Grey friggan Zable

[rjdriver]

Disagree with the tweet.

He’s not living up to expectations. The NFL is full of grown ass men who have decades of pass rushing experience.

I expected Zable to be embarrassed or confused a few times every game while slowly progressing to be a helluva guard. I was thinking a Murphy like rookie season (disrupter, not producer) while he catches up to the game.

He’s blown my (relatively) high expectations out of the water. He’s really cementing the idea that smaller conferences don’t blur O-Line talent evaluation like they tend to do with skill players.

 

[rjdriver]

Never even heard of Busch Lite before he mentioned it.

This is the definition of privilege.

 

[SocialParasite]

Disagree with the tweet.

He’s not living up to expectations. The NFL is full of grown ass men who have decades of pass rushing experience.

I expected Zable to be embarrassed or confused a few times every game while slowly progressing to be a helluva guard. I was thinking a Murphy like rookie season (disrupter, not producer) while he catches up to the game.

He’s blown my (relatively) high expectations out of the water. He’s really cementing the idea that smaller conferences don’t blur O-Line talent evaluation like they tend to do with skill players.

 

[olyfan63]

I notice that of all the Seahawks O-Linemen, in those clips Zabel is most often turning his head pre-snap to see the QB and then often reaching out and tapping the center in some kind of signal. Anybody know what's going on with this pre-snap communication? Is he the one making line calls for protection or run blocking calls? Shades of Lofa Tatupu calling the defenses as a rookie! Also, IIRC Jalen Sundell was part of the Same OL with Zabel in college.

 

[olyfan63]

He is so awesome. That's pre nfl beer. Now I'm sure it's quality over quantity.

What's a big guy like him supposed to do, on a broke college student budget, when it takes a half-case for him just to get a buzz?
Start buying 8% Malt Liquor? Probably not exactly a North Dakota thing.

 

[sutz]

I notice that of all the Seahawks O-Linemen, in those clips Zabel is most often turning his head pre-snap to see the QB and then often reaching out and tapping the center in some kind of signal. Anybody know what's going on with this pre-snap communication? Is he the one making line calls for protection or run blocking calls? Shades of Lofa Tatupu calling the defenses as a rookie! Also, IIRC Jalen Sundell was part of the Same OL with Zabel in college.

That's just the modern way to do the silent count. The center can't look back to the QB well while making the calls, so the LG taps his leg on cue from the QB and snap goes one beat later. Not really any special talent there, it's been done in college as well.

 

[olyfan63]

That's just the modern way to do the silent count. The center can't look back to the QB well while making the calls, so the LG taps his leg on cue from the QB and snap goes one beat later. Not really any special talent there, it's been done in college as well.

Thank you, that makes total sense! Interesting, seems like that could take some of the initiative from the OL in getting the split second jump on the opposing DL by knowing the snap count, or even allow the DL to steal signals and anticipate the count. Any insight into that?

 

[sutz]

Thank you, that makes total sense! Interesting, seems like that could take some of the initiative from the OL in getting the split second jump on the opposing DL by knowing the snap count, or even allow the DL to steal signals and anticipate the count. Any insight into that?

Not really, that was just my common sense answer I developed over several seasons of seeing a lot of teams doing it. I don't have any deeper insight about it.

 

[Ruminator]

How the HECK did he get so far down the field in front of K9? Star Trek technology?

 

[SPOHAWK]

Gray Zabel...proving PFF is full of shit one game at a time

 

[seabowl]

How the HECK did he get so far down the field in front of K9? Star Trek technology?

If you watch the play and him specifically, he wasn’t blocking anybody and had a clear field to basically just run up field in front of Walker. Don’t watch Star Trek, watch the film for your answer

 

[Appyhawk]

How the HECK did he get so far down the field in front of K9? Star Trek technology?

In addition to Zabel the coolest thing about that pic is the string of Stealer bodies laying on the carpet along the sideline in K9's wake.

 

[olyfan63]

If you watch the play and him specifically, he wasn’t blocking anybody and had a clear field to basically just run up field in front of Walker. Don’t watch Star Trek, watch the film for your answer

Yeah, I noticed that too, it was like the Red Sea parted for K9 and Zabel up to Zabel's clinching block.
I had to go back and watch it in 1/4 speed, and basically, Walker's warp-speed acceleration through the gap made two Stealers near-miss on diving tackle attempts, leaving them laying on the ground. JSN actually semi-whiffed on a LB block, but got just enough of him that the LB overran the play and whiffed as K9 went by. Then Charles Cross had a nice "pulling tackle" kick-out block, actually I think a Stealers DB made a business decision on it, leaving a seam that Zabel and Walker ran thru for Zabel's final springing block downfield, and JSN, continuing downfield, blocked/obstructed a DB to create a lane that K9 squirted through for the TD.

Not sure if that's how Kubiak drew it up, but Walker's warp speed acceleration and Stealers' "half-step slow" in the 4th Qtr defenders were the key factors. Charles Cross made an ESP-like decision NOT to block the nearest defender, but to keep going upfield and make that kick-out block. On JSN's semi-whiff block, I see he had to sell it as a pass route for the first couple steps before trying to block the LB, and got just enough. Simply a perfect storm of a bunch of things working out well on the same play.

In another thread I suggested that Charbs be the #1 back in quarters 1-3, wear the defense down, while mixing in regular carries for Walker, and then feature a fresh Walker as #1 in the 4th quarter against a tired defense. This play was the poster child for that suggestion.

 

[ivotuk]

Yeah that was oof

Terrible. I went back and watched Bradford and twice it looked like he just quit too early, and was "yogging" as Wyman calls it. Not running real hard, or looking for someone to get after.

 

[seabowl]

Yeah, I noticed that too, it was like the Red Sea parted for K9 and Zabel up to Zabel's clinching block.
I had to go back and watch it in 1/4 speed, and basically, Walker's warp-speed acceleration through the gap made two Stealers near-miss on diving tackle attempts, leaving them laying on the ground. JSN actually semi-whiffed on a LB block, but got just enough of him that the LB overran the play and whiffed as K9 went by. Then Charles Cross had a nice "pulling tackle" kick-out block, actually I think a Stealers DB made a business decision on it, leaving a seam that Zabel and Walker ran thru for Zabel's final springing block downfield, and JSN, continuing downfield, blocked/obstructed a DB to create a lane that K9 squirted through for the TD.

Not sure if that's how Kubiak drew it up, but Walker's warp speed acceleration and Stealers' "half-step slow" in the 4th Qtr defenders were the key factors. Charles Cross made an ESP-like decision NOT to block the nearest defender, but to keep going upfield and make that kick-out block. On JSN's semi-whiff block, I see he had to sell it as a pass route for the first couple steps before trying to block the LB, and got just enough. Simply a perfect storm of a bunch of things working out well on the same play.

In another thread I suggested that Charbs be the #1 back in quarters 1-3, wear the defense down, while mixing in regular carries for Walker, and then feature a fresh Walker as #1 in the 4th quarter against a tired defense. This play was the poster child for that suggestion.

At the end of your comment you suggest Charbs be the running back for quarters one – three and walker the running back for quarter four. If that were the case this weekend, they would’ve lost the game as Charbs was playing awful.

 

[DJ_CJ]

It's a lot like Coors light just a watery beer with zero flavor basically a beer you would see at a college party, he's still young and he'll grow out of it...

Don't be trashing our Midwest river champagne, its delightful!!

 

[Shane Falco]

Gray Zabel...proving PFF is full of shit one game at a time

You can say that again. I don't know what they've been smokin watching.

 

[Nosferatu]

You can say that again. I don't know what they've been smokin watching.

Agreed. Their write ups are normally good but their grades are crap.

 

[BDD222]

Agreed. Their write ups are normally good but their grades are crap.

I could be wrong, but I thought it was mentioned that their oline grades are inaccurate because they don't know or take into account blocking assignments, etc.

 

[sutz]

O-line is probably the hardest group to analyze statistically.