How the Chiefs slowed the Eagles offense

[Ace Gunner]

Raanan Review: How the Chiefs slowed the
Eagles offense, why the tactic isn't foolproof


Chip Kelly's genius status took a hit Thursday night in front of a national audience. His offense didn't perform well, turning the ball over five times and finishing with 16 points.

Kansas City deserves credit. They have a strong defense that played well in Philadelphia and wanted desperately to get Andy Reid a win against his former team. They also came in with an excellent game plan to slow down Kelly's offense.

One of their primary tactics involved their standout outside linebackers, Justin Houston and Tamba Hali. Rather than have them rush straight upfield, the Chiefs had them start wider and delay their rush.

"In the first half, [Houston] wouldn't really rush. He would kind of come up on me and then just take off," rookie offensive tackle Lane Johnson said. "It was delayed a little bit and that is what made it so tough. Sometimes I would set back and he wouldn't come at all, then he'd do a quick twitch and come inside or outside. It made it tough."

Look here at this play with 6:37 left in the second quarter. Michael Vick has the ball seven yards behind the line of scrimmage and is looking to his right. Houston barely moved from his starting spot. He's delayed his pass rush and, in the process, created a much more difficult throwing lane for Vick, who wanted to hit DeSean Jackson with a short, quick pass on the play.




Remember, Vick isn't the tallest quarterback. He's 6-foot if stretched to the max. Houston is listed at 6-foot-3 and well over 7-feet with his hands in the air.

But as he often does, Vick compensates for his height deficiency with his mobility. Even though he can't get the pass to Jackson on this second-quarter play, he escapes the pocket on the opposite side where there is still an opportunity for a huge play. Running back Bryce Brown is wide open streaking down the sideline.




But Vick didn't see Brown on the sideline and tried to force the ball to a well-covered Riley Cooper deep downfield. Incomplete.

It was that kind of evening for the Eagles. They moved the ball, had opportunities for big plays, but just didn't make them. And upon further review, a lot of it had to do with Vick having an off night. He easily played his worst game of the season Thursday night against the Chiefs.

Here's another huge miss on a similar play.




This time Vick escaped pressure and had Jackson matched against former Eagle Akeem Jordan. No contest. It would have been an easy pitch and catch for a big gain, possibly even a touchdown given Jackson's incredible speed. Again, Vick tried to force the ball to Cooper downfield. Incomplete.

The Chiefs had Vick off his game. They did so by disrupting his reads early in plays. Here's another one where Houston didn't do much right at the snap.




Again, Vick was looking for Jackson with a quick pass on the right side. That didn't happen. Houston was in the throwing lane. So Vick pumped to try and create an opening. He then tried to squeeze the pass in, only to have Houston knock it down.

The Chiefs used this delayed rush technique all game long. It helped slow Kelly's offense when the Eagles weren't self-destructing (5 turnovers).

Now it's the new Eagles coach's move. He must come up with an adjustment to combat the game plan that the Chiefs used and future opponents will almost certainly try to replicate.

Other Notable Observations:
• The Eagles brought a blitz (defined here as anything more than a 4-man rush) on just seven of 44 pass plays. Two of those seven plays went for first downs, including a Donnie Avery 3rd-and-long conversion in the second quarter. Two of the blitzes resulted in Chiefs penalties.

The Eagles used cornerback Brandon Boykin and safety Patrick Chung as pass rushers with regularity throughout the game. Cornerback Bradley Fletcher came on one play. Middle linebacker DeMeco Ryans was involved in three of the seven blitzes.

As a whole though, defensive coordinator Billy Davis wasn't very aggressive with his play calling. The Eagles rushed three men more than a handful of times on Thursday night.

• Defensive end Cedric Thornton had a strong game. He was dominant against the run, improving his run-stop percentage to 11.3, good for seventh in the NFL after three games, according to Pro Football Focus.

• There were some costly breakdowns and the final numbers (5 sacks) looked ugly, but the Eagles offensive line wasn't quite as bad as I thought in my initial observation. They actually did a decent job keeping Vick upright most of the time and had very few missed assignments. Two of the sacks weren't the offensive line's fault and Vick took just 12 total hits in the contest. That includes plays where he ran the ball. That's much better than the 19 he absorbed in Week 1.

• Vinny Curry's production was astounding. The second-year defensive lineman played 12 snaps and had three pressures and a sack. What impressed me watching the coaches tape was how quickly Curry got off the ball. It allowed him to beat his blocker several times without even making a move.

• After reviewing Damaris Johnson's muffed punt several times I came to the conclusion that it was likely a mental, not physical, mistake. Johnson waited too long to call for a fair catch. That left him scrambling at the last second to position himself properly and waive his hand. It wasn't Johnson's only mental blunder either. Moments later he failed to catch a kickoff that landed seven yards deep in the end zone. It all makes you wonder: Does Johnson have what it takes upstairs to be a successful returner in this league?

These aren't his first mental mistakes. Johnson made a foolish decision to return a kickoff in the opener and several times last season fielded punts inside the 5-yard line. The Eagles may want to reconsider Johnson as their kick and punt returner.


http://www.nj.com/eagles/index.ssf/2...ull_proof.html

[T-post Tom]

Sounds like the Eagles defeat was a product of an off night vs anything the Chiefs did.

[vailpass]

Gimmick O does not hold up in the nfl against disciplined, hard hitting D.

[Consistent1]

Originally Posted by vailpass

Gimmick O does not hold up in the nfl against disciplined, hard hitting D.

Being nice tonight? That is cool. It will be fun to watch how things play out. Think you are very right.

Vick can be spyed, or flushed out to make bad throws, and all that too. He is just way unpredictable.

[vailpass]

Originally Posted by Consistent1

Being nice tonight? That is cool. It will be fun to watch how things play out. Think you are very right.

Vick can be spyed, or flushed out to make bad throws, and all that too. He is just way unpredictable.

I always try to be objective. KC smacked Philly in the mouth, can't play tricks in the nfl for long. Every guy on D you face is the best guy you faced in college.
Chip will learn this.

[Saul Good]

Originally Posted by vailpass

Gimmick O does not hold up in the nfl against disciplined, hard hitting D.

Has the shine ever formed and disappeared from a coach faster than it did with Chip Kelly?

[Titty Meat]

Originally Posted by Saul Good

Has the shine ever formed and disappeared from a coach faster than it did with Chip Kelly?

Spurrier

[vailpass]

Originally Posted by Bo's Pelini

Spurrier

Yep. And Saban.

[Hog's Gone Fishin]

Andy Reid knew how to play Vick. End of story.

[milkman]

Originally Posted by vailpass

Gimmick O does not hold up in the nfl against disciplined, hard hitting D.

This gimmick O is a solid old school design.

Spread the defense out, widen gaps to create bigger running lanes.

Michael Vick's inaccuracy and inconsistency is the fly in the ointment.

[cyborgtable]

Originally Posted by milkman

This gimmick O is a solid old school design.

Spread the defense out, widen gaps to create bigger running lanes.

Michael Vick's inaccuracy and inconsistency is the fly in the ointment.

This, the system will most likely work with an accurate and smart QB.

[vailpass]

Originally Posted by milkman

This gimmick O is a solid old school design.

Spread the defense out, widen gaps to create bigger running lanes.

Michael Vick's inaccuracy and inconsistency is the fly in the ointment.

It's always something it seems. Yet the drop back qb wins the sb.

[milkman]

Originally Posted by vailpass

It's always something it seems. Yet the drop back qb wins the sb.

The design is about creating running lanes.
It doesn't require a running QB to run it.

A smart accurate pocket QB could run more effectively than a dumbass with legs.

[Fat Elvis]

Originally Posted by milkman

This gimmick O is a solid old school design.

Spread the defense out, widen gaps to create bigger running lanes.

Michael Vick's inaccuracy and inconsistency is the fly in the ointment.

I agree, and incidentally, I think the Chiefs are actually better suited to run the offense than the Eagles given the personnel.

ASmith is a much more accurate passer than Vick, and yet he can still run if needed.

Jamaal is a better RB than McCoy; McCoy is having a better year than him right now, but over his career Jamaal is rushing for over a yard more per carry than Shady. And that is with teams stacking the box.

Although Avery more resembles Jackson physically, Bowe's career production numbers are better than Jackson. Get Avery in space and he is devastating; just look at the Eagles game as an example.

Kelly's scheme is perfect for a horizontal offensive philosophy, and that is Reid's bread and butter. To really execute the game plan, however, you need a cerebral QB who doesn't turn the ball over--which is ASmith in spades.

Even the speed between the plays isn't really new; the Pats have been doing the same thing for several years now. You want prolific numbers for your QB? Run up to the line of scrimmage and run a lot of plays.

This isn't rocket science folks. And it isn't revolutionary.

[ChiefsFanatic]

Originally Posted by vailpass

Gimmick O does not hold up in the nfl against disciplined, hard hitting D.

I believe that Chip Kelly's system, or some form of it, could be revolutionary, and make an impact on this league like the "West Coast Offense" did.

It needs a quarterback to make it work, like the West Coast Offense needed Montana. When a good QB has success in this offense, more people in the league will start adapting it to work for them. IMHO.