(01-16-2025, 10:31 PM)BallKey Wrote: I like this trendy 2 deep and blitz like mad defensive style that guys like Flores are unleashing. The good QBs are just too good to play straight up against. Keep two deep to limit giving up chunk plays and then you gotta take chances to create drive ending plays...turnovers and sacks. If they can complete a methodical 10+ play drive without giving up a turnover or sack or big penalty or whatever, kudos to them.

We don't have the secondary pieces for it yet (maybe Will Johnson will help a ton with that), but Devin Lloyd was a hell of a pass rusher for a LB in college and Jarrian Jones said blitzing was his favorite thing to do after his sack vs the Titans. Exotic blitz packages should be a staple of our defense.

The defenses are also getting better at shifting their zone defenses from play-to-play as well, rather than consistently staying in a traditional tampa-2 where there is a consistent hole in the middle of the field (for example.)  Even though you're blitzing, it is still comes down to having a strong front 4 in your DL.  If you get the offensive line having to double-team a strong DL player (or two) it opens up the seams for the blitzes to get through.  

The best DC's wait for the for the right time to send a LB/S/CB through a seam, especially if they see the offensive line over-committing to a DL player.  Like anything else it's about being effective when you call it.  Blitzing is always a bit of a gamble, and if the other team has a QB that can quickly alert and throw to a hot route the defense will pay for the gamble--this is also why the fake-blitz is particularly popular this year.  They want the QB to alert, then the pseudo-blitzers pull back to cover the hot route.

The natural counter to the 2-deep shell is a bullish running game and quick passing.  So in the ever evolving cycle of defense vs. offense I think that the road-grading OL and a stout inside RB are going to come back into fashion to counter it.  You can look at the Raven's who are already there.

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