A New Era in the NFL; Old School Drafturbators join the dinosaurs and disco

[Saccopoo]

From a recent article on NFL.com:

As a former NFL head coach explained, "the Spread offense is here to stay in the NFL, especially after what the Packers got done in the Super Bowl. And quarterbacks like Cam Newton and Blaine Gabbert are headed to the NFL next year with 'spread' offense experience which will only perpetuate the spread in pro football."

The spread offense has a few formational variations and the Packers used them all. They employed a "3 by 2" empty principle with Rodgers in the shotgun, three receivers to one side of the field and two receivers to the other side. They used a '4 by 1' principle with four receivers to one side and a single receiver opposite. They used a single back in the backfield occasionally and they started the game out in shotgun with a running back and a tight end in the backfield for protection reasons. There were reasons for all those variations, but the philosophy was all the same and that was to isolate Steeler defenders.

For years we have heard the terms "Spread Monkey," "Pro Style Set," etc., when referencing the professional potential of a college quarterback. Purported draft experts ridiculed and admonished players who operated in spread type systems as having a distinct disadvantage when coming into the professional level.

However, with the prolific and incredibly successful use of the spread system in the college game over the past decade, it was perhaps only a matter of time when the relative "old school" mindset of the NFL was going to change. Remember the forward pass? The West Coast offense? Like the spread system, these changes to the game of football were somewhat slow to become adopted by the NFL, but once established, they ushered in a new era of offense.

With the success of the Green Bay Packers in the Super Bowl against one of the best defenses in the NFL, as well as success of recent college spread system quarterbacks, such as Ben Rothlisberger, Sam Bradford, Tim Tebow, Josh Freeman, etc., are we watching the birth of a new era in professional football?

And conversely, are we seeing the death of the old school CP drafturbator? Is a new breed of 'bators coming up and replacing these ancient stalwarts of days gone by? Like the mighty dinosaurs, are the last of their kind being overtaken by a newer species of football bulletin boardiers? Are we seeing the Beatles SPLHCB versus the Monkeys? Nirvana versus Loverboy. The printing press versus monks with feathers dipped in ink?

Only time will tell, but I believe that we are looking at the horizon, about to see a new dawn bring about a new day, a new age.