nkhWSNoxAHE]

James’ ability to keep his pads down hill after changing direction allowed him to run through the grasp of defenders and turn normal gains into bigger players. Another thing is the sharpness of these jump cuts, which make my ACLs ache just watching them (and my ACLs are healthy). James had it all: power, lateral agility, speed, and a complete set of third-down skills. Even during the post-injury phase of James’ career where he didn’t have many big runs but he frequently turned three-yard gains into 5-6 yard plays, I believe his skill at finishing runs – especially his pad level – is the model to judge other backs.

Fred Taylor

Taylor was known as one of the most physically talented backs in the NFL due to his height-weight-speed-agility numbers. And as many of these highlights display his mind-blowing athleticism, there is a lot more to his game.

[youtube=http://youtu.be/vzHsINdS9w0]

Note the pad level Taylor has just as he engages an opponent. Like Eddie George, Taylor’s body lean is the difference maker when he engages contact. And as Chad Spann mentioned during our film breakdown, a running back who keeps his head up as he runs through contact has a better chance of maintaining his balance. Fred Taylor shows this numerous times in these highlights. Another technique on display in Taylor’s game is how effective he is at turning his pads downhill or towards an opponent just after he changes direction. This helps him lead with his pads and sometimes take away a defender’s angle on him.

A good example is a cutback at the line of scrimmage on with 1:02 in this highlight against the Carolina Panthers. Taylor makes two defenders coming from the outside miss, but his training to get his pads downhill help him run through a blow from the defensive tackle coming from the inside. Quickness and agility got Taylor to the line of scrimmage on this run and his burst got him a first down. However, it was the pad level that got him into positive yardage territory.

Two highlights later, Taylor bounces a run outside against the Colts after he gets through the line of scrimmage and with Bob Sanders coming fast, the Jaguars RB still manages to turn his pads downhill as he’s curling outside. This helps him run through Sanders’ hit for extra yardage.

Technique. Technique. Technique.


Grinding Tape: Chad Spann – Stiff arms and Green Dogs

[youtube=http://youtu.be/j8QX4ylcekk]

NIU RB Chad Spann led the NCAA Divison I-A with 22 rushing touchdowns in 2010. That’s one more than LaMichael James and two more than Colin Kaepernick and Cam Newton.

Recently, I had the chance to watch tape with the 2010 MAC MVP. This week we discuss two plays where there are problems with the execution, but the end results are positive due to quick -thinking from Spann and the offense.

As Spann breaks down these plays we learn about the art of a good stiff arm, why balance has as much to do with a runner’s head as his feet, and the meaning behind the term, “green-dogging.”

2nd and 5  1:00 1st QTR

Waldman: This zone-read from a three-receiver set has some confusion between you and the QB with the exchange. Describe what’s difficult about this exchange.

Spann: Like I said before about zone-reads, if the backside defensive end we’re reading shuffles down the line of scrimmage, it means he’s playing me and not the quarterback. So the quarterback should pull it.

Zone-read 2nd and 5 1:04 1st QTR

Spann: On this particular play what I see is the backside tackle getting up to the second level and he’s almost in the way of the defensive end trying to get there. You can see the defensive end trying to push him because the tackle is in the way. This is also what our quarterback sees.

Blocking scheme for zone-read: Note backside tackle getting to second level and RDE working off him.

Spann: So he can’t really tell whether the guy is up the field or if he’s coming down the line of scrimmage. So the quarterback holds onto it a little too long in his read and he tries to pull it late.

Position of DE working off backside tackle (RT) creating confusion for QB & RB with the exchange.

Waldman: What are you thinking on this play?

Spann: I’m thinking the same way that he is – that I’m going to hit it right inside the backside tackle and guard because the tackle has beaten the guy inside. So that’s what I’m thinking as well, but the quarterback sees it too late and tries to pull the ball. But I already have my arms wrapped around it and I’m trying to make this cut. So by accident, and with a little bit of athleticism, he pulls me back outside.

Waldman: You know, I didn’t even notice that on this play. I just saw what appeared to be a miscommunication with who was going to take the ball. On first blush, it appears as if you’re trying to back up after you plant your feet, but you’re saying that he gives you a tug in the other direction?

Spann: He has his hands wrapped around the ball and I have my arms wrapped around his arms. So by him trying to pull his hands out or pull the ball out, he’s going to naturally try to tug on me, which is why my shoulders turn like that. And that gave me the ability to see the hole and the backside defensive end [who came down the line too far, which allowed me to] make this cut.

QB pulls RB just enough before exchange is complete to orient RB's path to defeat DE.

If [the quarterback] just gave it to me I would have kept going down that same path and I would have gotten hit by that defensive end. But since there was a little bit of a miscue, he was able to point me in the right direction. It gave me the ability to stop, start, and get a stiff arm on that defensive tackle and get six yards.

Spann and defender's paths after exchange.

Waldman: What I really like about your run is how you lower your shoulder into the oncoming defensive lineman who is cutting back towards you and then the stiff arm to knock the defender to the ground as you turn the corner at the line of scrimmage for what becomes a six-yard gain. The balance is really nice considering that you told me earlier that you got hurt on the play before…

Spann cuts inside LB in flat to turn corner for six yards.
Spann dragged down by WILL and MIKE LBs at end of six-yard gain.

Spann: Yep. On the first down play, which was a zone-read corner blitz, they jumped off sides. I got a hip pointer on that play [Author’s note: Spann was hit helmet-first onto his right side by the blitzing corner] but I stayed in after that. It really hurt, but I played the whole game. I sat out a little bit of this series because of it.

Waldman: That explains the broadcast crew showing you on the bike…As a spectator, you know something is wrong with a player when the team is blowing out the opposition and I still see him riding a bike to stay loose at the end of the game.

Spann:(Laughing) Oh yeah, the whole game…

Waldman:  Now back to this play, tell me more about that stiff arm. When you execute a stiff arm where are you trying to place it?

Spann: The facemask. Right in the face! It sounds cocky, but that’s where I aim for it. I’m not the biggest guy and I don’t have the longest arms, but like I mentioned in our Q&A about running between the tackles, is that you have to keep your pad level low and the most important thing is that you have to keep your head up because wherever your head is your body will follow. If I’m trying to run over somebody and my head’s down I might run through him but I’m going to go down, too.

Waldman: That explains a lot about balance and why it is a difference between big backs that don’t break tackles and smaller backs that do.

Spann: It’s the same thing in a situation with a stiff arm. If I can push your head back that means I’m going to push your arms up, too. And if I can push your arms up it means you’re not going to be able to get a grip on me.

So you’ll see when I get a guy right in his face then his hands will go straight up in the air and then I’ll try throw him to the ground because when the head comes back I try to throw him because they are going to go down regardless and I’m trying to get as far away from him as possible. So usually I’ll stiff-arm him all the way to the ground to make sure that they can never get a grip on me.

Spann: If you watch the defensive end you’ll see him jerk a little bit when I throw him down. That’s the whole point – I’m trying to snap his head back.

Waldman: So is there a difference between how a smaller back uses a stiff arm compared to a bigger back?

Spann: Bigger guys use stiff arms to keep a defender away from them. Their arms are long enough to hit them with a stiff arm and they can’t get a hold of him because they can’t make up the distance of the arm length.

[As a smaller back] I don’t have that luxury. So I have to invite them in so I can punch them in the face. It’s violent I know, but I have to do it almost as hard as I can so he’ll lose his body control for a second while I’m still running in the same direction. I have to throw them down because if I don’t they’ll be able to recover and still grab onto me as they are going down.

[Author’s note: Here are some classic examples of stiff arms]

[youtube=http://youtu.be/imAZrOkDDp4]

2nd and 9 5:49 2nd and QTR

Waldman: This is a touchdown pass where you are pass blocking from the backfield. Toledo runs a stunt where the LDE loops behind the NT towards the gap that you’re in and both LBs blitz.

The MLB takes off immediately up the middle but the LB on your side of the formation delays his just enough that you’re already looking at the stunting DE and miss the LB coming through the gap behind you. Nevertheless, the QB gets the throw off for a score.

Who was your first choice to block on this play and why?

Spann: I remember reading your question yesterday and then breaking this play down to one of my roommates. This is a “50” front. We have a noseguard and we have a guard uncovered and we have a stand up defensive end on our left side.

Four-receiver (3x1) set vs. 50 front (DE on viewer's right side is standing up).

Waldman: So what is the pass protection scheme for this front?

Spann: What we do [to block this play] is that we have a man side and a zone side. Wherever the A-Gap player is the quarterback is going to get to the line and he’s going to say something to point out that player’s direction.

If the A-gap player is to the right, the quarterback is going to say, “Rip, rip, rip, 88.” That’s our cadence. The “88” doesn’t mean much, but the “rip” means that the A-gap player is to the right and that is going to be our man side. If he were to the left, the quarterback would say, “Liz 88, liz 88.”

With this slide protection if it’s a “Rip Call,” the left side is going to be center, guard, and tackle while the right side is going to be guard, me (RB), and then tackle.

In this particular formation against this defensive front, which we call a “50,”  the quarterback is going to keep [the protection call in a way] so I don’t have to travel very far. It just makes sense to keep me here rather than go all the way to the backside to go get this standup defensive end.

Because he calls a rip, the left tackle is going to kick to the stand up defensive end. The left guard should kick to the five-technique. The center is going to take the nose, but he still us going to have to slide left. If that nose comes right, then it’s the guard.

LT, LG, C, and RG slide to left in this blocking scheme. Spann takes first LB blitzing through. RT takes DE (five-technique).

But because the nose is inside of the guard, the guard is going to step down with the center so at the snap of the ball you’re going to see four guys move to the left – the left tackle all the way to the right guard are all going to slide to the left.

If that nose guard stays to the left side of the center, the center is going to stay with him and the guard is going to come back and look for anything to the right. The right tackle is going to kick to the five-technique on the other side. My responsibility is whichever one of those linebackers blitz on my side. That’s me.

Waldman: So the front dictates the blocking scheme. How would a different front change your assignment?

Spann: If it were more of an even front, and say the middle linebacker was on my side and the WILL was still on that side, too, then it is whoever comes first is my guy. Or say they zone blitz off the edge, then whoever comes first is my guy and will have somebody else pick them up.

On this particular play they are running Cover-0 and they are blitzing the middle linebacker and they are stunting the defensive end.

This [stunt] isn’t picked up correctly, which is why your question was kind of confusing with what you saw.

[Author’s note: I saw a delayed blitz with one of the linebackers, but Spann corrects me in the explanation below]

That delayed linebacker blitz that you see, we wouldn’t look at it as a delayed blitz, but to the naked eye or someone not really paying attention…I mean someone who wouldn’t really know…

Waldman: That’s okay, don’t worry about it…(laughter)

Spann: (laughter) Sorry about that.

Waldman: it’s okay, I’m here to learn.

Spann: Okay. So No.32 (the OLB in the diagram) who “delay blitzed,” is actually in man coverage on me. He’s following me. So wherever I go, that’s where he’s going. And when he sees me step up to block. He does what we call “green dogging.”

Five-Technique next to standup DE stunts toward RG (on viewer's left); MLB blitzes to RG and Spann expects to pick this up. OLB in man coverage with Spann opts to Green Dog since Spann's blocking alleviates OLB of an assignment.

He sees that I’m blocking and since he has no other responsibility besides me, he comes and triggers for a blitz. That’s normally what delayed blitzes are. It’s where a defender sees an opportunity because his only responsibility isn’t a factor, so he just comes and puts pressure on the quarterback.

Waldman: So how does this Green Dog play out paired with the stunt?

Spann: [This is how] this stunt should be blocked from left to right:

  • The tackle should still kick out to that stand up guy.
  • The guard should kick out to the five-technique.
  • The center and guard block down like I said [before].
  • Whoever blitzes I got in that gap.
  • The tackle’s got that other five-technique.

When the left guard sees his guy cross his face on that stunt, he should turn his eyes and look back.

Waldman: But that doesn’t happen…

Spann: He was the youngest guy on our offensive line – a sophomore in his first year starting – so we had a little bit of inexperience. In fact, the only person who was a full-time starter [last year] was the left tackle. Everybody else was new – everybody else was a red-shirt junior on the line except for him; he’s a sophomore and he was a little bit inexperienced.

So when he saw his guy cross his face like that on the stunt he should immediately stop, turn, and help the center because the noseguard is coming back that way. Then the center should be able to pass that noesguard off to the guard as he picks up the looper [the stunting DE].

How pass protection should have been executed: LT kicks to stand up DE; LG sees DT stunting so he double teams NG withe the C; the C comes off double-team to block the stunting DT; the RG picks up blitzing LB; RB helps with blitzing RB or first LB through the hole; and RT picks up DE across from him.

Now the center never got off the nose to pick up the looper [stunting DE]. So the guard who was supposed to pick up the looper couldn’t because the blitz was in his face and he doesn’t know who is coming into his gap and he has to protect his gap…

Waldman: …It’s a domino effect in this sense with what happens with the left guard.

Spann: Yep. So the left guard doesn’t pick up and then the center can’t get off [the noseguard/A-Gap] to get the looper. Now the tackle sees the looper coming because he’s looking at the noseguard, but he’s looking through the noseguard to see the looper coming and he’s not seeing the linebacker blitzing, who should be his responsibility.

He ends up picking up the linebacker, but he looks at the looper for too long. And I’m looking at the looper because I should be helping out there because he’s unblocked. And when I reach in to help out there, my linebacker green dogs. So when he green dogs, and I finally see it, I turn and give him a shoulder and the ball is out [of the QB’s hands].

Waldman:There really are a lot of contingencies that an offensive player has to know in order to pass protect. It’s a nice play (a deep seam route from the slot for a 33-yard touchdown) considering what happened and you give your quarterback just enough time to get rid of the ball and make an accurate throw. Thanks for the explanation because I see the stunt, but I couldn’t tell whether that was a delayed blitz. Now that makes total sense. Thanks for taking the time to do this.

Spann: No problem.