2020 Opponents Set

[BleedTheClock]

3 hours ago, candyman93 said:

Not much else going on, so I’m thinking about week 1. I will be really curious to see who starts on defense.
 

It might be safer to have Sendejo start over Delpit week 1. He hits REALLY hard and defends the run. Just get our best run defenders on the field and make Lamar throw.

Theoretically it makes sense, but you can't not play Delpit against the Ravens because you fear his tackling. If we were that concerned with his tackling that we wouldn't play him against a run-first team, we wouldn't have selected him in the early 2nd round. Let's roll the dice and put the kid out there. Besides, we need someone that can roll down and man up their TE's. Sendejo can't do that.

 

I would run heavy man coverage (Cover 0) and blitz the crap out of Lamar's right side. Then spy on the left side. Don't play vanilla zone and let him check down to the TE's for the world's easiest yardage. Make him earn everything through the air. Flush him left and watch the kid crumble.

[bruceb]

28 minutes ago, BleedTheClock said:

I would run heavy man coverage (Cover 0) and blitz the crap out of Lamar's right side.

The only problem with this approach might be that:

"As defensive backs coach for the San Francisco 49ers, Woods relied heavily on zone coverages"

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2890548-every-nfl-teams-undrafted-free-agent-most-likely-to-make-their-2020-roster

Of course, I do not know if the statement made in the article is accurate.

Or if Woods would be flexible enough to make adjustments depending on the opponent.

[BleedTheClock]

16 minutes ago, bruceb said:

The only problem with this approach might be that:

"As defensive backs coach for the San Francisco 49ers, Woods relied heavily on zone coverages"

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2890548-every-nfl-teams-undrafted-free-agent-most-likely-to-make-their-2020-roster

Of course, I do not know if the statement made in the article is accurate.

Or if Woods would be flexible enough to make adjustments depending on the opponent.

Woods said he would be moving to a man scheme given our personnel. I hope he holds true to his words.

[candyman93]

1 hour ago, BleedTheClock said:

Theoretically it makes sense, but you can't not play Delpit against the Ravens because you fear his tackling. If we were that concerned with his tackling that we wouldn't play him against a run-first team, we wouldn't have selected him in the early 2nd round. Let's roll the dice and put the kid out there. Besides, we need someone that can roll down and man up their TE's. Sendejo can't do that.

 

I would run heavy man coverage (Cover 0) and blitz the crap out of Lamar's right side. Then spy on the left side. Don't play vanilla zone and let him check down to the TE's for the world's easiest yardage. Make him earn everything through the air. Flush him left and watch the kid crumble.

I absolutely understand your argument and would normally agree with it.

 

However, another element: I worry about lack of practice and repetition for our rookies as a whole. We are very fortunate that we don’t have to start a ton of young guys. Wills is the only rookie that 100% needs to start day 1.

 

I absolutely like Delpit. I just worry about him getting fooled by the Ravens eye candy and being forced to tackle in space. I can live with Lamar trying to win with his arm.

[BleedTheClock]

56 minutes ago, candyman93 said:

I can live with Lamar trying to win with his arm.

That's the mantra every team had last year. And he was able to sit in the pocket against a muddled rush and wait for his TE's or WR's to find soft spots in the very vanilla zones he saw. It's too easy. You have to force him to make tight window throws against man coverage. He's not capable of that. Anyone is capable of playing pitch & catch to a 6'4 dude posting up in green grass. Especially when the rush is always a "contain" rush. Teams need to get more aggressive against the Ravens and not be afraid to give up some big plays. 

[MWil23]

15 hours ago, BleedTheClock said:

That's the mantra every team had last year. And he was able to sit in the pocket against a muddled rush and wait for his TE's or WR's to find soft spots in the very vanilla zones he saw. It's too easy. You have to force him to make tight window throws against man coverage. He's not capable of that. Anyone is capable of playing pitch & catch to a 6'4 dude posting up in green grass. Especially when the rush is always a "contain" rush. Teams need to get more aggressive against the Ravens and not be afraid to give up some big plays. 

Teams were so scared to play man defense vs. them because of the running factor/didn't want him taking off, especially when they spread the field and went empty, so they overcorrected with that soft zone. I wouldn't be surprised to see teams overload the right side, force him out of the pocket rolling opposite of his throwing arm (to the left), which is exactly what teams started doing to Michael Vick (only forcing him to the right since he was a lefty) in '05, and make pre-snap tight window throws on slants, hitches, speed outs, and seam routes.

Or, I'd overload the inside A gaps and send some internal pressure with ILB if I had athletic DE that could keep contain on him, while aligning my DT in G/head up on the OG.

One thing I would NOT do is play soft zone or man without some type of rush.

[BleedTheClock]

21 minutes ago, MWil23 said:

Teams were so scared to play man defense vs. them because of the running factor/didn't want him taking off, especially when they spread the field and went empty, so they overcorrected with that soft zone. I wouldn't be surprised to see teams overload the right side, force him out of the pocket rolling opposite of his throwing arm (to the left), which is exactly what teams started doing to Michael Vick (only forcing him to the right since he was a lefty) in '05, and make pre-snap tight window throws on slants, hitches, speed outs, and seam routes.

Or, I'd overload the inside A gaps and send some internal pressure with ILB if I had athletic DE that could keep contain on him, while aligning my DT in G/head up on the OG.

One thing I would NOT do is play soft zone or man without some type of rush.

Yeah it’s harder to stop Lamar and the Ravens than it was Vick because it seems like Baltimore always stays in manageable down & distances. They also run left a lot on counters, which makes it hard to overload the right side, like we both want to do. You have to gamble against them though. Don’t play on your heels and be afraid that Jackson will get some big plays on you. Force them into passing downs by gambling. Play press man 0. Guess with some run blitzes. Slant and angle the DL. 

[MWil23]

1 minute ago, BleedTheClock said:

Yeah it’s harder to stop Lamar and the Ravens than it was Vick because it seems like Baltimore always stays in manageable down & distances. They also run left a lot on counters, which makes it hard to overload the right side, like we both want to do. You have to gamble against them though. Don’t play on your heels and be afraid that Jackson will get some big plays on you. Force them into passing downs by gambling. Play press man 0. Guess with some run blitzes. Slant and angle the DL. 

If you want to beat them, you can’t let them get ahead of the sticks on first and second down with that OL/running game. They’ve got to be 3rd and 6+ consistently, or you need a defensive mixer/audible from a game planning standpoint when they go empty.

[BleedTheClock]

6 minutes ago, MWil23 said:

If you want to beat them, you can’t let them get ahead of the sticks on first and second down with that OL/running game. They’ve got to be 3rd and 6+ consistently, or you need a defensive mixer/audible from a game planning standpoint when they go empty.

Im sending 6 every time against empty. Play 0 and tell that joke QB he has 1 second to throw the ball. 

[Vee-Rex]

36 minutes ago, BleedTheClock said:

Im sending 6 every time against empty. Play 0 and tell that joke QB he has 1 second to throw the ball. 

Quote

I would run heavy man coverage (Cover 0) and blitz the crap out of Lamar's right side.

This isn't Madden. Someone like Greg Roman would figure that out in no time. The Ravens throw a lot of screens and wheel-routes out of the backfield which would punish that kind of aggressive defense.

Man coverage against Lamar isn't always the best thing either. There's a reason why zone coverage is a decent option against scrambling QBs - many defenders have their eyes on the QB. They're a lot quicker to react if he tries to take off or make a play with his arm.

Go watch the Rams/Ravens game last year. Wade Phillips stubbornly ran a ton of man coverage and Lamar torched them with big plays on the ground. All of the defenders would have their backs turned running with their receivers and Lamar would be 10+ yards downfield before they even realize he was running. Similarly, the Patriots got smoked by Lamar due to so much man coverage on defense.

Now go watch the Titans/Ravens in the playoffs and you'll see they played a LOT of zone especially in the middle of the field. It allowed them to keep eyes on Lamar while shading the tight ends.

IMO, the best strategy is to offer a wide-9 look on the defensive line to secure the edge, and tight man coverage on the outside with zone in the middle. The only issue with this is that it can be weak against the run or vulnerable to hard play-actions. It has to be mixed in with fire zone blitzes that load up on one side or the other, as you suggested in the 2nd quote.

TLDR: It's not easy at all to defend Lamar. I think we're starting to learn what works best against him and he'll need to improve to beat it. He'll certainly regress this year (statistically), but man you gotta have the right calls going, right players, and some luck in order to contain him. 2nd and 3rd and longs are what does the trick, and having an offense that can put points on the board.

Edited May 11, 2020 by Vee-Rex

[BleedTheClock]

18 minutes ago, Vee-Rex said:

This isn't Madden. Someone like Greg Roman would figure that out in no time. The Ravens throw a lot of screens and wheel-routes out of the backfield which would punish that kind of aggressive defense.

uhhh no kidding. But you have to do something. You can't just sit there and let them chuck the ball all over the yard against us. You have to aggressively attack them. If they hit a wheel route out of the backfield, so be it. Make Lamar make that throw. Don't let the TE's catch it wide open in the middle of the field.

[Vee-Rex]

34 minutes ago, BleedTheClock said:

uhhh no kidding. But you have to do something. You can't just sit there and let them chuck the ball all over the yard against us. You have to aggressively attack them. If they hit a wheel route out of the backfield, so be it. Make Lamar make that throw. Don't let the TE's catch it wide open in the middle of the field.

And I'm telling you - teams have tried that. There's no simple approach to it.

You have to be aggressive AND conservative depending on the situation, and focus on limiting the portions of the field where Lamar is most dangerous. The more you open yourself up to big plays, the easier you make it for them to hurt you. It's not as easy as "Make Lamar make that throw". Harbaugh will stubbornly run Ingram 5 times in a row down the pipe while you're sitting there blitzing the edges and giving up 5-8 yards per run. They have a dynamic offense. I'm arguing against the notion that you will "send 6 every time against empty against that joke QB". You're seriously underestimating Lamar.

I really suggest you watch some Ravens games during the quarantine.

Edited May 11, 2020 by Vee-Rex

[DaWg_LB.]

2 hours ago, BleedTheClock said:

uhhh no kidding. But you have to do something. You can't just sit there and let them chuck the ball all over the yard against us. You have to aggressively attack them. If they hit a wheel route out of the backfield, so be it. Make Lamar make that throw. Don't let the TE's catch it wide open in the middle of the field.

I'm leaning with BleedTheClock here.....that weird offense they run, gets jackson super easy throws to wide open TE's running underneath. I think we should take away what he likes (short throw's) and make him throw outside the numbers, which his numbers would tell you he's nowhere near as good at trying. I like our CB's vs their WR corps. And then I think we SHOULD put the ravens to a decision for ALL their chips every play. True Jackson can burn a team for HUGE yardage, but each time he tucks and runs, there's Myles G and that line, Taki Taki was a viscous hitter in college and Joeseph, Sendeno and Delpit have all been know to make HUGE hits (they may injure themselves or miss tackles)......Lamar has to make one juke with forgetting to check the backside one time, and Jackson's season is over...and it wont be due to Caronavirus.

Sitting back and letting Roman dictate to us with that type of offense (that is ILL DESIGNED to play from behind) would be a mistake. I think you gotta scheme to stop the life blood (short passes) and make their most dangerous option (read option) a roll of the dice with their QB's health EACH time he tucks the ball...

I think we just Gotta:

 

Edited May 11, 2020 by DaWg_LB.

[LETSGOBROWNIES]

I’m running a lot of wide 9 and 5-2.  

Heavy pressure off the right side into his face, if he’s going to bail and run, he’s going left to where he’s not as likely to be a passing threat too.

As far as coverage, gotta mix em and keep him guessing, but generally I’m encouraging my guys to cheat to the middle of the field and give him the sidelines/out breaking routes and see if he can make the tougher throws.

In general, focus on stopping the run and stopping him from hitting TE’s wide open in the middle of the field.  If he slices the defense with tough throws to wide receivers and beats us that way, so be it.

[Gmen]

On 09/05/2020 at 8:54 PM, buno67 said:

Who cares what PFF had him rated as. PFF also has Gardner Minshew rated better than Daniel Jones...

I trained my own CPOE model using a neural network and compared it to the Next Gen Stats model.  That bottom left hand corner... not great...