At Fantasy Points this season, we’re going to be posting the Raw Film Notes from NFL Films legend Greg Cosell each and every week. These are quite literally Greg’s scribblings and observations he throws on his notepad as he watches all-22 tape.
As Greg is just one man, he can’t get to everything each week, but we’ll be bringing you everything he sees in raw — and unedited — form. This is something all-22 nerds will love, and certainly something fans who want to learn more about their teams should read.
MAC JONES VERSUS SAINTS DEFENSE
Saints continued to be a predominant dime defense on 3rd down, It was predominantly 3-2-6 dime with Davis and Elliss the LB; Kpassagnon inside with Jordan and rookie Turner outside were the DL
Against the Patriots Saints played 12 snaps of dime on 3rd down, Saints have played 60% dime on 3rd down through 3 games
In the Saints 4-2-5 nickel versus Patriots 11 and 12 personnel rookie Werner was the LB with Davis, In the 4-2-5 nickel versus 21 personnel Elliss was the LB with Davis; Saints played 16 snaps of nickel on 1st down
In the Saints base defense the 3 LB were Davis, Elliss and Baun; Baun has made the transition from edge rusher at Wisconsin to stacked LB with the Saints
Saints did not match up to any Patriots WR, Lattimore played right corner and rookie Adebo played left corner
Saints multiple front alignments with some pressure looks on 3rd down, They were aggressive with blitz
Jones has an innate feel in the pocket, He does not break down his fundamental mechanics with bodies around him, He will stand firm in the pocket and deliver the ball
Jones has some limitations as a passer re: ability to drive the ball with velocity when it is demanded, The question becomes how can the Patriots minimize that limitation with their pass game concepts; What are the workarounds to maximize Jones efficiency especially on 3rd down and especially versus pressure
Two things stood out in Saints 3rd down defense: LB Davis almost always aligned on the ball, and safety Jenkins was featured as a blitzer
Williams interception on 3rd + 10 late in 2nd quarter came out of 3-2-6 dime resulted from 5 man pressure with inside by Elliss the picker and Kpassagnon the looper, Elliss hit Jones as he delivered and Williams sitting in robber position made the easy interception
Saints featured predominant man coverage on 3rd down with cover 1 the predominant coverage but also snaps of 1 robber and 2 man
When White got hurt in the 2nd quarter Bolden became the Patriots 3rd down back – My sense is that will be the case going forward
Patriots featured play action on 1st down out of both base and 11 personnel, Good way to define reads and throws for Jones
Defenses through 3 games have blitzed Jones and Patriots offense among the highest percentage in the NFL, Jones has been blitzed more on 3rd down than any QB in the league and he has struggled to get 1st downs
Jones has thrown 1 TD versus blitz and it was Bourne 22 yards versus Saints nickel cover 1 behind 5 man pressure with Davis green dog, Jones threw it up to the one-on-one on the outside with Bourne versus Adebo and Bourne made a play for him
WASHINGTON OFFENSE VERSUS BILLS DEFENSE
There were 3rd down snaps in which Oliver lined up at wide 9 DE with Addison inside as a standup Joker
Bills through 3 games continued to be a nickel defense, More than 95% of their defensive snaps have come out of nickel with only 8 snaps out of base and no snaps in dime
McLaurin predominantly the boundary x receiver in Washington’s offense, That matched him up versus White who is the Bills boundary corner
White predominantly lined up over McLaurin, Bills did noy play a high percentage of man coverage versus Washington but that could have been a function of the score
Gibson 73 yard TD reception came on a screen off power run action look versus Bills 5 man pressure with slot corner Johnson the fifth rusher, Bills played 3 under-3 deep behind the pressure and the underneath defenders to the side of the screen dropped deep giving Gibson room to build up speed
Johnson interception late in 2nd quarter came out of nickel cover 4 with White locked on boundary x McLaurin man-to-man, Edmunds outstanding job in his underneath zone matching up to Thomas and defending the throw; Heinicke high throw went off Thomas hands right to Johnson
If I had to pick one player that could be considered the key to the Bills defense it would be Milano with his multi-dimensional traits which included his blitzing ability and man-to-man coverage ability on TE
Bills played much more cover 4 versus Washington as a result of the scoring margin, Cover 4 has not been a high percentage coverage this season but it was featured more versus Washington
Bills have been predominantly a single high safety coverage defense on 3rd down with almost the same number of snaps of cover 1 and cover 3, They have also played a good percentage of cover 2
JOSH ALLEN VERSUS WASHINGTON DEFENSE
Washington high percentage nickel sub defense: Jackson and St. Juste the outside corners with Fuller in the slot; Jackson did not match up to Diggs
Allen first throw of the game set the template for the game: 3rd + 15 versus Washington nickel cover 4, 2 man route concept to the field with Diggs from the slot and Davis outside, Diggs route threatened both the corner and the safety with Davis sitting in the intermediate void on the curl route; Allen excellent pocket movement sliding and re-setting his feet to drive the ball with velocity between the underneath defenders
Sanders 28 yard TD to end first possession came on Allen second reaction movement off designed boot throwback concept to Singletary, Allen didn’t feel he had the throw to Singletary so he moved to his right and drilled a strike to Sanders crossing the field who was a clear out receiver in the initial play design
What stood out through the first couple of possessions was Allen’s pocket patience and his ability to manage the pocket and make late-in-the-down throws
Washington game plan featured split safety coverage as the early foundation behind 4 man DL pressure, They would play more man coverage as the game progressed
Moss 17 yards on second possession came on angle route from offset backfield alignment versus LB Holcomb matching up in Washington nickel cover 1 – Washington played 75% nickel versus the Bills, who played 77% of their offensive snaps in 11 personnel
Knox 14 yard TD on 3rd + 7 in 2nd quarter came out of 11 1x3 set with Knox plus split as the single receiver x, Washington played 1 robber out of nickel with Holcomb matched on Knox; Great back shoulder throw by Allen with a leaping catch by Knox
Holcomb some tough snaps in man coverage versus both Moss and Knox in the 1st half
Sanders 41 yards in 2nd quarter came out of 11 personnel with stack to the field, Washington cover 1 blitz out of nickel with slot corner Fuller matched on Sanders, Sanders ran by Fuller and Allen delivered a well-placed throw with some under it
RT Williams was strong throughout the game in one-on-one pass protection, He especially had some good snaps versus Young; RG Ford struggled at times in one-on-one pass protection
Allen orchestrated outstanding 3 play FG drive with :26 remaining in the 1st half: Consecutive completions to Diggs 13 yards, Beasley 22 yards, Diggs 11 yards; 2 pocket strikes to Diggs on the right sideline and second reaction movement throw to Beasley on the crosser
Washington continued to feature 5 man DL personnel as part of nickel, They predominantly aligned in reduced fronts out of that
Washington showed 5 man reduced front out of 4-2-5 nickel with Holcomb on the ball and Bostic the stacked LB
Washington featured double mug looks out of nickel in the 3rd quarter, Nice blitz scheme from that look versus Bills empty set on 3rd + 3 with Curl unblocked off the edge but Allen just got the ball out to Beasley on pivot route outside for 10 yards
Bills effective with bang play action with Allen both in the shotgun and under center: Diggs 13 yards on slant in 3rd quarter, Knox 19 yards on pop pass in 4th quarter
Washington defense continued to struggle to get a pass rush from their front four in what was supposed to be a strength of their team
Moss first run of the game came out of 10 personnel in 2x2 set – Washington matched up to 10 personnel with dime (3 corners, 3 safeties)
Bills featured trap in their shotgun run game: Singletary 4 yards late in the 1st quarter; They ran wham-trap in the quarter with Knox the wham block on 3-technique DT Allen and Feliciano the trap block on 2i DT Wise: Singletary 7 yards
Bills featured a good mix of no huddle tempo throughout the game, My sense is Allen is comfortable playing that style
This game was much more like the Allen we saw in 2020: Strong mix of pocket efficiency and second reaction playmaking, He was much more precise with his ball placement than he had been in the first 2 games of 2021
DAVIS MILLS VERSUS PANTHERS DEFENSE
Mills showed a good feel for the timing and rhythm of the pass game, Quick on his drop and set with good ball carriage and a comfortable delivery with a plus arm
Panthers 5-2 fronts out of base with Carter and Thompson the stacked LB, Chinn often lined up in the box as the 8th defender; Panthers also 5 man DL fronts in nickel with Thompson the only LB, They wanted to dictate one-on-one pass rush matchups especially on the outside with Burns and Reddick
Disguise and late movement with multiple pressure concepts including 4 man zone exchange schemes foundational concepts for the Panthers defense, Panthers featured both second and third level rushers in their 4 man zone exchange pressures
Mills predominantly a pocket QB but he has more than functional mobility to get out of the pocket and make second reaction plays
First time Texans went empty Panthers 4 man zone exchange pressure with Thompson the fourth rusher, Tunsil jumped inside to pick up Thompson and Burns got in clean for the sack
Panthers featured nickel as predominant sub defense but also played significant snaps of dime primarily on 3rd down
Panthers featured different stunt concepts from multiple front alignments, They featured T/E and E/T stunts along with inside stunts
Mills showed a sense of progression reading with good vision in the pocket: Cooks 30 yards in the 1st quarter, Miller 1 yard TD late in the 2nd quarter
With Horn and Burris hurt Jackson and Melvin were the outside corners for the Panthers with rookie Taylor and Chinn playing slot corner, Safeties were Chinn and Chandler
Panthers still played big nickel (as they did a year ago) as their base defense: 3 safeties were Chinn, Chandler and Franklin
Reddick sack on 3rd + 5 in 4th quarter came out of nickel double mug look with Thompson and Luvu in the A gaps, Panthers man blitz with cover 1 behind it; Thompson the picker and Luvu the looper in what became a 6 man pressure because they knew back Burkhead would pass protect versus the double mug pressure; Luvy inside pressure forced Mills to move up in the pocket and Reddick re-directed from the outside to make the sack
Panthers featured multiple front looks out of nickel including double mug, Panthers aggressive with different pressure concepts; Panthers one of the higher blitz percentages in the NFL
Panthers predominant single high safety defense playing cover 3 and cover 1 but they also play significant snaps of split safety, They are multiple both with their coverages and front looks out of nickel and dime
SAM DARNOLD VERSUS TEXANS DEFENSE
Smith and Hargreaves the outside corners for the Texans with King the slot corner, Cunningham and Kirksey the nickel LB; Texans an exclusive nickel sub defense
When the Texans went cover 1 out of nickel versus 11 personnel safety Murray was the TE matchup
Darnold still needs to get quicker with his elimination and isolation, He leaves throws on the field within the route design and the structure and timing of the play
Moore 26 yards on 2nd + 7 on second possession came out of 12 balanced with reduced splits on each side of the formation, Hi-low concepts on both side to attack split safety, Moore in-breaker to the field with Tremble holding down underneath LB Cunningham
Play action a foundational part of Panthers passing game, both conventional play action and play action boot – Darnold through 3 games off play action: 20-31 for 303 yards and 2 TD
Moore 24 yards on 2nd + 10 in the 2nd quarter came out of 21 iso lead weak run action versus Texans 4-3 over stack cover 3, Mirrored curl routes with Moore and Anderson both aligned inside the numbers; Darnold a beat late with the throw but the design of the play created a big void for Moore
There were long yardage snaps out of nickel in which the Texans got to cover 2 out of double mug look with Cunningham and Kirksey the A gap defenders, Kirksey the middle hole defender
Panthers OL struggled at times in pass protection versus Texans 4 man DL rush, Texans featured multiple stunt concepts
Erickson 25 yards in 3rd quarter outstanding throw by Darnold off play action boot right, Erickson crosser versus Texans cover 1
Tremble 30 yards on 2nd + 11 on first play of 4th quarter came out of 12 closed boundary twins to the field versus Texans base cover 2, 4 verticals concept off power play action to the boundary with Tremble vertical outside the numbers to the boundary – Excellent concept versus cover 2
Panthers dialed up some good split safety beaters featuring both hi-low concepts and vertical concepts that stretched the coverage and attacked voids
Texans have showed a tendency to play cover 1 out of base personnel on 1st + 10 and Panthers attacked that tendency with crossers off play action and play action boot: Erickson 25 yards, Marshall 23 yards
Texans highest percentage of cover 2 (more than 50% of defensive snaps) through 3 games, It’s the highest percentage in the NFL by a wide margin
JUSTIN FIELDS VERSUS BROWNS DEFENSE
Fields first drop back came on 2nd + 8 on first possession, Empty set out of 11 personnel versus Browns nickel; Bears had the matchup they wanted for a quick game throw with boundary slot receiver Robinson versus rookie LB Owusu-Koromoah, Fields did not feel comfortable turning it loose so he scrambled for 7 yards
First sack came on quick game 3 step drop timing throw to Mooney on the hitch route, Fields had the throw but came off it(?); Clowney beat RT Ifedi off the snap to the inside and was untouched
Browns played both nickel and dime, Hill was the slot corner and Delpit was the dime safety; Owuso-Koromoah and Smith were the nickel LB with Smith the dime LB
Clowney snaps inside in the dime fronts, He is a much effective pass rusher inside than outside at DE; Clowney looked quick and explosive as a pass rusher
Second sack was on Fields: Play design was shotgun play action with quick slant by Mooney from the slot, The throw was there to be made but Fields did not turn it loose and was sacked by Owusu-Koromoah on green dog from the back side
Third sack came on 3rd + 14 when Fields had time in the pocket to deliver the ball but Fields was too slow to eliminate that he had no throw at the intermediate level, He had a check down to the other side but that’s a tough ask at this point, He left the pocket and was sacked; Bears chipped both edge rushers Garrett and McKinley
Bears featured quick game as a foundation of the pass game with Fields, Create opportunities for him to get it out quick; I would have liked to have seen some play action boot, First designed movement came on his 7th drop back
Browns showed a loaded front on 3rd down out of dime with Clowney outside and Garrett inside of him, Garrett beat RG Daniels with strength and explosive bend and burst and ran down Fields for a sack on 3rd + 5 in the 2nd quarter
Fields was in an empty set on 5 of his drop backs, 2 on 3rd down, 2 on 2nd down and 1 on 1st down; He was 0-2 with 2 sacks and a scramble
At this point Fields is not seeing things, He was locked in on reads with almost no sense of elimination and isolation, He was both too fast at times and hesitant at times
At this point Fields does not have an innate sense of what open means at the NFL level, He will need more experience to get a more refined feel for that
Bears OL had some one-on-one protection issues and Fields is not even close to the point where he can compensate for that
McKinley-Jackson sack to end first possession of 3rd quarter came with back Montgomery and TE Kmet in position to chip which Kmet did on Clowney but Montgomery looked inside to help with the stunt from the loaded front; McKinley beat RT Ifedi off the edge
Loaded fronts part of Browns 3rd down dime package, Garrett at times lined up inside Clowney which allowed to work one-on-one versus the OG; Browns also featured multiple stunt concepts out of that front
Fields sacked on play action boot in the low red zone late in the 3rd quarter, Safety Harrison read it and played it perfectly
Garrett last sack came out of double mug look versus 5 man protection with Montgomery free releasing, Garrett easily beat LT Peters off the edge and ran down Fields
Bears coaching staff needs to help the receivers with concepts to help them get open versus man coverage and present more defined reads and throws for Fields
EAGLES OFFENSE VERSUS COWBOYS DEFENSE
Eagles came out aggressive throwing the ball on first 3 offensive plays, Hurts third throw was a go route to Reagor that he underthrew and was intercepted by Brown – Cowboys cover 1 with Kearse matched on Ertz
Diggs lined up at right corner with Brown at left corner, Against the Eagles Diggs was not used as a matchup corner; Lewis again the slot corner with Canady also getting snaps
Cowboys snaps of big nickel versus 12 personnel, In cover 1 Kearse and Hooker were the TE matchups
Cowboys 4 man zone exchange pressure concept on 3rd + 5 on Eagles second possession, Smith and Vander Esch double mug look with both rushing and both DE Parsons and Gregory dropping into underneath coverage in cover 2 with Kazee the middle hole defender and slot corner Lewis a half field safety; Pressure concept forced Sanders to stay in to pass protect and take away check down for Hurts
Cowboys snaps of 5-1-5 nickel versus Eagles 11 and 12 personnel, Hooker snaps at post safety versus 11 personnel; Reduced front out of 5 man DL
Cowboys snaps of dime on 3rd down, First snap of dime came on 3rd + 3 on Eagles third possession: 3 man DL rush, cover 1 with LB Smith and DL Basham sitting underneath
Cowboys have not played one snap of base defense through 3 games, They are a nickel defense (93% of defensive snaps) with 10 snaps of dime
Sanders first carry came on fourth possession in 2nd quarter, 24 yards: Duo concept with outstanding double team by RT Johnson and RG Dickerson on 3-technique Bohanna, Dickerson great awareness reading LB Vander Esch and coming off the double to block him
Smith as a spy on Hurts was part of Cowboys 3rd down dime package, Hooker matched man-to-man on Goedert #1 to trips
Smith 19 yards late in the 2nd quarter came on RPO concept with split flow inside zone to the boundary and snag-flat to the field with Smith running the snag, Zone read element with play side DE Gregory not blocked in the scheme
Eagles went shot play out of 13 personnel on play after Smith 19 yards, RG Dickerson beat by Odighizuwa and Hurts was sacked on deep 7 step drop off play action
Both of Goedert’s big receptions – one to start the game, the second to start the 3rd quarter – came on coverage breakdowns/confusion by the Cowboys
Eagles ran the same play on the first and second plays of the 3rd quarter, All they did on the second was flip the formation: First one was Goedert 28 yards and the second was incomplete to Goedert with imprecise ball placement by Hurts – Cowboys made same coverage mistake both plays
Diggs 59 yard interception return TD was a great example in zone coverage of reading the drop of the QB and then jumping the route by Smith out of reduced split, Diggs broke on Smith out route before Hurts started his delivery
Cowboys started using Parsons as a Joker on 3rd down, Parsons an explosive athlete who can rush from different spots
Cowboys showed loaded fronts out of dime with LB Smith the wild card opposite the 3 man side, Parsons lined up inside the DE and speed-to-power rushed the OG – My sense is we will see more of that
Eagles had success on 3rd quarter TD drive playing no huddle tempo, They caught the Cowboys not being set and at times uncertain of coverage responsibilities – Ertz 27 yards a good example
Ertz 3 yard TD on 3rd + 2 in 3rd quarter came out of no huddle tempo 12 2x2 reduced with well-schemed natural pick element to get Ertz open on the quick out route
Both Smith and Hooker were used as spies on Hurts on 3rd down depending on personnel and coverage
Hurts sack on 4th + 10 came on T/E stunt versus LG Herbig and LT Dillard, Gregory from standup 3-technique (and removed a yard off the ball) got a running start as the picker and then Odighizuwa looped behind him
Cowboys getting more multiple with their front looks out of nickel and dime as the season is progressing, They have 2 explosive athletes in Parsons and Gregory who can line up in multiple positions and be used as Jokers
Cowboys high percentage cover 1 versus Eagles, It was their coverage foundation – Through 3 games only the Dolphins have played more snaps of cover 1 than the Cowboys
Hurts has dropped back 116 times through 3 games, 98 have been out of the shotgun; Eagles do not have a meaningful conventional play action pass game
COWBOYS OFFENSE VERSUS EAGLES DEFENSE
Schultz TD late in the 1st quarter resulted from what the Cowboys got on the third play of the game: Post-wheel concept versus cover 2 with Schultz wide open on the wheel, Prescott felt front side pressure and threw the check down to Elliott 8 yards
Cowboys game planned first possession featured 12 and heavy personnel with run game emphasis versus Eagles split safety foundation
Lamb 44 yards on fifth play of the game came against what looked like cover 2 invert with the invert to the boundary, Corner Nelson became the half field safety and he was too outside to challenge Lamb post route and Wallace was held down by Cooper back side curl – Cowboys 12 personnel with 7 man protection
Cox driven out of POA by strong double teams on 2 Elliott runs on Cowboys first possession
Avery played snaps off the ball in the nickel at times as an overhang defender to the slot side (passing strength) of the offensive formation, Slot corner Maddox snaps in which he was stacked to the boundary
Wallace hurt on Cowboys third possession, Epps replaced him at safety with Harris
Cowboys third possession featured more snaps of 11 personnel versus Eagles nickel, Avery and Wilson the nickel LB on that possession
Rookie Johnson started at SAM LB in the Eagles base 4-3, As the Eagles had done through 2 games they continued to play 5 man reduced fronts with the SAM on the ball; Singleton and Edwards were the stacked LB in base with Singleton also playing snaps in the nickel
Eagles snaps of nickel versus Cowboys 12, Singleton and Wilson the stacked LB in nickel versus base and they also were the predominant nickel LB versus 11 personnel after the first possession
Cowboys offensive approach featured more snaps of 12 personnel than in their first 2 games, Eagles stayed in their split safety coverage
Cowboys run game featured double team blocks versus Eagles DT and they consistently controlled the POA, Interior of Eagles DL struggled in the run game
Schultz 19 yard TD on 2nd + 9 late in 1st quarter came out of 12 2x2 with post-wheel combination to the boundary (same combination they ran on first possession), Eagles were in nickel cover 6 with halves to the boundary; 2 things: Schultz tempoed his release on his wheel disguising vertical route and flat defender Slay reacted to Pollard swing route
Cowboys game plan featured good mix of 11 and 12 personnel with run game emphasis: Elliott 11-60 and Pollard 10-56 with Prescott 17 drop backs
Cowboys more aggressive with the passing game in the 3rd quarter, More snaps of 11 personnel; They came back to more 12 personnel as the 3rd quarter progressed into the 4th quarter
Eagles coverage profile continued to be the same as it was the first 2 games: Split safety with high percentage zone coverage – They have played the lowest percentage of cover 1 in the NFL by a wide margin
Sweat-Maddox split sack on 3rd + 11 in 3rd quarter came on mike-star blitz out of nickel from the wide side of the field, Eagles showed a 5 man front versus Cowboys empty set resulting in one-on-one protection, Singleton was aligned at 0-technique dictating the OC account for him and removing him from help versus the outside blitz; Singleton dropped out but both Sweat and Maddox got in clean
Avery more snaps in the nickel in the 3rd quarter, He lined up on the LOS in the 5 man reduced front and was used as both a pass rusher and underneath zone defender
Wilson 2 yard TD on 4th and goal in the 4th quarter great example of how QB second reaction movement breaks down the discipline of zone coverage: Play design was to trips to Prescott’s left but the Eagles took that away, Prescott moved right and his movement broke down Slay zone coverage responsibility
Schultz 22 yard TD on 3rd + 1 in the 4th quarter came out of 11 2x2 versus Eagles base cover 3, Play action boot to the boundary off outside zone to the field; Singleton responsible for Schultz in the flat but he reacted hard to the run action away and was out of position
Elliott looked strong as a runner, He ran with lateral quickness and downhill power, He just didn’t break one but he looked good
Efficient performance by the Cowboys with strong run-pass mix, and a good mix of 11 (49%) and 12 (32%) personnel and 4 snaps of Pony with Elliott and Pollard; Eagles never really stopped their run game so they could stay balanced and dictate how they wanted to play
CHIEFS OFFENSE VERSUS CHARGERS DEFENSE
Chargers a dime defense on 3rd down with Gilman the dime safety, Campbell the slot corner in nickel and dime; Tranquill predominantly the dime LB with Murray also snaps
Chargers also snaps of dime in selected long yardage situations – They played only 1 snap of base defense and the Chiefs played 27 snaps with base personnel (12, 13 and 21)
Davis was predominantly the boundary corner with Samuel the field corner, Davis lined up over Kelce versus Chiefs 1x3 sets out of 11 personnel
Chargers featured loaded fronts out of dime on 3rd down: Bosa sack on 3rd + 6 in 2nd quarter, He was aligned inside Nwosu to the 3 man side and beat RG Smith – Bosa lined up both inside the wide DE to the 3 man side and at wide 9 DE opposite the 3 man load
Chargers multiple with coverage concepts on 3rd down including 2 man, cover 1 and 1 robber; James deployed in multiple ways on 3rd down: man-to-man on WR (#3 to trips in 1x3 sets) and backs and Kelce at times, back end safety, blitzer
Man coverage was Chargers predominant coverage on 3rd down versus Chiefs, Davis was the matchup on Kelce in 1x3 sets – Man coverage has been the Chargers predominant coverage on 3rd down through 3 games: cover 1 and 2 man
There were man coverage snaps where LB White and Tranquill were matched on Kelce – Chargers played more than 80% man coverage versus the Chiefs with 2 man a significant part (Bucs game plan in the Super Bowl featured 2 man and it was effective)
In 2 man versus 1x3/3x1 sets the Chargers had the boundary safety look inside to #3 as a robber so it became 2 man robber
Edwards-Helaire 10 yard reception TD came on well-designed misdirection screen to the boundary with Kelce from offset alignment in the backfield motioning from the boundary to the field, Chargers cover 1 out of nickel
Chargers snaps of match zone in the red zone, both out of single high and split safety
Edwards-Helaire multiple run game concepts: Inside zone, outside zone, iso lead from I formation; Edwards-Helaire looked laterally quick and explosive, Ran with patience and vision
My sense watching the tape was that the Chiefs have a strong run blocking OL, Outstanding size with plus athleticism
Chargers challenged Mahomes and the receivers to be precise in everything they did and they did not execute at the needed level of consistent efficiency
Mahomes has increasingly become more and more of a second reaction movement QB often leaving the pocket prematurely, His outstanding natural throwing ability will always allow him to make throws but he needs to settle down and play more with fundamental technique within the structure of the passing game
JUSTIN HERBERT VERSUS CHIEFS DEFENSE
Chiefs nickel and dime: Hughes right corner and Fenton left corner with Sneed the slot corner; Hitchens and Bolton were the nickel LB with Niemann continuing to be the dime LB
Chiefs base defense featured Hitchens at the MIKE with Bolton the WILL and Niemann the SAM, Niemann snaps on the ball with Hitchens and Bolton stacked
Baker came in to play left corner in the 2nd quarter after Fenton went out with a concussion
Chiefs out of dime continued to feature disguise and late movement to cover 2 with Mathieu the middle hole defender
Williams predominantly the boundary x, He’s a tough cover on slant routes with his size
Both Sorensen and Thornhill match up to TE when the Chiefs go cover 1 out of sub versus 11 personnel, Sorensen has been the predominant TE matchup
Williams 20 yard TD on 2nd + 11 early in the 4th quarter came out of 11 2x2 versus Chiefs nickel cover 1, Williams plus split #1 to the field with excellent route to get on top of Hughes with space to the outside; Herbert tough in the pocket waited with front side pressure from Jones bearing down on him – Hughes first snap at left corner
Williams 43 yards in the 4th quarter came on well-designed play action shotgun boot left to the field with Guyton jet action across the formation to run wheel outside of Williams reduced split vertical, Chiefs were in cover 3 with flat defender Sorensen and corner Baker both reacting to Guyton wheel leaving Williams free
Herbert has a refined feel for the timing and rhythm of the passing game, He gets the ball out to the right receiver at the right time; While Herbert clearly has a big arm with big play ability at the intermediate and deeper levels he does wait for in the pocket when the rhythmic throw is there
Chiefs DC Spagnuolo aggressive with zero blitz on Chargers final GW drive, 3 consecutive snaps of zero blitz with Williams 16 yards the last one; That has been Spagnuolo’s MO with the Chiefs
Chargers aggressive with play calls late in the 4th quarter, Herbert outstanding back shoulder throw to Williams 16 yards versus Hughes came versus Chiefs last of 3 consecutive snaps of zero blitz
Hughes tough 4th quarter: Williams 20 yard TD, Williams 16 yards, Williams 4 yard, all in man coverage
Chiefs coverage approach was what it normally is: cover 1 as the foundation with significant snaps of cover 3 and cover 2; As always Spagnuolo featured snaps of cover zero in critical situations
RAIDERS OFFENSE VERSUS DOLPHINS DEFENSE
Coleman and Needham both snaps at slot corner in Dolphins nickel, In cover 1 they matched up on Renfrow; Safety Rowe was the matchup on Waller in nickel
Baker and Roberts were the nickel LB, Both McCourty and rookie Holland played post safety in the Dolphins high percentage single high safety coverages
Renfrow is a detailed nuanced route runner who consistently creates separation versus man coverage: 24 yards on crosser versus Coleman on first possession, 12 yard TD versus Howard in 3rd quarter in which he made the route look like stop-wheel then pivoted back inside
When Waller was the boundary x on back side of trips in 12 personnel Dolphins out of nickel matched Jones on Waller and Rowe matched up to Moreau
Bunch continued to be a foundation of Raiders pass game concepts especially versus man coverage: Edwards 23 yards in 1st quarter
Dolphins went dime on 3rd down versus Raiders 11 personnel and they matched Jones on Waller with Coleman and Needham matched on WR; Jones was the consistent matchup on Waller with Howard matched on Ruggs in Dolphins dime versus 11 personnel
Dolphins used safety Jones as a blitzer in the dime sub package, He ran through back Drake on Renfrow 25 yards on 3rd + 10
Ruggs 21 yards on 3rd + 3 in 2nd quarter great example of Raiders use of motion and natural pick/rub to defeat man coverage, Jones 15 yards on 3rd + 6 in 3rd quarter another great example
Raiders tough to match up to with man coverage, Raiders win with scheme and concepts and with individual matchups
Waller 23 yards on 3rd + 13 late in 3rd quarter came out of 12 1x3 with Waller #3 to trips versus Dolphins disguised late movement to cover 3, Waller intermediate route in 3 level concept working hook-to-curl defender Jones with his route to create just enough space for Carr
Edwards 32 yards in OT came out of 11 1x3 with Edwards #3 to trips versus Dolphins dime cover 1 blitz out of loaded front, Edwards sail route beat Coleman and Carr delivered a precise ball
Carr showed efficient pocket movement and second reaction ability, and made some big-time throws in critical situations
19 of Barber’s 23 runs came out of base but his longest run of the game (27 yards) came out of 11 personnel
Barber featured with inside zone and gap scheme, He is a north-south downhill runner with functional lateral quickness and good balance and natural power to finish; He consistently worked through small creases at the POA especially in the gap scheme run game
Dolphins snaps of nickel on 1st down versus Raiders 12 personnel, They featured 5 man reduced fronts
Raiders pass game profile: Different personnel packages (featuring multiple TE) and formations, shifts and motions, reduced splits, condensed formations, bunch, natural pick/rub elements
Dolphins a high percentage cover 1 defense out of nickel and dime, They have played the highest percentage of cover 1 of any team in the NFL through 3 games
PACKERS OFFENSE VERSUS 49ERS DEFENSE
Norman right corner and Moseley left corner were the outside corners, Harris was the third LB in the base defense; Williams was the slot corner in nickel and dime, Rookie Hufanga was the third safety in dime
49ers featured 5 man fronts out of base with Al-Shaair aligned on the ball and Warner and Harris stacked
Nijman first NFL start at LT for the Packers, 3 year starter at Virginia Tech (2 seasons at LT, one at RT)
No QB attacks one-on-one coverage with more efficiency and precision than Rodgers: Lazard 42 yards on first possession, Slot fade versus Williams press man – 49ers had Tartt matched on Adams versus Packers empty set, Hufanga was the post safety
Packers game plan featured empty sets, That was evident on first 2 possessions – Rodgers in the game out of empty: 7-9 for 159 yards and TD
Bunch also featured part of Packers game plan, almost always tight bunch to the field
Valdes-Scantling 47 yards on 2nd possession came out of 11 empty and was a schemed cover 4 beater with Adams vertical release on intermediate route holding down safety Ward and Valdes-Scantlin deep over in the void behind Ward – Great play design to attack quarters
Williams hurt on Packers second possession, Rookie Lenoir replaced him at slot corner; Johnson replaced injured Norman at right corner in the nickel in the 2nd quarter
Adams 1 yard TD to end second possession came on simple yet effective use of motion versus man coverage
49ers predominant nickel front featured 5 across diamond look with Warner standing up as the 0 or 1-technique
Adams 16 yards and 19 yards on final possession of 2nd quarter 2 more examples of Rodgers working the one-on-ones, both back shoulder fades versus backup corner Johnson; Adams the boundary x on back side of trips both times
Starting in the 3rd quarter Lenoir played right corner in both the base and the nickel, with Johnson the slot corner in nickel
Packers featured a good mix of 11 and 12 personnel, They played a higher percentage of 12 percentage of 12 personnel versus the 49ers than they normally – Did they want to play against the 49ers base defense with Harris the third LB?
Jones has a great feel for the cutback in the zone run game, Reads gap fluidity and defensive flow and finds the crease at the POA
Valdes-Scantling 12 yard TD on 3rd + 4 early in the 4th quarter came out of 11 empty with Valdes-Scantling #3 to trips, Double smash concept with Valdes-Scantling running the corner route outside post safety Tartt and over dropping zone corner Lenoir; Unbelievable throw by Rodgers
Adams 25 yards to start GW FG drive was a big-time dig throw by Rodgers on dagger concept, 49ers played cover 4 and Warner got great depth on his underneath drop but Rodgers just dropped him over him
Adams 17 yards on final play before GW FG came on an in-breaker versus what looked like 2 man coverage but corner Lenoir stayed too far outside and too deep and gave Adams the middle of the field with safety Hufanga dropping too deep to help at all
49ERS OFFENSE VERSUS PACKERS DEFENSE
Packers nickel and dime: Alexander left corner and Stokes right corner with Sullivan the slot corner, Black was the dime safety; Barnes and Campbell were the nickel LB with Campbell was the dime LB
Barnes got hurt after playing 10 snaps; Summers, Garvin and Burks all significant snaps at LB depending on personnel package
Gary and P. Smith again the Packers predominant edge pass rushers in their sub front with Z. Smith still injured
Packers featured some loaded fronts on 3rd down out of dime, At times P. Smit hand Gary aligned on the same 3 man side
Juszczyk was the 49ers back on 3rd down in 11 personnel, He is an excellent receiver who can line up in multiple locations and run different routes
Packers went 2 man out of dime on first 3rd down with safety Amos matched on Kittle; 2 man was the coverage the Packers started with on 3rd down versus 49ers, They also played cover 2 getting to it from disguised late movement with Savage the middle hole defender
Packers played cover 1 out of nickel on 3rd and medium, Amos was again the matchup on Kittle
Packers showed multiple personnel packages and front alignments at times matching up to 49ers 11 personnel with base, Packers first sack of Garoppolo came on 1st + 10 out of base versus 11
Second sack of Garoppolo also came out of base versus 11 from a different front alignment
Packers showed some 4 man rush zone exchange concepts out of nickel: Third Garoppolo sack came out of that concept with Burks the fourth rusher
Aiyuk 8 yard TD on 3rd + goal in the 3rd quarter came out of 11 3x1 with tight bunch to the field and Aiyuk the boundary x, Packers out of dime went cover 1 blitz with Amos blitzing off the boundary edge, 49res ran mirrored 7 stop routes with Sanu working the middle; Garoppolo outstanding timing throw with Aiyuk great route to beat Alexander
49ers started final TD drive with “All Go H Seam” with Sermon running the halfback seam but the Packers took it away with cover 3 match
Garoppolo threw a great ball on the second play of the final drive: Samuel out route but Stokes outstanding coverage in Packers nickel cover 1
Kittle 39 yards on 3rd + 10 on go-ahead TD drive in 4th quarter came out of 11 2x2 with Kittle slot to the field versus Packers dime 2 man this time Sullivan matched on Kittle, Kittle in-breaker separated from Sullivan with run-after-catch result of Garoppolo ball placement
49ers OL had some issues in pass protection throughout the game, particularly on the right side of the OL – Garoppolo great throw under pressure to Samuel 12 yards on 3rd + 10 on final TD drive, RG Brunskill beaten by DT Clark
Juszczyk 12 yard TD with :40 remaining came out 11 1x3 bunch to the field with Kittle the boundary x and Juszczyk offset to the boundary, Packers out of dime went with 4 over 3 box call to bunch which means it’s man-to-man to the boundary, Kittle reduced split presents pick/rub to Amos matched on Juszczyk and Amos jumped outside opening the middle for Juszczyk on angle route – Great red zone design
Packers overall through 3 games have been a predominant single high safety coverage defense but they have also played significant snaps of split safety, It’s been a good mix of single high and split safety
VIKINGS OFFENSE VERSUS SEAHAWKS DEFENSE
Seahawks an exclusive nickel sub defense: Flowers right corner and Reed left corner with Amadi the slot corner
First 3rd and long (3rd + 7) Seahawks went cover 1 out of nickel versus Vikings 11 personnel with Adams matched on TE Conklin, They rushed 6 from loaded front alignment knowing how the Vikings would protect with back Mattison; The objective was to get Brooks one-on-one on Mattison and it worked with Brooks hitting Cousins arms
Seahawks 3rd down defense out of nickel: Cover 1, cover 3, 3 under-3 deep behind 5 man rush (Adams), 1 robber with Adams the robber, cover 4, 2 man, red zone cover 2/4
Vikings continued to show snaps of 10 personnel on 3rd down, Westbrook is the fourth WR
Seahawks showed some effectiveness with stunts from their multiple nickel front looks
Osborn 15 yards on 3rd + 5 in 4th quarter came versus same Seahawks pressure concept they showed on first 3rd and long of the game, This time Barton not Brooks was the designated rusher and he got in clean; Cousins outstanding throw falling away to Osborn on the crosser versus Amadi in Seahawks cover 1
20 of Mattison’s 26 carries came out of base personnel, for 88 yards; He only had 6 carries 6 carries out of 11 personnel
Seahawks featured 5 DL fronts with Wagner and Brooks/Barton stacked versus Vikings 21 and 12 personnel, At times they aligned in reduced fronts
Seahawks also continued to show 5 man fronts out of nickel in normal down and distance situations with LB Brooks on the ball and Wagner the stacked LB
Vikings continued to show a well-designed screen game: Mattison 20 yards in 1st quarter a good example working off 3 man vertical route concept to the same side of the formation, Mattison 23 yards in 2nd quarter to the boundary out of 11 1x3 set – Mattison caught 3 screens versus Seahawks
Play action boot continued to be a foundation of the Vikings pass game, predominantly off outside zone: Conklin 17 yards in 1st quarter
Cousins would throw smoke off called run play when the corner was playing with a big cushion: Jefferson 8 yards in 1st quarter
Jefferson 26 yards on 1st + 10 in 2nd quarter great example of attacking cover 3 with full field route concept: Empty set with bunch to the field attacked both hook-to-curl defenders Adams with Osborn deep over route and Wagner hi-lowed to the trips side – Jefferson 28 yards on 2nd + 10 late in 3rd quarter was the same play with the formation flipped
Conklin beginning to emerge as a receiving TE, Vikings using him more detached from the formation
Seahawks struggled in cover 1 versus both Vikings 12 and 11 personnel, It has been a problem
Vikings worked hi-low concepts in the middle of the field and one-on-ones on the outside, Seahawks did not present much resistance; Corners Flowers and Reed will struggle outside the numbers
Thielen 21 yards on 2nd + 11 in the 3rd quarter came out of 11 2x2 with Thielen #1 plus split to the field versus Seahawks nickel cover 6, Thielen dig to the halves side of the coverage and was wide open in the void with Cousins manipulating underneath defender Brooks
1st down has been a problem for the Seahawks both defending the run and the pass – 1st down pass defense: 35-49, 364 yards, 71.4%, 7.4 yards per attempt, 2 TD
Mattison showed a good feel for the cutback in the zone run game, He read defensive flow and worked back one gap at a time; Mattison ran downhill with velocity and power, He ran over safety Diggs on 13 yard run in the 4th quarter
Mattison 24 yards in 4th quarter came out of 21 closed to the boundary with fullback Ham offset to the closed TE side of the formation, It was outside zone to the boundary and was well blocked play side
Seahawks defense through 3 games has faced the most rushing attempts of any team in the NFL and they are allowing 4.47 yards per attempt; They have struggled on 1st down facing 19 1st down rushers per game (highest average in the NFL) and allowing 5.12 yards per rush
Seahawks 3rd down defense among the worst in the NFL, allowing opposing offenses to convert at a rate of almost 49%
Cousins has been outstanding on 1st down through 3 games: 38-49, 79.2%, 368 yards, 4 TD
SEAHAWKS OFFENSE VERSUS VIKINGS DEFENSE
Wilson did not turn it loose to wide open Swain down the seam versus cover 2 on first possession, Shotgun power run action held down middle hole defender Kendricks and Wilson had Swain; Carson check down for 5 yards
Metcalf 28 yards on 3rd + 3 on first possession came on great pivot route by Metcalf back inside versus Peterson matching up in Vikings cover 1
Peterson has not been used as a matchup corner this season, He lines up on the right side with Breeland on the left side
Carson ran zone concepts, gap schemes and pin pull; LT Brown almost always the puller in the pin-pull schemes
Vikings showed both double mug looks and loaded fronts versus the Seahawks, Stunt concepts out of loaded fronts
Vikings continue to feature split safety as a foundation of their coverage: Cover 2, cover 4 and cover 6; Vikings also played significant snaps of cover 1
Metcalf 23 yards on 2nd quarter TD drive came out of 11 2x2 with wide plus splits on both sides of the formation, Vikings matched the formation with cover 2 out of nickel and Metcalf worked against safety Woods on his vertical stem
Griffen continued to play snaps inside at 3-technique DT in the Vikings nickel fronts but he also lined up outside – 3rd quarter sack came on T/E stunt with Tomlinson with Griffen selling edge rush then spinning back inside to loop behind Tomlinson
It was evident the Seahawks made a commitment to running the ball with Carson in the 1st half, Carson had carries in the opening half – 30 yard TD came out of 12 3x1 with Metcalf the single receiver to the field versus Vikings 5 man reduced front, Outstanding reach block by LG Lewis on 4i DT Weatherly
Vikings another defense that featured some 5 man reduced fronts out of base with the SAM LB Lynch on the ball – Big trend in the NFL
Dissly 39 yards in the 2nd quarter came on bang power play action with the quick crosser to Dissly behind the LB, Slot receiver Swain jet motion from the boundary to the field changed the Vikings defense from conventional cover 3 to 3 boundary lock with slot corner Alexander adding into the front – Well-designed concept
Wilson will always leave throws on the field that are there, That’s part of his game and just who he is as a QB – That becomes magnified when his defense cannot get the opposing offense off the field on 3rd down
Seahawks second possession of 2nd half did not come until there were less than 14 minutes remaining in the 4th quarter – Vikings 8 minute drive and 5 minute drive both ending in FG
Wilson poor ball placement throw to wide open Swain on 3rd + 7 in the 4th quarter that would have kept the drive alive in a 10 point game, A throw Wilson must make
Wilson underthrew open Hart on deep sail route that would have been a TD with 2½ minutes remaining and made it a one score game – Overall not a strong game for Wilson
Through 3 games the Seahawks have run the fewest offensive plays in the NFL averaging only 52 plays per game
TITANS OFFENSE VERSUS COLTS DEFENSE
First 3rd and long (3rd + 9) Colts showed loaded front out of nickel with cover 1 behind it, Leonard and Okereke keyed the back with Okereke adding in as the fifth rusher when McNichols stayed opposite; No OL accounted for Okereke and he sacked Tannehill
First three 3rd downs Colts played cover 1 out of nickel: Okereke sack, Tannehill 17 yard scramble, Tannehill incompletion
Titans showed an unbalanced line on second possession with RT Quessenberry aligned outside of LT Lewan, Quessenberry beaten to the inside by Muhammad: Henry no gain
Titans went 10 personnel on third 3rd down, They lined up in an empty set with Brown #2 and Jones #1 to trips; Colts matched up with cover 1 behind 3 man rush with 2 underneath zone defenders
Jones 15 yards on 4th + 4 on second possession well-schemed man beater route concept out of 11 1x3 bunch with Jones running shallow crosser from #1, 2 natural picks/rubs to get Jones clear on the crosser
Henry 19 yards on second possession was zone lead weak out of straight I, Carter was the fullback with Blasingame inactive
Rogers 6 yard TD on 3rd and goal to end second possession came out of 11 3x1 with Rogers #3 to trips, Colts cover 1 out of nickel with Moore matched on Rogers; Play design was to Rogers on the crosser with te boundary routes creating space for the throw by Tannehill
Colts DC Oberflus has always believed in spy tactic versus mobile QB, He used Okereke as a spy on Rogers 6 yard TD
Colts much more cover 1 on 3rd down versus Titans than has been DC Eberflus profile with the Colts, Cover 1 was Colts foundational 3rd down coverage through the 1st half – In the 2nd half the Colts played more zone coverage on 3rd down
Jones 25 yards on 2nd + 7 in 2nd quarter came on hi-low concept to the boundary versus Colts nickel cover 2, Jones corner route in the outside void
Titans focused Henry run game to the left side of the formation working behind LG Saffold and LT Lewan
Colts featured 3 man DL rushes out of nickel with both zone and cover 1 behind, Part of game plan approach versus Titans 11 personnel passing game
Swaim 26 yards on 1st + 10 to start 2nd quarter possession with 14-7 lead came out of 12 personnel with multiple shifts to get to the I formation closed to the boundary, It was zone lead run action to the boundary with Swaim after 2 hard steps winding back to the field to synch with Tannehill boot off the run action
Titans continued with screen game to Henry: 14 yards in 2nd quarter, It came off run action boot look to get the LB to play boot rules and react away from screen side – Henry 11 yard reception on final FG drive from #1 to the boundary in empty set
Colts played some snaps of nickel versus Titans 12 personnel, SS Willis almost always the box safety in single high safety defenses
First 3rd down in 3rd quarter (3rd + 5) Colts showed cover 1 out of nickel behind loaded front, Disguise with late movement to cover 2 to the field and 2 man to the boundary; 4 man DL pass rush with stunt on loaded front side collapsed pocket on Tannehill incompletion
McNichols 10 yard TD reception on 3rd and goal came out of 11 1x3 with TE Pruitt reduced split to the boundary, Colts initially showed 2 man look with press to trips and Leonard over Pruitt but it would become split safety zone at the snap; Leonard sunk too deep and was not in position to defend the flat throw to McNichols
What was missing from the Titans offense versus Colts was big plays in the passing game, Longest pass play was Swaim 26 yards on flat throw off designed boot action; Tannehill only two 20 yard completions in the game
Tannehill strong success in play action pass game through 3 games: 18-24 for 299 yards and TD – Surprisingly Tannehill not near the top of the league in play action drop backs
Tannehill also excellent 1st down passing through 3 games: 27-36, 69.2%, 336 yards, 2 TD
Henry effective running out of 12 personnel through 3 games: 28-197, 7 yards per rush; He has not been as effective running out of 11 personnel: 30-117, 3.9
MATTHEW STAFFORD VERSUS BUCS DEFENSE
Bucs loaded front on first 3rd down with cover behind it – Bucs a nickel sub defense (only 1 snap of dime through 1 games)
Rookie Tryon showed velocity and power as an edge pass rusher, He flashed strong hands and explosive movement – Length and explosiveness
Bucs DC Bowles went zero blitz on 3rd + 4 from the Rams 11 yard line, Stafford tunnel screen to Higbee 12 yards
Kupp 22 yards on 1st + 10 late in 1st quarter came out of no huddle tempo 4x1 empty versus Bucs nickel cover 4, Post-corner combination with Kupp running the corner route off an inside vertical stem; Rams chipped both edge rushers Barrett and Tryon
Higbee significant snaps at boundary x on the back side of trips – McVay using Higbee more in the passing than in previous years
Stafford out of empty sets through 3 games: 25-32 for 345 yards and 3 TD; All but 3 of empty sets came out of 11 personnel – Stafford most empty sets in the NFL through 3 games: Tendency predictability of coverage, Coverage declaration before the snap
Delaney replaced injured Dean at corner opposite Davis in the 1st quarter, Cockrell continued to be the slot corner with Murphy-Bunting on IR
Bucs multiple with their coverage concepts, as they have been all season; They play both single high and split safety coverages and they also feature dropping DL at times
Kupp 22 yards on 2nd + 10 late in 2nd quarter came out of 11 empty with Kupp #3 to trips versus Bucs nickel cover 1 behind 5 man rush, Trips side was the man beater side with Kupp wheel route underneath Woods and Jackson vertical releases
Kupp 2 yard TD out of 11 1x3 set also a man beater concept this time out of bunch with Kupp #3 working behind Woods and Jefferson
Tryon, not Barrett, was the edge pass rusher the Rams more consistently chipped; Tryon longer and more naturally explosive
Rams defeated both man and zone coverage throughout the game, They had answers for both with their route concepts and Stafford was aggressive turning the ball loose
Rams featured 4x1 sets as part of their empty set package, They aligned their back as the inside receiver to the 4 man side and often used him to chip the edge pass rusher
Kupp 10 yard TD in the 3rd quarter came out of 11 empty with reduced split #1 to the boundary, Kupp great route versus Davis making it look like a pivot route back inside then breaking outside
Stafford outstanding off play action through 3 games: 17-21 for 284 yards and 2 TD
Rams have featured motion as a significant part of their offensive approach, Motion has been used meaningfully more in their run game than their pass game
Rams high percentage 11 personnel through 3 games, almost 80% of offensive snaps; Rams very multiple with formations out of 11 personnel
JOE BURROW VERSUS STEELERS DEFENSE
Haden and Pierre the outside corners in Steelers dime with Sutton and Norwood the slot corners, Schobert and Bush both snaps as the dime LB
Chase excellent quickness off the ball to defeat press man coverage: 15 yards on 3rd + 8 in the 1st quarter Chase beat Haden off the LOS on his out route
Steelers snaps of 2 man coverage out of dime on 3rd and long – 2 man has been one of Steelers staple coverages on 3rd down
Both cover 1 and cover 2 have been staple coverages of the Steelers out of both nickel and dime, especially on 3rd down; Steelers also continued to play snaps of 1 robber on 3rd down with Fitzpatrick the robber
Steelers have played 50% nickel and 28% dime through 3 games so almost 80% of their defensive snaps through 3 games have come out of sub defenses
Empty sets have been a meaningful part of Bengals pass game through 3 games with Burrow the second most empty set snaps in the NFL (Stafford)
Against the Steelers more than half of Burrow drop back came out of empty sets, It spread the defense and gave Burrow coverage declaration and predictability
Boyd 17 yard TD on 3rd + 2 in the 1st quarter came out of 11 empty versus Steelers base defense, Boyd was aligned in the inside slot to trips and he ran the whip route versus LB Bush; Burrow looked left on his drop to the twins side but that vertical-out combination was taken away by the trap coverage so he came back to Boyd who scored with excellent run-after-catch
Burrow snaps of 10 personnel, They can line up with 4 quality WR and that can both stress defenses and force defenses to declare and create predictability in coverage
Steelers lacked edge pass rush with both Watt and Highsmith inactive, Ingram used both as an edge rusher and a Joker
Chase 34 yard TD late in 2nd quarter came out of 11 2x2 with Chase #1 to the field versus Steelers cover 1 behind 5 ma pressure, Corner Pierre bailed before the snap and Burrow still went to Chase on the go route; Chase separated with the ball in the air and Burrow made a big-time throw
Chase 9 yard TD in the 3rd quarter came out of 11 2x2 with Chase #1 to the field versus Steelers base cover 1 behind a 5 man pressure, Bengals ran a 4 man route combination to the boundary with Chase working one-on-one versus Haden to the back side with the entire side of the field cleared; Burrow initially worked the 4 man combination then came back to Chase who ran a great route to beat Haden on the crosser
Burrow looks very comfortable in the pocket, There’s an efficiency to his game; I also believe the ball is coming out with a little more juice