OUR PASSING GAME---ANOTHER LOOK

The article is 2.5 years old and we finished 30th in offense last year.

The two tight end philosophy was a novelty in 2011, wore out its welcome in 2012, and was the guest that wouldn't leave in 2013.

Times change rapidly in the NFL. Don't blame Vance.

But, even accepting what the article says about 2 tight end sets -- as run suppoprt, with a counterpunch of pass -- I still don't agree with the "center piece" language. We just don't have the versatile pass catching ability at the position to fit the centerpiece description. I love Vern but he's too athletic to really feel or have the patience for the teensy curls and delays that are the bread and butter of most great TE's we have had in the past.

Originally posted by brodiebluebanaszak:

The article is 2.5 years old and we finished 30th in offense last year.

The two tight end philosophy was a novelty in 2011, wore out its welcome in 2012, and was the guest that wouldn't leave in 2013.

Times change rapidly in the NFL. Don't blame Vance.

But, even accepting what the article says about 2 tight end sets -- as run suppoprt, with a counterpunch of pass -- I still don't agree with the "center piece" language. We just don't have the versatile pass catching ability at the position to fit the centerpiece description. I love Vern but he's too athletic to really feel or have the patience for the teensy curls and delays that are the bread and butter of most great TE's we have had in the past.

So exactly *what* do you think Harbaugh offensively runs, pray tell.

Originally posted by dtg_9er:

I do not recall using the term "developmental." While all QBs are in a process of development, some are more complete than others. . At least they are developing until they are diminishing. Brees, Mannings, Rodgers are examples of developed QBs. CK is a young guy with oodles of talent who is learning how to read defenses and how to use touch...that is not an example of a complete NFL QB. When a QB shows as much possibility as CK you sign them...just as all good QBs are. You do not wait until they are FAs and hope to keep them...unless you are a real risk taker.

QBs who had talent and were signed to big contracts can haunt teams...Romo is an example of a guy who I think was vastly over paid based on potential. CK may be another example but I hope not...and believe he will be much better than Romo in a year or two.

a poster who responded to a comment you made used the term in his post.

I quoted both your comment and his response.

I would argue that in the jargon of the NFL the term development quarterback has a specific meaning and Kaepernick is not a developmental quarterback.

Originally posted by Giedi:
So exactly *what* do you think Harbaugh offensively runs, pray tell.

I think we all can see what he runs.

It's just the term centerpiece doesn't sit well with me, when describing the TE's.

Being the centerpiece of an imbalanced scheme just sounds weird. Makes me mad because so many possibilities of the position are left on the table in the playbook and play design.

Like, we're so adept at creatively leveraging our te's on every play that they are just so vital to the execution of our offense we have to call them the centerpiece.

Just don't see it. Just not right.

I get that we run vern long. I get that we ask him to push around linebackers.

Just wouldn't describe that as a centerpiece that makes the world go round for us.

We'll see how the scheme holds up when we don't have a freak there.

Giedi, I will have to say that I never considered vance being held back on passing attempts(ie playcalls) because he was learning the run blocking scheme. That said, I sure as heck wished kap would have thrown to vance (or Vernon, or frank, or hunter or LMJ) when Crabs was doubled and so was anquan. THAT would sure seem like a very good time to throw more to somebody other than #81 or #15. That said JH did compliment vance on his run blocking this yr on a drive by interview, and said JH hoped to get vance into the passing game more this coming yr. G, you believe that?

Originally posted by buck:
a poster who responded to a comment you made used the term in his post.

I quoted both your comment and his response.

I would argue that in the jargon of the NFL the term development quarterback has a specific meaning and Kaepernick is not a developmental quarterback.

OK...didn't see the word developmental so wanted to clarify. He's a starting QB in the NFL so it would be inaccurate to call him developmental. But he isn't a polished QB so...

Originally posted by pasodoc9er:

Giedi, I will have to say that I never considered vance being held back on passing attempts(ie playcalls) because he was learning the run blocking scheme. That said, I sure as heck wished kap would have thrown to vance (or Vernon, or frank, or hunter or LMJ) when Crabs was doubled and so was anquan. THAT would sure seem like a very good time to throw more to somebody other than #81 or #15. That said JH did compliment vance on his run blocking this yr on a drive by interview, and said JH hoped to get vance into the passing game more this coming yr. G, you believe that?

I do. Vance has to catch, it comes with the TE position in general. Yeah, I was surprised that Kaep didn't throw more to Vance and to Kendall, and to the other WR's more, but I think he's just still thinking too much out there and not seeing things. That will be fixed with more reps and more in game exposure and film study. But Vance also has to catch those passes. That one (I think in the Panther's game) deep down the middle would have won the game for us, but he's dropped not only that pass but several others during the year that lost Kaepernick's confidence in Vance. So it's no surprise he wasn't targeted more often by Kaepernick.

As for Vance being held back, I don't think it's being held back as building a foundation he needs to be a pro TE in the 49er offense. After all, this offense is a run first offense so the blocking from the TE's will be more important than the passing for a rookie being groomed to take over Delanie's role. If this was Green Bay's fast break offense, I'm pretty sure they would have concentrated on the pass receiving first.

Once his blocking is down, and he has one year under his belt in the passing game, it should be much easier now to integrate him as an AR1 or AR2 in the offense. You don't want an inconsistent receiver being the number one target of Kaepernick, considering that Kaepernick also still learning the offense.

Originally posted by dtg_9er:

I do not recall using the term "developmental." While all QBs are in a process of development, some are more complete than others. . At least they are developing until they are diminishing. Brees, Mannings, Rodgers are examples of developed QBs. CK is a young guy with oodles of talent who is learning how to read defenses and how to use touch...that is not an example of a complete NFL QB. When a QB shows as much possibility as CK you sign them...just as all good QBs are. You do not wait until they are FAs and hope to keep them...unless you are a real risk taker.

QBs who had talent and were signed to big contracts can haunt teams...Romo is an example of a guy who I think was vastly over paid based on potential. CK may be another example but I hope not...and believe he will be much better than Romo in a year or two.

I agree with you and I'm pretty sure the 49er organization will sign Kaepernick to a long term contract. The longer the wait, the more they'll pay because he'll just continue to get better.

Originally posted by dtg_9er:

Originally posted by SofaKing:

Originally posted by BrianGO:
A lot of this has to do with the cute plays we run. They give us big losses, and kill drives. I don't know the facts, but I would guess we are near the top with rushes that went for a loss.

You would be correct.

We were ranked dead last in stuffs (runs stopped at or before the LOS) with 61.

Dead last in negative rush yards (-161).

12.1 % of runs were stuffed (30th in NFL)

http://www.sportingcharts.com/nfl/stats/team-stuffed-percentage/2013/

So it's percentage not number...which is the most accurate way to look at it. Sad considering how good Gore is and that he was healthy all last year. It's almost as if the coaches sacrificed Gore so that he could take pressure off Kaepernick...not a bad idea but still...sad for Gore.

I'm glad you brought this up...this to me, is 100% on predictable playcalling. Like in the NFCCG...everyone and their mother knew we'd run on first downs (then Seattle played their normal defense on 2nd and 3rd downs). Gore had 12 total yards that game. B/c of this, I still question whether or not HaRoman will "get it" after three years of this predictability. Fingers crossed.

All this data does is bring into brite lites the fact that the guy calling our plays, our OC, is;

---predictable
---unimaginative
---completely ignorant of the passing game
---way over his head w/r/to being a professional NFL OC
---incompetent in use of all his pieces
---completely unable to mix up a run/pass offense, and horrible in running on 1st down. Goes to his lack of imagination, but worse, the guy doesn't seem to learn from his mistakes.
---is awful in matching Qbs skill set with plays called. I know they have been trying, but as NCommand has noted, kap would most likely work best out of a spread set. Problem? roman doesn't do "spread formations"

I could go on, but in short: Coach Harbaugh has an OC who is letting him down by virtue of his playcalling and lack of imagination in playcalling. "mixing it up" is completely foreign to roman. This is a Harbaugh failure, even tho we have been to NFCC game 3 times out of three. A lot of our wins were just due to having better players than many teams we played. Against SEA, we won at home, but twice just got outcoached up there.

For most games, roman is good enough to win. When we just have to win, in NFCC and SB, is when incompetence comes to the fore. Does kap share some of the blame here? you bet, but he could be given way better game plans and play calls to work with based on his skill set. This yr, if it doesn't work out, either kap is gone in the next 2 yrs, or much more likely, roman should be. Harbaugh's set of blinders w/r/to roman is really disappointing, and has cost him probably 2 SBs. That is not insignificant.

The 49ers use many of the known concepts in their passing game. I wanted to touch on a number of them and illustrate how they work. My hope is that in the 14-15 season, I can post thumbnail pics of the 49ers pass plays and we can all get an idea of what the 49ers are trying to do with respect to attacking zone coverage, man coverage, and what part of the field they are trying to exploit. If you've been on the WZ towards the end of the 13-14 season, we had a few all22 film threads that touch on these concepts. I post thumbnails of the 49er's pass plays in those and it can really give a good understanding as to what the 49ers think the defense is about to do. I know there are many varying levels of understanding on this forum so if this is elementary to you, please feel free to expand on the posts because there is so much to touch on.

Everyone is an arm chair GM, we have some passionate draftniks, but not enough arm chair coaches. My hope is to get more people interested in the low level details of the game and what offenses do when trying to attack defenses.

I will touch on the following concepts: all curls, smash, all verticals, curl-flat, mesh, rub, hi-lo, triangle stretches, and even the WZ's own AR1 and AR2. All the bolded text are terms anyone can look up on the internet for more info about.

It may take awhile to post all the content. Lots of pics coming so make sure the data plan on your phone can handle it .

First up is the 49er's favorite route combination: SMASH concept - zone buster - vertical stretch

The Smash concept is a two route combination. The outside WR will run a hitch or deep in route. The next WR to the inside will run a corner route. The idea is to put the sideline zone defender in a stretched position. When a defender is stretched, he feels there are two routes that he must defend. If the spacing of the WRs is correct, meaning the WRs run their routes well, the defender will not be able to defend both routes without help from a team mate.

49ers: smash on both sides of the formation
Rams: cover3 + a LB playing man coverage on VD (because VD is the most explosive threat on the 49ers and defenses pay special attention to VD)


Boldin completes his hitch route and sets the "bait" for the sideline defender at the top of the screen. That sideline defender is what Kap will key on. What that defender does will determine where Kap throws to.


VD breaks on his corner route and the defender feels the stretch (blue lines). Even though there is a designated man defender on VD, VD still attracts the attention of the sideline defender. Kap sees that the sideline defender is sagging to defend VD's route. That opens up Boldin. Kap is seen in mid windup.


Boldin just caught the ball.


This is what a stretched defender does - indecision.



_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________

49ers: SMASH concept
ATL: cover3

Boldin (hitch) and Vance (corner) will run the combination. The 49ers add an additional route, Gore's flat route, to provide an additional stretch to the sideline defenders.


The two highlighted defenders will feel the stretch. Blue is going to defend his zone and take the corner route. Orange sees Gore and must honor the flat route.


The deep sideline defender is going to take Vance's corner route. The flat defender is occupied by Gore's route to the flat. This opens up Boldin in the intermediate range. Kap is mid windup.


Boldin just caught the ball.


The 49ers love this concept and will use it a number of times throughout a game. It is always either VD or Vance running the corner route.

Here is a Hi-Lo concept done along the sidelines. All Hi-Lo concepts are designed to cause a vertical stretch.

49ers: SAIL concept - zone buster - vertical stretch
GB: cover3

Boldin will run a Go route to draw the attention of the deep zone defender. VD provides the intermediate read. Miller provides the short read.


Boldin will take the deep defender with him and clear that area of the field. The defender in orange is Kap's key. He is about to get vertically stretched.


The orange defender has gained enough depth on his drop to cover VD's route. This tells Kap to throw it to Miller. Kap is mid windup.


The beauty of Hi-Lo reads is that all the routes are in the QB's line of sight. The QB doesn't have to swivel his head left/right.

Hi-Lo reads can also occur in the middle of the field. These two concepts were made popular by the great Bill Walsh and is a staple of the WCO.

49ers: SHALLOW CROSS concept
GB: cover4(?)

This is a two route concept. VD will run the drag route. Vance will run the dig route. VD's route is designed to attract the attention of the LBs as he flashes across their faces. Vance's route is designed to find the soft spot behind the LBs, and to find a throwing lane for Kap.


Vance is now behind the LBs and starts his break in the route. VD is starting his drag route.


If VD doesn't attract any attention, then he'll be open. If VD does attract attention, that allows Vance to be open. VD has attracted two LB level defenders. Vance has found the soft spot as well as a throwing lane for Kap. Vance sits down on his route.


Vance just caught the ball and will turn it up field for his longest catch of the season.



_________________________________________________________________________________________________________

49ers: DRIVE concept
GB: cover3(?)

Same idea as the SHALLOW CROSS concept, but this time both the routes are on the same side of the formation. The more attention the drag route (Crabs) attracts, the more open the Dig route (Vance) will be. The read is high to low in this concept.


By having both routes on the same side of the formation, a partial pick (rub) is set by Vance.


The LB level defenders sag into an intermediate zone and are in position to cover Vance's Dig route.


Because the LBs drop to an intermediate zone and take away Vance, Crabs is open on the drag route. Crabs just caught the ball.


Rice made a living catching this high percentage pass and running past all the slow LBs. Crabs shows nice RAC here.


Some GIFs will be in black and white as it makes the filesize smaller.

Originally posted by thl408:

Hi-Lo reads can also occur in the middle of the field. These two concepts were made popular by the great Bill Walsh and is a staple of the WCO.

49ers: SHALLOW CROSS concept
GB: cover4(?)

This is a two route concept. VD will run the drag route. Vance will run the dig route. VD's route is designed to attract the attention of the LBs as he flashes across their faces. Vance's route is designed to find the soft spot behind the LBs, and to find a throwing lane for Kap.


Vance is now behind the LBs and starts his break in the route. VD is starting his drag route.


If VD doesn't attract any attention, then he'll be open. If VD does attract attention, that allows Vance to be open. VD has attracted two LB level defenders. Vance has found the soft spot as well as a throwing lane for Kap. Vance sits down on his route.


Vance just caught the ball and will turn it up field for his longest catch of the season.



_________________________________________________________________________________________________________

49ers: DRIVE concept
GB: cover3(?)

Same idea as the SHALLOW CROSS concept, but this time both the routes are on the same side of the formation. The more attention the drag route (Crabs) attracts, the more open the Dig route (Vance) will be. The read is high to low in this concept.


By having both routes on the same side of the formation, a partial pick (rub) is set by Vance.


The LB level defenders sag into an intermediate zone and are in position to cover Vance's Dig route.


Because the LBs drop to an intermediate zone and take away Vance, Crabs is open on the drag route. Crabs just caught the ball.


Rice made a living catching this high percentage pass and running past all the slow LBs. Crabs shows nice RAC here.


Some GIFs will be in black and white as it makes the filesize smaller.

Great, great breakdown....I was wondering in your film breakdowns of the drive concept how has kaep looked when the primary drag/crosser is taken away and has to look to the secondary 10-12 in route/zone settle route(depending of man or zone). Also did you notice if we ran any drive out of traditional base formation like strong I or I form, or was it primarily a gun look. Drive has probably always been my favorite classic WCO concepts. If we aren't a using the s**t out of this concept that is a big problem as it is pretty much tailored made for crabtree's skill set.