The Analysis Notebook returns for a Week 14 edition, highlighting of more plays found noteworthy by the PFF analysis team.
This time Sam Monson and Ben Stockwell are joined by a play suggestion from Khaled Elsayed. The PFF trio have brought to the table a touchdown relying on some clever scheming, a touchdown relying on pure speed and athleticism, and one truly dominant display from a defensive lineman that completely torpedoes a short-yardage run.
So swim along as we dive deeper into this week's select plays–one week closer to the end of the NFL regular season and the start of playoff football.
New York Giants @ Dallas | 1st Q, 2:59 | 1st-and-10
Outcome:
Dallas backup tight end, John Phillips, scores a 12-yard touchdown as the Cowboys take a 7-5 lead.
Why it worked:
This play is a nice example of a play fake combined with hitting the defense with the last weapon anybody would expect. Dallas lined up in ’12 personnel’ (one running back, two tight ends), with a receiver split wide to either side of the formation. Before the snap, Phillips shuffles towards the center of the line of scrimmage from his tight end position, as if setting up a lead block up the middle or a wham block on a defensive tackle. The Cowboys then run a pretty weak play action fake, but move the offensive line to the left and roll quarterback Tony Romo out to the right side of the field. Felix Jones releases to the right flat and RWR Miles Austin heads to the corner to give Romo a pretty conventional high-low read on that side of the field. As soon as the defense recognizes that, they swarm to try and cover that route combination, but that isn’t what the Cowboys are running. Phillips continued his shuffle and moved with the offensive line until he was able to drop back and give Romo a wide open screen to the far side of the field.
At the point the throw is made, it’s already game over for the Giants. Phillips catches the ball at the Giants’ 19-yard-line with a convoy of offensive linemen ahead, and a pair of them in the middle of the field cutting off backside pursuit. Phillips heads for the pylon and his linemen out in front get enough of the Giants' defenders to get him in.
For all the good Jason Pierre-Paul did in the game, this was not one of his highlights. Seeing the initial fake, he dropped off the line and drifted inside, allowing multiple Dallas linemen to get into position outside of him and giving him no chance of getting outside Phillips and forcing him back. Corey Webster, the corner on that side, passes off his receiver, but then finds himself dealing with left tackle Doug Free in the open field, and never gets off that block.
This is a nice double fake of a play for Dallas, and it was certainly aided by the fact that the last place the Giants expected that ball to go was into the hands of John Phillips.
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Minnesota @ Detroit | 3rd Q, 4:34 | 3rd-and-10
Outcome:
Joe Webb scores on a 65-yard scramble to bring the Vikings back to within two scores of the Lions.
Why it worked:
This play is a good example of the kind of athlete that Joe Webb is, and is a fine argument for him being on the field in some shape or form. The Vikings line up with a spread formation, and an empty backfield. Webb gets no pass protection help on the play, and all five receivers (three wide outs, two tight ends) are out in patterns. The Lions line-up in nickel defense, playing extremely soft coverage on the back end because they've forced the Vikings into 3rd-and-long.
What makes all of this even worse for Detroit is that they actually confuse the Minnesota protection enough so that Cliff Avril gets a completely free run at the quarterback off the edge as Phil Loadholt down blocks on a blitzing linebacker. Webb, however, is not your average quarterback, and having him pinned one-on-one in the backfield means little.
Webb sees Avril coming and just runs around him to the right, leaving Avril in his wake 10 yards deep in the backfield. Webb looks up and sees the space in front of him and just takes off down the sideline. He gets a little help from Kyle Rudolph who gets a piece of both linebackers, enough to prevent them from an immediate angle towards Webb. From that point on, it is all about the speed of Webb who outruns the linebackers and chasing defensive backs comfortably and practically walks into the end zone at the end of it.
Webb may not have the passing skills to be an every-down quarterback in the NFL, but he is far too good of an athlete to just leave languishing on the bench. Speed kills in the NFL, and Webb, it would seem, is an assassin.
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Philadelphia @ Miami | 2nd Q, 2:17 | 3rd-and-1
Outcome:
Cullen Jenkins defeats two blockers to tackle Miami running back Daniel Thomas for no gain on 3rd-and-short just prior to the two minute warning.
Why it worked:
In this column we’ve usually taken a look at play design that has worked for the offense or defense, but for at least one play this week we’re devoting a section to an individual play by a defender to demolish a short yardage play by the offense.
With the Dolphins driving to close within two scores of the Eagles prior to the half, they found themselves in 3rd-and-short on the Philadelphia side of the halfway. The Dolphins attempted to pick up the first down by running off tackle to the outside shoulder of RT Marc Colombo on a power O play, bringing the back side guard around for an extra blocker.
The Eagles' alignment opens a big hole as well with Cullen Jenkins aligned in a narrow gap between RG Vernon Carey and Colombo while a gap twice as wide presents between Colombo and the inside tight end, Tony Fasano. The Eagles’ next defender on the line is Casey Matthews outside of Fasano and when he is washed out of the play by the outside TE Jeron Mastrud, this should have been an easy pick-up for the Dolphins with only a yard to gain. They have a tackle with a good angle to the inside seal on Jenkins, Matthews comfortably sealed to the outside of the play, and three blockers ready to plough through the gap to lead Thomas for the first. This play could go for big yards let alone just move the chains.
Jenkins, however, is having none of this and takes it upon himself to blow this play up and stop Thomas short of the line. Colombo, as you would expect from the alignment, comes down hard on Jenkins with a down block but the Eagle lineman doesn’t allow Colombo a clean shot, shedding him to get back into the gap. The pull guard, Richie Incognito, is expecting a clear gap to pull through as he looks to clean out any filling linebackers. Instead, he's met by–and run over by–Jenkins as he fires off of Colombo’s block.
In spite of the solid blocking to the outside, Thomas is left with nowhere to go and finds Jenkins (plus another pair of Philadelphia defenders who have rallied to Jenkins’ disruption) in his path. The stop is made short of the first down. The Eagles’ defense would stand tall on the subsequent 4th-and-short as well as they maintained their three-score lead through to the end of the half.
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