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DefendingtheReadOption

NFL

DefendingtheReadOption
TheresnosimplesolutionfortheNFLslatestoffensivetrend,butafteranoffseasonof
searching,defensivecoachesmayfinallyhavesomeanswers.
BYC HR I S B. BR O W N O NJULY25,2013

Offensesattackdefensesreact.Thisisatruism,butitsatruismonwhichalmost
allsportsstrategyisbuilt.IntheNFLtoday,notacticmorepressinglyrequiresa
swift,strongreactionthanthesocalledreadoption.
Lastfall,theseplayscommonincollegefootballbutrelativelynewtotheNFL
broughthavoc.AsoneSECoffensivelinecoachputit,watchingNFLteamstryto
defendthereadoptionwaslikesteppingintoatimemachine:Thepoortechnique,
naivetactics,anduglyresultswerelikeseeingcollegedefensestrytodefendthese
plays,butadecadeago.1

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1.

Thenumbersbackthisup.AccordingtodatacollectedbyFootballOutsiders,read
optionbasedplays(definedloosely,withundoubtedlysomeerrorinidentification
duetoalackofknowledgeabouttheexactplaycalls)averagedroughlyayardanda
halfbetteronaperplaybasisthanotherNFLrushesastaggeringnumber.
Thesolacefortheleaguesdefensivecoordinatorsisthatthehistoryoffootballis
litteredwithstrategiesthatwereunstoppableonedayandobsoletethenext.And,
despitelastseasonsmissteps,theNFLspremierdefensivecoachesarentbeing
shyaboutthefutureofthereadoption:Theydontthinkithasone.Thatsthe
flavorofthemonth,SteelerscoachMikeTomlindeclared,adding,Welook
forwardtoeliminatingit.Theirreasoningissimple:Stoppingthereadoptionis
missioncriticalforeverycoachingstaff.Everybody,likeus,isgoingtodotheir
duediligenceintheoffseason,saidIndianapolisColtscoachChuckPaganoatthe
NFLownersmeetings.Wefeelveryconfidentfromadefensiveperspectivethat
wecancomeupwithsomeschemeandwecangetthoseschemestaught.
Thesepronouncementsarebold,but,untiltheyrebackeduponthefield,theyre
empty.NFLcoacheshavebeenunderstandablyvagueaboutjusthowtheyplanto
stopthereadoption.Evenwithalloflastfalltofocusonanswers,teamsstill
struggled,whichledtothequestionofwheresolutionscouldbefound.
Themostcommonmethodofresearchwasvisitingwithcollegedefensivecoaches
whohavespentmuchofthelastdecadelockedinlifeordeathstruggleswiththe
readoption.Tostopthereadoption,ostensiblyacollegescheme,NFLcoaches
havegonebacktoschool.GreenBayheadcoachMikeMcCarthysenthisentire
stafftovisitwithKevinSumlinsstaffatTexasA&M,andPackersdefensive
coordinatorDomCapersseparatelyspenttimewithWisconsindefensive
coordinatorDaveAranda,whofacedColinKaepernickandhisPistolOffensefor
yearsatHawaiiandthenUtahState.IvebeentoldofvisitsfromNFLcoaches
someofficial,someveryofftherecordtoschoolsasdiverseasStanford,
OklahomaState,Clemson,Alabama,Vanderbilt,BYU,andFloridaState,wherethe
primarytopicofdiscussionwashowtostop,oratleastslow,thereadoption.

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Procoachescanspendasmuchtimeastheydlikesearchingforamagicread
optioncurealloncollegecampuses.Theyarentgoingtofindone.College
defensivecoordinatorsareaslikelytocomplainaboutthedifficultyofdefending
themultifacetedoffensessoprevalentincollegefootballastheyaretoclaimthey
havealltheanswers.AndaquickperusalofanySaturdayafternoongamesora
statisticspageshowsthatthereadoptionishardlybeingstampedoutinthe
collegeranks.Thereadoptionposesrealproblems,problemsthatdemandmore
thanonesolution.
Privately,NFLcoacheshaveadmittedasmuch,butthatdoesntmeantheyarent
stillconfident.Noonebelievestheleaguewillhappenuponasingleanswerthat
candefeattheseschemesonceandforall.Theconfidenceisaresultofcoaches
rethinkingthenatureofthechallenge.Intelligentlydefendingagreatreadoption
teamisnodifferentfromdefendingateamledbyagreattraditionalquarterback.
WhendefensesfacequarterbackslikePeytonManning,TomBrady,orAaron
Rodgers,theydontshowtheexactsamecoverageeverysingleplayandassume
theyhavesolvedthosequarterbacksandtheiroffenses.Theonlyhopeistostay
disciplinedandreactwithavarietyoflooks,hopingnottostifleanoffense
completely,buttomerelystayonesmallstepahead.
Readoptionplaysforcedefensestoapproachreactingtooffensesmuch
differently.Withtraditionalapproaches,thequarterbackknowsbeforetheplay
whetherhewilleitherhandtheballofforkeepit.Inthereadoption,the
quarterback,typicallyalignedintheshotgun,willreadthemovementsofa
particulardefensiveplayer,onetheoffensehasspecificallychosennottoblock.
Itsbasedonthisplayersactionsthatthequarterbackmakeshisdecisionhence
the(redundant)termreadoption.Whenevertheguywhotakesthesnapisa
threattorun,itchangesallthemathofdefenses,TampaBayBuccaneershead
coachGregSchianosaidin2012.Itchangesthenumbersminusone.Last
season,manyNFLdefensesrepeatedlyfailedthisbasiccalculusandtriedtodefend
rungameswithsixtoeightoffensivethreatsblockersorpotentialrunners
whileundermannedbyone,two,oreventhreedefenders.

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Thereadoptionforcesdefensestobringinadditionaldefenderstostoptherun
butthatsonlythefirststep.2 Accordingto49ersdefensivecoordinatorVicFangio,
onreadoptionplays,offensesarenotevenblockingoneoftheguysatthepoint
ofattack,soitactuallybecomes11against10iftheydoitright.So,thenumbers
areflipped(fromatypicalrunningplay,inwhichthequarterbackdoesnthaveto
beaccountedfor).Readoptionplaysgetathreeforone:Theyaddanadditional
offensiveplayerwhomdefenseshavetoworryabout,allowtheoffensetoget
additionalblocksanddoubleteamsbyleavingafrontaldefenderunblocked,and
allowtheoffensetoblockadefensesmostfearsomedefenderthinkDeMarcus
WareorJasonPierrePaulwithaplayerwhohasprobablyneverblockedanyone
inhislife:thequarterback.
2.

OneofthemainreasonsthesocalledWildcatwaseffectiveforonlyashorttimeis
thatoncedefensescommittedsufficientnumberstotherun,offensescouldnt
turntoanythingelse.ThisisbecausetheWildcatrunnerwasneitherapassing
threatnoraplayerreadingdefenders.Hewasjustrunning.Thereadoption,when
runbyquarterbackslikeRussellWilson,Kaepernick,RobertGriffinIII,andCam
Newton,presentsadifferentchallenge.

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Whenthereadoptionfirstbecameprevalentincollegefootball,defensestriedto
defenditthesamewaytheydefendedtraditionalrunplays.Thedefensefit
defendersintoeverygaptotherunsideofthezoneplay,zonereadinventorRich
Rodriguezexplainedatarecentcoachesclinic.Thebacksidedefendersranasfast
astheycouldtotheballandwatchedforthecutback.Inotherwords,thedefense
caredonlyabouttherunningbackandessentiallyignoredthequarterback.The
onlyjobofthedefensiveplayersawayfromtherunsinitialpathwastostopthe
backfromescapingoutthebackside.Thathasallchanged,Rodriguezsaid.
Defensesfitthefrontsideofthedefenseonewayandfitthebacksideanother
waybecausethequarterbackisathreattoruntheball.
Now,defensesmustuseavarietyoftacticsagainstreadoptionplays.Themost
popularchangeupisthescrapeorgapexchange,inwhichthebackside
defensiveendandlinebackerswapresponsibilitiestheendcrashesforthe
runningbackwhilethelinebackerscrapesforthequarterback.Whenthe
quarterbackseestheendcrash,hisreadistopulltheballandkeepit,achoicethat
willresultinhimrunningdirectlyintoawaitinglinebacker.3
3.

Inthe2011playoffs,theNewEnglandPatriotsdecimatedtheTimTebowled
DenverBroncoswiththescrapeexchange.Denversstaffwhichhadinstalled
readoptionplaysontheflyoverthecourseoftheseasonhadnoreadyanswer.

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Thatsecondplayerdoesntevenhavetobealinebacker.Alabama,whichhaswon
threenationalchampionshipsinfouryearsandboaststhebestdefenseincollege
football,constantlyvariesthedefendersassignedtothequarterback.When
AlabamadefensivecoordinatorKirbySmartgivesaforcecall,heexplains,that
leadstoagapreplacementwiththedefensiveend.Thequarterbackseesthe
crashingendandpullstheball,Smartsays.Werollthefreesafetydowntothe
lineofscrimmageandhehasthequarterback.Andallthisvariesbasedonthe
opponent.Ifthequarterbackisabetterrunner,wemakehimgivetothetailback,
saidSmart.Ifthetailbackisthebetterrunner,wegivetheforcecall,andthe
defensiveendcrashesinsideandmakesthequarterbackpulltheball.

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Notalltheproblemswithdefendingtheseplayslastseasonweretactical.NFL
defendersnotusedtothereadoptionfrequentlylackedthemasteryofthesubtle
techniquesthatmadethemAllProsagainsttraditionalattacks.Backsidedefenders
usuallytheveryplayerthequarterbackisreadinghaveanespeciallydifficult
job.Thedefensiveendgetstheshaftbecausehehastoplaytwoaspects:thedive,
thebendofthedivetotheinsideouttotheQB,saysAranda,theWisconsin
defensivecoordinator.Thisfundamentalproblemisalsowhytheoldjusthitthe
quarterbacktacticisnotoptimal,atleastasaneverydownstrategy.Ifthe
defensiveendorlinebackergetsupfieldtooquickly,thatmeansheisnot
squeezingthecutbackandmaybeopeningupahugelaneforthequarterback.

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IndefenseoftheNFLcoaches,thesuddenproliferationofthereadoptioninthe
NFLmeanttheyhadtogetuptospeedonalot,fast.Unlikecollegedefensive
coaches,whogottowatchthereadoptionslowlyevolveoverthepast15years,
NFLcoacheswere,almostovernight,askedtoacea400levelreadoptioncourse,
includingallthemutationsthattookyearstodevelopatthecollegelevel.
ThevariationthatdidthemostdamageintheNFLlastseasoncanbeprimarily
creditedtoChrisAult,Kaepernickscollegecoachandthearchitectofthesocalled
PistolOffense,whichtheRedskinsand49ersandothersthenadaptedtotheirown
systems.

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Thiswrinkle,knownasazoneblufforsamurai,inAultsterminology,adds
anotheroffensiveplayertotheblockingschemetypicallyeitherafullbackora
tightend.Thisplayersjobistoarcaroundandblocktheoutsidelinebacker
theverydefenderwhowilltakethequarterbackinthescrapeexchange.Thisisthe
playthatincineratedtheGreenBayPackersintheplayoffs,whentheywere
repeatedlyoutmannedandoutofpositionintryingtostopSanFranciscosread
optionplusaleadblockerattack.

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Eventhesehigherlevelreadoptionproblemshaveanswers,though.TheWill
[weakside]linebackerwidenswiththat[arc]block,explainedMarkStoops,
formerFloridaStatedefensivecoordinatorandcurrentKentuckyheadcoach,ata
coachingclinic.Thedefensiveendsqueezestothediveback.Ifthequarterback
pullstheball,thedefensiveendpursuesinsidetooutside.TheWilllinebacker
squeezesthearcandforcestheballbackintotheend.Hewantstocondensethe
space.Thefreesafetycheatsdown,fillsthealley,andhelpstheWilllinebacker
playthequarterback.Tostopthezonebluffarcaplaythatcombinesthefinesse
ofthecollegereadoptionwiththepowerbasedblockingtheNFLadores
defensesmustsimilarlyusetacticsandpersonnelthatcombinespeedwith
strength.
Solongasthebattlesareonnotepadsandwhiteboardsinsteadofonthefield,both
offensiveanddefensivecoachescanclaimtheupperhand.Butwhentheseason
starts,therewillbetradeoffsonbothsides.Fordefenses,acommitmentto
shuttingdownthereadoptionnecessarilycreatespotentialproblemselsewhere.
Thereis,accordingtoStoops,aweaknesstoeverycallwemake.Thegoalisto
hideandvarytheweaknesses.
Requiringsafetiesandothertypicallypassfirstdefenderstospendsomuchtime
focusedontherunninggameisdangerousinthepassheavyNFL.Lastseasondid
prove,though,thatkeepingsafetiesdeepandbeingrepeatedlygashedbytherunis
notmuchofananswer,either.ThezonereadissomethingIlearnedthroughout
theyearthatIthinkreallyhelpedus.ItstheleastpassrushIveeverseenasa
coordinator.Guysjustsittingtherejustscaredtodeathjustwatchingeveryone
elsenotmoving,saidRedskinsoffensivecoordinatorKyleShanahanrecently.I
gocrazythinkingaboutblitzeseveryweek,howweregoingtopickallthisstuffup.
AbouthalfwaythroughtheyearImstartingtorealizethatwerenotgettinganyof
theseblitzesthatIusedtosee.
ButthatdoesntmeanNFLdefenseswontblitzmuchthisseason.Ifullyexpect
defensivecoachestobefarmoreaggressiveagainstthereadoptionthisfall,
althoughunlikemanyoftheirschemeslastseasonthoseblitzesmustbe
optionsoundandhavedefendersschooledinthepropertechniquesassignedto

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eachpotentialrunner.Thereadoptiondoesnteliminateblitzing,butitdoes
eliminatesomeofthecrazierblitzesfivedefenderstoonesideorthree
defendersinthesamegapthathadcausedproblemsfortraditionalattacks.
Ofcourse,thetradeoffforoffenseswhousetheseplaysisobviousifyour
quarterbackisapotential(oractual)runner,thenhewillpotentially(oractually)
gethitbyverylarge,veryfastdefensiveplayers.This,asmuchasanytactical
challenge,seemstobetherealreasonNFLdefensivecoachesarentquakingatthe
prospectoftheproliferationandimprovementofschemestheyreallyhadno
answerforlastseason.Theproblemisforthosequarterbacks,oneofthesedays
oneofthemisnotgoingtowalkoff,DetroitLionsdefensivecoordinatorGunther
Cunninghamsaidrecently.Itsalotofpressureonhimtophysicallydothat.The
NFLwritlargecoaches,generalmanagers,otherexecutives,andownershave
spentthepast30plusyearsdevisingincreasinglyelaboratewaysofdoingtwo
things:(1)payingquarterbacksmore,and(2)protectingthemonthefield,through
bothschemeandrulechanges.Thereadoptionmakesthequarterbackaconstant
target.
Thisrealitymayverywellleadtheseplaystovanish,buttheresalsoplentyof
reasontothinkthat,executedcorrectly,theyposenomoreriskthanatraditional
passplay,duringwhichaquarterbackeyesfocuseddownfield,armextended,
unabletoprotecthimselfisasittingtarget.Aproperlyrestrainedquarterback
shouldslideorgetoutofboundsessentiallyanytimehepullstheballonaread
optionplay,andamajorreasonwhyNFLteamslikeAultsarcblockingschemeis
thatitaddsapersonalprotectorforthequarterback.
Allofthiswillbesettledwherethesequestionsalwaysareonthefield.Five
yearsfromnow,NFLoffensesmightbeunrecognizabletoafanfromthe1990sor
2000s,orthereadoptioncouldbeadistantmemory,ashortlivedaberration.That
extinctionwouldstartnow,followinganoffseasonduringwhichtheNFLsbest
defensivemindsoperatedwiththesinglemindedgoalofshuttingdownthese
plays.
Thelowerlevelsoffootballarealwaysgoingtobemoreexperimentalthanthe
inherentlyconservativeNFL,ashundredsoreventhousandsofteams,manyof
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themlackingevenbasicresources,graspforanyadvantagetheycangetaspartofa
collectionofteamswithdisparatetalent.RichRodriguezfamouslysaidhisstaff
inventedthezonereadatlowlyGlenvilleStatebecausetheywerejusttryingtoget
afirstdown.NFLteams,bycontrast,areawashinfacilities,technology,a
relativelyopenmarketforplayers,and,maybemostimportantofall,timetime
forcoaches,whodonthavetoziparoundthecountryrecruiting,andforplayers,
whoarefulltimeprofessionals.Andyet,foranideatobeanessentialpartof
footballhistory,itmustbeabletowithstand,andevolveinresponseto,the
scrutinyoftheallday,everydaynatureoftheNFL.Ifitdiesout,itdiesout,and
theanswersthatdefensivecoachesdevelopedforitthisoffseasonwillbeaddedto
theirpermanentrepertoires.Butifthereadoptioncanstanduptothatonslaught,
itmeansaconceptbornonthedirtpracticefieldsofbackwatercollegeswillhave
becomeentrenchedatthehighestleveloffootball,inaformandstatusitscreators
neverthoughtpossible.

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