New York Jets' Complex Blitz Scheme Key to Slowing Down Bears' Attack
Lost in what was an incredibly disappointing loss for the New York Jets was how well they were able to hold their own against one of the most talented passing offenses in football. Starting a converted safety and an undrafted journeyman at cornerback, the Jets were able to hold the Bears to 20 offensive points and a pedestrian 257 offensive yards.
With so many questions in the secondary, it was assumed by many that Rex Ryan would choose to put as many players in coverage as possible, betting on his talented defensive line do the heavy lifting and make plays on their own.
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Instead, Ryan put his foot on the gas, going after Cutler with every bell and whistle he had in his playbook, and for good reason: The size and catching radius of Brandon Marshall and Alshon Jeffery would negate even the best coverage from Antonio Allen and Darrin Walls. Sitting back in vanilla defense would just beg for Cutler to pick apart the Jets' ragtag secondary.
However, Ryan did not simply blitz the house snap after snap like a frustrated kid playing Madden. He utilized timely pressures that created the illusion of a jailbreak blitz without the risk of sending so many players.
It is assumed that because of the way the Jets were lined up before the majority of the snap, Ryan sent a casino blitz every snap, which could not be further from the truth. More often than not, Ryan sent a responsible amount of rushers (less than seven or eight) after creating confusion before the snap.
What separates Ryan's defense from most is how much confusion is brought on during the course of a game. At times, it is impossible to tell where the pressure is coming from, how many players are coming and which ones will drop into coverage. This leads to quarterbacks playing jittery, forcing them into passes that should not be thrown or putting a dose of doubt into every decision they make, limiting their effectiveness.
This style of defense is perfectly illustrated on this sack by Sheldon Richardson. Before the snap, it appears as if the Jets are going to "sugar the A gaps," or blitz up the middle with their two inside linebackers.
However, after the ball is snapped, the two linebackers drop into coverage, taking away Cutler's secondary options while the secondary doubles up in coverage of Jeffery and Marshall. Cutler is left with nowhere to go with the ball.
Meanwhile, the Jets wind up only rushing four players—but the hint of doubt (combined with their talent) was able to get to Cutler as if they had sent a full-house blitz. The left guard is unable to handle Richardson, who is able to take advantage of a paralyzed Cutler who has given Richardson a few extra precious seconds of time to bring him down.
Before this play, this appeared to be a reckless blitz—but it turned out to actually be relatively conservative by Ryan. Still, he was able to get pressure on Cutler by speeding up his mind, making extra decisions that did not need to be made to allow Richardson to come away with the sack.
It is also important to note how the Bears only had two receivers running deep down the field. It is likely that they had to keep extra players in to block to defend against the threat of a blitz—a bonus effect of keeping defenses away from vanilla looks.
Ryan would get even more exotic in this area as the game went on. In this instance, he does bring plenty of extra players in to get extra pressure on Cutler, but he enhances the confusion factor by dropping unusual players (based on position) into coverage.
Here, Ryan drops his best pass-rusher, defensive end Muhammad Wilkerson, into coverage. Dropping your best pass-rusher into coverage may not seem like the most optimal way of applying pressure, but it creates so much confusion for the Bears offensive line that is nullifies three blockers.
The entire interior of the Bears offensive line is confused with no one to block, while Wilkerson is taking away a passing lane for Cutler to throw down the middle.
Meanwhile, the Jets are rushing just three players. Because of the confusion on the interior of the line, Richardson has a one-on-one matchup with the left tackle.
Richardson's bull rush proves to be too much for the tackle, and Richardson is able to get to Cutler.
At times, Ryan did resort to utilizing all-out blitzes, but again, not from conventional, straightforward means. Here, he sends an all-out eight-man blitz to get to Cutler, but the design of the blitz ensures that his players don't get tangled up with each other trying to get to Cutler through the mass of humanity.
The blitz is essentially divided in half, with four blitzers to the left and three to the right. The eighth man, David Harris, appears to be the only man on the field not ready to attack Cutler with rabies-like aggression.
However, when the ball is snapped, the offensive line successful blocks the seven-man blitz—parting a valley for Harris to get to Cutler that would make Moses blush.
Cutler has no chance. Harris gets the strip sack and the Jets recover the fumble (which should have been a touchdown had it not been for a premature whistle).
These are examples of where the Jets' gamble worked. At times, they were burned on their blitz and Cutler was able to complete some key passes because of the Jets' aggression.
As easy as it is to get frustrated with Ryan's aggressive and unconventional strategy, the net result is undeniable. When the Jets blitz, more often than not, they are successful—evidenced by the Bears' unimpressive 197 yards passing.
These types of blitzes have more of an effect on the timing of a single play. Constant pressure has a rippling effect on an offense throughout the course of a game. Not only do quarterbacks go under center with a bit less confidence, but offenses are sometimes forced to keep extra players in to block to protect themselves from the looming uncertainty, limiting what they can do down the field.
The Jets' secondary is going to be an issue for the rest of the season, but Ryan's brilliant defensive schemes may be the equalizing factor if they can be as effective as this week after week.
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