SF Version of the SW - The Taser

Q&A: The run game

When I dipped into the mailbag this morning there seemed to be four topics, in particular, that dominated the thoughts of 49ers fans. Therefore, over the course of the day, I'll post Q&As on each of those issues.
First up: Jimmy Raye's offense and the run game.





Q: Will (the 49ers) take 4 running backs onto the '09 roster? (Brian D)
A: Frank Gore, Glen Coffee, Michael Robinson and Moran Norris are going to be on the team. They can certainly get by with those four players, but I think they want to keep around Kory Sheets, too.
Sheets has a lot of talent. One team source told me he has more talent than Coffee, but their different kinds of backs, too. It had to be encouraging for the 49ers to see make an immediate correction from his first game. Remember, when he stepped out of bounds with less than two minutes to play against the Broncos while the 49ers were trying to protect a lead? In the same situation against the Raiders, Sheets went down in bounds to keep the clock running.
Robinson is such a valuable player on this team. He can serve as a backup halfback and fullback while also being the team's best special-teams player. Robinson can fill in at fullback, but if they needed a fullback later in the season, they can always re-sign Zak Keasey.

Q: Any thoughts on Raye's play calling to this point? I know preseason is vanilla, but in your expertise, will he approach Norv Turner in that regard? (Vito L)
A: The 49ers tried a reverse the other night. They have their version of the Single-Wing (called the Taser) as part of their base offensive package. It's the exhibition season. The 49ers aren't trying to get fancy in these games that have no significance.

Q: Is our new offense going to put me asleep? After years of watching Jerry Rice, Joe Montana, Steve Young and other greats of the passing game, I am worried that our new philosophy is going to make for very boring offensive football. (Alex L)
A: Coach Mike Singletary and offensive coordinator Jimmy Raye seem to be on the same page. They want a no-frills offense that plays to the team's strengths. The strength of this offensive unit is a power-running game. I'm sure some people - such as the 49ers' offensive line - find that immensely enjoyable. Personally, if I were you, I wouldn't be expecting to see the 49ers score five touchdowns a game.

Q: Frank Gore is the center of our offense, but is the organization confident that Coffee can step up in case of an injury? (Mike P)
A: Yes, the organization has more reason to be confident in Glen Coffee than any of the team's other backup running backs since Gore took over as the main man. Maurice Hicks and DeShaun Foster are still out there looking for work in the NFL. As good as Coffee looked Saturday against the Raiders, let's make one thing clear: He is not going to share the load with Gore.
Gore is the 49ers' No. 1 back. Singletary said he believes Gore is one of the top-five running backs in the league. Coffee will enter a game for a series or two, and he'll be expected to do a fine job. But he's not going to take Gore's job any time soon.




==========================
The Press Democrat
427 Mendocino Ave.
P. O. Box 569
Santa Rosa, CA 95402
=========================


.

Balanced Bash

Trojans rush for 280 yards, pass for 186 more in 29-point drubbing of Central City
By Troy Banning, DFJ Sports Editor
POSTED: August 23, 2009

BLAIRSBURG - Is he a quarterback, a running back, or a wide receiver? At least for one game, he was all three.

Northeast Hamilton senior Seth McGowan did a little bit of everything - and he did it all quite well - Friday night as he helped the Trojans open up the 2009 football season with a resounding 43-14 beating of Central City in 8-man non-district action.

McGowan's primary responsibility was on the ground where he chewed up 137 yards of real estate and scored three touchdowns on 27 carries. He also caught three balls for 59 yards and, just for good measure, completed his only pass attempt for 22 yards.

Not too shabby for a player that is relatively new to the spotlight.

"I was pretty happy with how things went," McGowan said following Friday's contest. "Our line blocked pretty well for most of the game and in the second half they got tired and that helped us out quite a bit."

Central City (0-1) was just as exhausted mentally as it was physically throughout the second half. And the main culprit was Northeast Hamilton's relentless offense, which produced 466 yards of total offense - 280 on the ground and 186 through the air. The Trojans (1-0) scored 37 unanswered points after the game was tied at 6, churned out 23 first downs to the Wildcats 10 and held a significant edge in plays from scrimmage, 76-46.

Many of Northeast Hamilton's plays came out of a variation of the single wing offense. McGowan, along with fellow backs Marcus Mechaelsen (78 rushing yards) and Austin Pigsley (16 rushing yards, two touchdowns) routinely took direct snaps from the shotgun, which kept Central City constantly guessing.

"This is a single wing offense and we went to it because we really wanted to get that balance back where we could do different things with our backs," NEH head coach John Seiser said. "We didn't want to be predictable and we wanted to get all of the kids into areas where they could show their strengths and everybody did a really good job."

Mechaelsen did the brunt of the work when the Trojans went vertical. He completed eight of 12 passes for 124 yards and one touchdown. His 9-yard scoring hook-up with senior all-state tight end Trey Seiser early in the game capped a 10-play, 78-yard drive that sent NEH on its way to the blowout.

Seiser yanked down four balls for 58 yards. Sophomore tight end Clay Harreld was also a main target, as he caught three passes for 69 yards.

McGowan and Pigsley finished off impressive drives in the second quarter with scoring bursts of 4 yards and 1 yard respectively to propel the Trojans to a 22-6 halftime lead. They nearly pushed the lead even further on the final play of the half, as Mechaelsen found McGowan streaking down the right sideline for a 31-yard reception, but he was wrangled to the ground from behind at the Central City 10-yard line.

As it turned out though, McGowan had plenty of other opportunities to work on his end zone celebration. He took a direct snap and went untouched across the goal line from 2 yards out on the Trojans opening drive of the third quarter for a 29-6 lead. It was set up by a 14-yard pass from Mechaelsen to McGowan on fourth-and-11 that put the ball down inside the Central City 5.

Following Pigsley's second touchdown - an 8-yard scamper right up the gut - McGowan again broke through the defense for a 4-yard score to make it 43-6 in NEH's favor with 11 minutes, 48 seconds remaining in regulation.

Central City had just 13 yards of total offense in the second half prior to a late-game 53-yard drive that resulted in a touchdown against the Trojans' second- and third-string players. The Wildcats finished with 117 rushing yards and 46 more through the air, a far cry from the 430 they amassed one year earlier in their 70-55 romp over NEH on the opening night of the 2008 season.

"Last year was probably about as miserable as I've been as a coach just because it was embarrassing to play that poor defensively," John Seiser said. "So to go from where we were last year to (Friday night), yeah, we're very happy with the improvement. I think I was most proud of the second half because we wanted that attitude of coming out and playing strong. The guys came out and really took it to them."

Central City starting fullback Matt Clary was held in check for most of the night and churned out just 41 yards on 10 totes, and his only big run - a 13-yard scamper - came on a fake punt in the opening quarter. Speedy wide receiver Mason Nielsen caught only two passes for 21 yards, but he did break free for 56 rushing yards. Still, Nielsen's performance paled in comparison to his 5-TD outburst from the 2008 season opener.

NEH junior defensive back Dillon Timm collected a game-high 10 1/2 tackles, eight of with were solo, and senior Tyler Fellows added eight, including four solo stops, up front.

"I thought we played awesome for our first game," Fellows said, noting he had a little extra incentive to get after the Wildcats. "Coach Seiser told me before the game that their coach thought I was a good player, but he thought I was slow and I was going to prove him wrong. I think I did that."

NEH will play once again in front of its partisan crowd on Friday when it welcomes old North Star Conference rival Twin River Valley to town for a non-district game at 7 p.m. Fellows, for one, isn't about to let up now just because his team has one win under its belt.

"We were good, but we can get a lot better," he said. "We've just got to keep working hard."


====================
The Daily Freeman Journal
P.O. Box 490
Webster City, IA 50595
====================



.

Dolphins Smoking Hot Using Wildcat Formation

Fins beat Panthers 27-17
By CARLOS MILLER
Updated 6:58 AM EDT, Mon, Aug 24, 2009

Getty Images

Preseason is always a time filled with questions. This year is no different.

Are the Dolphins going to continue using the Wildcat formation?

Is Ricky Williams going to make it through the season without failing a drug test?

Do cornerbacks Jason Allen and Sean Smith have the swine flu?

At least one of those questions was answered after Saturday’s game in which the Dolphins beat the Carolina Panthers 27-17.

It appears that the Wildcat Formation – in which the ball is directly snapped to the running back - will indeed be a strong part of their offense this year.

While we still can’t predict whether Williams will pass a drug test, we are comfortable knowing he has so much experience passing joints because that will only help in the Wildcat Formation, which at times requires him to accept a handoff from Ronnie Brown, only to hand the ball off again to Chad Pennington, who then passes the ball to a downfield receiver.

On Saturday, that very play resulted in a 35-yard gain.

Other variations of the Wildcat include Brown receiving the snap and running the ball himself or handing the ball to Williams who then runs the ball himself.

Meanwhile, the team is still awaiting test results that would determine whether cornerbacks Allen and Smith have the swine flu.


+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Associated Press / NBC Miami
First Published: Aug 23, 2009 10:39 AM EDT


/

NFL insiders differ on Vick's impact with Wildcat

NFL insiders differ on Vick's impact with Wildcat
By PAUL DOMOWITCH
Mon, Aug. 17, 2009
pdomo@aol.com

CORTLAND, N.Y. - If Jon Gruden still were coaching the Tampa Bay Bucs, there's a pretty good chance the Eagles wouldn't have signed Michael Vick. That's because Gruden would have beaten them to him.

Gruden is bullish on the limitless NFL possibilities of the spread offense and its baby brother, the Wildcat formation. It's become all the rage in college football, and Gruden thinks the time is ripe to bring it in a big way to the pros.

Last year, more than a dozen NFL teams used the Wildcat. Most, including the Eagles, just tinkered with it. The only team that really made it a regular staple of their offense was the Miami Dolphins, who used the Wildcat on 12 percent of their offensive plays. But they seldom threw out of the formation.

"I wanted to use it last year, but we had some injuries and shied away from it a little bit," Gruden said. "But it's been something I've been studying.

"When you pick up a college tape, 90 percent of those guys, you never see them under center. Ever. All you're seeing is spread-read options. There are guys like Tim Tebow, who is going to be coming out next year, somebody is going to take him, and somebody is going to have a plan for him. Vince Young has struggled the last couple of years. But he was wicked in that Rose Bowl game against USC. He ran for 200 and threw for 200.

"Then there's Vick. He's certainly a candidate to run the spread. Everybody's got a guy [who can run it]. Brad Smith with the Jets. Michael Robinson in San Francisco. Isaiah Stanback in Dallas. Everybody's got a guy that can throw a little bit. I think there's a wave coming."

With their recent signing of Vick, the Eagles are expected to be a big part of that wave. They used the Wildcat about a dozen times last year with wide receiver DeSean Jackson taking the direct snaps. Jackson had success running out of the formation, but threw the ball just once (an interception against Cleveland).

With Vick in the Wildcat, they will have a guy who can run and throw out of the formation.

"Michael Vick would be one of the scariest guys to run that [Wildcat] offense," Jets coach Rex Ryan said yesterday during a break at the Jets' SUNY Cortland training camp. "Probably the scariest guy."

"What the league hasn't seen yet is the Wildcat with a true passing threat there," said Jets defensive coordinator Mike Pettine, who spent 7 years as the head coach at William Tennent and North Penn high schools. "Because if you have both, whether it's a Vick or a Pat White, the key is whether he can withstand the punishment of basically playing tailback as well [as quarterback]. How long will they be able to withstand the pounding of it?"

While Pettine acknowledges that Vick certainly will pose problems for opposing defenses in the Wildcat, he thinks the Dolphins' White, who was taken in the second round of April's draft, actually might be better fit for the role.

"A lot of [Vick's] runs [with the Falcons] were scrambles," he said. "I don't think they had a lot of designed runs for him. Plus, it remains to be seen whether he can withstand the type of punishment you're going to take playing almost a tailback-type position.

"Pat White, to me, would be a [ideal Wildcat] guy. He had a lot of called quarterback runs at West Virginia. He was basically a tailback who had good enough passer skills."

Even before the Eagles signed Vick, they already had expanded their Wildcat package this summer. They figure to expand it even more now with the arrival of Vick.

"The package has grown a little bit," coach Andy Reid said. "Can Michael eventually do that? Sure, he can do that. Are there other things we can do [with Vick]? Yeah, he can do other things. We'll see how all this works out. He's got to get back into the swing first. But at the same time, I can't tell you that things wouldn't be added to a package here and there.

"With Michael and Donovan [McNabb] and DeSean, we have a couple of guys that can run pretty fast and run the ball pretty good. So you add all those things up and you can have some fun."

Some of that "fun" almost certainly will include using Vick in other ways besides the Wildcat. He may line him up at wide receiver and be used on end-arounds or even get the ball on the outside via bubble screens or hitches, assuming he proves he can catch the ball.

Jets linebacker Bart Scott, though, is skeptical about the Vick-as-a-wideout possibility.

"I guess you could do that, but he's not a polished receiver," Scott said. "From that standpoint, he's handicapped because he's not comfortable. He doesn't know the minute details that you need to know to get off the ball, like how to point your toe, that type of thing. The things that come with doing something for a long time.

"It'd be just like if you moved me to tailback. Yeah, I can run. But I don't know the small things. I wouldn't be used to reading blocks, reading coverages, seeing where the safety is at."

Opinions of the Wildcat are mixed around the league. Some coaches think it could be The Next Big Thing. Others view it as a gimmick that will die out as soon as defenses prove they can consistently stop it.

"The single wing's been around a long time," Giants coach Tom Coughlin said. "[The Wildcat] is just revitalizing something that was very successful at one time. It certainly was an innovative move [to bring it back]. We'll see how that goes. We'll have to wait until the season to see how much it gets used and whether anybody really has an answer for it."

Said the Jets' Ryan: "I think it's a good weapon, I do. And you're talking to the guy that stopped it not once, but twice last year. It's more of a weapon if you have a guy like Vick that can throw the ball."

Ryan was the defensive coordinator in Baltimore last year when the Ravens' twice shut down the Dolphins' Wildcat, once in the regular season and again in the playoffs. But the Dolphins, who used running back Ronnie Brown as the Wildcat, seldom threw out of the formation, except to occasionally flip it back to the quarterback.

"Defenses, when they see Ronnie Brown taking that direct snap, when see [Falcons running back] Jerious Norwood taking that direct snap, defenses take the safety out of the middle of the field and get into zero coverage, knowing that the guy isn't going to throw it," said Gruden. "When that guy back there can be a threat to throw it, it'll be real interesting to see what defensive coordinators do."

Ravens coach John Harbaugh said he's not going to lose any sleep over the Wildcat.

"I hope we see it every week," he said. "Because our defense is set up to defend it. If you've got a good front seven, you don't have to commit a safety to run or the option. That's the way it worked for us last year against Miami. We didn't have to [bring up a safety]."

"Our approach against the Wildcat was we had to be sound in what we did and make sure the edges were set, and we needed to beat blocks," said Pettine, who was the Ravens' linebackers coach last year. "The one thing the Wildcat allows you to do, it's like playing with an extra guy. It's the single-wing mentality. They now have an extra blocker. They can remove one more defender by splitting the quarterback out. Now you're getting two-back runs out of one-back spacing on the defense's part.

"That's why the issue for us always has been let's be sound, play great technique and beat blocks. That's how we feel is the best way to go against it. You don't need to scheme up anything crazy for it. We saw some teams try to do that last year and get burned on it because there's so many variations to it."

===========================
PHILADELPHIA DAILY NEWS
===========================


>