Seattle OC on The Play

The Official League Shill talked to the Seahawks offensive coordinator about The Play:

http://mmqb.si.com/mmqb/2015/08/19/darrell-bevell-seattle-seahawks-super-bowl-play-call

The part I found most interesting was this:

On my tour of NFL camps, I’ve asked five men—two coaches, three quarterbacks, anonymously—what they thought of the play call and the execution of the play. The reaction has been mixed. Interestingly, not a single one supported running a power rush by Lynch against the New England front with three 300-pound-plus defensive tackles filling the gaps. One quarterback said, “Then it would have been third-and-goal from the 2 or 3, and you’d burn your last timeout. So you’d be there with what, how many seconds left? [About 20.] And you’d probably be farther away than you were on second down.”

One coach and the other quarterback had the same problem with the call: trying to beat a physical, huge cornerback in what was sure to be a bang-bang physical play at the goal line.

“If you pass there,” the coach said, “you’ve got to call a fade. Too much can go wrong otherwise.”

The quarterback, a big fan of the strategic element of the game, said this: You’re not going to throw in Darrelle Revis’ direction. (Revis took the motion receiver, Doug Baldwin, to the offensive left side of the formation, leaving a 6-4, 221-pound corner, Browner, and the green Butler to defend the stack flanked right—Kearse in front and Lockette behind him.) “And you have to know in that case the big corner is going to do everything he can to not let the first guy [receiver] pick Butler,” the quarterback said. That’s what happened.

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Giving Butler and Browner equal credit is a little overstated.

If it's just a pass deflection, then sure -- in that case their contributions are roughly equal, by which I mean Browner's might even be ahead. But actually getting a takeaway out of it? That was great play by Butler.

Everyone sees well after the play. Only Belichick saw well before the play.

turkeyneck said:

Everyone sees well after the play. Only Belichick saw well before the play.

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I do not agree with criticism of Carroll for the call. Coaches are always geniuses when the play works and idiots when it fails (4th and 2 in Indianapolis). Sure we should credit the coach, but I suspect BB would immediately point to phenomenal execution by the defense and Butler in particular.

Butler made the play of the game but if it wasn't for Browner completely jamming Kearse not sure if the INT happens.

Not that I'm mad about it in the least, but it was a terrible play call. You're nearly at the goal line, you have one of the best run blocking OL's in the league and one of the best and most physical RB's in the league that just gashed the defense the play before. At that point, you buckle up your chinstrap and go mano y mano with Lynch and burn your final timeout if you have to. I would have made Darrell Bevell walk home after that play.

I have 20/20 hindsight

slash83 said:

Butler made the play of the game but if it wasn't for Browner completely jamming Kearse not sure if the INT happens.

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The play of the game is in my signature.

It's amazing how one play will become part of a Players/Coach Legacy and shade the rest of their accomplishments. Some are lucky some are not.

Butlers interception - Great for Butler, Horrible for Wilson, Carol and Bevell.
Sanchez and the Butt fumble
Bill's wide right. Norwood's missed field goal.
Bill Buckner - (although that thankfully has faded over the last few years)

I disagree, the play call was fine.

Nunchucks said:

I disagree, the play call was fine.

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You wouldn't be disagreeing if the Patriots were on the other end of it. You only like it because it ended up going swimmingly for New England. Nothing wrong with that, either. That's why I love the play. But, looking at it critically, it was one of the worst play calls of all time. FFS, the best defense that coaches can come up with there is "if it was a pass, it should have been a fade"... meaning that, even if it wasn't a run, it was still a bad call to draw up a quick slant into traffic there.

Edelman would have caught that throw......

KontradictioN said:

You wouldn't be disagreeing if the Patriots were on the other end of it. You only like it because it ended up going swimmingly for New England. Nothing wrong with that, either. That's why I love the play. But, looking at it critically, it was one of the worst play calls of all time. FFS, the best defense that coaches can come up with there is "if it was a pass, it should have been a fade"... meaning that, even if it wasn't a run, it was still a bad call to draw up a quick slant into traffic there.

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No, the way the Patriots were running the ball makes a run call questionable. Put the ball in Brady's hands, with Gronk and LaFell out there...I would not have a problem with it.

The Seahawks were having trouble running for short yardage, the Patriots were making plays in the backfield on expected run downs. throwing at a rookie makes a lot of sense to me.

If the Seahawks run there and get stuffed for -1, that's devastating. Now you're at the 2 and the defense is 99% sure you're throwing the ball on 3rd down.

Seattle blowing TO #2 after the Kearse catch was a killer, as it hindered their options in the final chess match. That deserves the most blame.

Has Carroll stated whether they were intentionally burning clock before the fateful play, because a quick handoff there changes the equation.

Nunchucks said:

No, the way the Patriots were running the ball makes a run call questionable. Put the ball in Brady's hands, with Gronk and LaFell out there...I would not have a problem with it.

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Good. You're learning now. The majority of Seattle's yardage through the air came on jump balls down the field and one fluke play that was well covered by the guy they were targetting on this play. Outside of that, they weren't having an orgy of success through the air. Meanwhile, they are on the goal line, they have one of the best run blocking OL's in the league, and one of the best RB's in the NFL and they decide to pass it on a quick slant? Awful call. To take your example, that would have been like the Patriots taking the ball out of Brady's hands in the red zone.

The Seahawks were having trouble running for short yardage, the Patriots were making plays in the backfield on expected run downs. throwing at a rookie makes a lot of sense to me.

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You know this is nonsense but admitting it defeats the purpose of debating. Lynch had just gotten done gashing the Pats defense for 6 yards the play before that. It was an awful play call that worked out extremely well for us because, in the end, it lost Seattle the game.

The Patriots were in a pass defense grouping on the prior run and had moved to a jumbo defense with 3 corners for that final play.

The condescending tone you take is a little much, don't you think?

Why not just come out and tell me that your "football knowledge is unparallelled in the known universe?" and leave it at that?

I think it is clear that a pass play was a solid play selection...Throwing at a rookie who just got beat two plays before.....come on, tell me that it is a bad idea to throw at a rookie undrafted free agent.

Butler made a great play, but if Lockette goes strong to the ball, then there's no pick. Lockette wimped out.

I wouldn't change the play call either

Nunchucks said:

The Patriots were in a pass defense grouping on the prior run and had moved to a jumbo defense with 3 corners for that final play.

The condescending tone you take is a little much, don't you think?

Why not just come out and tell me that your "football knowledge is unparallelled in the known universe?" and leave it at that?

I think it is clear that a pass play was a solid play selection...Throwing at a rookie who just got beat two plays before.....come on, tell me that it is a bad idea to throw at a rookie undrafted free agent.

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I'm not being condescending at all. Or at least I'm not trying to be. So my apologies if that's how it came off. That people don't see how this was one of the worst playcalls of all time is mind boggling. And I'm aware that the Patriots were in goal line. Seattle knew that too. Seattle ran with success on goal line defenses all year long and has been doing that since Lynch came to them. Further, people overestimate that package. Vince was very good last year but he clearly wasn't the Vince of old.

And Butler got beat two plays before? You're talking about the fluke catch, correct? Because, unless I've totally lost my mind, the coverage was outstanding on that throw. He contested that all the way and Seattle got a lucky bounce. Most of their production through the air came on that play and jump balls (remember how Wilson started the game until they began to pick on Arrington and Ryan?). In the end, Seattle has made their living since Wilson came into the league on being a run first team because they had the personnel to do that with raging success. They then went away from that in the critical moments and the most anyone can say in the defense of the play was that it should have been a fade instead of a quick slant into traffic. That's some defense. And yes, throwing at the rookie was a bad idea. Why? Because it lost them the Super Bowl as their prized work horse running back and their stud run blocking OL walked off the field with their heads down.

In Belichick's Breakdown after the game (on the "3 Games" DVD), Zo pointed out that the Pats had stuffed Lynch on a 3rd and 1 earlier. The Hawks needed to stop the clock. They had to pass on one of the downs.

That was the first pass from the 1 yard line that got intercepted the entire 2014 season in the NFL.

Ironically, the Kearse catch might be what cost them the game. Because they were too busy celebrating they burned the timeout that they needed to avoid having to throw the ball.