This breakdown is exceptional. The Mahogany fit really jumped out: calling him a 'bouncer outside a club' who thrives pulling around the edge captures why Brad Holmes was so deliberate in that draft selection. What's intresting is how this scheme shift actually devalues finesse zone blockers in favor of violent displacment, which could reshape how we evaluate guards league-wide going forward. I dunno, I've watched enough offensive line tape to know that system fit is half the battle, and this fit is scary good.
Appreciate it! I agree with the evaluation piece. Nobody gives Holmes the credit he deserves. I feel like they knew this change was coming after Ben and tried to patch it together last season before making the change.
Good analysis, Will. I like the idea of not being predictable on whether the play will be a run or a pass off of the actions of your linemen. If you run every time the line pushes forward (or pass every time your linemen back up), that doesn’t require guess work. But if you pass periodically when the line pushes forward (or run periodically when the line backs up), that’s where the conflict comes in for the defense. It’s the same with formations. Defenses shouldn’t be able to predict whether a play will be a run or a pass off of a formation. So I hope that happens.
This breakdown is exceptional. The Mahogany fit really jumped out: calling him a 'bouncer outside a club' who thrives pulling around the edge captures why Brad Holmes was so deliberate in that draft selection. What's intresting is how this scheme shift actually devalues finesse zone blockers in favor of violent displacment, which could reshape how we evaluate guards league-wide going forward. I dunno, I've watched enough offensive line tape to know that system fit is half the battle, and this fit is scary good.
Appreciate it! I agree with the evaluation piece. Nobody gives Holmes the credit he deserves. I feel like they knew this change was coming after Ben and tried to patch it together last season before making the change.
Good analysis, Will. I like the idea of not being predictable on whether the play will be a run or a pass off of the actions of your linemen. If you run every time the line pushes forward (or pass every time your linemen back up), that doesn’t require guess work. But if you pass periodically when the line pushes forward (or run periodically when the line backs up), that’s where the conflict comes in for the defense. It’s the same with formations. Defenses shouldn’t be able to predict whether a play will be a run or a pass off of a formation. So I hope that happens.