And just like that, the future direction of the NFL is more
obvious than ever.
The 1980’s introduced a new era of football strategy and
personnel. Lawrence Taylor
terrorized offenses thanks to his unparalleled and never-before-seen ability to
take down opposing quarterbacks when rushing from his outside linebacker
position. A game against the
Giants meant opposing offenses were going to spend all week planning against
the original LT. Unfortunately,
such attempts rarely worked.
Taylor’s style of play revolutionized NFL offensive and defensive positions
alike.
As Sandra Bullock knows, offensive tackles, particularly at
the left tackle position, needed to change in order to prevent
this from being a regular
occurrence.
You can define the NFL
in two ways: before LT and after LT.
The magnitude of the widespread changes that came during and after his
reign has not been seen since – that is, until now.
 |
Maybe Bullock should consider joining the football
maidens of CBS. |
We’ve seen a fair share of new offensive developments over
the past five years. The spread
offense, the dual running back system, and the Wildcat/option have all grown
into favor throughout the league.
Yet, it seems as though these changes were all done in response to
existing trends rather than as a reaction to a dynamic player. The spread offense was a consequence of
antiquated rushing attacks and the overuse of the I-formation. As the emphasis on a passing game has increased,
so has the demand for a running back that can rush as well as receive. When you couple this with the overall
wear and tear on an every-down tailback, it becomes obvious why using multiple
running backs became favorable.
The wildcat, which has already begun to fall out of favor, was
introduced as a gimmick by an inferior Dolphins team to pull a how-the-hell-could-we-have-prepared-for-that win over the Patriots. There’s certainly nothing transcendent
about one player who cannot pass handing the ball off to another player who
cannot pass.
Finally, though, there is a development that will stand the
test of time. We are now entering
a new age of football and with it will come a wide variety of strategic changes
for teams in terms of offensive and defensive personal, play call, and draft
targets. Just as dynamic pass-rushing linebackers and agile offensive linemen have seamlessly wound
themselves into the fabric of the NFL, so will the newest player progression.
Jimmy Graham, Vernon Davis, Rob Gronkowski, and Aaron
Hernandez made an official announcement during the Divisional Round: The tight
end is the new centerpiece of the NFL offense.
There are three components to this column: the Divisional
Round results, the statistical backing, and the defensive solution.
Part 1: The Divisional Round Results
(Skip this section if
you think talking about this past weekend would make me a “prisoner of the
moment.”)
The four men listed above produced a whopping 544 total
yards and eight touchdowns this past weekend. If you take the top four offensive performers in any given
weekend, you may not see such a staggering total.
The numbers don’t even tell the whole story.
Graham’s 103 receiving yards included a spectacular 66-yard
go-ahead touchdown reception in the final minutes of Saturday’s game against the
49ers in which he caught the ball in the middle of the field like you’d expect
a NBA power forward to bring in an alley-oop. Brees simply lofted the ball towards his big target and let
Graham do the rest, which consisted of spinning out of a poor tackle before
running another 40 yards to the Baja.
Meanwhile, Davis, who already had a 37-yard game-changing reception
prior to that of Graham, took over on the last drive, recording a 47-yard
reception before squeezing onto an Alex Smith pass at the goal line for the game-winning
touchdown. Both Smith and Brees
went to their tight ends in the clutch.
 |
For all the talk about Graham and Gronkowski, Vernon Davis is
probably the best athlete of them all |
In the later game, New England tight ends, Rob Gronkowski and
Aaron Hernandez, were the major reasons for the Patriots' demolition of the
Broncos. Gronkowski, as he had
been all season, was Brady’s first option early in the game. The two got in a rhythm, producing three
first half touchdowns. Additionally, Belichick, who always seems to be involved
in NFL phenomenons in some fashion, moved Hernandez to the backfield, which
resulted in a 43-yard run. By the
start of the second half, the game was essentially finished.
The difference between this NFL-wide revolution and previous
ones is that the changes are being brought about because of multiple players. Graham and Gronkowski may be the poster
boys for the domination of the tight end, but it seems as though most offenses
are trying to establish their own superstar at the position.
Slowly but surely, offenses are realizing that the tight end
is the game changer. Even the best
wide receivers, running backs, and/or quarterbacks can have their impact
minimized by a single defensive player who can match up talent wise. But, there isn’t a safety, cornerback, or
linebacker who has the size, speed, and man coverage abilities to run with the top tight ends.
Part 2: The Statistical Backing
(Skip this section if
you pretty much already believe everything I say and don’t need to hear about
decade long trends)
To further understand the impact that tight ends have had
around the league this season, I decided to see how many tight ends led their
respective teams in receptions, receiving yards, and/or receiving touchdowns. The results were telling. Twelve teams this season had a tight
end lead them in at least one of the three main categories. Even more interesting is that only
three of those teams were under .500.
Additionally, Washington tight end, Fred Davis, was the only tight end
in the top-ten receiving yards for the position to be on a team with a losing
record.
 |
Anytime someone with the number 24(a DB #) is guarding a
tight end, something has already gone wrong |
I then took my research a bit further and investigated the
role of the tight end position for each of the teams to make the
postseason. The average regular
season numbers for the starting tight end on a playoff roster are 62
receptions, 762 yards, and 6 touchdowns.
You might think these numbers are a bit skewed from Gronkowski and
Graham (Hernandez was not included in the calculations as he is not the number
one), but consider that the total numbers also include Broncos tight end,
Daniel Fells, (good for just 19 receptions and 256 yards) and Jake Ballard (38
receptions, 604 yards). To put the
staggering yardage total in perspective, from 2001 to 2010, a tight end
finished with greater than 762 receiving yards only 50 times. The back third of the decade, from
2001-2003, contributed just seven to the 50. Thirteen tight ends went beyond 762 yards in 2011 alone.
Some might argue that this is attributed to increased
passing across the league. That is
simply incorrect. Over the last
three seasons, a wide receiver has
surpassed 1,000 yards 53 times, 1,200 yards 22 times, and 1,400 yards six
times. From 2001-2003, receivers
went over the 1,000 yard mark 59 times, the 1,200 mark 29 times, and the 1,400
yard total six times. In other
words, whereas the individual accumulation of statistics for tight ends has grown
over the decade, the total for wide receivers has actually had a slight
decrease. If improved tight end
play was solely because of amplified passing, you’d expect to see a similar
increase for wide receivers.
Part 3: The Defensive Solution
(Skip this section if
you don’t care about the future of the NFL, in which case you have probably
already wasted your time on this article)
Lawrence Taylor’s impact in the NFL would have been far less
reaching were it not for the subsequent evolution, not just for teams
defensively, but offensively as well.
If this tight end phenomenon is to have a lasting impact, defenses will
need to adjust their entire approach to defending the position. Actually, let me correct that
statement. If defensive
coordinators have any objections to tight ends going for over 125 yards in
every game, then defenses will need to adjust their entire approach to defending
the position.
Middle linebackers are not getting the job done against the
tight end and the reason for this is simple; they have too much on their
plate. Inside linebackers need to
be responsible for stopping the run once the running back makes it past the
defensive line. They are often
forced, therefore, to add on additional weight, thereby sacrificing speed. They’re also the defensive signal
callers, which means not only are they watching the quarterback’s every move,
he’s watching theirs. If the
linebacker moves over to guard the tight end in man-to-man coverage, good NFL
quarterbacks will notice, at which point the best ones will attempt to exploit
the mismatch. Using the
linebackers in a zone scheme is an option, except how often do teams devise
only zones to shut down a wide receiver?
The best way to eliminate a wide out is to play tight man coverage with
safety help, but this is something virtually impossible to do against the tight
end with less shifty linebackers attempting to go man-to-man.
Defensive backs cannot match up against the elite tight ends
either. I certainly don’t need to
explain what happens when a 6’ 1”, 200-pound individual gives up four inches
and 50 pounds to the guy they’re supposed to be “covering.” The results are comical.
If you want proof of all of this, look no further than
Graham’s 66-yard touchdown mentioned earlier.
The 49ers tried to do exactly what I am
contending is virtually impossible against the elite tight ends.
Patrick Willis (who, mind you, is probably the fastest linebacker in all of football) was in man coverage with Graham with Donte Whitner playing safety over the top. Graham was, essentially, covered. But there is simply nothing defenses can do when all Brees
needs to manage is an average throw in Graham’s general direction. Willis wasn’t agile enough to turn
around to the ball while in man coverage and Whitner was far too small to
either (A) get in front of Graham, (B) knock the ball out once the catch was
made, or (C) make the open-field tackle.
 |
This picture shows it all. Even the NFL's best middle linebacker
is not yet qualified to play man-to-man against the tight end |
At least in terms of shear athleticism, the most impressive and talented positions in the
modern NFL are the tight end and pass rushing outside linebacker/defensive
end. I spoke a few weeks ago about
the impact these defensive monsters are having in their ability to disrupt the
passing game. After all, it was LT
who initiated this OLB transformation and, ironically, it is that same position
that will need to evolve once again, except this time it is in response to the
offense.
It is not enough anymore to have guys like Terrell Suggs,
Clay Matthews, DeMarcus Ware, and Jason Pierre-Paul employed almost exclusively
to rush the passer and defend the run.
Just as offensive tackles needed to become quicker during and after the
days of Taylor, so do the pass rushers of today. They are the only ones that possess the physical talents to
match up with tight ends, possessing similar size, speed, athleticism, and
quickness. However, much work
needs to be done in their coverage abilities but such adaptation seems easily
within the realm of reason.
Everybody reading this column knows all about the creative
swim and spin moves of the modern pass rusher and these can be modified into an
effective physical man coverage strategy.
Pass interference and defensive holding flags are thrown about like
shirts blasted out of t-shirt guns at a basketball game, but you have
to think that, even in today’s game, refs will allow some extra leeway between
two very physical positions. Pass rushers are already
proficient at another skill that an occasionally blitzing middle linebacker may
not have: shiftiness. They need to be able to
quickly change direction once a run or screen is called. This ability is at least related to
maybe the most difficult part of man coverage: turning to play the ball.
It’s not like pass rushers never play man coverage. However, what I am calling for is more
than the occasional red-zone matchup. They need commitment to
improving their coverage abilities.
The dedication that pass rushers have for recording sacks needs to be at
least as great as their efforts in man coverage against the tight end. If the ends and outside linebackers can
understand and accept that they might need to sacrifice four or five sacks per
season in order to reduce the impact of the tight end, then defenses would
certainly be heading in the right direction. You run the risk of spreading a player two thin, but this is
the skill set that must be developed in the offseason for teams to prevent
showings like the ones we saw this past weekend.
-AW
