theENGLISHseahawk":s3cb0wqz said:
kearly":s3cb0wqz said:
They've stacked the box for years against Marshawn, and the play has still sucked.
That's not the point though. If you're showing you're willing to throw it and you're showing that hand to the defense and they have to react, it positively impacts the run game. Maybe all those bubble screens sucked -- and maybe that Beast Mode long TD-drive was a consequence of being prepared to call two bubble screens on the last drive.
I don't know if I buy into this narrative all that much. Why should a defense go take defenders out of the box to prevent a play that is actively helping them get off the field? The constraint play theory makes sense if these screens are getting 5-10 yards a pop. But not when they are getting 2 yards a pop.
Even the best NFL rosters are forced to make concessions at a few spots. For Seattle, it's left tackle, 3rd linebacker, and the ability to run a bubble screen. We just don't have the personnel to be very good in those areas. At least in the case of the bubble screen we can call it less often to minimize the issue.
It's like the analogy I gave before with the Redskins or Lions running game. The run sets up the pass, but when your pass offense is so good and your rush offense is so bad like theirs are, it makes sense to call those run plays the absolute minimum you need. If the Redskins or Lions decided to run the crap out of the ball all year, it would be a ticket to a top 5 pick in the draft.
Similarly, it's not a coincidence that Seattle's offense has always labored when Bevell goes heavy on the bubble screen calls. Doing 2-3 of them a game to keep a defense honest is fine, but doing six in a half and all six being totally ineffective is just shooting oneself in the foot with your playbook.
After Malcolm Butler's pick, Bevell blamed Lockette for not being good enough. It was a dick move, but Bevell was correct, Lockette should have never been the guy trusted in that situation. But poorly utilizing personnel to its strengths still falls at the feet of the coaching staff. It's not necessarily a play calling issue, it's really about failing to optimize personnel.
That said, this is preseason and maybe they are just trying to get a feel for how their current personnel are running these plays and that's all it is. Past history with Bevell makes me skeptical, but it's a reasonable hope to have.
Last season proved to me that Bevell is capable of being a good OC. He appeared to regress against the Cowboys last Thursday. Hopefully it's just preseason and nothing to worry about.