Eddie Lacy Blows Up Cowboys Nickel Defense in Divisional Round Win

With Aaron Rodgers' visible lower body injury, it was crucial for the Green Bay Packers to establish the run early against the Dallas Cowboys last Sunday. In a 26-21 win, the Packers did just that, totaling 119 yards on the ground, 101 which came by way of star running back Eddie Lacy.

As mentioned in last week's game plan piece, Dallas' defense was a cohesive body but not one talented on the individual level. By running against two high looks, the Packers could force the hand of the Cowboys, dropping a safety and making the coverage man-on-man on the boundaries where the Green Bay receivers could excel.

During the game, there were two massively important runs, both of which helped drives end in points in the eventual one-score win.

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Both of the plays are similar, based on the look the offense and defense came out in. The Packers had played most of the season in 11 personnel, meaning one tight end and one running back. With three talented receivers, the logic checks out, but the Mike McCarthy-led squad decided to take a new approach in the playoffs: using a fullback instead of a tight end.

From an outsider's perspective, it would appear that the Packers did so because they didn't think their tight end was much of a threat between the 20-yard lines. In the backfield, a fullback can be the lead blocker, kicking out a running lane, and block on either side of the line of scrimmage and impossibility for a tight end, who lines up outside of the tackles.

So, McCarthy must have thought that he had an edge in the ground game with Pro Bowler John Kuhn in the backfield blocking for Lacy, and that Rodgers, Jordy Nelson, Randall Cobb and Davante Adams were good enough to beat Dallas defensive backs one-on-one if the box was stacked.

Rodgers completed 24 of his 36 passes for 316 yards and three scores, so it's hard to make a case that the staff was wrong.

The look the defense gave was a fairly standard one for the set: nickel defense.

It's common for defenses to match cornerbacks with the amount of receivers on the field. So, if an offense entered with two receivers, a defense mostly plays base defense, which for the Cowboys is a 4-3. With an added slot receiver on this formation, Dallas brought in a cornerback to play in the slot, removing a box defender on the play.

In nickel, there's only six box defenders. This is an issue for defenses facing a solid offensive line. Named the fourth-best offensive line by Pro Football Focus, it's safe to say the Packers fit that definition.

The reason there's a mismatch is the number of gaps those six defenders need to cover. Against a five-man line, there are six gaps, one on each side of an offensive lineman, being shared among offensive linemen. With a fullback in the backfield, that creates a kick-out possibility, another gap to be filled. So, the seven-gap-against-six-defender look swings in favor of Green Bay on paper.

Right before the snap, though, a Cowboy linebacker waves a safety down, recognizing his need of assistance in run support.

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At the point of the handoff, Kuhn is running downhill through the lane for Lacy, heading straight toward the slotback. Cobb, the slot receiver, is crunching down on the safety. Due to Cobb's effort, he negated the neutral advantage the dropped safety created, now making it an eight-on-seven matchup.

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With virtually everyone other than Kuhn engaged, Lacy bursted past the line of scrimmage. Surrounded by grass, there was little he could do wrong from this point. 

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After being laid on by two blue stars, he eventually came down with a gain of 19 yards. Green Bay ended this drive with a touchdown, largely due to the opportunity Lacy gave it.

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On the next explosive play, two quarters later, the Packers again came out in an 11 personnel pistol look. Dallas played it the same way, with a nickel defense.

This time, though, there were some differences. Kuhn motioned from the right side of Rodgers to the left, and that lead to the slot cornerback to creep toward a blitz pre-snap. This time, the Cowboys were hoping they could neutralize the Green Bay advantage with a cornerback run blitz rather than a safety run blitz, which had gassed them previously. In essence, the team was guessing.

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The guess proved deadly when Lacy went left, making the blitzer irrelevant in the play. The farthest blocker to the right, where the slotback had come from, spent no time on the defensive back, instead moving to the second level of the defense to pancake a white jersey. With everyone other than Kuhn engaged, it again looked like a big run from the start for the Alabama product.

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The running lane was so clear that even on the opposite side from the TV angle one could see it open. The boundary cornerback was turned around on the play, still covering Adams, who was running a vertical dummy route to get him off the ball. There was no one to make the tackle until Lacy hit the safeties.

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Leaving his linemen behind, Lacy once more had space to work with, finishing the run with 29 added yards for his squad. This drive was capped off by a field goal after the running back positioned the Packers in field-goal range.

Overall, what seemed to be the obvious plan for the Packers not only occurred but worked for big plays multiple times. At this point in the year, with everyone on the offense virtually healthy and Rodgers performing well despite injury, it's hard to imagine how a team would approach stopping this squad.

It's a numbers game and not one you want to take a gamble on. If you send too many run-first defenders in the game, Green Bay will throw bombs to its elite receiving corps. If you send too many pass-first defenders in the game, the more-than-solid offensive line and sledgehammer of a running back runs down your throat.

Rolling the dice twice cost the Cowboys 50 yards, 10 points and potentially the game on Sunday. Unfortunately for defenses, they have to do something against the Packers offense when the bullets are flying. Heading into Seattle next week for the NFC Championship, Green Bay must have a lot of confidence in scoring based off its recent performance.