Rams vs. Redskins Week 2 Scouting Reports: A Proposal

[aasimon]

I know everyone is focused on STL vs. DET at the moment, but bear with me...

Full disclosure, I'm a Redskins fan/blogger. Every week, I provide my readers with an in-depth scouting report on the upcoming game. In my experience, the best way to do research on an opponent is to discuss the topic with their fans. Fans, by far, have a better pulse on the team they support than the national talking heads that recycle the same cliches based on retrospective reviews of previous seasons' records. Fans know much more about the potential surprise players, the X's and O's that a team runs, the strengths and weaknesses of players on the field, and everything in-between.

I want to be able to provide my readers with in-depth scouting reports based on discussions with people that actually know and care about their team.

Having said that, I am offering a proposal:

I will provide the Rams fans on this forum with in-depth scouting reports on the Redskins including all of the things mentioned above (X's and O's, strengths, weaknesses, player evaluations, etc.) in exchange for good-natured, unbiased assessments on the St. Louis Rams.

Is there anybody that would be interested in discussing this with me? If not, are there any respected STL bloggers/analysts that you guys could recommend for in-depth analysis on the team? I would love any assistance, and I would love to give my insight on the Redskins to you guys.

Please see below of a snippet of the type of information I provide on my blog (from my scouting report on New Orleans for this week's matchup). This is the type of info I'd provide on the Redskins for you Rams fans:

An offense this proficient (again) cannot be completely broken down in a single post, but in an attempt to organize what is going on, I’ve tried to break down the Saints’ offensive philosophies below:

(1) Spread concepts out of base personnel packages. One of the things that make the New Orleans Saints the most difficult team to defend in the NFL is their versatility and unpredictability out of almost any personnel grouping. Two players in particular make this versatility unmatched: Darren Sproles and Jimmy Graham. A base personnel package consists of 2 WRs, 1 TE, 1 FB, and 1 RB; however, when Darren Sproles and Jimmy Graham are the RB and TE, that base package can go from being a typical I-formation into a 4-WR set in a heartbeat. Both Darren Sproles and Jimmy Graham are fully capable of running the entire route tree, creating match-up nightmares for any defense in the NFL.

If a defense was to bring its base personnel (in the Redskins’ case, 3 DL and 4 LBs) in an attempt to stop the run, the Saints are fully capable of lining up Graham in the slot to the strong side and motioning Sproles to the slot on the weak side. This forces matchups of LBs or safeties on guys that, realistically, they should not be covering (such as Kerrigan vs. Graham and/or Orakpo vs. Sproles). Of course, the Redskins could anticipate this by substituting nickel and dime packages to combat the spread concepts, but the Saints have the simple option of running the ball down their opponents’ throats against a much smaller nickel or dime front-7. In a way, New Orleans is able to create an advantageous pre-snap scenario on any down.

Darren Sproles is not the only capable receiver in the Saints’ backfield either. Pierre Thomas ended his 2011 season with 50 receptions (especially impressive considering the amount of snaps Darren Sproles receives in passing situations), which puts him in the camp of some of the best receiving backs in the NFL . Thomas will not be split out wide nearly as much as Sproles, but he is fully capable of taking advantage of mismatches out of the backfield.

(2) Building protection from the inside-out. This is a basic concept that all NFL teams preach and practice (blitz pickups are always done from the inside-out), but so few implement when it comes to the philosophy of building the roster. The New Orleans Saints are the exception.

Most NFL fans, analysts, and even general managers will harp about the importance of having a stellar blindside tackle. A lot would even say that it’s the most important offensive spot behind the quarterback, often times being the highest-paid and most sought-after position on that side of the ball. The New Orleans Saints, however, prescribe to a different philosophy; they believe their most important positions along the offensive line lie within the interior.

Two years ago, New Orleans signed their All-Pro right guard Jahri Evans to a then-record $56.7 million contract over 7 years. After signing Evans long-term, the Saints continued to develop a second All-Pro interior linemen, left guard Carl Nicks. Nicks was awarded back-to-back All-Pro honors in 2010 and 2011. This past offseason, Nicks entered free agency seeking a contract that would outdo his former teammate’s; unfortunately, the Saints did not have the cap room to resign Nicks, so they allowed him to walk (eventually to the Bucs for a now-record $47.5 million over 5 years). With the cap room they did have, the Saints replaced Nicks with former Baltimore star Ben Grubbs, who was given a $35 million contract.

Conversely, the Saints traded their two-time Pro-Bowl left tackle Jammal Brown to our Washington Redskins (which obviously now it looks like a steal for NOLA) and replaced him with a mid-round draft selection in Jermon Bushrod, who had started a grand total of 3 games prior to being handed the starting position. Bushrod was voted into the Pro-Bowl in 2011, but some analysts believe this honor had more to do with his presence in the most prolific offense in the NFL as opposed to his outright performance along the offensive line. However, despite Bushrod’s honor, he has yet to hear a word from New Orleans regarding a contract extension, even though in the last year of his rookie contract.

Why do the Saints place such value on the interior of the line? For two reasons: (a) Drew Brees is arguably the best QB in the NFL at recognizing pressure from the outside and stepping up into the pocket without disrupting his passing lanes, and (b) the Saints excel at the inside-zone running game.

Schematically, the Saints provide a lot of misdirection and assistance to slow down edge rushers from teeing off on their prized QB; they will throw chip blocks coming out of the backfield; they utilize bubble screens, tunnel screens, faux screens, bootlegs, and shifting pockets to consistently vary Brees’ drop and release; they run the stretch zone to keep edge rushers honest with containment assignments. However, one thing they absolutely must have in order to be successful over the course of a game is a clean pocket for Brees to step up into. Brees’ size (6’0’’) does not allow him to see and throw over his linemen easily; he needs passing lanes created for him, and he needs space with which to get his passes off without being batted down by hulking defensive linemen. Despite all of the misdirection New Orleans uses, they are still, at heart, a team that loves to stretch the field vertically. Brees cannot do that unless he has a clean pocket to step up into. The interior of his offensive line is stellar at providing this.

(3) Limiting defensive playcalls by dictating tempo. This should come as no surprise to anybody that has watched the Saints operate, but they love to conduct out of limited or no-huddle situations....

If you'd like to see more, here is the link: http://www.sportingparagon.com/washington-redskins-scouting-report-offense-of-new-orleans-saints/