Watch Carolina blitz Hasselbeck
Posted: Sat Jan 21, 2006 3:07 am
Watch a team blitz a west coast offense on Sunday
mattbro wrote:Watch a team blitz a west coast offense on Sunday
we did blitz, you just didn't notice because the blitz didn't generate any pressure. from TMQ on NFL.com:
Washington at Seattle: Last week, Tuesday Morning Quarterback noted the Redskins' defensive performance improved late in the season because Washington's cornerbacks were hurt, which forced the tastefully named Gregg Williams to give the corners safety help and, in turn, prevented Williams from calling blitzes. I cautioned, "Elite corner Shawn Springs is expected back for the upcoming Washington at Seattle contest. For heaven's sake, tastefully named Gregg, don't use that as an excuse to go blitz-wacky." Springs played, Williams resumes his blitzing ways, and surely as the night follows the day, blitzes were Washington's downfall.
Seattle's opening possession, the Seahawks faced third-and-4. It's the first expected-blitz down of the contest, first test of whether the tastefully named Gregg can resist the urge to go blitz-wacky. Aaaaaiiiiiiiyyyyyyeeeee! Big blitz, 37-yard completion to Darrell Jackson. Now Seattle leads 7-3 and faces third-and-3, six-man blitz, 31-yard completion to Joe Jurevicius. Now Seattle leads 14-3 and faces second-and-8, another blitz, another 37-yarder to Jackson. Now the play that ended Washington's season: Seattle leads 17-10 with 5:17 remaining and faces third-and-6. Six-man blitz and blocking back Mack Strong, 17 rushing attempts on the season, takes a draw for a career long run of 32 yards. A few snaps later, it was 20-10 and Washington's goose was cooked. At Seattle when the Redskins played conventional defense, things went well; when Washington blitzed, the Blue Men Group gained yards in big bunches. And how many sacks or interceptions resulted from Washington blitzing? None.
Seattle holding a slim 7-3 lead in the third quarter, the Seahawks faced third-and-3 at midfield. Washington blitzed six, no rusher getting anywhere near Matt Hasselbeck, thanks to excellent blocking including from Tuesday Morning Quarterback Non-QB Non-RB NFL MVP Walter Jones. Joe Jurevicius ran a quick stop. Hasselbeck saw there was no safety behind Jurevicius and motioned him to streak up the field; 31-yard completion and Seattle takes a 14-3 lead on the possession.
mattbro, why on earth would you want to blitz a west coast offense? the entire system revolves around screens and quick short passes-- the exact type of plays that most effectively beat the blitz.
the concept of the blitz relies on the hope that the additional rusher will have enough time to break through the line and get to the QB before the ball is thrown. this is exactly why blitzing is most common (and most expected) on 3rd and long- the defense knows the WR will have to take longer running a deeper route, which hopefully gives the blitzer time to get to the QB.
quick passes beat the blitz easily because the ball is released well before a rusher has time to get any pressure. all the QB has to do is quickly identify where the blitz is coming from and throw it right to the receiver the blitzer left open.
