SmartFootball on offensive "packaged" plays, Ok St explained
Chris Brown over on Grantland, really great stuff. That guys is incredible http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/8287610/packaged-plays-rethinking-concept-modern-play-calling
What is so interesting on this is the simplicity of the concept and how devastatingly effective it is in practice. It distills the Oklahoma State attack down to a couple of formations and a read on a defender which predicates where the ball is going for a pass/run option. Not completely different from our offense under RR, but really the next evolution since you end up throwing in the run packages, not just determining who keeps the ball in a run package. Worth the read.
August 21st, 2012 at 12:43 PM ^
Psh, we've been doing this for years...
August 21st, 2012 at 1:16 PM ^
August 21st, 2012 at 1:29 PM ^
It kind of is. The difference is that the type of pass coverage decides the routes that the receivers run. It would be like saying "We're going to go out there in this formation and the hole that the RB is going to hit is dependent on where the linebackers are lined up. If they are undershifted then we will run a read option, if they are over shifted, then we will run an inverted veer, and if they are in bear we will run a midline option. Oh, and if they come out in a vanilla package, then we'll just power the ball down their throat." What the defense does actually changes the defenders to read AND which decision to make based on the read that was made.
August 21st, 2012 at 2:03 PM ^
I don’t think you are accurately describing Brown’s main point. He is talking about the offense reacting to what the defense does after the snap, not before it, and more specifically, what the “read” player does. We do this with the read option where the DE is the player being read. He references the “stick-draw” play, which is basically the same thing, but the LB is being read, and instead of deciding between a handoff and keeping it, the QB is deciding between a handoff and pass.
August 21st, 2012 at 11:39 PM ^
I was talking about their offense in general. This article basically rehashed another one that he wrote a few years ago. He had a lot of articles going over the concepts of their offense a few years before that. Basically, imagine that I have two guys going deep. If the defense is in cover 2, then you have the inner guy run a post and the outer guy run a fly route and you read the safety. You either have a 6'5" receiver streaking down the side line in single coverage or a receiver uncovered underneath the safety.
Now, say that the play starts and instead of running cover two like they were showing, they run cover 3. Now, you have the inner receive running a corner route and the outer receiver running a post. The read guy is now the cornerback. If he follows the post, then you have noone covering the corner. If he stays in his zone, then you have the post open between the safety and corner.
My point is that their offense is a step further than just an option play through the air; it's dynamic playcalling.
August 21st, 2012 at 12:54 PM ^
At least in part -- specifically, including at least one hot-read route on every play so that receivers never have to change their routes in case of a blitz -- the QB just has a rapid checkdown. It's not as extreme as this, of course.
August 21st, 2012 at 1:34 PM ^
Harbaugh is instilling a hot read for the QB if he feels pressure, but the QB isn't reading a specific player and determining either go to that hot-read or go to another read. What Ok State is doing (Notre Dame does this as well, so now we can relate it to Michigan) is reading a single linebacker and essentially determining if they are going to pass on a hitch route or run a draw, two significantly different plays.
It is closer to as others have said, it's basically a QB read but on a stand up linebacker instead of an end. It's a very useful set of plays and is very hard to defend, is going to be a big thing teams install (including NFL teams) going forward (with the read pass first and then draw, the NFL doesn't have to worry about illegal men down field).
August 21st, 2012 at 12:56 PM ^
August 21st, 2012 at 1:01 PM ^
He's gone over this in much more detail on smart football in the past.
August 21st, 2012 at 1:02 PM ^
August 21st, 2012 at 1:04 PM ^
August 21st, 2012 at 1:21 PM ^
Is this blog now Oklahoma based?
August 21st, 2012 at 1:50 PM ^
We can put up a bunch of Ohio articles if you prefer.
August 21st, 2012 at 1:39 PM ^
I love reading about football strategy. I have to get into coaching, madden and ncaa just don't cut it anymore.
August 21st, 2012 at 2:03 PM ^
Not trying to Threadjack, but how do I start a new thread or alert people that I have ONE spare ticket to the Cowboy Classic??
August 21st, 2012 at 2:22 PM ^
you just give me the ticket and all your problems are solved.
August 21st, 2012 at 2:25 PM ^
August 21st, 2012 at 2:29 PM ^
So, what's the key to making this type of offense work? It would seem very simple to install yet not every team has switched their offense to it.
Is it personnel? If so, I can see the delay because of recruiting and development of players in a college scenario.
If not, what am I missing?
August 21st, 2012 at 3:34 PM ^
My thought it that your QB is having to make a decision after the snap and do it with confidence. If a QB isn't able to read what the defense is doing (or in this article, a particular defender is doing) and make the correct decision fast enough, it's going to get ugly.
Another reason why this isn't being implemented everywhere is that not all coordinators are created equal. Explaining concepts like this, implementing them, and then executing them properly depends greatly on an offensive coordinator.
August 21st, 2012 at 7:01 PM ^
What the other guy who responded to you said. And I'd like to add, having a TWENTY EIGHT year-old, i.e. a MAN (though he wasn't FORTY!) Brandon Weedon was a big reason this offense was executed so well by the Cowboys last year.
August 21st, 2012 at 9:19 PM ^
First and foremost you need an intelligent QB who can react very quickly. If you have that you can be successful with this type of offense. Recruiting said QB could be difficult because the ideal QB for the system may not be a prolific passer or impress the masses with physical ability or arm strength at camps.