BDL 2020 Week 8 - Camden Hood Rats @ Gotham Gashslayers

[Ragnarok]

BDL 2020 Week 8

Match: Camden Hood Rats @ Gotham Gashslayers

Away Owner: @Jlash

Home Owner: @pheltzbahr

 

Vote for who you think would win the game.

Rules:
One vote per person, duplicate accounts will be banned and action taken against those attempting to rig the results.

One vote per team involved in the match. Co-owners may vote in every match up except their own.

For members, who have been following along, and wish to vote.  Please join the conversation and maybe give a reason you voted as you did. This will alleviate any suspicions of unusual voting and will promote discussion.

Note: Players that have a (D) next to their name indicate that they are doubtful or unlikely to play. Players with (Q) are game-time decisions.

Good luck to you both.

[Ragnarok]

CAMDEN

QB- Baker Mayfield
RB- Damien Harris
WR- AJ Brown
WR- Cooper Kupp
TE- Rob Gronkowski
TE- Harrison Bryant
LT- Garett Bolles
LG- Isaiah Wynn
C- Chase Roullier
RG- Tyre Phillips
RT- Orlando Brown Jr
_______________________
WR- TY Hilton
WR- KJ Hamler
WR- John Hightower
TE- Will Dissly
RB- Eno Benjamin
RB- Benny Snell
OL- Jason Peters
OL- Forrest Lamp

DE- Yannick Ngakoue
DT- Vernon Butler - INACTIVE
DT- Poona Ford
DE- Montez Sweat
LB- Darius Leonard
LB- Jaylon Smith
CB- Denzel Ward
CB- Darius Phillips
CB- Justin Coleman
S- Justin Reid
S- Jamal Adams - INACTIVE
_____________________
DE- Maxx Crosby
DE- Carl Lawson
DE/LB- Josh Uche
DT- Neville Gallimore
CB- Tre Flowers
DB- Amani Hooker
S- DeShon Elliott
S- Keanu Neal

 

GOTHAM

OFFENSE

QB - Derek Carr

RB - Josh Jacobs

WR - Tyreek Hill

WR - Jarvis Landry

WR - Tee Higgins

TE - Hayden Hurst

LT - Jake Matthews

LG - Laken Tomlinson

C - Maurkice Pouncey

RG - Shaq Mason

RT - Mike McGlinchey

 

RB - Mike Davis

RB - Adrian Peterson

WR - Jerry Jeudy

WR - Keelan Cole

TE - Eric Ebron

OL - Kaleb McGary

OL - Lucas Patrick

OL - Lloyd Cushenberry

 

DEFENSE

EDGE - Brandon Graham

INT - JJ Watt

INT - Chris Jones

EDGE - Jadaveon Clowney

LB - KJ Wright

LB - Zach Cunningham

CB - Xavien Howard

CB - Xavier Rhodes

CB - Jason Verrett

S - Minkah Fitzpatrick

S - Justin Simmons

 

EDGE - Whitney Mercilus

INT - Corey Peters

INT - PJ Hall

LB - Germaine Pratt

LB - LJ Fort

CB - Jourdan Lewis

CB - Vernon Hargreaves

S - Bobby McCain

[Ragnarok]

CAMDEN

Offense
It seems like only a couple weeks ago we had to face our grandpa and here we are again. We've got a new approach this week with Mayfield at the helm and we think with some adjustments we can catch Gotham taking us lightly and get a W. Here are the keys to our game plan.

Get Mayfield out of the pocket- Baker is at his best when he can shift the pocket and create plays on the move. So this week we'll focus on lots of roll outs to not allow the defensive line of Gotham to just blindly attack.This sets up easy quick passing to our WR's and especially our TE's, so if Pheltz is actually reading this week unlike last week, will be heavily involved early on to get Mayfield in a rhythm. These quick easy throws will also open up some stuff for us in different areas of the game, namely some deep shots. Gronk and Bryant will work the middle of the field and be key contributors in the red zone. Gronk will command tons of attention down there but Bryant has been a go-to for Mayfield and we think Gotham could sleep on him down there. 

Get creative with our playmakers- With AJ Brown and Cooper Kupp being the true focal points of our passing offense, we want to get them moving around against a good Gotham secondary. While establishing our TE's early in the game, we'll be able to move Brown around the formation on motions, sometimes kicking him inside, getting him the ball on tunnels screens with our TE's kicking out from either side to block down and letting him make plays after the catch. We'll get Kupp a couple sweeps, some of those weird quick pitches on motions the Chiefs do with their players that seem to confuse everyone as well. Our guys can do damage after the catch, so however we can get them the ball quickly, we're going to do. Expect some double slants with Brown and Kupp lined up together as well, with some option routes for Kupp out of those alignments.

Use speed to expose coverages- Gotham went heavy Cover 1 on us the first game, so when we get out of our base package (25-30%) we'll bring Triple H (Hilton, Hamler and Hightower) into the game in rotation (with Hilton getting the majority) and use their ability to get deep to make Gotham either respect that or get burnt. Expect us to use some of those roll outs to test Gotham's discipline on some double moves with deep shots to our speed bois. 

Heavy sets- You'll notice some changes to our line today so we can have the most athletic guys we can up front, especially on that left side by moving Wynn in to guard and putting Bolles at LT (since he is the best LT in football, yaheard?). Expect Peters to enter in place of Bryant in some formations to give us a heavy look on maybe 8-10 plays. We'll keep these looks unpredictable because we can either utilize Mayfields roll outs here and have Peters as extra protection, or give us another big man on running plays to Damien Harris. 

Double digit carries- Damien Harris in his short career has proven, without a shadow of a doubt, that if you give him 10+ carries in a game he'll run for over 5 YPC and it's an indisputable fact. There has never been a game in the NFL he hasn't done it and Gotham won't be able to do anything about it. He's a between the tackles kind of runner but we'll use a zone running concept to let him find lanes bust through to annihilate the bums across from us. Easy peasy. 

Defense (cover 2 man base)
Gotham is built to be a balance offense, so being able to balance on defense is just as important. We get some players back this week that will allow us to be a little bit better at defending both phases of the Gotham O. 

Cover 2- With Tyreek Hill being who he is, no matter who is covering him (Ward) you'll want a safety over the top. To avoid creating chaos on the back end if Gotham wants to move Hill around, a cover 2 will allow us to always have a guy over the top no matter what. And with the emergence of Tee Higgins/Jeudy, our usual cover 1 could be susceptible to another player wiggling away. We'll keep whatever safety is away from Hill a little closer to LOS, so a slightly more shallow cover 2 to aid a bit better in run support, but that safety will still be responsible for their half of the field regardless. Our LB's are capable of handling the Gotham RB and TE's out of this base, with Leonard against the TE and Smith taking the RB.

Blitz packages- With getting Leonard and Adams back, we also get two very good blitzers at their position. We'll attack Carr with safety and LB blitzes from time to time to not allow Carr to be comfortable just dropping back and expecting a standard rush. With our 4 ends already being very good pass rushers, we think adding another dimension in the forms of these blitzes will be important in potentially causing some turnovers. Should Adams not play this week, DeShon Elliott would be first off the bench, as he's shown the ability to play deep in a cover 2 but also has two sacks and a couple forced fumbles this year in a blitzing role. 

Defending the run- Pheltz was squealing about Davis in his last game so there's no doubt he's going to want to run at me pretty badly with he and Jacobs. Getting Leonard back helps a ton, but we'll also insert Montez Sweat into the base lineup today for a little more bulk and run stopping ability without losing any pass rushing ability (5 sacks on the year). Butler and Ford are primarily run defenders as it is, so between the players back and the players we currently have we think we're better built to stop the Gotham run D than most people would assume. 

Sub packages- In addition to the blitz packages we mentioned earlier, in obvious passing situations DT's will come off the field, Sweat and Lawson will bump inside and Yannick and Crosby will rush from the outside. We'll also employ Josh Uche today from time to time in these packages to attack off the edge as our secret weapon. I predict 8-9 sacks for Uche if he plays. 

 

GOTHAM

Two weeks after a big win over Camden, we face them again in another critical divisional scrum.  Even though the Rats have dismantled their roster in a look to restock for the future, we will not look past them in our quest for BDL greatness.

OFFENSE (55% Pass 45% Run) - 3 WR/TE/RB Base 

This week we will go a little more pass heavy than normal and look to take advantage of some depleted positional groupings on Camden’s defense.

Running Game:  We want to establish the run early in this game and will rely on Josh Jacobs behind our strong run blocking unit to get the job done.  With Dexter Lawrence purged this week, the Rats’ interior O Line isn’t very imposing.  We will run Jacobs both up the middle and off tackle as we feel we have matchup advantage along the entire line.  With first contact unlikely in the backfield or even at the line of scrimmage, Jacobs will be able to utilize his elusiveness at the second level and break off strong runs even with Darius Leonard back in the picture.  Peterson will occasionally spell Jacobs and pound the interior, while Davis will be used on passing downs and in 2 RB backfields.

Passing Game:  Camden brought in Harry Hand this week, we think that might exacerbate the rash of pulled groins in their back 7.  Outside of Denzel Ward, Camden’s CBs, to put it bluntly, are not good.  We want to take advantage of this weakness and Carr will look for Cheetah against singles, no matter who is covering him, Higgins on the boundary and Landry and Jeudy out of the slots.  With our Line performing at a high level in pass pro this season, Carr should have the time to find open receivers against zone and especially against man coverage looks.  Tyreek will be used on jet sweeps a few times this game to get the ball to our most explosive playmaker as much as possible. 

Formations:

• 3 WR Base - 60% 

• 12 Personnel - 20% - Hill/Higgins/Hurst/Ebron 

• 4 WR - 10% - Hill/Landry/Higgins/Jeudy

• 2WR/2RB 10% - Hill/Higgins/Jacobs/Davis

DEFENSE - 4-2-5 Nickel

The last time we played way back in the middle of October, our defense had to account for Russell Wilson, DeAndre Hopkins and Ezekiel Elliott and our D unit did enough to stop them.  This week is not nearly as daunting a task and we expect to shut down a Camden offense that is limited in personnel and overall talent.

Man Coverage - We think Camden’s best option for moving the ball is through the air, but we have the personnel to match all formations so we are going to play a majority of man with zone looks sprinkled in to keep Camden honest.  With Howard and Rhodes both possessing size and physicality, we will play sides on the outside with Verrett covering the slot.  AJ Brown is Camden’s most dangerous weapon and we will have Simmons shade him to prevent any big plays.  KJ Wright gets Gronk in 3 WR sets and Minkah covers Engram against 2 TE sets.  Minkah will be a chess piece against 3 WR sets, sometimes playing back in Cover 2 looks, sometimes up in the box for additional coverage and run support in Cover 1 looks.

Stuff the Run - With no more Zeke to contend with and Cody Whitehair out this week, Camden reaches down the roster to establish a run game and provide some balance to their offensive attack.  We think our D Line is the best run stopping unit in BDL and don’t think Camden matches up talent wise in the backfield or up front to grind out meaningful yards.  With Wright, Cunningham (and Minkah sometimes) there to clean up at the second level, we just don’t see it happening on the ground for the Rats.  Against 2 TE set, Pratt comes on as MLB to further bolster our run stop unit.

Get to the QB - Not going to blitz a ton this week, we think we can get home with our front 4, especially up the middle with Watt and Jones both drawing plus match ups.  When we do blitz, we will mix it up with our LBs and Fitz from different slots of the formation.  Mercilus will rotate in to keep our EDGE guys fresh.

[VigilantZombie]

After reading through the gameplans, first I think Gotham was smart to go mostly man coverage while Camden seemed to be thinking Cover 1, zone. But I still think Camden gets some points. They're a solid offense with playmaker.

Defensively I think they get to the QB a few times.

Having said all of that, Damien Harris and Baker Mayfield are a huge step down from Ezekiel Elliot and Russell Wilson. 

I think Gotham is able to dictate the flow of this game. I got a 'conservative vibe from Gotham's gameplan despute a higher pass % and feel it fits Carr well. And while perhaps its more aggressive than i am giving it credit for,, i think Camdens DBs leave a lot to be desired. I think they win this one in a nailbiter on the legs of Josh Jacob's.

31-28 Gotham

Edited November 2, 2020 by wwhickok

[bcb1213]

Having to use Galliimore almost exclusively at DT really hinders Camden. Despite ridding them selves of dontari Poe, the cowboys reduced Gallimores snap in half from the week prior. He's not good right now and Yannick has always sucked against the run.  Jlash main strategy to stop the run is our lb is back and this dr is good, and he's not playing plus Adams being out and him being a big part of the blitz game plan I think Camden gets run over 

 

Gotham 24-14

[RuskieTitan]

Gotham running it early is going to wear on a depleted Camden interior, and I think this opens things up a bit more for Gotham to pull away late.

[Ragnarok]

Both teams had their usual great gameplans...but Gotham is just a better team right now.

[Jlash]

Man. No one disputing that Damien Harris is unstoppable given 10+ carries. I love it.

[Scoundrel]

6 minutes ago, Jlash said:

Man. No one disputing that Damien Harris is unstoppable given 10+ carries. I love it.

I dispute it! 
 

On the other hand I don’t think starting Gallimore all game is as big a deal as some. Yes guys will get tired but guys have started players this season that average far less snaps a game than him without preparing to rotate guys in. However I do think Gotham is the stronger team at the moment and they take this one. 

[RuskieTitan]

9 minutes ago, Jlash said:

Man. No one disputing that Damien Harris is unstoppable given 10+ carries. I love it.

5 ypc and unstoppable are two entirely different arguments my friend.

[Pickle Rick]

I just don't see the backups being able to execute the gameplan very well for Camden.  It puts a weakspot in the d on the line and on the back end.  That spells disaster imo.  

Gotham takes this one. 

 

[rackcs]

Camden's offense is obviously much less dynamic now but I think they'll still put up points as they have some legit weapons still. On the defense though the injury to Jamal Adams and their already sub par DL losing another player I think is going to give Gotham the opportunity to outscore them. Carr is playing well and I like their plan to get Jacobs going early.

[SirA1]

Home team takes it this week for me.

[MD4L]

This is the type of game that having a guy like Russell Wilson or DeAndre Hopkins are arguably the difference maker because I like Camden’s gameplan and the defense has studs at each level. The Adams injury is almost as significant as the first group of players but Gotham might have all the ingredients for a team looking to make a power play. Their defense leads to a victory with a profound performance.

[Jlash]

10 hours ago, RuskieTitan said:

5 ypc and unstoppable are two entirely different arguments my friend.