Which teams run which offensive and defensive philosophies?

[Cyros]

Great post. I really enjoy reading about the variations one can have with the same "family."

[SPTO]

I agree that a LOT can be done with defensive philosophies but on the offensive side of the ball it's a bit more "same ol' same ol'" in that every team basically plays a variation of one system or another. Some teams are more unique than others though like the Pats, (they basically use a spread offense that's different from every other team except maybe KC) Falcons (more of a smashmouth team that throws deep every once in a while) and the Dolphins (very old school offensive philosophy that's run based) Aside from those teams everybody else plays virtually the same offensively.

At least it's not like the late '90s when EVERY team except for Baltimore and the Rams used a variation of the West Coast Offense!

[Johnson#48]

Great post Palmer. Very detailed and insightful.

Thanks too to SPTO, but I would appreciate a little more detail on what the 'typical' philosophy is.

[SPTO]

Quote: Originally Posted by Johnson#48

Thanks too to SPTO, but I would appreciate a little more detail on what the 'typical' philosophy is.

Teams today at least offensively all run spread type offenses with the exceptions I noted in the previous post. The NFL game is starting to borrow more heavily from the wide open spread that has been popular in college the last few years and with QBs in college being more familiar with preset reads rather than reading the defense and adjusting then you're going to see more of this.

It used to be that the pass/rush ratio was anywhere between 50-53 to 50/47 percent respectively but that has taken a huge shift in the last 3 seasons.

2010: pass/run ratio (based on play design) 59% to 41%
2009: 58% to 42%
2008: 57.2% to 42.8%


Playoff teams used to be a lot more balanced but the shift from balanced to pass heavy is even MORE prevalent showing that passing is the way to go to be successful in the NFL. These are regular season percentages for the playoff teams in the last 3 years:

2010: 58.9% to 41.1%
2009: 57.8% to 42.2%
2008: 54.6% to 45.4%

As you can see the numbers have been steadily increasing towards passing the ball rather than running.

The use of the shotgun while still being outweighed heavily by the standard under the center approach is actually increasing at a similar rate. I won't bore you with the numbers but I wouldn't be surprised if in 2 years the total % of shotgun snaps is around 41% (last year it was at 38.3%)

As further proof that everyone is using a spread style offense or at least taking the philosophies employed by the spread one needs to look no further than the league wide average of snaps with a completely empty backfield. Last year the average was 6.4 snaps per game whereas just 2 years prior it was at 4.7. This number is sure to increase with the "new style" QBs coming up from the college ranks.

The game has gotten more faster and thus you're also seeing the need for speed. Teams like the Eagles have a starting WR corps whose height is pretty much the same height as the run n' shoot Houston Oilers of the late '80s/early '90s.

The RB position now is vastly different than it was even a decade ago as you no longer see FBs used much to lead block and RBs these days have to be just as, if not MORE skilled at catching the ball than actually running. Yes, we still see guys with good rushing yardage at the end of the year but the actual use of RBs in that primary role has been decreasing slowly but surely.

Like I said there are some teams that stick to the old ways and there are others that haven't completely bought into the spread though it's quite telling that a disciple of the West Coast Offense in Andy Reid has basically transformed his team from a methodical pass oriented offense into a finesse deep route running team that uses the athleticism of the QB as a supplement to a very flashy hit and miss running attack.

I hope that helps a bit

[bgeno]

Quote: Originally Posted by SPTO

I agree that a LOT can be done with defensive philosophies but on the offensive side of the ball it's a bit more "same ol' same ol'" in that every team basically plays a variation of one system or another. Some teams are more unique than others though like the Pats, (they basically use a spread offense that's different from every other team except maybe KC) Falcons (more of a smashmouth team that throws deep every once in a while) and the Dolphins (very old school offensive philosophy that's run based) Aside from those teams everybody else plays virtually the same offensively. At least it's not like the late '90s when EVERY team except for Baltimore and the Rams used a variation of the West Coast Offense!

I'd throw Tom Moore's Colts offense as another scheme that is "unique" to the NFL today. No one else runs as many stretch plays and stretch play action as the Colts. And all the adjustments and dummy adjustments at the line, while certainly a product of Peyton Manning, are not typical of an NFL offense. They also attack the seems A TON with the TE and slot receivers.

[N51_rob]

I really wish that we as fans could have access to the "coaches tape". Watching the game on sunday you miss out on so much of the chess matches between offense and defense with formations and movement.

That is one of the real benefits of watching games at stadiums. I was at a Maryland football game last year and I must've take 50-60 photos of the pre-snap formations, just to look at and compare with the game I had DVRing. You really get a whole new respect for the game.

I even called NFL Films once tying to buy coaches film from past seasons.

[Dice]

Has anybody read, "Blood, Sweat and Chalk" by Tim Layden? Excellent book about the history of different football strategies and schemes. Layden talks about the different offenses and defenses that has impacted not only the NFL but football in general. Each one he gets into their history of who implemented it and how successful it became and a reason why some schemes died. If you haven't read it and you love the strategy of football your missing and excellent read.

[Dice]

Quote: Originally Posted by Senator Palmer

Most coaches can trace their lineage to one or two sources, but they tend to serve long apprenticeships which exposes them to a lot of disparate philosophies that they adopt into their own. You could write a book on what each coach runs and where he learned it.

Actually, "Blood, Sweat and Chalk" is that book. After reading your post, it looks like you read that book. Am I correct?