NFL thought it would be good idea to extend 2 day hiring process to 3 days and move the 1st round to Thursday in the prime time slot. I was not too sure if this would be a good idea because for years we have been enjoying draft on Saturdays. The draft Saturday was the perfect excuse to be glued to TV and enjoy some much needed football time till the games start in early September.
Never doubt NFL's marketing power. ESPN had huge ratings and people tuned in to watch the 1st round on Thursday. I had the show recorded and enjoyed it with my wife and was explaining her how the team picks and how the trade is done. Overall it was an interesting experiment but I do miss Draft weekend. Well, as long as I have the DVR, I can still enjoy the draft and pretend it is the draft weekend.
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Football lesson from Coach Lombardi
Found this video on you tube. Great video, Vince Lombardi explaining the fundamentals.
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
The Forward Pass
Nobody these days can think of a football without a passing game. the game of football changed a lot after rules were changed and forward pass became an integral part in 1906. The change was made to make the game safer and it just exploded the game to a new level of excitement and entertainment. Don't get me wrong, I do enjoy a bruising Running Back rolling down the football field; escaping the linebackers, stiff arming the wannabe tacklers and high stepping into the end zone. Offensive linemen love run blocking as it their natural tendency to move forward and pull/push the defensive linemen to create holes for the running back.
But there is something magical about the forward pass. QB getting the snap from the center, Dropping back, looking for an open receiver and throwing the ball deep down for the receiver. Nothing is more prettier in a football game than a perfect spiral and receiver catching the ball in stride. That is why QBs are the the one that make or break a team and Wide Receivers are the Divas of the football game.
QB takes snap from the center, drops back, it can be a 3 step, 5 step or 7 step drop, scans the field and let the ball go. Offensive Linemen have to hold the pocket, and protect the QB from the Defensive linemen, linebackers and blitzing players. The pass blocking is not the natural motion for a lineman. They have to move back and hold ground against the big defense tackles and have to be speedy enough to counter the speed of a edge rusher. If the O-line can block for an avg. of 3 seconds, it gives ample time for the QB to make a play. 3 seconds does not sound too long of a time but when you are against 290 pound freaks who can run 40 yd in 4.5 seconds and bench press 400 pounds; 3 seconds do seem like an eternity. Pass blocking is the reason Left Tackle is sometimes the highest paid player in the team.
At pro level, the window to catch the pass and the throwing lane is incredibly small. That is why scouts look for an accurate passer. Lot of people get vowed by the fact that a college QB can throw 80 yards deep with flick of his arm but they forget that if he can't fit the ball in small hole; he won't be able to survive the league for much long. Accuracy and tendency to read the defense are the most important qualities a QB needs to have to play at pro level. At college level, the defenses are simple and not much studying is needed by the QB but at the pro level, each week the QB will see different schemes. Basic scheme might be the same but there are many wrinkles added to the scheme and QB is not studying hard, he will be exposed at the game.
Passing game has changed the landscpae of NFL. It has become a more pass happy league. 10 years ago, the mantra was "if you can't run, you can't win". Now it is all about passing, if you can't pass, you can't win or win the BIG one. West coast offense changed the way passing game is played. We will talk about west coast offense in another post. Get your popcorn ready and enjoy the upcoming season, even though it is few months away.
But there is something magical about the forward pass. QB getting the snap from the center, Dropping back, looking for an open receiver and throwing the ball deep down for the receiver. Nothing is more prettier in a football game than a perfect spiral and receiver catching the ball in stride. That is why QBs are the the one that make or break a team and Wide Receivers are the Divas of the football game.
QB takes snap from the center, drops back, it can be a 3 step, 5 step or 7 step drop, scans the field and let the ball go. Offensive Linemen have to hold the pocket, and protect the QB from the Defensive linemen, linebackers and blitzing players. The pass blocking is not the natural motion for a lineman. They have to move back and hold ground against the big defense tackles and have to be speedy enough to counter the speed of a edge rusher. If the O-line can block for an avg. of 3 seconds, it gives ample time for the QB to make a play. 3 seconds does not sound too long of a time but when you are against 290 pound freaks who can run 40 yd in 4.5 seconds and bench press 400 pounds; 3 seconds do seem like an eternity. Pass blocking is the reason Left Tackle is sometimes the highest paid player in the team.
At pro level, the window to catch the pass and the throwing lane is incredibly small. That is why scouts look for an accurate passer. Lot of people get vowed by the fact that a college QB can throw 80 yards deep with flick of his arm but they forget that if he can't fit the ball in small hole; he won't be able to survive the league for much long. Accuracy and tendency to read the defense are the most important qualities a QB needs to have to play at pro level. At college level, the defenses are simple and not much studying is needed by the QB but at the pro level, each week the QB will see different schemes. Basic scheme might be the same but there are many wrinkles added to the scheme and QB is not studying hard, he will be exposed at the game.
Passing game has changed the landscpae of NFL. It has become a more pass happy league. 10 years ago, the mantra was "if you can't run, you can't win". Now it is all about passing, if you can't pass, you can't win or win the BIG one. West coast offense changed the way passing game is played. We will talk about west coast offense in another post. Get your popcorn ready and enjoy the upcoming season, even though it is few months away.
Monday, March 29, 2010
4 or 5
Eagles have 3 QBs on their roster. The veteran McNabb, the untested Kevin Kolb and the infamous but talented Michael Vick. McNabb and coach Reid have been joined at the hip. Andy Reid drafted McNabb in first round and Philly fans hated the pick. They wanted Ricky Williams. We all know how that pick turned out. McNabb is entering 15th season as the starting QB. He has had amazing success. five appearances in NFC championship by no. 5 but the record is 1-4. His one and only Superbowl appearance will be remembered as the chunky QB throwing up in the 4th quarter as the clock ticked away.
McNabb is a very good QB. I can't stay great because of the shortcoming in the championship games and his inaccuracy which is evident if we look at the pass completion percentage. He is not the elite QB like Manning but very close. His relationship with Philly fans has been anything but smooth. They love him, they hate him. Now with the new QB Kevin Kolb waiting in the wings; the talking heads are thinking that McNabb is gone for good and the only destination possible for no. 5 is Minnesota if and only if no. 4 calls quits in Minnesota but we all know that ain't happening anytime soon.
Number 4 (Brett Favre) wore the purple colors last year after bleeding green and gold for ages. He turned his fans into haters the moment he decided to wear those Viking horns and move to the arch rival Minnesota Vikings. Last year was a phenomenal year for no. 4. Statistically, this was his best year and he is 40! He defied all odds and took the team to NFC championship game. This was no longer AP's team, it was Brett Favre's team. His hand-prints all over the success of the Vikings but we all know "Favre giveth, Favre taketh away". He threw that ill timed interception in OT and thew away the vikings change to go marching down to Miami to face the Colts.
Since that game, no. 4 has been mowing lans in his Mississippi estate and not telling anyone if he is coming back. Rumors are flying that Vikings are going to say good bye to no. 4 and and give the reins of franchise to no. 5. Personally I don't think it is going to change a thing in Minnesota. We all know the love of head coach Brad Childress for no. 4 and also the fact that he was QB coach of no. 5 with the Eagles. The transiiton of 5 will be smooth into the Vikings offense but that's not where the problem lies.
The problem is the head coach himself. Can any sane football fan claim that he/she has complete confidence in Brad "auditioning for American idol" Childress? He looks lost on the sidelines and you can expect him to be out of challenges within first quarter of the game. There is one game I can think of where he out coached the other team and it was last year's NFC division championship game. The Vikings team outplayed the Cowboys but we all know who was the head coach on the other side and it does not take a genius to out think Wade Phillips.
4 or 5 or 12, it won't matter till the man wearing the headset is replaced. Till then, stay hurting Vikings Fan, Green and Gold is going to kill you this year.
McNabb is a very good QB. I can't stay great because of the shortcoming in the championship games and his inaccuracy which is evident if we look at the pass completion percentage. He is not the elite QB like Manning but very close. His relationship with Philly fans has been anything but smooth. They love him, they hate him. Now with the new QB Kevin Kolb waiting in the wings; the talking heads are thinking that McNabb is gone for good and the only destination possible for no. 5 is Minnesota if and only if no. 4 calls quits in Minnesota but we all know that ain't happening anytime soon.
Number 4 (Brett Favre) wore the purple colors last year after bleeding green and gold for ages. He turned his fans into haters the moment he decided to wear those Viking horns and move to the arch rival Minnesota Vikings. Last year was a phenomenal year for no. 4. Statistically, this was his best year and he is 40! He defied all odds and took the team to NFC championship game. This was no longer AP's team, it was Brett Favre's team. His hand-prints all over the success of the Vikings but we all know "Favre giveth, Favre taketh away". He threw that ill timed interception in OT and thew away the vikings change to go marching down to Miami to face the Colts.
Since that game, no. 4 has been mowing lans in his Mississippi estate and not telling anyone if he is coming back. Rumors are flying that Vikings are going to say good bye to no. 4 and and give the reins of franchise to no. 5. Personally I don't think it is going to change a thing in Minnesota. We all know the love of head coach Brad Childress for no. 4 and also the fact that he was QB coach of no. 5 with the Eagles. The transiiton of 5 will be smooth into the Vikings offense but that's not where the problem lies.
The problem is the head coach himself. Can any sane football fan claim that he/she has complete confidence in Brad "auditioning for American idol" Childress? He looks lost on the sidelines and you can expect him to be out of challenges within first quarter of the game. There is one game I can think of where he out coached the other team and it was last year's NFC division championship game. The Vikings team outplayed the Cowboys but we all know who was the head coach on the other side and it does not take a genius to out think Wade Phillips.
4 or 5 or 12, it won't matter till the man wearing the headset is replaced. Till then, stay hurting Vikings Fan, Green and Gold is going to kill you this year.
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Mike, where are you?
"Mike. Mike. 54, Mike.". If you have ever watched any NFL game for more than 5 minutes and paid a little attention to all the yelling going on the field, you must have heard the word "Mike" from the QB. If QB happened to be Peyton Manning, the yelling is accompanied by lot of hand signaling and weird calls "x alpha, z 52.." but one thing you can clearly hear is "mike..MIKE 54".
Who is Mike and why is every QB in the league looking for him? Mike is the Middle Linebacker. In a 4-3 defense, there are 4 linemen who are lined against the 5 offensive linemen. It looks something like the pic in upper right hand corner. "O" represents the offensive linemen and "X" represents Defensive linemen. You can see that defensive linemen is one short compared to offensive linemen. In early days of NFL, there were 5 D-linemen but a change was made and one guy was taken out and moved back. This guy was able to go from 3 point to 2 point stance and watch the whole offensive field. He was able to see the whole offensive unit and call the plays for defense. We know this position as Middle Linebacker, also known as Mike.
Here is the mike; every QB is looking for. Why is mike so important, one might ask? Well, we know Mike is the signal caller and also he is the one who will run towards the linemen and try to block the the running game or do a blitz. If QB can identity the Mike, he can alert his offensive linemen and they know who to block when the ball is snapped. It is not always easy to identify mike, his duty is of middle linebacker but he might be using a decoy to fool the QB. That is why QBs study the film to find where mike is.
Saturday, March 13, 2010
TAINT
TAINT; it is an abbreviation for Touchdown after an Interception. Why would I title my post as TAINT? This is the only way I can remember SuperBowl XLIV; interception by Manning and the score by Saints. One play that sealed the victory for Saints and shutdown the doors for a 2nd ring for Peyton Manning and the Colts.
It's been more than a month since that play happened but I have been unable to get the courage to switch to NFL Network channel or read extensively about football. I do keep myself updated about the football world but I am not breathing football anymore, I just can't do it. Time will heal the loss and time will make that ill fated throw less hurtful but it will take some time for time to work the magic.
Before time does what it is supposed to do, I can use writing to go through the sad phase. NFL draft is just around the corner. Rookies, mini camps, training camps, holdout dramas are not that far. NFL season is getting closer. We have very active free agency. Uncapped salary years made the team little less thrifty. Peppers and Boldin were the biggest signings. LT is unemployed, not for long though, TO is not a Bengal, Chad is dancing with the stars and Sergi is backup of baby Manning. All part of the Not for Long league.
Let's get ready, dust off our jerseys and reverse the hats. NFL season is just around the corner and that TAINT is little less painful with each passing day.
It's been more than a month since that play happened but I have been unable to get the courage to switch to NFL Network channel or read extensively about football. I do keep myself updated about the football world but I am not breathing football anymore, I just can't do it. Time will heal the loss and time will make that ill fated throw less hurtful but it will take some time for time to work the magic.
Before time does what it is supposed to do, I can use writing to go through the sad phase. NFL draft is just around the corner. Rookies, mini camps, training camps, holdout dramas are not that far. NFL season is getting closer. We have very active free agency. Uncapped salary years made the team little less thrifty. Peppers and Boldin were the biggest signings. LT is unemployed, not for long though, TO is not a Bengal, Chad is dancing with the stars and Sergi is backup of baby Manning. All part of the Not for Long league.
Let's get ready, dust off our jerseys and reverse the hats. NFL season is just around the corner and that TAINT is little less painful with each passing day.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
2009 Season
The drought is about to end. Seven months and no live football. Lot of football talk but no spirals, no hard hits. The NFL season is just around the corner and I am ready with my three point stance. Bring it on!!!
No one should read too much into the preseason. Preseason is well, preseason. The worst team could look like a Superbowl contender in preseason. Most teams play vanilla offense and defense, especially good teams coz they want to save their starters for the regular season and playoffs. Preseason works so differently than regular season.
Coaches want to check some players (rookies mostly) to see how they can adjust to NFL speed and if they can handle the assignments well. A person watching the game might think that they rookie linebacker made a great play but it's only coach who would know if the linebacker stuck to the assignment or was undisciplined. One spectacular play which might be the result of the linebacker freelancing, forgetting his assignment and ended up at the right position in right time does not mean anything to the coaches. You can't freelance till you have mastered the playbook and it won't happen till 2nd or 3d year playing in the same system.
Rookie QBs have a very high learning curve especially in a west coast offense system. The QB not only needs to learn the playbook but he should be able to visualize the play when he gets on the field and this does not happen till he is in his 3rd year under the same system. Change of system means learning a new system with new coaches and it is not easy even when terminology is similar. A rookie QB might show some flashes but we all know that rookie would make major mistakes and come game time, his reads and throws would be hurried. Great QBs will continue to show improvement as the season progresses and slowly but surely the game speed would slow down.
Therefore hold on before you anoint a team with winning record in preseason the next champs. Wait for the regular season Sundays from Sept to Dec.
No one should read too much into the preseason. Preseason is well, preseason. The worst team could look like a Superbowl contender in preseason. Most teams play vanilla offense and defense, especially good teams coz they want to save their starters for the regular season and playoffs. Preseason works so differently than regular season.
Coaches want to check some players (rookies mostly) to see how they can adjust to NFL speed and if they can handle the assignments well. A person watching the game might think that they rookie linebacker made a great play but it's only coach who would know if the linebacker stuck to the assignment or was undisciplined. One spectacular play which might be the result of the linebacker freelancing, forgetting his assignment and ended up at the right position in right time does not mean anything to the coaches. You can't freelance till you have mastered the playbook and it won't happen till 2nd or 3d year playing in the same system.
Rookie QBs have a very high learning curve especially in a west coast offense system. The QB not only needs to learn the playbook but he should be able to visualize the play when he gets on the field and this does not happen till he is in his 3rd year under the same system. Change of system means learning a new system with new coaches and it is not easy even when terminology is similar. A rookie QB might show some flashes but we all know that rookie would make major mistakes and come game time, his reads and throws would be hurried. Great QBs will continue to show improvement as the season progresses and slowly but surely the game speed would slow down.
Therefore hold on before you anoint a team with winning record in preseason the next champs. Wait for the regular season Sundays from Sept to Dec.
Monday, July 13, 2009
America's Game
July 4th came and went. Stuck in the hot weather of Arizona, there was no way I would have sat outside and enjoyed some hot dogs and beer and celebrate birth of Amrika. Instead I saluted America with a marathon run of America's Game, all 48 episodes.
Even though I had the time and the courage to watch all 48 episodes but I ended up watching and recording only few episodes. The episodes were packers' two superbowl runs (I, II), Packers' 3rd superbowl (XXXI), Rams' only superbowl win(XXXV), Tampa Bay's well deserved victory run in superbowl XXXVI, my beloved Colts epic win in superbowl XLI and Eli finally becoming the second Manning to kill the dreams of the Darth Vader aka Bill Belichick in superbowl XLII.
Now I think about it, I should have also recorded Giants superbowl win in 1990. Bill Parcells, LT and Phill Simms did an amazing job. If someone has not watched America's Game, they are definitely missing something. It has converted skeptics into believers. Even if you are not a football fan; I can bet that you would enjoy an episode or two.
The premise of the show is taking three guys from the superbowl winning team and let them talk about their personal experience during the team's run to the superbowl, accompanied with a narration from a celebrity. Watching the narration by the players and coaches plus the game footage with NFL Films music playing in the background makes each episode a unique experience.
If you have a sense of history regarding football, you would know about the famous Packers sweep which was designed by Lomabardi and he made the players practice it over and over again. All other teams knew that the play was coming and they still could not stop the Packers from perfect execution.
Overall, it was a wonderful experience watching America' game episodes. I would recommend it anyone who has even a slight interest in football would love the series.
Even though I had the time and the courage to watch all 48 episodes but I ended up watching and recording only few episodes. The episodes were packers' two superbowl runs (I, II), Packers' 3rd superbowl (XXXI), Rams' only superbowl win(XXXV), Tampa Bay's well deserved victory run in superbowl XXXVI, my beloved Colts epic win in superbowl XLI and Eli finally becoming the second Manning to kill the dreams of the Darth Vader aka Bill Belichick in superbowl XLII.
Now I think about it, I should have also recorded Giants superbowl win in 1990. Bill Parcells, LT and Phill Simms did an amazing job. If someone has not watched America's Game, they are definitely missing something. It has converted skeptics into believers. Even if you are not a football fan; I can bet that you would enjoy an episode or two.
The premise of the show is taking three guys from the superbowl winning team and let them talk about their personal experience during the team's run to the superbowl, accompanied with a narration from a celebrity. Watching the narration by the players and coaches plus the game footage with NFL Films music playing in the background makes each episode a unique experience.
If you have a sense of history regarding football, you would know about the famous Packers sweep which was designed by Lomabardi and he made the players practice it over and over again. All other teams knew that the play was coming and they still could not stop the Packers from perfect execution.
Overall, it was a wonderful experience watching America' game episodes. I would recommend it anyone who has even a slight interest in football would love the series.
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Off Season: A portal to Indian Soap Opera.
It has been a while since I last posted anything on the blog. The playing season is done but the business season which we call off season is on for sure. This NFL off season has been full of drama, just like an Indian soap opera about mother and daughter in-laws. The saga started with firing of Mike Shanahan which I have mentioned in previous posts. The owner of broncos bring Josh McDaniels, a 32 year old QA guru. Soon there are rumors that he tried to trade Jay Cutler, the franchise QB. It does not work out, Jay gets mad and we end up with 30 plus day of soap opera. Tons of finger pointing. The end result is not that suddenly Jay relazies that Josh is his lost long brother but it all ends in a bitter divorce with Jay Cutler getting shipped to the Bears and hailed as the savior of Chi town. Why did it have to end like this? why????
Personally, I disliked the trade as it gives Chicago Bears a real QB. Now they are serious threat to win the NFC North Division (packers bias). All in all, this story was the headline of the offseason. We also had Kellen Winslow Jr. going to Tampa, Redskins trying to trade Jason Campbell for Jay Cutler, Albert Haynsworth ending up in the Skins land and Jason Talyer realzing that teams don't care if you shake your pomp pomp on TV.
Draft is lurking around and I just can't wait to see the drama unflod and the J E T S fan act like bunch of overweight, rude, idiots and Philly fans booing their draft pick even though the pick will be a borderline hall of famer. That is a tradition for sure.
Personally, I disliked the trade as it gives Chicago Bears a real QB. Now they are serious threat to win the NFC North Division (packers bias). All in all, this story was the headline of the offseason. We also had Kellen Winslow Jr. going to Tampa, Redskins trying to trade Jason Campbell for Jay Cutler, Albert Haynsworth ending up in the Skins land and Jason Talyer realzing that teams don't care if you shake your pomp pomp on TV.
Draft is lurking around and I just can't wait to see the drama unflod and the J E T S fan act like bunch of overweight, rude, idiots and Philly fans booing their draft pick even though the pick will be a borderline hall of famer. That is a tradition for sure.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Oh...the SuperBowl
The Superbowl came, we saw and now it's history. Dubbed by many sportswriter as one of the best Superbowl ever. It was a great game but only in 4th quarter. I just can't call it the greatest game because other than the Harrison's INT return, there was nothing exciting in the first half. Fourth quarter was a completely different story though. In words of a football fan, it was beautiful.
For me, the Harrison INT and TD sealed the victory for Steelers. Had that play not happened, AZ would have gone into the halftime with 4 point lead which would have been enough to block the steelers from grabbing their 6th Vince Lombardi trophy.
For me, the Harrison INT and TD sealed the victory for Steelers. Had that play not happened, AZ would have gone into the halftime with 4 point lead which would have been enough to block the steelers from grabbing their 6th Vince Lombardi trophy.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
T.O.
It came to me as an epiphany. The reason T.O. is such a selfish, pain in the ass player is because he is truly a basketball player who happens to be playing the ultimate team sport (football). Let me explain you my hypothesis.
According to T.O., his first love is basketball; football he just plays. On the basketball field, one super star can win the game single handedly e.g Jordan, Lebron, Kobe to name few of the greatest one man show on this planet. T.O. is a super star on football field and he thinks he can win it all by himself. Therefore, all this cry about "give me ball, give me ball".
Till T.O. is with cowboys, they are not winning anything. He is Kobe on football field, and there is no Shaq to tell him "hey Kobe, How my ass tastes?"
According to T.O., his first love is basketball; football he just plays. On the basketball field, one super star can win the game single handedly e.g Jordan, Lebron, Kobe to name few of the greatest one man show on this planet. T.O. is a super star on football field and he thinks he can win it all by himself. Therefore, all this cry about "give me ball, give me ball".
Till T.O. is with cowboys, they are not winning anything. He is Kobe on football field, and there is no Shaq to tell him "hey Kobe, How my ass tastes?"
Sunday, January 25, 2009
The Draft
In my two recent posts, I talked about how to build a successful by drafting players. I think it's time now to explain what a draft is, how it works and even though lot of resources are dedicated to get great players in the draft, most of them disappoint the teams and the fans. If a player drafted high in the first round of the draft is a bust, it kills the team, the best example I can think of is San Diego Chargers drafting Ryan Leaf as QB with their 2nd pick in the first round of 1998 draft. He is considered one of the biggest bust in NFL history. On the other hand, Indianapolis Colts drafted Peyton Manning as the overall no. 1 pick in the same draft and he has turned around the franchise. Just imagine what could have happened if the the teams would have picked the players in reverse order.
Let's start with how the draft works. Every year, during the last weekend of April, all 32 teams in NFL gather in NY radio city hall to select players who have been projected to be starters in NFL. NFL draft has 7 rounds. Two rounds on Saturday and remaining five rounds on Sunday. The team with the weakest record gets to select first and the team with the best record picks last. This goes on for seven rounds. Each team is given 15 minutes in first rounds, 10 in second and 5 for the remaining five rounds to select a players. The players who are projected to be selected as top 10 picks are invited to NY. The Commissioner starts the proceedings by announcing that the team is on clock, the front office-head coach, call the perspective player and invite him to come and play for him. The players accepts the offer, grab the cap and jersey and accepts the congratulations from commissioner on the stage. This honor is only given to top ten picks. Tons of sports fan are there to cheer or jeer the picks made by their teams.
The first round is considered the round of the stars. Players selected in first round are thought to be the next superstars in the NFL. Teams select players in first round with extra caution, there has lot of history of most first round picks being busts or nothing special. Teams employ background checks, interviews, IQ tests in addition to the scouting of physical skills of the players. Still there are certain positions in NFL which have high risk of failure, the biggest risk a team can take is to invest big money in their first round pick and see the money and pick go to utter waste. QB happens to be the position which has the highest failure rate among the first round picks. For every Manning and Elway there are Leafs, Couches and many more junk QBs.
Each teams assigns a value to the player they like. If the player is no longer available, they go to the next player in their list. There is lot of "moneyball" knowledge behind assigning the value on the player. Lately, teams that have won big have shown that they have used all their picks in the draft wisely. It would be interesting to see how they use the statistics in college plus the combine* numbers to select players.
* Combine is an annual event where players are invited to do workouts for the teams head coaches and GMs.
Let's start with how the draft works. Every year, during the last weekend of April, all 32 teams in NFL gather in NY radio city hall to select players who have been projected to be starters in NFL. NFL draft has 7 rounds. Two rounds on Saturday and remaining five rounds on Sunday. The team with the weakest record gets to select first and the team with the best record picks last. This goes on for seven rounds. Each team is given 15 minutes in first rounds, 10 in second and 5 for the remaining five rounds to select a players. The players who are projected to be selected as top 10 picks are invited to NY. The Commissioner starts the proceedings by announcing that the team is on clock, the front office-head coach, call the perspective player and invite him to come and play for him. The players accepts the offer, grab the cap and jersey and accepts the congratulations from commissioner on the stage. This honor is only given to top ten picks. Tons of sports fan are there to cheer or jeer the picks made by their teams.
The first round is considered the round of the stars. Players selected in first round are thought to be the next superstars in the NFL. Teams select players in first round with extra caution, there has lot of history of most first round picks being busts or nothing special. Teams employ background checks, interviews, IQ tests in addition to the scouting of physical skills of the players. Still there are certain positions in NFL which have high risk of failure, the biggest risk a team can take is to invest big money in their first round pick and see the money and pick go to utter waste. QB happens to be the position which has the highest failure rate among the first round picks. For every Manning and Elway there are Leafs, Couches and many more junk QBs.
Each teams assigns a value to the player they like. If the player is no longer available, they go to the next player in their list. There is lot of "moneyball" knowledge behind assigning the value on the player. Lately, teams that have won big have shown that they have used all their picks in the draft wisely. It would be interesting to see how they use the statistics in college plus the combine* numbers to select players.
* Combine is an annual event where players are invited to do workouts for the teams head coaches and GMs.
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Season of change
The 2008-09 season is about to end very soon. We will have a Superbowl winner within next 3 weeks. After every season, the teams that have failed to reach postseason try to make some changes. Players get cut, coaches get booted, GMs get fired. The firing of coaches and GMs of the losing team has happened this season just like any other season with one major difference.
The major difference is the firing of Superbowl winning coaches. Who would have thought that Mike Shanhan would get the boot from Denver Broncos. After Elway, he was the face of franchise, the QB guru. It shook the NFL world by surprise. Second firing that rocked the NFL was of John Gruden. He brought the Vince Lombardi trophy to Bucs in 02' but that seemed so far away, Bucs' owners paid a hefty sum in draft picks and cash to get Gruden from the raiders (2 1st round and 2nd round picks in the draft and 8 million dollars in cash). He took them to the promise land instantly but seems like in this crazy world, it does not buy you job security for long.
Along with these two really surprising firings, we had the normal firing scene too. Mike Nolan got the boot from 49rs in mid season, Rams got rid of Soctt Linehan earlier in the season. Rod Merinilli was let go after Lions had the worst season of any team in the NFL history (0-16) and how can we forget the man who brought the Lions to a new low, Matt Millen, probably the worst executive in NFL history. Kansas City Chiefs head coach Herm Edward might be a dead man walking as they have a new GM. Jets are still looking for a head coaching after cutting Eric Mangini. How can one forget the Browns saga, the season went down the drains and so did GM Phil Savage and coach Romeo Carnell. Hall of famers Mike Holmgren and Tongy Dungy left the sidelines to pursue other interests. This is an end of era, four Superbowl winning coaches are not part of the NFL.
The next season would be very interesting. I think, Mike Shanahan, Mike Holmgren will make a comeback, Shanahan might coach again with Cowboys and Holmgren might be given the keys of a franchise just like Dolphins gave all the control of football operations to Bill Parcells. Coach Cowher might move from his comfortable chair in CBS studios to the gridiron
The major difference is the firing of Superbowl winning coaches. Who would have thought that Mike Shanhan would get the boot from Denver Broncos. After Elway, he was the face of franchise, the QB guru. It shook the NFL world by surprise. Second firing that rocked the NFL was of John Gruden. He brought the Vince Lombardi trophy to Bucs in 02' but that seemed so far away, Bucs' owners paid a hefty sum in draft picks and cash to get Gruden from the raiders (2 1st round and 2nd round picks in the draft and 8 million dollars in cash). He took them to the promise land instantly but seems like in this crazy world, it does not buy you job security for long.
Along with these two really surprising firings, we had the normal firing scene too. Mike Nolan got the boot from 49rs in mid season, Rams got rid of Soctt Linehan earlier in the season. Rod Merinilli was let go after Lions had the worst season of any team in the NFL history (0-16) and how can we forget the man who brought the Lions to a new low, Matt Millen, probably the worst executive in NFL history. Kansas City Chiefs head coach Herm Edward might be a dead man walking as they have a new GM. Jets are still looking for a head coaching after cutting Eric Mangini. How can one forget the Browns saga, the season went down the drains and so did GM Phil Savage and coach Romeo Carnell. Hall of famers Mike Holmgren and Tongy Dungy left the sidelines to pursue other interests. This is an end of era, four Superbowl winning coaches are not part of the NFL.
The next season would be very interesting. I think, Mike Shanahan, Mike Holmgren will make a comeback, Shanahan might coach again with Cowboys and Holmgren might be given the keys of a franchise just like Dolphins gave all the control of football operations to Bill Parcells. Coach Cowher might move from his comfortable chair in CBS studios to the gridiron
Friday, January 2, 2009
MVP
Peyton Manning has won the MVP award for the 3rd time, thus tying with Brett Favre. Manning won this time with a landslide as he took his team to a a 12-4 record and hopefully to another Vince Lombardi trophy.
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Mike Shanahan
I just can't believe that Mike Shanahan got fired. I just can't. Seems like 2 Superbowl rings don't mean much in today's NFL. Though, I believe that the reason for his firing was complete lack of interest to build up a good defense. Mike has been using players from other teams to build his D. This is not the right way to build up a soild defense. I understand that his background is offense but the job of head coach is to build the TEAM not just offensive side of the ball. He ignored building the defnese and three seasons without a postseason appearance has casued him the job which everyone thought was his for the lifetime.
Friday, December 5, 2008
Building a Successful team - The Players
In last post we talked about how to build a successful team from management point of view. Coaches will coach and players will play. Without bringing players who don't buy into the coaches philosophy, one can't build a strong successful team. It's not only about bringing the right players but to start building from inside out.
One might ask what is this inside out approach all about? An avg. fan recognizes the players at skill positions on the field. For them, the skill positions are the fun thing to watch. That tall strong armed QB throwing deep balls to WR or that flashy RB making those beautiful cuts or Linebackers and safeties delivering those bone jarring hits which will be shown on sportscenter again and again. All these things are made possible by those big guys in the trenches who people forget to watch when the play is happening. They protect the QB, open the holes for the RB and on the other side of the trench, these big guys do all the dirty work and the linebackers, Defensive backs get the credit. Though Defensive End position is becoming a glorified position these days.
If I have to identify one position on offensive side that needs to be addressed when building a team, I would go for a LT. Some might say QB but I think unless you know for sure that the guy is a John Elway or Peyton Manning, take the Left Tackle because he would be the one protecting the QB from those premier pass rushers. After the LT, I would take the QB. The rest of positions you fill based on your need. If it's a west coast style offense, you need to get tall strong WRs. I would also pay attention to the TE position. A Tight End running through the middle of the field covered by linebacker can create big mismatch problems, plus with the decline of Full Back position, more teams are using two TE sets for running. The Running Back (also known as Tail Back, Half Back) position has seen some changes over the years. Teams are using 2 set of RBs to make sure that the NFL life of the RB exceeds. Some teams like to draft a solid RB high in the draft and some teams believe that they can get a good RB late in the draft. Both strategies have worked but if you see a playmaker like Adrian Peterson, my recommendation is to get him. Players like him can change the outlook of the game in one play.
On the defensive side, I would start with a big nose tackle for a 3-4 defense or premier pass rusher in case of a 4-3 defense. Nice big Defensive Tackles are also very important because you don't want teams to run over your defense. The defensive line dictates how the defensive side plays ball. Linebackers in a 4-3 defense are mostly responsible for gap integrity whereas the linebackers in a 3-4 defense have big shoes to fill in. The OLBs in a 3-4 are sometimes used as Defensive Ends. Acquiring a solid secondary (corner backs and safeties) is very important for the defense if they want to survive in the pass happy league. The offenses are using 4-5 WR set and this means that the nickle and dime corner back has to be on the field for more snaps and if these corners are junk, the defense can be picked apart. Safeties are one of the most underrated position on the defensive side of the ball. I would highly recommend picking a great safety in the draft or via free agency. Just look at Ed Reed, Bob Sanders and Troy Polamalu, these guys are playmakers , three best safeties in the league in no particular order.
We can go on and on about how to acquire players at different position. Truth is that a hard working player who buys into the system and believes in his coach is more important than a player with immense talent but has on and off the field trouble. Stay away from players with selfish behavior, their attitude would kill the team moral.
We can go on and on about how to draft players, please post your comments and ideas. Would love to hear from you. I will add some more posts about interesting plays and players very soon.
One might ask what is this inside out approach all about? An avg. fan recognizes the players at skill positions on the field. For them, the skill positions are the fun thing to watch. That tall strong armed QB throwing deep balls to WR or that flashy RB making those beautiful cuts or Linebackers and safeties delivering those bone jarring hits which will be shown on sportscenter again and again. All these things are made possible by those big guys in the trenches who people forget to watch when the play is happening. They protect the QB, open the holes for the RB and on the other side of the trench, these big guys do all the dirty work and the linebackers, Defensive backs get the credit. Though Defensive End position is becoming a glorified position these days.
If I have to identify one position on offensive side that needs to be addressed when building a team, I would go for a LT. Some might say QB but I think unless you know for sure that the guy is a John Elway or Peyton Manning, take the Left Tackle because he would be the one protecting the QB from those premier pass rushers. After the LT, I would take the QB. The rest of positions you fill based on your need. If it's a west coast style offense, you need to get tall strong WRs. I would also pay attention to the TE position. A Tight End running through the middle of the field covered by linebacker can create big mismatch problems, plus with the decline of Full Back position, more teams are using two TE sets for running. The Running Back (also known as Tail Back, Half Back) position has seen some changes over the years. Teams are using 2 set of RBs to make sure that the NFL life of the RB exceeds. Some teams like to draft a solid RB high in the draft and some teams believe that they can get a good RB late in the draft. Both strategies have worked but if you see a playmaker like Adrian Peterson, my recommendation is to get him. Players like him can change the outlook of the game in one play.
On the defensive side, I would start with a big nose tackle for a 3-4 defense or premier pass rusher in case of a 4-3 defense. Nice big Defensive Tackles are also very important because you don't want teams to run over your defense. The defensive line dictates how the defensive side plays ball. Linebackers in a 4-3 defense are mostly responsible for gap integrity whereas the linebackers in a 3-4 defense have big shoes to fill in. The OLBs in a 3-4 are sometimes used as Defensive Ends. Acquiring a solid secondary (corner backs and safeties) is very important for the defense if they want to survive in the pass happy league. The offenses are using 4-5 WR set and this means that the nickle and dime corner back has to be on the field for more snaps and if these corners are junk, the defense can be picked apart. Safeties are one of the most underrated position on the defensive side of the ball. I would highly recommend picking a great safety in the draft or via free agency. Just look at Ed Reed, Bob Sanders and Troy Polamalu, these guys are playmakers , three best safeties in the league in no particular order.
We can go on and on about how to acquire players at different position. Truth is that a hard working player who buys into the system and believes in his coach is more important than a player with immense talent but has on and off the field trouble. Stay away from players with selfish behavior, their attitude would kill the team moral.
We can go on and on about how to draft players, please post your comments and ideas. Would love to hear from you. I will add some more posts about interesting plays and players very soon.
Saturday, November 22, 2008
Building a successful team - The Management
Over the years we have seen some teams which every season bring their A game to the field. These are the teams all pundits talk about as the sure bet for being in the playoff chase at the end of the regular season. Then there are teams which can't compete and they have been bad for years and have not been in playoff hunt for years. This is salary cap era, one team just can't spend big money like baseball and buy all the good players. Still, some teams are just way better than the other teams. Why? Let's dissect the successful teams and see what makes them great year in and year out.
Let's start with the owner of the team. He/she must be willing to spend money on quality players, on coaches and provide an environment which breeds success. A mending owner is a recipe for disaster. The owner should watch his investments but let the coach do his job. An owner who interrupts the coach sooner or later looses the coach and also the team (Jerry Jones, Al Davis, Dan Snyder anyone?).
The coach and the staff, this also includes the GM the VP of players and scouting. Hiring the right GM who would take care of the business side of the ball is first step in creating a winning environment. Then comes hiring a successful scouting director who knows how to evaluate the talent, not just those precious 1st day draft picks but also the guys who have gone under the radar and picking them from the streets. Any GM/coach who can make all or most of the draft picks contribute on Sundays would get the results of his hard work very soon. The team should be build through draft, not through free agency. Bringing in pricey free agents to build a team has never worked. Coach can look for one part of the missing puzzle through free agency but the principle is the same, build through draft. One of the best example of team building through draft and getting the final piece of puzzle through free agency has been the 90s Pakcers team. It was tandem of Ron Wolf(GM) and Mike Holmgren (coach). They drafted excellent players, got Brett Favre (QB) from Atlanta and fitted the final piece by bringing in the late great Reggie White from the Philadelphia Eagles. The title of GM, VP might differ from team to team but the job is the same. Take care of money and find talented players.
Finding the right coach and making sure that team buys into his philosophy is a very important step. These are not high school or college kids who the coach can intimidate, these are men with million dollar salaries. If coach can't earn their respect, he should pack his bags and leave because he has already lost the battle even before the team has stepped on the football field. Each coach brings his personality on the field. Some coaches are like army generals, very tough and drill masters, others are more like father figures. Both kinds have been successful on the field. One thing with coaching in NFL is that the coach should be willing to work 90-100 hours per week. 40 hours/week is not going to cut. Coach has to be ready when Sunday rolls around. Jon Gruden is a every good example of a hard working coach, he comes to office around 3-4 AM in the morning to work on his game plan. The Superbowl ring and complex offense is the evidence of his hard work. Unsuccessful, hard working coaches have extended families in NFL e.g. Bill Walsh tree; it has produced amazing number of successful head coaches in the NFL .
This is what is needed to build a strong team. In next post we will talk about the players. If a team is build on these principles, it would go out each Sunday and give it's best on the field.
Let's start with the owner of the team. He/she must be willing to spend money on quality players, on coaches and provide an environment which breeds success. A mending owner is a recipe for disaster. The owner should watch his investments but let the coach do his job. An owner who interrupts the coach sooner or later looses the coach and also the team (Jerry Jones, Al Davis, Dan Snyder anyone?).
The coach and the staff, this also includes the GM the VP of players and scouting. Hiring the right GM who would take care of the business side of the ball is first step in creating a winning environment. Then comes hiring a successful scouting director who knows how to evaluate the talent, not just those precious 1st day draft picks but also the guys who have gone under the radar and picking them from the streets. Any GM/coach who can make all or most of the draft picks contribute on Sundays would get the results of his hard work very soon. The team should be build through draft, not through free agency. Bringing in pricey free agents to build a team has never worked. Coach can look for one part of the missing puzzle through free agency but the principle is the same, build through draft. One of the best example of team building through draft and getting the final piece of puzzle through free agency has been the 90s Pakcers team. It was tandem of Ron Wolf(GM) and Mike Holmgren (coach). They drafted excellent players, got Brett Favre (QB) from Atlanta and fitted the final piece by bringing in the late great Reggie White from the Philadelphia Eagles. The title of GM, VP might differ from team to team but the job is the same. Take care of money and find talented players.
Finding the right coach and making sure that team buys into his philosophy is a very important step. These are not high school or college kids who the coach can intimidate, these are men with million dollar salaries. If coach can't earn their respect, he should pack his bags and leave because he has already lost the battle even before the team has stepped on the football field. Each coach brings his personality on the field. Some coaches are like army generals, very tough and drill masters, others are more like father figures. Both kinds have been successful on the field. One thing with coaching in NFL is that the coach should be willing to work 90-100 hours per week. 40 hours/week is not going to cut. Coach has to be ready when Sunday rolls around. Jon Gruden is a every good example of a hard working coach, he comes to office around 3-4 AM in the morning to work on his game plan. The Superbowl ring and complex offense is the evidence of his hard work. Unsuccessful, hard working coaches have extended families in NFL e.g. Bill Walsh tree; it has produced amazing number of successful head coaches in the NFL .
This is what is needed to build a strong team. In next post we will talk about the players. If a team is build on these principles, it would go out each Sunday and give it's best on the field.
Friday, November 14, 2008
The Offense.
In my last post I talked about how a 4-3 run play would work. Later I realized that I have not explained the positions on offense and defense in detail. Let's start with offensive side of the ball.
- Quarter Back (QB) -> QB is the most difficult position to master in football. He is the leader of the offense. Every team wants a QB who can run the offense smoothly. QB needs to have the athletic ability to throw balls to the receivers with a zip. In NFL if QB can't throw a ball 15-20 yards deep with velocity, he won't be able to survive in the league for long. QB can operate in two ways. He can get the ball from center by lining direly under the Center or in a "shot gun" formation. Shot gun is the formation in which QB is couple of yards deep in the backfield. He signals the Center to give him the ball by tapping his foot or calling a audible signal. Shot gun is primarily used to avoid pass rush.
- Center (C) -> Center is the anchor of the line. He is the one who gives the ball to the QB. Center calls the line audible i.e. he sees the defensive formation, recognizes the blitz, the middle linebacker or any other pass rush that might come. I would call Center as the second smartest or in some cases the smartest player on the field.
- Left Tackle(LT) -> As we know that most QBs are right handed, they can't see who's coming from the left side. They are totally exposed, that's where the LT comes. He is the most sought after commodity other than the QB and in some cases, he is the no. 1 pick. LTs are as hard to find as a good QB. LT eliminates the best pass rusher from the defense.The QB won't have sleepless nights before the game because he knows that his backside is safe. He won't have to think about the pass rusher breathing down his neck on every play.
- Right Tackle (RT) -> The primary purpose is same as the LT, cut down the pass rush from the visible side of the QB. RT does not need to be as athletic as the LT. Both Tackle positions are hard to play because if they are beaten by the pass rusher, there is no one left to stop the pass rusher from getting to the QB.
- Guards (left and right)-> LG and RG are the interior linemen. Their job is to protect the inside gaps and open running lanes for the running back. If the team employs inside rush to disturb the pocket, guards are there to cancel that inside rush. Generally tackles can play guard position in case of an injury, the reverse is not true in most cases.
- Tight End (TE) -> The TE position has evolved over years. They are still part of the offensive line but these days more and more teams want a pass catching TE, a guy who can run in the middle of filed and catch passes. Pass catching TEs are great asset to the offense but they need to be good blockers. A bad blocking TE is just a big Wide Receiver.
- Wide Receiver(WR) -> It is the diva position of the NFL. It's all about speed, size and egos. WRs catch balls thrown at them by the QB. They requirements for WRs are simple; run crisp routes, catch everything thrown at you and don't be intimidated by the safety who's going to blow you up after you catch the ball ;). Generally there are two WRs on the filed in a basic formation but these days teams go with 4-5 WRs at a time to create mismatch with the secondary(CBs and Safety).
- Full Back(FB)-> The use of FB has reduced from the early days of NFL. FBs help open hole for Running Backs. They carry the ball only in goal line situations.
- Running Back(RB) -> Running Backs also known as Tailbacks are the ex-divas of the NFL . Their job is to carry the run attack of the offense. One can call RB as the most violent position on the field because they get hit every time they touch the ball. This makes the NFL life of a RB very short. In modern era NFL most teams are using 2 RB set to keep the wear and tear on the RB down, thus extending his NFL career.
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
4-3 run play
In the last post "4-3", I talked a little about basic 4-3 formation. Let's try to elaborate on how a basic 4-3 run play would work. For starters, Let's get familiar with all the positions for this particular play. The Offense is lined in an I formation (C-QB-FB-TB). TE is on the right side of the line, next to the Right Tackle thus making that side the strong side.
In a formation like this, the Defense would guess that a run play would go to the strong side. This bias will help creating the mismatch on the weak side as linebackers initial reaction would be to run to the strong side of the formation to stop the run. You can see the blocking assignments of the offensive line. The FB will run towards the weak side and try to cut the OLB and open path for TB. The QB will give the ball to the TB at 45 degree angle thus creating a stretch play.
It's not only important for the O line guys to block the D line guys but also to shed the blocks and cut the approaching linebackers. If the TB cuts the corner outside, it would be very hard for the defensive secondary to catch him. This play has potential to gain big yards.
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
4-3
A basic 4-3 defense consists of 4 Down linemen and 3 Linebackers. This is a classic formation against the run. There are two Cornerbacks and two Safetys to cover the pass plays. If an offense has a good pass catching TE, it can take advantage of the slow speed of linebackers. The middle would be open for the QB to throw passes to TE.
Talking about linebackers, how many great linebackers are in the game? Ray Lewis even past his prime, is playing amazingly well this year. Him and Peyton Manning are the smartest player in the league, very hard to trick them. Manning read the Steelers blitzes perfectly and 3 years ago he could not. Thanks to his study habits, he was able to dissect the blitzes.
Talking about linebackers, how many great linebackers are in the game? Ray Lewis even past his prime, is playing amazingly well this year. Him and Peyton Manning are the smartest player in the league, very hard to trick them. Manning read the Steelers blitzes perfectly and 3 years ago he could not. Thanks to his study habits, he was able to dissect the blitzes.
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