IPBprez
Cheesehead
Posted Sep. 18, 2005
Pete Dougherty
Utilize Green on third down to spark offense
The Green Bay Packers can’t replace Javon Walker. They have no receiver who can stretch defenses like he did, and no receiver who can occupy defensive game plans to his degree.
But they have to do something to try to compensate for his loss, and one place to look is halfback Ahman Green.
Keep in mind that amateurs make game-plan suggestions at their own peril. NFL coaches spend countless hours every week watching videotape of their players and the upcoming opponent. They study coaching and player tendencies to the hilt. They take into account factors a layman never would consider, and factors that even coaches on other teams couldn’t know about. Their decisions, though often wrong, are educated. If anything, game-planners have to beware of information overload.
Nevertheless, there was something glaring with Green last week in the Packers’ 17-3 loss to Detroit that has to change, especially with their best receiver lost for the season.
Truth be told, Green has been the focus of the Packers’ offense for several years. Opponents began acknowledging that three years ago. So this isn’t about getting Green more carries. He had only 12 last week against Detroit, but that was an aberration, a function of the seven accepted penalties against the Packers’ offense as much as anything. Those penalties created passing downs and shortened drives, which meant fewer carries.
What the Packers need is to alter is when they use Green. Namely, they need to make sure he’s available for more third downs. Third down, after all, is make or break; conversion keeps the drive alive, and failure means a punt or field goal. With Walker out, Green and Favre are the Packers’ playmakers, so they need to get the most from those two as they can without ruining either’s health for the stretch drive.
For the past two-plus seasons, coach Mike Sherman and offensive coordinator Tom Rossley generally have taken Green out of the third-down passing package and replaced him with Tony Fisher. They have their reasons. Green suffers from asthma, so if he doesn’t get regular rest, he can’t function. Despite Fisher’s poor game last week at Detroit, he’s a reliable third-down back who catches well and is sound picking up blitzes.
Don’t short-sell the latter point, the importance of blitz pickup in the NFL. It’s crucial. Blitzes come from anywhere and everywhere and are a major arsenal in most defenses. They can blow up a play and beat up a quarterback. The blocking back has to make snap decisions and be in sync with the offensive line. With Fisher essentially playing exclusively in the third-down passing package, he can practice and study those situations all week. He’s well prepared for each opponent.
But he’s simply too pedestrian a runner, both after the catch and on handoffs, to justify playing extensively on third down. The Packers need their most explosive runner on the field on third downs, when a broken tackle could be the difference between a new set of downs and a punt.
Unofficially, Fisher took part in 22 snaps last week against Detroit. Green suffered from leg cramps, so that likely added to Fisher’s total, but that’s nearly one-third of the offensive plays, which is far too many.
No doubt, playing Green on some or most third downs requires a tradeoff. He has to rest regularly because of the asthma, which means he’ll need to take off some early downs. Sherman and Rossley prefer him on the field then, for good reason. A good first-down run offers a play caller options and favorable matchups galore.
But the Packers have a competent backup halfback in Najeh Davenport. They’ll have to use him.
Also, there are no tradeoffs in the passing game by playing Green on more third downs. He was the Packers’ leading receiver in 2000 (73 receptions) and ’01 (62 receptions), so he’s proven he can catch the ball. Rossley said this week that Green excels in blitz pickup.
The biggest risk is fumbling, but Green will get his touches one way or another, either on handoffs or in the passing game. Regardless, with no Walker, the Packers need the ball in their best carrier’s hands as much as he can handle it.
Last week, Fisher got the ball four times on third downs and converted only one, a shovel pass on third-and-3 in the third quarter. On another, a third-and-2 pass, he never had a chance for the catch over the middle because two defenders drilled him as the ball arrived.
But on two others, he caught passes and didn’t have the burst or elusiveness to challenge for the first down. On a third-and-11 dump-off, he was tackled after 8 yards and fumbled. And on a third-and-15 screen, he was caught for a 5-yard gain. Perhaps Green wouldn’t have converted either play, but his explosiveness and power would have given him a much better chance.
No doubt, the biggest factor in how well or poorly the Packers compensate for losing Walker will be the play of Robert Ferguson and to a lesser degree, rookie Terrence Murphy, at receiver. Though Ferguson won’t be at Walker’s featured flanker position, he still should get chances to make plays, despite his suggestions to the contrary this week. After all, Donald Driver, who moves over to flanker, had 84 receptions last year playing primarily split end.
It very well might be a pipe dream for the Packers to think they can remain among the NFL’s elite offenses without Walker, but it’s worth noting they finished sixth in the NFL in points scored (and only 12th in yards) in 2002 with Driver and the brittle Terry Glenn as their starting receivers. And that was with right tackle Mark Tauscher missing 14 games and left tackle Chad Clifton missing seven because of injuries.
Green was second on the team with 57 receptions that year but also broke down in the final month because of the beating he took. So Sherman and Rossley will have to a walk a fine line between milking him and wearing him out this year if they make him a third-down staple.
========================================
So where was Rossley's head today.....?
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Pete Dougherty
Utilize Green on third down to spark offense
The Green Bay Packers can’t replace Javon Walker. They have no receiver who can stretch defenses like he did, and no receiver who can occupy defensive game plans to his degree.
But they have to do something to try to compensate for his loss, and one place to look is halfback Ahman Green.
Keep in mind that amateurs make game-plan suggestions at their own peril. NFL coaches spend countless hours every week watching videotape of their players and the upcoming opponent. They study coaching and player tendencies to the hilt. They take into account factors a layman never would consider, and factors that even coaches on other teams couldn’t know about. Their decisions, though often wrong, are educated. If anything, game-planners have to beware of information overload.
Nevertheless, there was something glaring with Green last week in the Packers’ 17-3 loss to Detroit that has to change, especially with their best receiver lost for the season.
Truth be told, Green has been the focus of the Packers’ offense for several years. Opponents began acknowledging that three years ago. So this isn’t about getting Green more carries. He had only 12 last week against Detroit, but that was an aberration, a function of the seven accepted penalties against the Packers’ offense as much as anything. Those penalties created passing downs and shortened drives, which meant fewer carries.
What the Packers need is to alter is when they use Green. Namely, they need to make sure he’s available for more third downs. Third down, after all, is make or break; conversion keeps the drive alive, and failure means a punt or field goal. With Walker out, Green and Favre are the Packers’ playmakers, so they need to get the most from those two as they can without ruining either’s health for the stretch drive.
For the past two-plus seasons, coach Mike Sherman and offensive coordinator Tom Rossley generally have taken Green out of the third-down passing package and replaced him with Tony Fisher. They have their reasons. Green suffers from asthma, so if he doesn’t get regular rest, he can’t function. Despite Fisher’s poor game last week at Detroit, he’s a reliable third-down back who catches well and is sound picking up blitzes.
Don’t short-sell the latter point, the importance of blitz pickup in the NFL. It’s crucial. Blitzes come from anywhere and everywhere and are a major arsenal in most defenses. They can blow up a play and beat up a quarterback. The blocking back has to make snap decisions and be in sync with the offensive line. With Fisher essentially playing exclusively in the third-down passing package, he can practice and study those situations all week. He’s well prepared for each opponent.
But he’s simply too pedestrian a runner, both after the catch and on handoffs, to justify playing extensively on third down. The Packers need their most explosive runner on the field on third downs, when a broken tackle could be the difference between a new set of downs and a punt.
Unofficially, Fisher took part in 22 snaps last week against Detroit. Green suffered from leg cramps, so that likely added to Fisher’s total, but that’s nearly one-third of the offensive plays, which is far too many.
No doubt, playing Green on some or most third downs requires a tradeoff. He has to rest regularly because of the asthma, which means he’ll need to take off some early downs. Sherman and Rossley prefer him on the field then, for good reason. A good first-down run offers a play caller options and favorable matchups galore.
But the Packers have a competent backup halfback in Najeh Davenport. They’ll have to use him.
Also, there are no tradeoffs in the passing game by playing Green on more third downs. He was the Packers’ leading receiver in 2000 (73 receptions) and ’01 (62 receptions), so he’s proven he can catch the ball. Rossley said this week that Green excels in blitz pickup.
The biggest risk is fumbling, but Green will get his touches one way or another, either on handoffs or in the passing game. Regardless, with no Walker, the Packers need the ball in their best carrier’s hands as much as he can handle it.
Last week, Fisher got the ball four times on third downs and converted only one, a shovel pass on third-and-3 in the third quarter. On another, a third-and-2 pass, he never had a chance for the catch over the middle because two defenders drilled him as the ball arrived.
But on two others, he caught passes and didn’t have the burst or elusiveness to challenge for the first down. On a third-and-11 dump-off, he was tackled after 8 yards and fumbled. And on a third-and-15 screen, he was caught for a 5-yard gain. Perhaps Green wouldn’t have converted either play, but his explosiveness and power would have given him a much better chance.
No doubt, the biggest factor in how well or poorly the Packers compensate for losing Walker will be the play of Robert Ferguson and to a lesser degree, rookie Terrence Murphy, at receiver. Though Ferguson won’t be at Walker’s featured flanker position, he still should get chances to make plays, despite his suggestions to the contrary this week. After all, Donald Driver, who moves over to flanker, had 84 receptions last year playing primarily split end.
It very well might be a pipe dream for the Packers to think they can remain among the NFL’s elite offenses without Walker, but it’s worth noting they finished sixth in the NFL in points scored (and only 12th in yards) in 2002 with Driver and the brittle Terry Glenn as their starting receivers. And that was with right tackle Mark Tauscher missing 14 games and left tackle Chad Clifton missing seven because of injuries.
Green was second on the team with 57 receptions that year but also broke down in the final month because of the beating he took. So Sherman and Rossley will have to a walk a fine line between milking him and wearing him out this year if they make him a third-down staple.
========================================
So where was Rossley's head today.....?