We are proud to share NFL Films Legend and Tape Wizard Greg Cosell’s raw notes from his film observations. We’ll be releasing his notes every week, either on Wednesday or Thursday.
EAGLES OFFENSE VERSUS GIANTS DEFENSE
Giants sub nickel: Bradberry and Lewis the outside corners with Ryan the slot corner, Martinez and Downs the LB; Ebner continued to play snaps in the sub defenses – Bradberry was predominantly the field corner, He did not match up to Fulgham
Giants base defense: Ryan was at safety with Peppers, Martinez and Mayo were the stacked LB in 3-4 front look
Left side of Eagles OL had Mailata at LT and Opeta at LG making his first NFL start; Mailata struggled in pass protection, RG Herbig also had a tough game both as a run blocker and in pass protection
Giants showed 5 across fronts out of sub nickel with Fackrell and Downs the edge players and Martinez the stacked LB
Eagles no huddle tempo out of 11 personnel on first possession, They featured inside zone/duo runs by Scott and the quick timing passing game to get Wentz in rhythm
Giants went sub dollar on Eagles first 3rd and long, They played split safety match coverage with Ryan and Love the half field safeties and Harper and Ballantine on the inside
Giants continued to play 2 man coverage out of sub dollar (a foundation coverage for the Giants on 3rd down), Ballantine was the slot corner with Ryan a deep safety, Harper was the TE matchup
Sub dollar was the Giants personnel package on 3rd and long, They predominantly played man coverage out of sub dollar with some snaps of zone
Giants predominantly played cover 3 out of sub nickel, It was a foundational coverage approach in this game
Wentz at times still not processing it cleanly, He is still not turning it loose on some throws that are there
LG Opeta nice job getting out in front to block the force player Peppers on Scott 15 yard screen on 2nd + 8 on Eagles third possession
Eagles some snaps on 2nd quarter possession in which they went 10 personnel – First time the Eagles had done that this season
11 personnel was the Eagles game planned personnel foundation in this game, Second TE Croom only played 9 snaps
Wentz 2 big-time throws late in the in the 2nd quarter: Jackson 15 yards in the outside void in cover 2, Fulgham 16 yards on out route versus 2 man
Eagles continued to feature 1x3 sets out of 11 personnel – That’s a foundation formation for the Eagles regardless of who the TE is
Eagles OL continued to be a significant issue both in the run game and pass protection, It impacts the passing game in both obvious and subtle ways because Wentz is not a precise rhythmic timing thrower
Fulgham 40 yards on 1st + 10 late in the 3rd quarter came out of 11 2x2 versus Giants nickel cover 3, Boundary corner Lewis squeezed inside to play the vertical release of #2 Rodgers with flat defender Peppers matching #1 Fulgham on his out-and-go – Great throw by Wentz with velocity and ball placement
Hightower 59 yards on 1st + 10 on first 4th quarter TD drive came on Eagles third snap of 10 personnel, Giants cover 3 out of sub dime; 4 verticals concept with slot receiver Arcega-Whiteside vertical grabbing the eyes of boundary corner Lewis who stopped his feet allowing #1 Hightower to get over the top of Lewis – Another great throw by Wentz 53 yards in the air
Harper significant snaps at boundary corner in place of Lewis in the 4th quarter, Bradberry remained the field corner throughout the game; On the Eagles final possession Bradberry some snaps in which he moved to the boundary to match up to Fulgham
Rodgers 30 yards on winning TD drive came on second reaction throw by Wentz versus Giants sub dollar disguise and late movement to cover 2 behind 4 man zone exchange pass rush with Ballantine and Peppers rushing off Wentz back side, Ward seam from inside slot to trips threatened middle hole defender Martinez and Rodgers from #2 to trips kept crossing the field on his dig route – Initial play call was dagger with Ward on the vertical and Rodgers on the dig
Scott 18 yard TD reception came out of 11 3x1 with Fulgham the boundary x versus Giants sub dollar 2 man with Bradberry matched on Fulgham and Peppers matched on Scott offset in the backfield; Wentz excellent late in the down pocket throw after going through his progression working from left to right
GIANTS OFFENSE VERSUS EAGLES DEFENSE
Eagles went big nickel at times versus Giants 12 personnel with Engram one of the TE, Safeties Parks, Mills and McLeod; Gerry and Singleton the LB
When the Giants went 12 personnel with Engram on 3rd down the Eagles went conventional nickel with LeBlanc the slot corner
When the Giants TE in 12 personnel were Smith and Toilolo the Eagles went with base personnel with Gerry, Singleton and Riley the LB; Eagles at times also went 4-3 versus 12 personnel when Engram was one of the TE – Singleton the SLB and Riley the WLB in the 4-3 front
Slay matched up on Slayton, Robey the other outside corner for the second consecutive game
Eagles sub nickel versus 11 personnel had LeBlanc the slot corner, Gerry and Singleton the LB with Riley also some snaps with Gerry
First 3rd and long the Eagles out of sub nickel 5 man zone pressure scheme with 3 under / 3 deep behind it, Singleton and Mills were the blitzers with Graham dropping into underneath coverage
Tate 39 yard TD to start second possession came out of 11 3x1 versus Eagles cover 1 blitz with Singleton the fifth rusher, Tate vertical route beat LeBlanc with an excellent throw by Jones
Mills was the TE matchup versus 11 personnel in the Eagles sub nickel cover 1, Parks was the Engram matchup in big nickel versus Giants 12 personnel
Mills interception on 3rd + 7 in the 2nd quarter came out of sub nickel double mug look with Singleton and Gerry in the A gaps, and a zero look in coverage; Gerry and Singleton dropped out but the Eagles matched up with no deep safety, It was more of a zone match coverage than a true cover zero
Giants rookie LT Thomas struggled in one-on-one pass protection, Tendency to lean and reach losing core balance and re-direct; He was specifically susceptible to inside counter moves
Cox 2 big-time plays in the 1st half: Outstanding screen recognition to tackle Gallman for a loss, and playing off Zeitler block to force Lewis fumble
Eagles showed some different pressure looks out of sub nickel, Gerry sack on 2nd + 8 on first possession of 3rd quarter a good example: 5 man pressure with Gerry and slot corner LeBlanc blitzing from opposite edges and DT Cox and Hargrave dropping out, Cover 3 robber concept with Singleton the robber
Eagles continued to play snaps of cover 3 robber, That has been a staple coverage look the last number of years under DC Schwartz; Against the Giants the Eagles got to it in multiple ways including featuring it out of pressure, Singleton blew up Freeman on 4 man zone exchange pressure early in the 3rd quarter
Eagles overall much more aggressive with their front looks and pressures, including boundary corner blitz by Slay out of double mug look on 3rd + 12 in the 3rd quarter and zero blitz out of big nickel from the Giants 8 yard line – Specific to Giants, or will we see more of this going forward?
Shepard 2 yard TD on 3rd and goal came out of 12 2x2 versus Eagles sub nickel cover 1, Well-designed 2 man route concept with Slayton and Shepard to create leverage for Shepard on slant route; Initial releases by Shepard and Slayton resulted in LeBlanc and Slay switching and that gave Shepard the needed leverage
Eagles went 1 robber out of sub dime on critical 3rd + 7 with 2:14 remaining in the 4th quarter, Mills was the robber with Parks matched on Engram; Engram beat Parks on the slot fade but could not make the catch
Giants final possession the Eagles went 4 corner sub dime with Maddox outside (only 3 snaps of the game) and LeBlanc and Robey inside, They played cover 2 on all 3 snaps ending with Graham sack-forced fumble
WASHINGTON OFFENSE VERSUS COWBOYS DEFENSE
Cowboys opened the game in sub nickel versus Washington 12 personnel, Lewis was the slot corner aligned in the box
Cowboys showed a 5 DL front with Smith and Vander Esch the stacked LB versus Washington 12 personnel on first possession
Cowboys have made Diggs their matchup corner, Every week he matches up to the opponents best receiver; This week it was McLaurin in the Cowboys man schemes
Woods was the TE matchup in Cowboys sub nickel versus Washington 11 personnel
Washington nice 4 man tight bunch concept on 3rd + 2 on first possession versus Cowboys nickel cover 1 to create natural rub and get McKissic an easy 7 yard completion
Gibson 40 yards on 2nd + 9 on first possession came with McKissic the I back and Gibson #3 to tight bunch, Creative scheme to run counter with pulling OG Schweitzer and WR Sims the lead blocker and the speed option element on the back side
Washington excellent job with natural rub concepts out of bunch when they anticipated man coverage – McKissic a factor in the 3rd down passing game, Washington split him and used him in bunch and stack concepts
Cowboys continued to make too many assignment mistakes and individual mistakes within assignments – Thomas 26 yards on second possession another example
One player that has consistently stood out in a negative way is DT Poe, He has been moved much too easily in the run game – Gibson 12 yard TD a good example of the Cowboys bad run defense: Poe moved out of the hole, DT Hamilton too easily reached, LB Smith bad eyes with no awareness of the ball
There’s a physical presence to Gibson’s running, He is a big man with explosive burst that generates natural velocity and power
Washington featured significant snaps with Gibson and McKissic on the field together, A lot of different formation looks out of that personnel
Cowboys featured multiple front looks out of sub nickel including tilted fronts, At times both Griffen and Lawrence lined up inside; Smith at times used as a blitzer in the tilted front alignments
McLaurin 52 yard TD another example of the Cowboys not executing basic assignments, It was cover 4 and Diggs had his eyes in the backfield when he had no primary run responsibility
Washington featured gap scheme concepts in the run game and they ran gap scheme play action on the McLaurin 52 yard TD
What the Cowboys often did with their 5 man front was stand up Armstrong as the on-the-ball WLB
Parker played significant snaps at free safety in place of Wilson, especially in the sub nickel on 3rd down and selected passing down and distance situations; As the game progressed Parker also snaps in the base defense
Thomas 15 yard TD on 3rd + 1 late in the 2nd quarter came out of 13 personnel versus Cowboys 6 man front, Washington unbalanced OL with Thomas in OT position but he was bot covered so he was an eligible receiver; Smith eyes too long in the backfield so he was late reacting to Thomas crosser
In the 3rd quarter Washington featured more perimeter runs with pin-pull concepts – The 1st half Washington featured gap scheme runs
Against Washington the Cowboys did not play any snaps of dime, They played 46 snaps od nickel – The week before against the Cards they played 7 snaps of dollar and 47 snaps of nickel; Against the Seahawks week 3 they played 66 snaps of nickel (94% of all offensive snaps)
PATRIOTS OFFENSE VERSUS 49ERS DEFENSE
Both 49ers safeties Ward and Tartt inactive, Moore and Harris were the safeties; Al-Shaair was the third LB in the base defense with Alexander inactive
Patriots first 3 plays featured 21 personnel with fullback Johnson; 49ers single high with Harris the box safety and Moore the post safety
Patriots went empty out of 21 personnel on the third play; 49ers matched up with cover 4 out of base, Warner took away Edelman whip route from the inside slot
Again Moseley was the boundary corner and Verrett the field corner; Taylor continued to be the slot corner in sub nickel; In the base defense Greenlaw was the SLB and Al-Shaair the WLB
Harris and Moore both made impact plays on the Patriots first possession: Harris in the run game from box safety alignment, Moore in the pass game driving from half field safety alignment to tackle White for 3 yards on 3rd + 4
49ers continued to feature significant snaps of cover 4 – This season it has become a staple coverage
3rd + 6 from the +22 yard line the 49ers went sub dime with Witherspoon the dime player versus Patriots 11 personnel, They went cover 1 blitz with Taylor matched on TE Izzo and Moore matched on White; When White stayed in to block blitzing Warner Moore was free to help and he laid out Harry on the shallow crosser for the incompletion
21 personnel was a significant part of Patriots game plan, Fullback Johnson played 21 snaps (40% of Patriots offensive snaps)
Hyder deployed at times as a standup Joker in the 49ers sub fronts, rushing from the inside
Two passes Newton has always thrown well: the dig and the deep out; Arm strength throws that Newton can muscle up and drive with velocity
Patriots started the 3rd quarter with 21 personnel and went no huddle tempo: Harris 7 and 12 yards on first 2 plays, Myers 21 yards on third play out of well-designed flood / hi-low concept versus anticipated cover 3
Patriots first 5 plays of the 3rd quarter came out of 21 personnel with different formations on each play, First 4 plays gained 53 yards; Fifth play just outside the high red zone Greenlaw sacked Newton on an edge blitz, My sense was RT Herron was responsible for Greenlaw clean to Newton
What continued to stand out was Newton is not playing with any refined sense of timing from the pocket, He is too deliberate with his processing with the result being throws left on the field
In the 2nd half there were significant single high snaps in which Moore was the box safety and Harris the post safety, Moore out of sub nickel strong play in the game on 1st + 10 tackling Burkhead 3 yards
Jordan played some snaps inside at 3-technique DT in over fronts in the base defense
Harris ran well, He was decisive with excellent short area burst and he is a strong finisher – I would expect he would be a foundation versus the Bills
49ERS OFFENSE VERSUS PATRIOTS DEFENSE
Patriots started the game matching up to the 49ers 21 personnel with base personnel, They played Bentley and Copeland at stacked LB with Simon and Jennings the edge players in a 3-4 front look
First 3rd down (3rd + 3) the Patriots went cover 1 out of sub dime versus 49ers 11 personnel matching Gilmore on Kittle, Safety Brooks was the matchup on back McKinnon
Patriots matched up to 49ers 11 and 12 personnel in normal down and distance situations with sub nickel; On the 49ers first possession the Patriots played zone out of sub nickel, Jones was a half field safety in split safety coverages
On 2nd + 8 on 49ers first possession the Patriots went cover 1 out of sub nickel versus 494ers 11 personnel and matched up D. McCourty on Kittle aligned at LOS TE to the field, Phillips was the post safety
Jones continued to play safety in the Patriots sub nickel versus 12 personnel, It was really a big nickel package with Phillips a box player
Gilmore was the matchup on Kittle on 3rd down, Patriots played cover 1 out of sub dime and 2 man out of sub dollar – Kittle 15 yards on 3rd + 11 on second possession came with Kittle reduced split boundary x beating Gilmore on out route
On 2nd + 17 on 49ers second possession the Patriots went cover 1 out of sub dime versus 11 personnel and matched safety Brooks on Kittle, Aiyuk beat Jones on a crosser with a refined sense of route running
Patriots played both base personnel and sub nickel with Phillips and Jones versus 49ers 21 personnel, Belichick predominantly stayed with big nickel
Wilson ran with patience, vision and competitive toughness; He was decisive and explosive with excellent short area burst, A slashing darting quality to his running
Aiyuk 20 yards on 1st + 10 in the 2nd quarter came on jet action pass out of 21 personnel, 49ers showed power run action to the boundary with RG Brunskill pulling, Aiyuk jet action to the field; Outstanding block by Juszczyk on Jones
Patriots went zero blitz out of sub dollar on 3rd + 13 in the 2nd quarter just outside the red zone, Gilmore lined up over Kittle who was flexed in a bunch formation but then blitzed so D. McCourty was the matchup on Kittle
Patriots at times matched up to 49ers 22 and 21 personnel in the 2nd quarter with base defense, Copeland was the fourth LB and Brooks was the safety with D. McCourty – Wilson 17 yards with an excellent lead block by Juszczyk on stacked LB Bentley
Patriots at times aligned in 6 man front out of base to take away the 49ers outside zone run game, Same tactic they deployed successfully against the Rams in the Super Bowl; Against the 49ers they predominantly played cover 3 behind it
49ers continued to get Samuel involved in the run game in multiple ways, off motion and lining him up in the backfield
Hasty 20 yards on 2nd + 4 in the 2nd quarter came out of 21 straight I closed to the boundary twins to the field, Toss crack to the field with an outstanding lead block by Juszczyk on Gilmore – Juszczyk had an excellent game making some outstanding blocks in the run game
Wilson 16 yard TD late in the 2nd quarter came out of 12 personnel versus Patriots 6 man front, Outside zone to the field with Wilson showing explosive short area burst
Aiyuk 35 yards on 3rd + 4 on 3rd quarter TD drive was a great play call by Shanahan: Patriots had played man coverage out of sub dollar on all 3rd downs up to that point in the game, Natural rub concept with Bourne and Aiyuk; Jones switched and J. McCourty didn’t so Aiyuk was wide open on the slot fade / wheel
49ers a dominant run game performance with 37-197 with Wilson 17-112 and Hasty 9-57 – With Wilson injured Hasty will likely be the foundation back versus the Seahawks
KYLER MURRAY VERSUS SEAHAWKS DEFENSE
Seahawks played base 4-3 to the Cards 11 personnel on the first 2 plays of the game, Brooks was back as the third LB
On 3rd and long on the third play the Seahawks went sub nickel with Amadi the slot corner
Cards cover 3 beater out of 12 personnel versus Seahawks base 4-3 on 2nd + 8 on second possession, Arnold ran the over route from LOS TE alignment; LB Brooks excellent job carrying the over and not giving Murray the defined read the Cards were anticipating with the play call
Seahawks MIKE-STAR blitz out of double mug look on 3rd and long on Cards second possession, Wagner beat back Edmonds but Murray escaped and ran for the first down – The Murray factor
Seahawks clearly game planned to play base 4-3 personnel versus Cards 11 personnel on first and second down – Shaquem Griffin played significant snaps in the base defense and the sub nickel, More speed and athleticism on the field
Arnold 16 yards on 2nd + 9 on second possession came on a nice pivot route by Arnold versus corner Dunbar, Seahawks cover 4 out of base with Murray working the boundary side of the formation
Cards continued to feature Murray designed runs as a meaningful part of their office, Multiple concepts
Seahawks game planned defense was a 5 man front with LB Wright on the ball and Wagner and Brooks the stacked LB, Seahawks at times featured reduced fronts from that 5 man fronts
Kingsbury did an excellent job attacking the Seahawks zone coverage concepts with his route concepts, He featured shifts and motion as a significant part of his approach
On the Cards possession that started late in the 2nd quarter the Seahawks went sub nickel versus 11 personnel
Seahawks snaps of cover 2, at times cover 2 invert behind 4 man zone exchange pressure; Boundary corner blitz by Dunbar was part of 4 man zone exchange with cover 2 invert behind it late in the 2nd quarter
Arnold 41 yards late in the 2nd quarter came out of 12 personnel with TE Daniels offset in the backfield and TE Arnold LOS TE to the closed boundary, Double post from twins side of the formation with Arnold running the deep crosser; Delay draw action impacted Wagner who was responsible for getting underneath the crosser to Arnold and got lost in his coverage responsibility – Great design
Kirk 7 yard TD late in the 2nd quarter came out of 10 empty with Murray working the speed out by Edmonds and the vertical by Kirk to the boundary side of the formation, Murray manipulated corner Griffin and went over the top to Kirk
Seahawks showed multiple ways in which to get to cover 2, Wagner was almost always the middle hole defender; Disguise and late movement at times
Seahawks used spy tactic on Murray for the first time with :24 remaining in the 2nd quarter, Shaquem Griffin was the spy with cover 2 behind it
Seahawks started the 3rd quarter playing base 4-3 to the Cards 11 personnel, 5 man front with Wright on the ball and Wagner and Brooks the stacked LB
In the 2nd half Flowers played right corner and Dunbar played left corner; Griffin left the game in the concussion protocol
Seahawks continued to struggle to generate any consistent pressure on the QB, The few times they did Murray was able to avoid and escape
Murray capable of big-time throws from the pocket, He can make every throw; If he develops more consistency with his ball placement he has a chance to be a high level QB given his special ability to make plays on the move
One thing is certain with Murray: He is tough to defend because of his movement ability and his ability to make throws down the field off movement; His second reaction running ability and designed QB run game add multipe dimensions to his game
Seahawks played high percentage zone coverage concepts with a good mix of single high and split safety, They played about 80% zone on Murray drop backs with cover 2 played almost 40% of the drop backs
Shaquem Griffin used as a spy for the second time with less than 4 minutes remaining in regulation, There were multiple snaps in which he was used as a spy down the stretch in regulation
Seahawks went sub dime on the on the Cards final possession of regulation, Randall was the dime player; They played split safety coverages including 2 man with Randall a half field safety with Diggs
AARON RODGERS VERSUS TEXANS DEFENSE
Hargreaves and Gaines were the outside corners (Roby hurt early in the game), Murray and Reid the safeties in the base defense
Texans sub nickel had Murray in the slot with Johnson at safety with Reid, Cunningham and Adams were the LB
Packers featured mesh concept on 2 plays on their first possession: Williams 17 yards on 2nd + 5, Adams 8 yards on 3rd + 1
Adams 3 yard TD on 3rd and goal to end first possession came on well-designed concept off stack with Adams countering quick slant to break outside, Texans man coverage and Gaines tried to fight through Valdes-Scantling to play the slant
Texans continued to play dime on 3rd down (and selected down and distance and game situations) with safety Thomas the dime player, Adams was the only LB
Adams 28 yards on 3rd + 9 on Packers second TD drive came out of 11 2x2 with Adams #1 to the field, Texans out of sub dime went cover 1 blitz with safety Thomas the blitzer and Adams adding in to the rush as a green dogger; Rodgers worked the one-on-one on the outside with Adams versus Hargreaves on the vertical
Adams may be the best receiver in the NFL beating press man at the LOS: 36 yards to start 2nd quarter another great example on crossing route
Adams big plays in the 1st half came versus man coverage: 3 yard TD versus Gaines, 28 yards versus Hargreaves, 36 yards versus Gaines
Tonyan 31 yards on 1st + 10 in the 2nd quarter came out of 12 personnel versus Texans nickel cover 3, Packers flooded the wide side of the field with 4 routes including 3 verticals with H seam one of them
What continued to stand out was Rodgers was playing almost exclusively from the pocket, with a sense of timing and rhythm
Texans used dime safety Thomas as a blitzer at times on 3rd down – Adams 16 yards on 3rd + 10 late in the 2nd quarter came on a bubble screen versus Texans zero blitz
Motion and play action have become foundation parts of the Packers offense, There’s a timing and rhythmic feel to the passing game
Adams 45 yard TD on 3rd + 4 came out of 11 2x2 with Adams in the slot in a stack with Shepard, Texans dime cover 1 with slot corner Murray matched on him – Another play in which Adams beat man coverage, Texans struggled on 3rd down in man coverage with no answer for Adams
Texans went 2 man on 3rd + 10 late in the 3rd quarter, It was their first snap of 2 man on 3rd down in the game; Adams was #1 to trips and half field safety Thomas cheated over the top of Adams, Johnson was the TE matchup
TEXANS OFFENSE VERSUS PACKERS DEFENSE
King and Savage inactive for the Packers, Jackson played outside corner opposite Alexander and Redmond played safety with Amos
Sullivan the slot corner in the Packers high percentage sub defenses, Barnes and Martin were the LB in the sub nickel
Packers continued to play dime as their predominant sub defense (more than 50% of their defensive snaps); Greene was the dime player with Barnes the only LB, Greene predominantly played the hybrid safety-LB position
Z. Smith continued to be used as a Joker in the Packers sub dime fronts, He lined up in multiple positions
3rd + 7 on second possession Texans went 10 personnel in a 2x2 set, Packers matched up in dime and played a 2 man concept with safety Redmond dedicated double on field slot receiver Cobb
Alexander consistently lined up over Fuller, Packers not a high percentage man coverage defense but Alexander played significant snaps of man technique on the outside
Gary lined up both outside as an edge rusher and inside at DT in the Packers sub fronts, When Z. Smith aligned as the Joker in the dime fronts Gary was an outside rusher
Greene an important part of the Packers sub dime defense, He was in 2019 early in the season until he got hurt and he has picked up this season; He is effective as a run defender and as an underneath defender in zone coverage
Fuller 24 yards on 2nd + 2 in the 2nd quarter an excellent seam throw by Watson, Packers cover 3 out of sub dime with Alexander playing man technique on the outside and Greene not carrying Fuller seam from the slot (was he supposed to? If Alexander is playing man technique and is correct in his execution then he cannot read #2 vertical)
Cobb 28 yards on 1st + 5 in the 2nd quarter another example of the Packers playing cover 3 out of sub dime but questions as to how they are playing it: Alexander ran inside with Fuller on his post from reduced split vacating his deep third, Cobb caught the corner route in Alexander’s deep third, There was no one to play Cobb’s route
Martin hurt on the first play of the 3rd quarter, Summers replaced him as the only LB in the sub dime, Martin also snaps as the only LB in sub dime
Watson continued to play well, Poised and composed in the pocket with a refined sense of timing; The ball came out within the structure and timing of the play
Packers continued to show 5 across reduced front out od sub nickel, P. Smith and Z. Smith were the on-the-ball edge players, Barnes and then Summers was the stacked LB
Amos sack on 3rd + 3 in the tight red zone on the first play of the 4th quarter came on a zero blitz out of sub dime, Amos beat TE Brown who stayed in to block freeing up Redmond in coverage to take away crosser by Cooks from inside slot, Cooks is where Watson was looking
Greene hurt late in the 3rd quarter, Scott replaced him in the hybrid safety-LB position in the sub dime
Slot corner Sullivan used in this game as a blitzer, There were 5 or 6 snaps in which he blitzed – Packers not a high percentage blitz defense
MATTHEW STAFFORD VERSUS FALCONS DEFENSE
Falcons sub nickel continued to have Terrell and Sheffield the outside corners and Oliver in the slot, Jones and Oluokun the LB; Sheffield and Terrel were the corners in the base defense
Jones 23 yards on 3rd + 9 in 1st quarter came out of 11 3x1 with Golladay the boundary x and Jones #1 to trips, Falcons out of sub nickel disguise and late movement to cover 2 with LB Jones the middle hole defender; Dagger concept with Agnew running the 9 route and Jones the dig route, Golladay ran the shallow cross from the boundary to hold down the underneath coverage – Rifle shot by Stafford
Falcons more multiple with their front looks and pressure schemes in the last 2 weeks since Morris became the head coach, What they showed consistently out of sub nickel was LB on the ball including double mug looks
Against the Lions the Falcons blitzed 37% of Stafford drop backs, They featured both man and zone pressure concepts
Lions featured snaps of 10 personnel – Amendola 36 yards on 3rd + 3 in the 2nd quarter came out of 10 personnel
Lions ran dagger concept from different formations with different personnel, It was a foundation concept in this game
Lions OL had some issues in pass protection: Crosby at RT, Vaitai at RG and rookie Jackson at LG all some poor snaps in one-on-one pass protection; Crosby had issues and will be a concern versus strong edge pass rushers
In cover 1 out of sub nickel versus 11 personnel safety Neal was the predominant TE matchup, In 2 man out of sub nickel versus 11 LB Jones was the predominant TE matchup, In 1 robber versus empty Oluokun was the TE matchup with the more athletic Jones matched on the detached back
Falcons some well-timed second level blitzes that resulted in sacks of Stafford: Neal on 1st + 10 in the 3rd quarter, and Jones on 3rd + 5 just outside the red zone in the 3rd quarter with Stafford in an empty set; Stafford recognized the unblocked Jones and was ready to deliver but there was no throw within the quickened time
Lions at times struggled with the Falcons high percentage blitz approach, It wasn’t necessarily a function of sacks (there were some) but it caused some execution issues for the Lions and plays in which the Falcons defense won
Lions came back to dagger concept on the winning TD drive with Amendola 22 yards with just over :30 remaining, Amendola ran the deep dig versus Falcons loose cover 2; Big-time throw by Stafford moving to his left to avoid pressure
Golladay 29 yards with :19 remaining was a special throw by Stafford, It came against Falcons loose cover 2 with middle hole defender Jones opening away from Golladay who was in the slot; What made it special was when Stafford released the ball: Golladay was the 24 yard line running vertically and he caught the ball bending inside at the 8 yard line, The ball placement was unbelievably precise for a pass that travelled 42 yards in the air on a line
An often overlooked part of Stafford’s game is his second reaction movement ability, He can make big-time downfield throws off movement both to his right and left
STEELERS OFFENSE VERSUS TITANS DEFENSE
Titans continued to be a sub dime defense on 3rd down - In cover 1 they match Byard on the TE and Vaccaro on the back with dime safety Hooker the post safety
Steelers effective use of tight bunch on first 3rd down (3rd + 3): Johnson #1 in the bunch with corner Butler in off coverage alignment, Speed out was pitch and catch
Titans went zero blitz out of sub dime on first 3rd and long of the game (3rd + 11 on Steelers first possession): Roethlisberger hit boundary z Johnson on now slant versus off coverage corner Smith, Johnson then run-after-catch beat Smith for 14 yards – If you go zero with off coverage to force a quick throw you have to tackle
Johnson 11 yard TD on 2nd and goal to end first possession came out of 12 personnel with Johnson the boundary x versus Titans nickel cover 1 with Smith matched on Johnson, Johnson won to the inside and Roethlisberger put the ball right on him with precise timing and ball placement
Ebron 22 yards on 3rd + 14 on second possession came out of 11 3x1 with Smith-Schuster the boundary x versus Titans dime cover 3: Boundary hook-to-curl defender Brown drifted too far inside with no awareness of Ebron on the over route and boundary corner Joseph once Smith-Schuster disappeared inside needed to squeeze inside rather than covering grass – Poor zone coverage awareness in a basic cover 3 concept
Smith-Schuster 21 yards on 3rd + 12 on second possession came out of 11 2x2 with Smith-Schuster the slot to the field versus Titans dime late rotation to 1 robber with Byard the robber and Vaccaro matched on TE Ebron, Smith-Schuster seam route with outstanding anticipation throw by Roethlisberger to beat slot corner Fulton and robber Byard – Titans tilted front with Clowney the wide 9 DE opposite the tilt
A big issue on 3rd down for the Titans is the consistent lack of a pass rush from their 4 man DL; Titans featured multiple front looks and stunt concepts to try to create pressure
Titans cover 1 snaps out of sub dime in which LB Brown was the matchup on the back and Vaccaro was deployed as an underneath lurk or robber
Titans allowed first down conversions on 3rd + 11, 3rd + 14 and 3rd + 12 on Steelers first 2 possessions, both ending in TD – Steelers converted first seven 3rd downs of the game before the Titans made their first stop with just under 3 minutes remaining in the 2nd quarter
Titans again went zero blitz on Johnson 9 yard TD on 3rd + 2 late in the 2nd quarter: Titans sub nickel with Roethlisberger again hitting Johnson from #1 to the field on the now slant versus off coverage corner Joseph
Titans double mug look out of sub nickel on first 3rd down of the 3rd quarter: Evans and Brown blitzed in the A gaps with Beasley and Landry dropping into coverage making it a 4 man pressure with cover 1 behind it
Butler was the matchup on Claypool much of the game with Butler travelling to both sides of the formation
In the high red zone on Steelers first possession of the 3rd quarter Titans went cover 1 blitz out of sub dime with Vaccaro matched on boundary x TE Ebron and Byard matched on the back, LB Brown was the fifth rusher
Titans third snap of zero on 3rd down came on Steelers second possession of the 3rd quarter on 3rd + 10: Titans sub dime with double mug look with Vaccaro and Brown in the A gaps, Roethlisberger again the now slant to boundary x Johnson but this time the Titans tackled him for 7 yards
What was evident as the game progressed was the Titans were looking for different ways to pressure Roethlisberger on 3rd down: Multiple front looks, different pressure schemes, 4 man zone exchange pressures, 5 man pressures
Different coverage looks also factored into the Titans 3rd down equation, including disguise and late rotation to cover 2: Smith-Schuster 7 yards on 3rd + 7 in the 4th quarter
Smith-Schuster 28 yards on 1st + 10 in the 4th quarter came on a well-schemed concept playing off run-after-catch ability of Johnson: Fake tunnel screen to Johnson with Smith-Schuster then running the wheel off initial blocking action
Roethlisberger effective throughout the game on 3rd down hitting Johnson on now slants versus both zero and cover 1, He hit Johnson 4 times with 3 of them resulting in first downs; The last one came on 3rd + 7 with 4:07 remaining in the 4th quarter, Titans were in cover 1 with Brown blitz out of sub dime with Butler matched on Johnson
Hooker end zone interception on 3rd + 12 late in the 4th quarter came out of sub dime with the Titans in cover 2 and Brown running the middle seam with Smith-Schuster
One of the biggest issues facing the Titans defense through 6 games is their inability to generate pass rush pressure with their 4 DL, It’s especially noticeable on 3rd down where they only have 2 QB sacks (only 7 sacks all season)
Titans not a high percentage blitz defense relative to other NFL teams – Coaching staff must decide how they want to go forward re: generating pressure on opposing QB
Another issue that shows up on tape is their corners allow too many free releases off the LOS regardless of the coverage, Receivers routes are rarely disrupted
TITANS OFFENSE VERSUS STEELERS DEFENSE
Hilton inactive for the Steelers, Sutton was the slot corner in the sub defenses; Sutton also snaps at safety with Kirkpatrick in the base defense versus both 11 and 12 personnel
Layne played outside corner in the Steelers sub dime with Nelson moving inside with Sutton, Gilbert was the dime LB
Titans featured their bang play action pass on their first 2 possession: Incomplete to Smith, 13 yards to Brown
Steelers showed different front looks out of their base defense, On the Titans second possession they featured a 4 man front with Dupree an off-the-ball LB in the middle of the defense
Titans game plan approach with its focus on multiple TE sets and the quick passing game helped LT Sambrailo, He was not being asked to pass protect one-on-one versus Dupree on deeper QB drops
Humphries 19 yards on 3rd + 9 in the 2nd quarter a good example of the Titans protecting Sambrailo on 3rd and long: McNichols was offset to the left side of the formation in position to help Sambrailo if needed
Davis 7 yard TD on 3rd and goal in the 2nd quarter came out of 11 1x3 with Davis #3 in bunch, Steelers 2 man concept with Sutton matched on Davis and safeties Kirkpatrick and Edmunds in position to help/double depending on routes; Davis beat Sutton on the shallow crosser
Titans consistently helped Sambrailo on 3rd down with formations: Either the back was offset to that side or the TE was aligned to that side in position to chip Dupree and slow down his pass rush
There may not be a better bull rusher in the NFL than Heyward, He is powerful and strong and plays with great leverage; Heyward explosive bull rush versus OC Jones late in the 2nd quarter
Titans first play of the 3rd quarter they went to one of their bang play action concepts with Brown running the post and Davis the in-breaker, Davis wide open on the in-breaker but Watt sacked Tannehill when RT Kelly and Henry collided
Titans consistently helped both LT Sambrailo and RT Kelly on 3rd down with formations and tactics like chips, That limits pass game options because 5 cannot get out cleanly
Tough to run away from Watt and not get a body on him, He will run down the LOS every time and make a play
Brown 73 yard TD on 2nd + 8 on second possession of the 3rd quarter came out of 12 personnel on staple bang play action concept, Inside zone/duo look with boundary x Brown slow playing his slant route off initial blocking action versus off coverage corner Nelson; Tannehill pass went right by the head of LB Williams
Steelers different matchups on TE Smith depending on their personnel and pressure schemes: Sutton matched up to Smith when the Steelers went 2 man out of sub dime, Edmunds matched up on Smith when the Steelers went cover 1 out of sub nickel versus 11 personnel, Williams a snap matched on Smith when the Steelers went cover 1 out of base versus 11 personnel
Brown 20 yards on 2nd + 6 in the 4th quarter another bang play action concept this time out of 21 straight I with iso lead run action, It came right after Henry ran 4 yards on the same iso lead look
Titans 4 play sequence on 4th quarter TD drive out of 21 straight I iso lead/zone lead: Henry 4 yards, Brown 20 yards on bang play action, Henry 17 yards, Henry 6 yards
Steelers played sub nickel versus 11 personnel on the first 7 plays of the Titans final possession, They did not play sub dime until the 8th play
It will be interesting to see if the Titans OT Sambrailo and Kelly change the Titans passing game going forward, Against the Steelers they consistently helped both OT with formation and tactics
Titans 30 snaps in 11 personnel and 24 snaps out of a base personnel package
BAKER MAYFIELD VERSUS BENGALS DEFENSE
Jackson inactive for the Bengals, Outside corners were Phillips and Sims, Alexander the slot corner in sub nickel and safety Williams the dime player; Dime continued to be 3-2-6 with LB Wilson and Davis-Gaither
Wilson and Davis-Gaither continued to be the sub nickel LB on 3rd down and selected down and distance and game situations
When the Bengals went cover 1 out of sub nickel and sub dime versus 11 personnel safety Bell was the predominant TE matchup, In 2 man out of sub nickel versus 11 personnel LB Davis-Gaither was the predominant TE matchup
Bengals featured a 5-2 front versus Browns 21 personnel – On the first play of the game they had Lawson and Bledsoe in 2 point stances on the edge with a reduced front (3-technique and 4i), Bynes and Pratt were the stacked LB
When the Bengals went base 4-3 versus multiple TE sets Wilson was the third LB with Bynes and Pratt
Mayfield interception on his first throw came on a vertical shot to Beckham versus off coverage corner Phillips, Back side was a flat-curl-seam seal concept with Landry open on the curl – How was Mayfield coached on that play given that it was his first throw of the game?
Lawson an effective one-arm stab as a pass rusher from the right side of the defense, He gave LT Willis some problems on the first 3 possessions
At this point Mayfield needs his reads and throws cleanly defined so he can play with timing and rhythm, If not he plays too fast and frenetic
Bryant 35 yards to start 3rd quarter was a beautifully schemed vertical route concept out of 13 personnel: Flood / hi-low concept to the boundary off outside zone run action to the boundary with a boot look by Mayfield off the run action, Bryant angled his stem hard inside to work with Mayfield boot look before breaking out on the intermediate route in the flood – Defined read and throw for Mayfield
Browns came back to flat-curl-seam seal concept on first possession of 3rd quarter, This time Mayfield world that side of the progression versus cover 3 and hit Landry on the curl
Bryant 6 yard TD on 3rd + 3 to end first possession of the 3rd quarter was Mayfield at his best: Knowing what he had pre-snap, knowing what defender he had to control and then turning it loose to the right receiver on time with needed velocity
Higgins 21 yards on 3rd + 4 on first play of the 4th quarter came out of 12 empty versus Bengals nickel cover 1, Mayfield excellent back shoulder throw on slot fade; Matchup was Higgins versus Sims
Mayfield followed Higgins 21 yards with another Higgins 21 yards: Another precise ball placement throw on a schemed misdirection throwback wheel route that LB Pratt read and played well, Mayfield throw beat Pratt coverage
What stood out in this game was Mayfield precise ball placement, That was a strength of his game coming out of college and most expected that would be his calling card in the NFL
Bengals showed cover 2 invert to the boundary out of sub nickel in the 4th quarter – Higgins 20 yards on a crosser into the outside void to the boundary
Higgins 30 yards on winning TD drive another example of precise ball placement by Mayfield, high and outside away from corner Phillips
Peoples-Jones 24 yard winning TD came out of 11 2x2 versus Bengals dime 1 robber (this time it was 4-1-6 dime), Peoples-Jones was #1 to the boundary one-on-one versus Phillips on the vertical route; Again another excellent ball placement throw by Mayfield
JOE BURROW VERSUS BROWNS DEFENSE
Bengals opened the game in an empty set out of 12 personnel – Burrow has been in empty sets more than any QB in the league, an average of 12 snaps per game
About 80% of Burrow drop backs through 7 games have come out of 11 personnel
Sendejo and Harrison the safeties for the Browns; The LB in base were Goodson in the middle flanked by Takitaki and Wilson
Johnson continued to be the Browns nickel slot corner, Nickel LB were Goodson and Smith with Wilson also snaps with Goodson – Sendejo continued to be the predominant post safety in single high coverages
Browns do not use Ward as a matchup corner, He lines up on the left and Mitchell lines up on the right
Browns showed tilted front out of sub nickel, almost always featuring a stunt concept from the 3 man side; Garrett almost always lined up on the tilted side but at times was the wide 9 DE opposite the tilt
Burrow is an easy thrower, a natural thrower with a compact delivery; He does not have a power arm but he throws with needed touch and consistently precise ball placement – Thomas 29 yards on 3rd + 12 on first possession a good example
Boyd 13 yards to start second possession came out of 12 empty versus Browns base defense, Boyd inside slot ran the jerk route versus LB Goodson; That’s the matchup you get inside out of 12 empty versus base: WR versus a LB
Bengals LT Williams had some poor one-on-one pass protection snaps in the 1st half, against both Garrett and Vernon; Williams hurt in the 1st half and did not return, Johnson replaced him
Johnson-Richardson sack on 3rd + 7 in the high red zone came on well-designed 4 man zone exchange pressure with slot corner Johnson getting in clean from the field
Higgins 27 yards late in the 2nd quarter came on well-thrown back shoulder fade by Burrow, Ward in press man coverage but did not disrupt Higgins release instead playing mirror press man
Bengals ran the flat-curl-seam seal several times in the 1st half, You can run it to the boundary or the field and it is equally effective defining the read and throw for Burrow within the timing of the drop; Bengals came back to it in the 2nd half including on their go-ahead TD drive late in the 4th quarter
Browns coverage approach versus Burrow and the Bengals was higher percentage zone by a good margin, and they featured cover 3 as a foundation
Boyd 11 yard TD at the end of the 2nd quarter was a big-time turn-it-loose throw into a tight zone window by Burrow, It was the kind of throw you have to make in the red zone
Burrow continued to play with a refined sense of timing and rhythm, He is a quick processor with an advanced feel for elimination and isolation both before the snap of the ball and within the timing of the drop and the route concept
Browns featured slot corner Johnson as a blitzer in this game, They featured 4 man zone exchange pressure concepts with an overload element
PANTHERS OFFENSE VERSUS SAINTS DEFENSE
Rookie Baun was the third LB in the Saints base defense, He predominantly was an on-the-ball LB to the strong side of the offensive formation but also snaps in 4-3 stack
Gardner-Johnson continued to be the Saints slot corner with Davis and Anzalone the nickel LB; P. Williams was the dime with Davis the only LB, In split safety coverages P. Williams was the deep safety with M. Williams
Saints continued to feature 3-2-6 sub dime with Davis and Anzalone, In sub dime different players matched up to the TE depending on the coverage and the pressure: Davis, Jenkins, P. Williams
Panthers continued to feature snaps of 10 personnel, Samuel the wild card who line up in multiple locations including offset in the backfield
Lattimore predominantly matched up on Anderson, He travelled with Anderson when Anderson lined up outside; In the 3rd quarter on the Panthers first possession that was not the case
Bridgewater showed outstanding second reaction ability on Samuel 22 yards on 3rd + 10 on first possession, Gardner-Johnson clean off the edge with Bridgewater spinning to his left and making a great throw with precise ball placement
Bridgewater continued to play with efficiency, There is a rhythmic feel to his game
Samuel 5 yard TD run on 1st and goal late in the 3rd quarter came out of 10 personnel, Samuel was the I back with Bridgewater under center; It was outside zone weak with an excellent reach block by LG Reed
Saints aggressive with pressure and man coverage on Panthers final possession, They featured inside blitz schemes with Davis and Anzalone and showed cover 1 concept behind 3 man rush with Davis and Anzalone underneath as zone defenders
Davenport sack on 3rd + 11 that forced 65 yard FG attempt came out of 3-2-6 sub dime with 6 man pressure front look, Davis and Anzalone were the standup 3-techniques and Jenkins was aligned on the edge to the boundary; Beautifully executed blitz stunt with Jenkins blitzing off the edge, and Anzalone and Davenport running the T/E stunt with Davenport the looper beating back Davis
Odd game for the Panthers in that they only ran 43 offensive plays, which is not enough to develop any real rhythmic feel for the offense
