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It took me 10 minutes to understand what
responsibilities Brandon Lloyd has in the
Redskins offense. Al Saunders wants it that
way. He wants me to know that the 700 (or as
he admitted 8000) page playbook isn’t as
convoluted as it would seem.
The passing
tree used by Saunders is actually
ridiculously simple. Out of deference for
the coach, I’m not going to spell it all
out, but trust me on this one, if someone
who has never played a down of football
could understand off the typical huddle
calls where I would need to line up and
where I would be expected to run, I’m going
to guess a veteran player would to.
Saunders
spent an inordinate amount of time talking
to the assembled media over the weekend
discussing Lloyd’s status as the #3
receiver, Jason Campbell’s development (
more on that later) and the perception that
he walked in here last summer with the
playbook version of War and Peace.
As it turns
out, the size of the playbook is based on
the exponentially large amount of variations
of 10 particular routes. With more then one
receiver on the field, the variations can
multiplied by ten, i.e. there may be a lot
of plays, but only a few limited things any
one particular player needs to know.
Which leads
us to Campbell, he’s the one guy who needs
to know where everyone is going, thus the
Saunders comment, “The quarterback is the
most difficult position in professional
sports,” rings true. What other athlete
needs not only to know what the coach is
talking about when he spits out a play into
his helmet microphone, but then explain it
to his players so they get it to? This is
where the progression of Jason Campbell
needs to be de-emphasized.
Campbell has
been praised, and rightly so for taking the
off-season as serious as he did. Campbell
pulled a Gibbs like off-season practically
sleeping the film rooms trying to up his
knowledge of the playbook as fast as
possible. It’s he who needs to understand
all 8000 or 28000 or 3 billion pages of
possibilities. And he not only needs to know
where everyone is going, he needs to know
where everyone is going in 3 seconds or less
before Jevon Kearse sacks him.
Campbell’s
talents are limitless. They love his arm
which could open a more vertical passing
game, something limited under the leadership
of Mark Brunell. They lose his composure in
the pocket, “Jason has a lot of courage,”
Saunders gloats. They love his ability to
make something happen with his legs if need
be. But they also know he is a long way away
from where calling a play in the huddle is
so second nature Saunders can reach into the
more complex depths of his playbook
combinations.
When Campbell
replaced Brunell last year, it appeared as
if the Al Saunders offense went out the door
as well. Gibbs then had a much ballyhooed
closed door meeting with his team and when
they emerged, Ladell Betts was transformed
into Earl Campbell and the Skins offense
became the power group emblematic of the
Gibbs successes of the past.
Day one of
camp, Joe Gibbs was asked at the end of his
initial press conference which offense we’d
see, the spread options of the early 2006
season, or the gut busters of the late
season. Gibbs didn’t dance around it saying
what we saw at the end of the year, “is what
we want to be.”
This would
lead to the assumption that while Saunders
playbook, however it was perceived got
thrown in the garbage. That was until
Saunders opened my eyes to something I
hadn’t considered. Maybe the move to
Campbell forced the offense to go back into
its shell. The coaches were worried Campbell
didn’t have enough grasp of the combinations
that the team ultimately decided the only
chance they had of risking few mistakes was
to run and to use extra blockers.
The team used
fewer 3 wide sets as the season progressed.
Saunders admits the team was using upwards
of 8 blockers to help Campbell take fewer
risks. It also meant you’d see him be able
to make fewer game changing plays. The
assumption is after the off-season of
crunching the combinations that Campbell
could have the entire arsenal. Saunders
warned us against believing it, which sounds
like he doesn’t think the young quarterback
is ready for that.
So while
Campbell appears to have it all, he might
not know it all. This is what is best
described as tempered enthusiasm. That said;
in year 2, the receivers, backs and tight
ends have no excuse for their roles. Like I
said, I knew what one of them was supposed
to do in 10 minutes. Knowing what the
players were supposed to do around me was
another story...
Bram
Weinstein |
