Paladin
Full Access Member
- Joined
- Jul 26, 2003
- Posts
- 2,584
- Reaction score
- 0
- Points
- 36
- Age
- 56
- Location
- Anderson, SC
- Website
- www.upstatehomeless.com
http://www.ajc.com/news/content/sports/falcons/1105/18falcons.html
Short passes bamboozle Falcons
By STEVE WYCHE
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 11/18/05
FLOWERY BRANCH — As Green Bay Packers' quarterback Brett Favre triggered the bang-bang play with a "hut," Falcons defensive linemen Rod Coleman and Patrick Kerney barely got engaged with their offensive counterparts before Favre let loose the pass. Cornerback DeAngelo Hall wanted to make a play on the ball, but he was too far off the line of scrimmage in zone coverage, allowing Donald Driver to catch another slant pass in front of him.
It happened the week before in Miami, with Gus Frerotte pulling the trigger to a receiver slanting in from his wide position, underneath a Falcons' cornerback.
To say it's been maddening is an understatement. Kerney couldn't verbalize his feelings about not getting close to laying a hand on the quarterback the past few weeks. Coleman, sackless the past two games after registering seven in seven games, sighed.
The best comeback DeAngelo Hall could come up with was, "It's kind of frustrating."
Kind of?
The Falcons are being "dinked-and-dunked" in the passing game with teams accumulating completions on slant and quick patterns like dollar-store shoppers compiling back-to-school products. The short-yardage method of moving the ball has become so annoying, that this Sunday, Atlanta welcomes Tampa Bay and its occasional deep passing plays — something unthinkable after some big hits by opponents in the passing game early in the season.
"We're looking forward to getting some passes thrown further than 10 yards," Hall said.
Hall and some of his interception seeking, sack-wanting teammates maybe, but the coaching staff, they'd rather teams keep doing what they've been doing, throwing the ball in bits, not pieces.
"Our key is to force them to throw underneath passes," secondary coach Brett Maxie said. "You want to force them to be patient, take the throws underneath. We're not going to give them the big one."
Conceded Hall: "Guys out there, they can catch curls and outs but you get paid for scoring touchdowns in this league and that's what we've got to prevent."
In its past two games, Buccaneers quarterback Chris Simms has thrown for 538 yards and four touchdowns, three coming on 50-, 24- and 30-yard completions. Most of those have come when he sets up deep in the pocket, which could give Kerney, Coleman and crew ability to apply pressure, especially if coverage in the secondary is adequate.
At times, Atlanta's defensive backs will be in man-to-man coverage, however, the defensive ideology in the passing game is to form a web and keep everything in front of players, which usually is achieved through zone coverages. The field will eventually get short when opponents move closer to the red zone, limiting short throws to shorter throws, the thinking goes.
The catch: players have to make immediate tackles, which hasn't always happened, coach Ed Donatell said. For the season, Atlanta is allowing 5.5 yards after a reception, according to Statspass.com. That means, on average a 5-yard catch turns into a first down, statistically.
"We've got to reduce that number to zero," Maxie said.
Said defensive coordinator Ed Donatell: "Slowing down those quick passes could come with changing up the coverage a little bit but the main thing is to show your speed and explosion to swarm the football to limit the gains."
Short passes bamboozle Falcons
By STEVE WYCHE
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 11/18/05
FLOWERY BRANCH — As Green Bay Packers' quarterback Brett Favre triggered the bang-bang play with a "hut," Falcons defensive linemen Rod Coleman and Patrick Kerney barely got engaged with their offensive counterparts before Favre let loose the pass. Cornerback DeAngelo Hall wanted to make a play on the ball, but he was too far off the line of scrimmage in zone coverage, allowing Donald Driver to catch another slant pass in front of him.
It happened the week before in Miami, with Gus Frerotte pulling the trigger to a receiver slanting in from his wide position, underneath a Falcons' cornerback.
To say it's been maddening is an understatement. Kerney couldn't verbalize his feelings about not getting close to laying a hand on the quarterback the past few weeks. Coleman, sackless the past two games after registering seven in seven games, sighed.
The best comeback DeAngelo Hall could come up with was, "It's kind of frustrating."
Kind of?
The Falcons are being "dinked-and-dunked" in the passing game with teams accumulating completions on slant and quick patterns like dollar-store shoppers compiling back-to-school products. The short-yardage method of moving the ball has become so annoying, that this Sunday, Atlanta welcomes Tampa Bay and its occasional deep passing plays — something unthinkable after some big hits by opponents in the passing game early in the season.
"We're looking forward to getting some passes thrown further than 10 yards," Hall said.
Hall and some of his interception seeking, sack-wanting teammates maybe, but the coaching staff, they'd rather teams keep doing what they've been doing, throwing the ball in bits, not pieces.
"Our key is to force them to throw underneath passes," secondary coach Brett Maxie said. "You want to force them to be patient, take the throws underneath. We're not going to give them the big one."
Conceded Hall: "Guys out there, they can catch curls and outs but you get paid for scoring touchdowns in this league and that's what we've got to prevent."
In its past two games, Buccaneers quarterback Chris Simms has thrown for 538 yards and four touchdowns, three coming on 50-, 24- and 30-yard completions. Most of those have come when he sets up deep in the pocket, which could give Kerney, Coleman and crew ability to apply pressure, especially if coverage in the secondary is adequate.
At times, Atlanta's defensive backs will be in man-to-man coverage, however, the defensive ideology in the passing game is to form a web and keep everything in front of players, which usually is achieved through zone coverages. The field will eventually get short when opponents move closer to the red zone, limiting short throws to shorter throws, the thinking goes.
The catch: players have to make immediate tackles, which hasn't always happened, coach Ed Donatell said. For the season, Atlanta is allowing 5.5 yards after a reception, according to Statspass.com. That means, on average a 5-yard catch turns into a first down, statistically.
"We've got to reduce that number to zero," Maxie said.
Said defensive coordinator Ed Donatell: "Slowing down those quick passes could come with changing up the coverage a little bit but the main thing is to show your speed and explosion to swarm the football to limit the gains."
