Monday Evening Quarterback - Septermber 11, 2007

The Makings of a Dynamic Offense?

A good bit of discussion this offseason centered around Bruce Arians, the man who succeeded Ken Whisenhunt as offensive coordinator.

While many fantasized about the exotic looks Arians would present (3 TE's? 4 WR's?), there were constant reminders that there was nothing new about running these formations - they had been Steeler staples from early in the Cowher regime, which is accurate but doesn't tell the whole story.

4 WR sets were used in obvious passing situations. 3 TE sets were used in obvious running situations. Those days are gone, and it’s about to get more interesting.

Whisenhunt's hot streak calling plays during the 2005 playoffs was impressive enough to earn him the head coaching job in Arizona. Luckily for him, his successes of 2005 garnered much more publicity than his failures of 2006.

The Steelers went against their norm in 2005 by coming out throwing and building a lead before taking the air out of the ball in the second half. It was a tactic they had used to defeat the Houston's and Tennessee’s of the world previously in the regular season, but teams expected the typical Cowher playoff blueprint of playing it close to the vest and riding the power running game as far as it would take him. They changed the dynamic, and it worked.

Last season, Whisenhunt attempted to surprise teams by operating like he did during the previous Super Bowl year, as if he had no idea that teams had studied the Steelers' glorious playoff run. It got to the point where even journeyman Oakland cornerback Chris Carr claimed to know exactly what the play calls were for the Steelers' offense before the snap.

There are two types of offenses - those that can catch opponents off guard by doing something different that is outside of their tendencies and those that do something different play to play, week to week, opponent to opponent. Arians has given us a clue that he's going to go out of his way to be unpredictable, and that's a move that will pay big dividends with the varied weapons the Steelers have on offense.

The Steelers used multiple TE sets about half the time on Sunday, with the FB becoming an afterthought until the game got out of hand in the 4th quarter. Multiple TE sets create much more confusion for the defense. From the lack of a traditional "strong" side to the way a TE in motion exposes the defenses' coverage, the set lends itself to offensive creativity, especially when the personnel includes Willie Parker, Matt Spaeth, Heath Miller, Hines Ward and Santonio Holmes.

Beyond the 2 TE set, viewers got a glimpse on Sunday of what Parker might look like running out of multiple WR sets.

Parker only had one run out of the 4 WR set - in the 3rd quarter he gained 6 yards on a second and 7 and could have had more if he hadn't lost some traction. He ran a few other times out of the 3 WR set with some success, as well, including a 7 yard run on first and 10 earlier in the 3rd quarter.

Here's the revelation: the Steelers' 4 WR set features 2 of the best blocking WR's in the game in Ward and Holmes, and Nate Washington isn't a slouch despite his rail-thin frame. Cedrick Wilson gives good effort. When the Steelers go 4 WR’s and the opponents go dime, it's a very favorable matchup in the run game for the Steelers, especially with an interior offensive line that was built to get out to the second level.

On the day, Ben completed 5 passes to his wide receivers, 5 passes to tight ends and 2 passes to his running backs, though Najeh Davenport had two very bad drops that would have added to that total. Arians clearly has a desire to spread the ball around - something that will make the offense even more unpredictable.

Arians also wasn't hesitant to call some gadgets, and he used his personnel far better than Whisenhunt did in the past. One of my pet peeves last season was the constant usage of Nate Washington on reverses. Washington has nice straight line speed, but he's not shifty enough to run reverses effectively. The two reverses to Holmes and Wilson were well planned, well executed and were called at the right time.

One play that only gained 4 yards but was intriguing nonetheless was the third offensive play of the game. Parker was lined up outside as a wideout, with Heath in the slot. The TE screen then went to Heath. Nice play, nice design. Another block or two and it could have been a touchdown. But that's beside the point. Parker being split out wide delighted me. The possibilities are endless assuming he can execute - the next time I saw him split wide, he dropped a screen pass.

Arians also showed the will to pick on his opponents' weak link. This was one of my top beefs with Whisenhunt. Arians went after rookie cornerback Eric Wright from the first offensive play of the game, and it paid huge dividends.

I also love the fact that Arians is on the sideline - his ability to communicate directly with both Tomlin and Roethlisberger is going to be an asset for a unit that appears to be very flexible in how it will approach in-game situations.

It was a very successful debut by Arians. Even though the run/pass balance was decidedly Cowher-esque - 42 runs to 23 passes - it reeked of new philosophies that should allow Arians great flexibility in preparing for any opponent - flexibility that should maximize the diverse offensive skill talent at his disposal.

The Fine Five

1. New England

VideoGate is just a cover story. The real Patriots' espionage is the fact that they hack the encrypted radio signals to the QB's helmet. This is why there's the new green dot on the helmets, to aid the Patriots in isolating the signal.

2. Indianapolis

Peyton Manning would be a joy to watch if it weren't for the commercials, the awkwardness, and the fact that he plays for another contender. I don't think Tony Ugoh holds up for 15 more games - he'll be exposed sooner than later.

3. San Diego

LT won’t be held down for long. It's all on Phillip Rivers, though, and he didn't look comfortable playing against the Bears' deep safeties on Sunday. Eventually, Norv Turner will try to get that offense going vertical. Will he succeed?

4. Pittsburgh

It's amazing how quickly the media sweetens on a team. Preseason? Middle of the pack. After one game against the Browns? Suddenly, even El Tubbo Grande has them ranked #6.

5. Denver

This is more about a lack of other contenders than anything. Shanahan can go a long way with his running game and his secondary, but Denver is likely to struggle against good teams.

Quote of the Week

"(Brady Quinn) hasn't been in this position in a long time."

- CBS Announcer Kevin Harlan, while the following image was on the screen:

The Awards Section

Offensive Player of the Week

Ben Roethlisberger. 4 touchdown passes and a QB rating of 114.3. A few dropped balls didn't help. Most importantly, Ben showed a good command of the offense and made (mostly) good decisions.

Defensive Player of the Week

Aaron Smith. Despite finishing with only two tackles, he set the tone with his utter destruction of Browns' RT Kevin Shaffer for an early sack. Shaffer was overmatched on Sunday.

Special Teams Player of the Week

Lawrence Timmons (eschewing the obvious choice, Daniel Sepulveda). Timmons would have had some highlight-reel hits if the Browns dared to return any of Sepulveda's punts. As an outside man on punt coverage, Timmons is going to deliver a stunning blow before too long. I almost fear for the life of Roscoe Parrish (all 170 pounds of him) this Sunday.

Coach of the Week

Bob Ligashesky. After a preseason of special teams gaffes, Ligashesky's troops went from liability to weapon. Field position wins games. Now, for some work on the return teams. At least Rossum catches the ball.

Goat of the Week

Romeo Crennel. Humpty Dumpty sat on the fence. Humpty Dumpty had one last chance. All the fans yelling for 3rd QB Quinn - ensured a new head coach in Cleveland again.

 
Stat of the Week

In 2006, Ben Roethlisberger threw his 4th touchdown pass on October 22nd vs. Atlanta, his 5th start. He had 7 interceptions at the time.

 
Factoid of the Week That I Hope Interests Someone Besides Me

Sean Mahan had 95 tackles and 7 sacks as a defensive linemen for the 1997 Jenks (OK) Trojans football team that won the state 6A championship, beating their 4 opponents by a combined score of 208-14. One of his teammates was Rocky Calmus, who went to Notre Dame with Mahan and made it to the NFL as well.

Ten Things I Know I Think

1. Waving in the entire 2nd team defensive line on the 3rd series of the game was slightly disturbing, as Jamal Lewis suddenly found meager space where there had been none. Later in the game, when Hampton, Smith and Keisel still had wind, the move was justified. I hope that philosophy begins to spread to the OLB's, too, as Woodley and Timmons progress. Fresh players win games.

2. If Willie Parker finds running room this year, it won't be because of the offensive line. He'll have Holmes to thank, who will stretch the field in a way that hasn't been seen in Pittsburgh since the days of Lynn Swann.

3. Though James Harrison had 7 tackles and a sack, I'm concerned about his coverage ability in the base defense. Winslow caught a 20 yard pass on the scoring drive, and Harrison was barely in the frame.

4. Carey Davis early. Dan Kreider late. Brilliant.

5. Najeh Davenport is a maddening player to watch. It's almost like he has to be embarrassed before he'll pick up his game and make plays. Forget the tremendous effort on the 17 yard reception for a first down in which he dragged two defenders - Ben made that play with escapability and awareness. It's the little things like simply catching the ball and knowing who to block that make Davenport the polar opposite of reliable Verron Haynes.

(Around the League)

6. On Lawrence Vicker's touchdown reception, Kellen Winslow not only berates Vickers for stealing what he though was a ball intended for him, he's so upset that he physically stops Vickers from celebrating.

7. Another opening weekend, another boatload of injuries. There’s a lot of talk about shortening the preseason. There’s also a lot of talk about adding another regular season game. In one side of both arguments, preventing injuries is stated as a factor. The truth is, the only way to prevent injuries is to play the game the Bengals’ preferred way, with flags.

8. Randy Moss had a huge week, but I think all it did was up his expectations for himself. When he starts seeing fewer balls (likely to happen this week against a Chargers team that doesn't allow long routes to develop because of its pass rush), he'll pout even if they win. Randy Moss/Wes Welker is about to become a storyline akin to the Wayne Chrebet/Keyshawn Johnson saga of old.

9. It's a three-legged race for worst team in the league between the Browns, Falcons and Chiefs. I don't see five wins between the three of them.

10. The NFC is pathetic. Just pathetic. If I had to pick a winner right now, I'd actually go with the Carolina Panthers. If Delhomme is respectable, they're the most complete team in the conference.

Who I Liked Last Night, And I Don't Mean Daryl, Daryl and Daryl Late-Night On ESPN

It was great to see the Bengals win. The Ravens' schedule includes the Jets, Cards, Browns, 49ers, Rams and Bills before their November 5th meeting with the Steelers at Heinz Field.

Even a banged-up team like the Ravens should be able to win against that lot. The only win this weekend among them was the 49ers over the Cards, and that was a game where the slaughter rule should have been employed for the sake of the fans.