Week 1 is finally here. Well, it's come and gone at this point but you get what I'm saying. The long off-season of prognostication and perspiration has been replaced by evaluation and...welll...more perspiration.
It's tough to track everything in any week of the regular season, but it's especially difficult in Week 1 because, as fans, we don't have our conditioning built up and there are too many unknowns that we are not familiar with. Even with redzone available to us nowadays, it's still impossible to watch every play of every game. That is essentially why this column exists.
Every Thursday I will give my thoughts on the games I watched during the previous week. This week, we are starting with something that is very close to home for me: Star Cornerbacks.
If you are unfamiliar with the cornerback evaluation process of Pre Snap Reads, here is an explanation. If you are familiar with the cornerback evaluation process of Pre Snap Reads, you can skip down to the Lardarius Webb section.
Qualifying Plays:
Plays that count:
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Every snap that has the cornerback in man coverage no matter where the ball is thrown.
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The above includes sacks, quarterback scrambles and plays where the defensive back has safety help.
Plays that don’t count:
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Screen plays. Even if the receiver isn’t part of the screen, these plays do not count.
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Plays where either the receiver or cornerback doesn’t follow through his whole assignment.
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Zone plays. Any ambiguity in this area will disqualify a play.
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Any prevent coverage situations.
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Receptions in the flat without a route run.
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Running plays(duh!). Including designed quarterback runs.
Failed Coverages:
The ball does not have to be thrown in the defensive back’s direction for the coverage to fail. This is NOT an alysis of how many completions the cornerback allowed, that can be found elsewhere, this is an analysis of how good his coverage is on any given play.
Failed coverages can come at any point of the route, but it is subjective to where the players are on the field in relation to the quarterback. Typically, defensive backs must be within arms reach for underneath/intermediate routes. On deeper passes, there is greater leeway given to the defender.
Failed coverages can be subjective. They must be determined by the situation considering the length of the play and other such variables.
Shut Down:
This category is reserved for those plays when receivers would have to make superhuman catches to beat the coverage. The best example of this is when receivers line up wide and try to run down the sideline, but the defensive back gradually guides them towards the sideline, suffocating the space they have to catch the football in. If a receiver is on the white sideline, he is shut down.
In Position:
This is the opposite of a failed coverage. In order to be ‘In Position’, a defensive back has to be in a position to prevent a relatively well-thrown pass to his assignment.
Some Returning Shutdown Cornerbacks
For a player who has missed an awful lot of time in a relatively short career so far, Lardarius Webb is very highly thought of among scouts and analysts alike. Webb has twice torn ACLs in his career, with the second one coming during last season. He returned to the Ravens this preseason, but there was no certainty that he would ever return to the form he had shown before.
In his very first game back, Webb's team allowed Peyton Manning to score seven touchdowns. However, even though the rest of the secondary was picked apart by Manning, the Denver Broncos Quarterback got nothing of value out of Webb.
Total qualifying plays: 22
Failed Coverages: 3
Shutdowns: 10
In Position: 9
Webb primarily played left cornerback during the first two and a half quarters. He faced off against Eric Decker 10 times giving up just one play and Demaryius Thomas three times giving up nothing on those plays. Decker's only completion was a five yard in route against off coverage. Because Wes Welker was repeatedly torching Corey Graham in the slot, Webb was eventually moved inside where he only allowed Welker to win on two routes with one reception.
The specifics of Webb's display in that game weren't important except for two aspects. One: He played like a shutdown cornerback no matter where he lined up on the field and no matter who lined up across from him. Two: The Broncos don't have a legitimate number one receiver. The Broncos have three number one receivers and a quarterback who won't discriminate with his targets.
This means that Webb's fantasy impact will be much greater over the season as a whole. Webb will most likely be moved onto the opposition's best receiver on a weekly basis because the rest of the secondary has no hope of covering more talented receivers. When considering who to start and sit, noting who is playing the Ravens and Webb will be crucial.
Darrelle Revis
It was a sad day when Darrelle Revis tore his ACL last season. Not just a sad day for the Jets, but a sad day for the NFL. He truly was the best cornerback in the NFL in spite of Richard Sherman's ego off the field and his dominance on it.
Two questions emerged with Revis this off-season: Will he return to his dominant form from before his knee injury? Will his new team, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, use him as aggressively as the New York Jets did? After one week of the season, a week when Revis fittingly made his debut for the Buccaneers against the Jets, we have answered one of those questions.
Total qualifying plays: 15
Failed coverages: 3
Shutdowns: 7
In Position: 5
Revis spent a lot of time covering Santonio Holmes. Holmes is a respectable opponent for any cornerback, but his health was in question even more than Revis' because there was less certainty he would play in this game. Holmes is unlikely to have been at full speed agianst Revis in Week 1 because of his Lisfranc injury that he suffered last season, so some of that could have contributed to his three for nine showing against Revis.
Three for nine is actually a strong ratio against a player like Revis, but two of those successful routes weren't completely down to Holmes' ability. Once Revis was knocked down by his own defender on a designed rub route and once he gave up a curl route underneath while playing off coverage. Revis covered every other receiver the Jets threw at him, but none of those players would be considered major threats to even average cornerbacks.
When Holmes beat Revis on his own, he beat him down the field when he turned the cornerback the wrong way with a beautifully run route. However, that is not the most significant play from this game.
Revis is an outstanding cornerback because he can do it all. There was little question that he would still have his mental abilities, but his quickness in and out of breaks as he relies on his knees was a major worry. Revis is such a fluid athlete that he was rarely beaten coming out of breaks in routes. On one play against Holmes, he was beaten at the top of the route.
Holmes shook at the top of his in route to make Revis shift his feet towards the sideline. At that moment, Holmes darted back towards the center of the field. Any average cornerback would allow a five yard gap to be created here, but not Revis.
No, Revis had that same fluidity that he had before. Instead of trailing dramatically behind Holmes, Revis quickly caught up to the receiver and came out of the break almost immediately behind him. This allowed him to close on Holmes and punch the ball away from him as Geno Smith tried to hit him in the numbers.
The signs were very promising, but the reality is that Revis will need time to prove that he can be his dominant self again. Dominance can't be established in one game, especially not when that game comes against less than stellar receivers.
The answer we got from this game was about the Buccaneers' usage. They repeatedly shifted their coverage away from their number one receiver and asked him to handle Holmes alone in space. It should come as no surprise, because the Buccaneers built their defense in such a way that hinted they would return Revis to his island in the off-season, but it was still a question that needed answering.
Admiring the Seattle Seahawks is easy. There are many, many reasons to admire them on offense and on defense, but in Week 1 they gave me another reason to admire them. In Week 1, they abandoned their usual man heavy approach, instead focusing on zone coverage to contain Cam Newton and hold down the Panthers defense.
That ploy obviously worked, but it also limited what Sherman could do to Steve Smith.
Total qualifying plays: 7
Failed Coverages: 1
Shutdowns: 3
In Position: 3
Sherman only covered Smith three times, but he fought with the veteran receiver as aggressively as he had done all through last season. Smith never escaped him, with his one failed coverage actually coming against Ted Ginn. It looked like Ginn pushed off on a curl route, but the referees didn't call it.
On his first play in man coverage, against Steve Smith on the Panthers first drive, Sherman lined up in the slot and followed Smith across the field on a crossing route. Newton threw the ball in his direction, but Sherman undercut the route and got to it first. He should have intercepted the pass, but couldn't snatch it out of the air.
At the very least, that play showed that his ball skills are still as sharp as ever.
Haden had a good, but not great performance against Mike Wallace on Sunday. Wallace hinted at his frustration with the offense as a whole after the game, something he eventually backtracked on, but he had a point. When the Dolphins built their offense during the off-season, they never invested in a high quality left tackle to replace Jake Long. Their deficency at that spot appears to be handcuffing their offense.
Most of the Dolphins' passing plays were quick throws to underneath routes or intermediate routes. That's not playing to Wallace's strength and it didn't allow him to work his way down the field where he could lose Haden with his speed. The Dolphins didn't use Wallace the way the Steelers did in the passed. In Pittsburgh, Wallace would see plenty of screens and passes into the flat to draw coverage close to him before they dialed up a deep ball against more aggressive coverage.
The Dolphins didn't do that, but that may be because the Browns were willingly lining Haden up in press coverage against Wallace often. Aggression is a staple of Horton's scheme, but it wasn't a fair fight because the Dolphins couldn't let Tannehill hang in the pocket or often even set comfortably at the top of his drop.
Total qualifying plays: 15
Failed Coverages: 5
Shutdowns: 2
In Position: 8
For the most part, Wallace didn't run crisp routes or come out of his breaks sharply. That allowed Haden to take those routes away with ease. However, when Wallace did run good routes, he came free of the defensive back underneath and towards the sideline.
In the third quarter, Wallace beat Haden deep, but Tannehill slightly overthrew him because he couldn't step into his throw as the pocket collapsed on him. Haden will have tougher tests that will give us a better idea about his quality, but Wallace's stock may plummet if the staff continues this approach.
That said, they may not have too many options with their offensive line in such a state.
Charles Tillman is probably the best cornerback that people don't talk about enough. Of course, his reputation is enhanced because of his ability to consistently create turnovers, but not enough people recognize his strength as a man cover cornerback. He has excelled in the past against Calvin Johnson on multiple occasions, something that can't be said about any other defensive backs in the NFL.
However, this game wasn't one to support Tillman's case as a top man cornerback. Instead, it was a game that emphatically supported the notion that he can create turnovers but can't shut down receivers.
Total qualifying plays: 10
Failed Coverages: 6
Shutdowns: 1
In Position: 3
He was covering the second or third best receiver in the league, AJ Green, so there is some warped context to go with these numbers. Green is a superstar player, there is no doubt about that despite his relative youth. He beat Tillman with a double move at the goalline. He beat him by using his size to overshadow him on a deep ball. He used his quickness to run a crisp comeback route or two and he used his speed to go straight passed him on a play that forced Tillman to drag him down in the endzone for a pass interference penalty.
Many more cornerbacks will have those issues with Green, even the very best of man cover corners, and Tillman should have much better days in coverage.
He did still have two interceptions, although one came when he was beat on a post route and the ball bounced off of Green's hands into his lap. The other was a typical Tillman play where he read the play and aggressively attacked the ball ahead of the wide receiver, Green, on an in route. Tillman faces the Vikings next week, a game that should allow him to get back on track.
Two Standout Sack Artists
After last season, it's hard to argue against Von Miller or JJ Watt as the two best young, pass rushers in the NFL. However, Miller's suspension to start the season has stuttered the start to his campaign this year, while Watt is drawing so much of the offense's attention that it would be an almost unbelievable feat if he could produce like he did last season. In lieu of Milller and Watt, the obvious choices are Cameron Wake or Aldon Smith.
Both Wake and Smith had sacks in Week 1 of the season, in fact Wake made Mitchell Schwartz look worse than he ever did during his rookie season, but neither are leading the league in sacks. Two players, Justin Houston and Robert Quinn, managed three sacks in their 2013 debuts. Both played against inferior opposition, Houston faced off against Luke Joeckel who is a top draft pick but was also making his debut in the NFL. Both had sacks that came too easily, but both should still be considered amongst the favourites to finish atop the sack charts come the climax of the regular season.
Houston faced off against the Jacksonville Jaguars in a game where the Jaguars offense looked completely inept. While Blaine Gabbert at quarterback was terrible, his offensive line wasn't much better. A blown assignment allowed Houston in for his first sack, but he showed off his speed and power on his other two sacks.
This versatility makes Houston one of the most talented pass rushers in the NFL, but it's his versatility as an all-around player that is most likely to prevent him from being a dominant pass rusher. Under Romeo Crennel last season, Houston was used extensively in coverage on passing downs and was never truly unleashe against offensive tackles. In spite of that, he still finished the season with 10 sacks.
Now that Houston is in his third year with a defensive coordinator who appears set send him after the quarterback as much as possible, there is no ceiling stopping him from being one of the best pass rushers in the NFL. In Week 2, he faces the Dallas Cowboys. Right Tackle Doug Free will primarily be responsible to stop him from getting to Tony Romo, but as Houston's second sack against the Jaguars shows, the staff is willing to move him around the field somewhat.
The Chiefs' schedule for the season doesn't figure to pitch him against many strong offensive tackles.
Dispelling the optimism surrounding Robert Quinn is simple. His three sacks came against Levi Brown and the Arizona Cardinals, while he is primarily just a speed rusher. He's one dimensional and he beat a bad offensive tackle. That's nothing special. Of course, that's completely accurate, but it's not a fair argument by any means.
Quinn may have beaten Brown for his three sacks in Week 1 of the 2013 season, but in 2012 he had 10.5 sacks and five of those came against incredibly talented players. Long feasted on the Cardinals' left tackle, then D'Anthony Batiste, last year for three sacks also, but he also beat Jeff Backus, Trent Williams, Joe Staley, Cordy Glenn and Russell Okung. Each of those players had either outstanding technique or overwhelming physical talent. Yet, none of them could stop Quinn in spite of his reputation as a speed reliant rusher.
When you're as fast off the line of scrimmage as Quinn and as tough in tight to tackles as him, you can get away without a massive repoirtoire of moves. That's not to say that he doesn't have any however. Quinn knows how to use his speed and as the season goes on, he should be able to expose tackles much better than Brown with his inside step and leverage. As a right defensive end, Quinn is very much the mirror of Wake who plays primarily on the left.
Overreacting to Week 1 is always a big problem in NFL coverage. All the signs of pitfalls appear to be there with Houston and Quinn, but both of these players are exceptional talents who should continue to produce for as long as their teams are competitive.
Quick Thoughts from the Tape:
Maurice Jones-Drew had a horrible outing in his return from injury. There wasn't much Jones-Drew could really do. He doesn't really seem to be a focal point for the Jaguars' new hurry up offense and the line infront of him was dominated by the Chiefs, with Dontari Poe in particular standing out. The talent is still there, but the production may not come unless he is traded before the deadline.
Brandon Weeden didn't get a huge amount of help from his teammates in Cleveland. His interceptions may be excused because two of them hit his receiver's hands, but both had poor ball placement as one was high and the other was high and behind. Weeden's inability to see the field consistently also reared itself in Week 1, as he missed a number of open receivers including one when he threw an interception.
DeAndre Hopkins isn't as explosive as Julio Jones or AJ Green or even Cordarrelle Patterson, but his excellent play from Clemons has instantly carried over into the NFL. Hopkins caught almost everything that came his way on Monday night against the Chargers. Everything play that you would expect a receiver to make he made, with one outstanding adjustment to a ball in flight when Schaub underthrew a deep pass down the field. In a sense, Hopkins is very like Kevin Walter, except he's a much, much better version of Walter.
When the Oalkand Raiders named Terrelle Pryor their starting quarterback so late in the preseason, the obvious worries about how prepared he really was going to be came to mind. Everyone knows about Pryor's athleticism, but what really stood out on the day was his poise and intelligent use of the football. It's still too early to really understand what quality of quarterback the Raiders have, because he was playing against a porous Colts' defense, but there were very promising signs in Week 1. Week 2 won't yield many more answers though, as the Raiders play the Jaguars defense.
The Pittsburgh Steelers have had their bad games in recent seasons, so the performance against the Tennessee Titans on Sunday wasn't a massive surprise. The defense gave up too many long third downs, as usual, and the offense was ineffective. However, there were some really worrying signs from that game that weren't there during the Steelers' other big disappointments from recent seasons. The whole offense looks disjointed and poorly designed. It lacks talent and direction, something that maybe even Ben Roethlisberger won't be able to remedy for a few weeks of the year.
Furthermore from that game in Pittsburgh, it's no surprise that Jarvis Jones is being promoted to 'co-starter'. The only real surprise is that Jones isn't already starting ahead of Jason Worilds across from LaMarr Woodley full time. Woodley and Jones could be very good together. Woodley was limited to one sack against the Titans, but he showed off the burst and explosion that he had lost on that sack. The Titans gameplan undoubtedly helped to hold down the Steelers' rush, so it's something worth watching over the next week or two. Woodley was uneblievably productive the last time that he had that burst in his game.
Speaking of healthy pass rushers, it won't have received much coverage, but Terrell Suggs is back from his Achilles injury. Don't be fooled into thinking Suggs was back last season, when he participated but didn't star on the team's Super Bowl run. Suggs looked nothing like the defensive player of the year in 2011 last season, but he did on Thursday night against the Broncos. He and Elvis Dumervil may have only had two sacks against the Broncos, but that was a lot considering how quickly Manning was getting rid of the ball. Suggs faces Joe Thomas this week, so his health may go unnoticed again for another week, even if his performance is still right up there.
Many plaudits have been sent to Chicago addressed for the newly built offensive line that led the Bears to victory in Week 1. Let me add my commendations to that unit. The Bengals' line is one of the toughest in the league to match up to because they not only have an abundance of talent, they have depth and versatility also. For a unit that has new starters at four of the five positions, it was an incredible performance.
You can follow Cian Fahey on twitter @Cianaf
