Is the read option the future of the NFL?

[JSeahawks]

Do you think the NFL will continue to evolve into more of a read option league with more and more mobile quarterbacks? Or is it a short term trend which will eventually be shut down once opposing defensive coordinators figure it out like the wildcat?

Personally I think its here to stay and will become a bigger and bigger part of the league over the next decade plus. A vast majority of high schools are playing spread/read option type offenses these days, and more and more colleges are going to it so more prospects are coming into the NFL perfectly suited for this style of play.

I think teams like the Panthers, 49ers, Redskins, and now the Seahawks are starting the future of the NFL. Personally, I love it. I think its the most entertaining style of football there is. Even though I hate the 49ers I love watching their offense. And the Seahawks offensive philosophies the last couple months have been my favorite in our history. I especially love it when you combine the read option with a smash mouth philosophy such as ours.

 

[bestfightstory]

It is the immediate future. It will be all but extinct 7 years from now.

 

[JSeahawks]

It is the immediate future. It will be all but extinct 7 years from now.

Why? Because defenses learn to shut it down? Because too many Qb's get injured? Why do you think that?

 

[bestfightstory]

It is the immediate future. It will be all but extinct 7 years from now.

Why? Because defenses learn to shut it down? Because too many Qb's get injured? Why do you think that?

Haven't given it too much thought. Just a rough estimate of the life expectancy of a trend and the counter-adaptation that will render it a gimmick.

 

[chris98251]

I agree J, when your starters start getting RG3'd you quit risking them. I also think it will bring about a change on defense at least short term. Guys will need to be quicker and faster so may get smaller again to cope with fatigue and more running and pursuit.

As we have seen it takes a lot out of a defense to chase a mobile QB.

 

[Chapman]

Eventually all thing come full circle.
Who knows when but I believe we will eventually see teams line up 1 on 1 and say this what I've got, just try to stop me.

 

[CANHawk]

It's slightly more sustainable than the wildcat imo. DC's will start scheming for it and shutting it down. Hell, Pete already knows how to shut it down. Like Russell says; its our change up. When we see something exploitable we'll pull it out, but it's not who we are. Teams like Washington who live and die by it won't have long term success with it.

 

[TheRealDTM]

The way I see it there's two trains of thought

1. It's gimmicky similar to the wildcat, it's a crutch for offenses without an elite passing game, or unpolished passing qbs.

2. It's an evolution of the game due to the presences of greater athletes at the qb position, longer/more training camps for youth and more practice running it before entering the league.

It's really hard for me to decide what it is, it's obviously not sustainable by QBs over the long haul (vick, rg3, steve young etc), this leads me to believe it's more of a gimmick thing. Other other side of me thinks if Tom Brady ran a 4.4 bellicheck would have been doing this for years. For one reason or another we're seeing better athletes at the QB position, and the read option obviously adds another element to the offense, I see it as a great tool to ease a new qb in to the system/league/wingames, however I think it needs to be abandoned after a QB has matured, and then should be used sparingly (similar to rodgers), Caep is going to get murdered if he runs that much, same as rg3, same as wilson if he keeps it up.

 

[drrew]

Injuries will be it's undoing. They're inevitable, and teams will be loathe to invest $15m/yr at the position and then have him run 100-150 times a season.

If I were a DC, my game plan would involve blowing up the QB every time the play is run. You're unlikely to get penalized due to the deception, and the play will eventually stop being called.

 

[12th_Bob]

Maybe not as a base offense but it will be in the toolbox as concepts really invalidate high priced DE's and teams with good defenses struggle with it, especially passing formations out of the pistol and zone-read.

 

[bestfightstory]

Injuries will be it's undoing. They're inevitable, and teams will be loathe to invest $15m/yr at the position and then have him run 100-150 times a season.

If I were a DC, my game plan would involve blowing up the QB every time the play is run. You're unlikely to get penalized due to the deception, and the play will eventually stop being called.

I've wondered about that too! Put a hat on the QB every single time.

 

[chris98251]

Staubach ran a lot, he suffered a lot of concussions, it wasn't called the read option but it kinda was.

Young QB's are on the cheap really, problem is keeping the good ones healthy for a long career, at 32 he will have the mileage of a RB, being hit almost every play running and passing.

 

[Traxs]

I think the wildcat was unsuccessful because most of the players who would be running it couldn't throw well. The reason why those teams you listed are doing well is because they have a QB that can throw accurately and run. That's been a pretty rare skillset. But maybe it's just been rare because NFL personnel haven't been willing to take that leap.

It'll be interesting to see what happens when guys like Wilson and Kaep get big contracts. I think overtime Wilson and Kaep will run less and less of the option as they progress.

There's so much easy yardage using the option and you can leave good players unblocked.

 

[Evil_Shenanigans]

You have to have a QB with the wheels to make it work. Not every qb is mobile enough to be effective. The teams using it effectively have a guy who can run and throw accurately. Sounds simple enough, doesn't it.

 

[mikeak]

It will be here to stay and is completely different than the wildcat.

You can run the RB or QB from the read option you can go right and you can go left. You can fake the read option and go short / long pass. Everything that is a normal part of football can still be done from the read option.

Wildcat is basically a spread run play going one way. The defense can commit and you can lay way more hits in the qb from straight ahead full speed.

Teams will limit the qb runs, limit the exposure and teach qb's to slide but it will always force the defense not to cheat and limit their ability to double team etc down the field

 

[MLOhawks]

Who knows, but it really does depend on if the NFL keeps nerfing the game with systematic rule changes. They wan't high scores and no injuries, so that agenda will steer the league in whatever direction the owners want it to go in.

 

[chris98251]

So were gonna have a 7 on 7 team in the future?

 

[SonicHawk]

You have to be able to throw the ball AND run the ball for a read option to work. A few more QBs can get away from it because the defenders are slow and react just as slow. You get to the NFL you need a special kid to be able to run it. Kaepernick is on the cusp of being good, but I wouldn't read anything into this game vs. GB. GB is horrid against the run and slow reacting.

The read option is a viable NFL system, but you need a LOT of talent for it to work. So I think it will exist still, but it will never be universally adopted.

 

[CrimsonWazzu]

I don't think the system will ever take a strong hold. Teams who use it exclusively will be defended at this level pretty quickly. But I expect it to be a huge part of some offenses, you can see the athletes playing QB at every level getting better at a pretty high rate.

 

[TheHawkster]

Russell has the perfect build for the zone read.
During the season, you use it and don't get hit. No matter what.
During the playoffs, all bets are off.

Its a part of an offense. Not an entire offense.

To me, the zone read will be around but only for the QB's that have the tools around them.
A power back like Marshawn is the perfect fit for making it successful.