Covitz:Chiefs envision Eric Berry as pass rushing and defending threat

[Tribal Warfare]

Chiefs envision Eric Berry as pass rushing and defending threat
By RANDY COVITZ
The Kansas City Star
Chiefs strong safety Eric Berry just may be capable of pulling off a rare double this season.

The way the Chiefs are using Berry — as a pass rusher as well as a pass defender — he just could rank among the team’s leaders in both interceptions and sacks.

“I’m going to be all over the place,” Berry said of his role in defensive coordinator Bob Sutton’s aggressive scheme.

Berry, in fact, needs a road map as much as a playbook to figure out where he’s lining up from play to play.

He’s the strong safety in the base defense. He can be a blitzing safety or cover safety in the nickel defense. And he’s a linebacker in the dime defense.

“I really had to get into my playbook because there are certain things I didn’t know how to do in the past,” said Berry, in his fourth season with the Chiefs. “I have to know what to do as a linebacker … sometimes I’m rushing off the edge. Sometimes I have to stay on top of my game before … like with the safety position.

“There are just so many different things that I have to know what to do, and I pretty much just cause confusion on the opposing offense. I guess that’s my job.”

Sutton believes Berry, a 6-foot, 211-pounder, can handle covering tight ends and backs coming out of the backfield as well as provide run support and put pressure on the passer.

“Eric has a great skill set,” Sutton said. “He’s one of those guys that can play deep … he has the ability to come down and play low in the box in (nickel) situations. He can cover, he can blitz, he’s a very active run defender for a defensive back … down in the box. He has a feel for it, he can slither in and out of the box, so he gives us a lot of flexibility. The more things he can do, the more difficult it is for the opposing teams to say ‘This is what he is.’”

It’s certainly more fun for Berry than sitting back in centerfield waiting for the action to come to him.

“I don’t look at it as doing one job,” Berry said. “I like my job because it’s multiple. They ask me to do a lot of things. I blitz, I cover, I play the pass. I feel like that’s a lot to put on a player, but I feel like I can handle it so I put a lot on myself. I want to be able to fit that role.”

Berry, the Chiefs’ first-round pick in 2010, has been known to get to the quarterback. He had two sacks in a game at Oakland as a rookie. And he has five career interceptions. Now, quarterbacks will have to play a guessing game with what Berry might be doing.

“Last year, people kind of game planned, and they always knew, I would be here, Eric would be there …” free safety Kendrick Lewis said. “Coach Bob is doing a great job disguising … they don’t know where we’ll be. They can’t locate Eric Berry. He can do all those things where Coach Sutton sets him up.”

Berry’s confident he can fulfill his added duties because he’s completely healthy. After a Pro Bowl rookie season in 2010, Berry missed the 2011 season after suffering torn knee ligaments in the first series of the season opener. Though Berry returned in 2012, ranked second on the team in tackles and returned to the Pro Bowl, he didn’t have the impact he expects to make this year, both as a player and as a team leader.

“I have a lot of confidence in my knee right now, my athletic ability right now and the knowledge that I acquired last year from dealing with that,” Berry said. “It’s a total difference …

“I’m going to do what I do. A lot of people look to me for different things and I’m just going to be strong for my team. I’m going to try to be a good example and get us pushed in the right direction. I want to be a sparkplug for the team.”

Nickel back Dunta Robinson, a 10-year veteran who signed with the Chiefs in the offseason, has been impressed with what he’s seen in Berry.

“You’re talking about a guy who can play any position,” Robinson said. “He’s as good as advertised. He’s on his way to becoming the best safety in this league. As long as he keeps preparing, and stays humble the way he’s doing, and stays focused the way he’s been … he’s probably the best safety I’ve been around. I’ve been around some good safeties, but he’s probably the best.”

[Chiefshrink]

Hopefully our Troy Palamalu without the hair

[Ming the Merciless]

Chiefs invent brand new defensive concept: " Safety Blitz "

This is part of a novel & radical 4 part idea:

1)Pressure the QB

2)Cause ints or get sacks

3) stop the opponent from scoring

4) get more turnovers than we give away

All 4 of these concepts were "ivented" by the chiefs in 2013 with the overall theory in mind to:

WIN FOOTBALL GAMES


This new incredible system will revolutionize chiefs football as we know it









.

[Mav]

Originally Posted by Chief Roundup

Evidently Sutton hasn't seen Berry getting owned by every tight end in the NFL. Berry cannot cover a TE to save his life.

well, uh.....see below.

Originally Posted by Hog Farmer

I remember him getting owned by Antonio Gates. I like Berry though.

To you two specifically. Tight Ends, are very VERY hard to cover. Pointing out that Eric Berry cant cover Antonio Gates one on one is kind of an oxymoron. No one has been able to do that for a Decade. But, all I can assume, is that the Chiefs are going to rely on pressure up front, to ease some of the burden of having to cover these guys for an extended amount of time.

Pressure, busts pipes. Meaning, the more pressure you put on a qb, the less time he has to throw, leading to a sack, incompletion, or a turnover.

The more time a qb has in the pocket, a receiver, or tight end is going to get open. You can NOT cover forever. I don't care if you had Revis, Champ bailey in his prime, and Deion in his prime, with Ronnie lott, and Ed reed back there, if you give a qb in this league with the offensive rules 5 seconds every play to find a receiver, they are going to get open.

You will be amazed, just remember back to your DERRICK THOMAS Neil Smith days of how good your secondary looked....

Remember that, now think about that this year.

[Sorter]

That is exceptionally creepy.

[Saccopoo]

Smells like a 46 defense to me.

Sutton, you beautiful bastard you.

[BossChief]

"he just could rank among the team’s leaders in both interceptions and sacks."


Holy shit. What a load of crap.

If Berry is a team leader in sacks, we have big problems.

[TEX]

Originally Posted by PGM

You guys are reeruned. He was absolutely playing at a high level the last part of the season. Yeah, he struggled early in the year.

And you're blind. He struggled a lot more than early on and he was not at the level at the end of last year that he was at the end of his rookie season. It was a complete joke that he made the Pro Bowl last season.

[DTLB58]

Just don't put him in one on one coverage.

[DTLB58]

Originally Posted by TEX

And you're blind. He struggled a lot more than early on and he was not at the level at the end of last year that he was at the end of his rookie season. It was a complete joke that he made the Pro Bowl last season.

Amen!

[A Salt Weapon]

It's weird but I am remembering it the other way around. I'm remembering Gates destroying us until we put Berry on him, after that Gates still made some plays but nowhere near the amount before Berry started covering him.

[Mr. Laz]

if we really are going to go to an attacking/zone blitzing 3-4 defense then i imagine everyone is going to be used more in pass rush.


berry and Houston come to mind first

DJ as well


Arenas is a pretty good blitzer ....... oh wait

[Fire Me Boy!]

We need more Benny Sapp.

[Red Dawg]

ERIC BERRY AND AMERICA! FUGG YEAH!

[Red Dawg]

Originally Posted by Fire Me Boy!

We need more Benny Sapp.

And more cow bell.

[ghak99]

Originally Posted by A Salt Weapon

It's weird but I am remembering it the other way around. I'm remembering Gates destroying us until we put Berry on him, after that Gates still made some plays but nowhere near the amount before Berry started covering him.

For what it's worth, this is similar to what I remember.

Gates was destroying us and they put him all on Berry's shoulders. I remember thinking "WTF, he's going get owned" while slinging slurs at the imposter collecting a coaches paycheck on our sideline. There's no doubt he got owned on several plays, but I seem to remember him doing much better than I expected. If anyone really expected him to get on an island with one of the best, and most experienced, tight ends to play the game and shut him down, there and idiot.