Outside WR Patterns - Key to victory?

I was thinking about this quite a bit - especially after watching NE and DEN try to beat each other with these crossing routes and pick plays. These are bread and butter plays for their offense and I think if Manning has a weakness it's the sideline passes.

One of the keys to this game will be changing those slot WR option routes and presnap reads to WR patterns outside the hashes. I suppose this means taking inside leverage on all receivers at the line, daring them to go outside. With the kind of help we can get on their big TE (Thomas) I'm fairly confident we can do that. Our run defense has been solid all year - which puts our defense in a good position to get Manning to throw at the strength of our defense - the LOB.

I think that's fairly accurate. Press coverage should also help with the pick plays because it can throw off the timing and the route running necessary for success.

Manning can throw pretty accurately up the sideline when it's one of those near-instant throws that travels about 10-15 yards and drops down to the receiver. I think he did it vs NE even.

Tall corners can help us there, provided they're in good enough position to turn to the ball or read the receivers eyes and paw it out. Also, blasting their dudes at the LOS.

I have a lot of respect for Manning's ability to find a play advantageous given the front he's seeing, but it seems to me to be universal that getting rid of the ball quickly is how he stays clean and how he best operates. No matter what routes are on, I think blasting those receivers at the LOS and handfighting them all the way interferes with that. He's no rifle-arm who can wait for some guy to come free and then fire it in there before the defender can close. He relies on getting it out quickly (and is excellent at it).

Last year I would have been scared bleep-less because we still had soft spots vs. TEs and vs. slot receivers, and we had very inconsistent pass rush. This year all those areas are STRENGTHS (we only blitzed 3 times vs. SF I read somewhere!!!), it is insanely difficult to beat a defense who can stop the run, get pressure with just 4, and who has 4 or 5 corners who can all start, and safeties that are the perfect combo of thunder and lightning.

This is a great matchup for us. Peyton is brilliant at exposing weak defensive backfields because most teams only have one, maybe two good DB's, so teams can't matchup with all the good WR's Denver has. Peyton looks for the mismatch, and carves it up.

But we not only have 5-6 above average to Pro Bowl caliber DB's, we have LB's that have the length and speed to cover every single one of Denver's WR's and TE's like a blanket.

That's the problem with Manning, if he can't find his WR within three seconds, he's toast...........and he's going to be TOAST a lot.

Sgt. Largent":1bj1eg14 said:

This is a great matchup for us. Peyton is brilliant at exposing weak defensive backfields because most teams only have one, maybe two good DB's, so teams can't matchup with all the good WR's Denver has. Peyton looks for the mismatch, and carves it up.

But we not only have 5-6 above average to Pro Bowl caliber DB's, we have LB's that have the length and speed to cover every single one of Denver's WR's and TE's like a blanket.

That's the problem with Manning, if he can't find his WR within three seconds, he's toast...........and he's going to be TOAST a lot.

Click to expand...

I do agree with this. Perhaps we need to send him some butter and jam?

Don't forget that Denver has some very big receivers.

Manning is one of the greatest of all time mostly due to his ability to read a defense and find the favourable matchup, however, we don't really disguise anything and play a very basic D, relying on the players on our side of the ball winning their matchups because they're better than the guys on the other side of the ball.

and in that respect I think we have the advantage

brimsalabim":4x88vxha said:

Don't forget that Denver has some very big receivers.

Click to expand...

That's good, cause we have some very big DB's and LB's.

I may be way out to lunch here and not know what i'm talking about. But it seems like Manning is great at picking apart zone's and needing next to no time to do it. However luckily for us (and as explained here http://grantland.com/features/whos-laughing-now/ ) when we have our Cover 3 zone D our corners are still man to man thus making the onus more on your D Thomas' and Eric Decker's to get separation from the 2 corners who QB's have the lowest passer rating against.

Furthermore in the Cover 3 Kam Chancellor comes up and acts like a 4th Linebacker, combined with Malcom Smith and KJ Wright the kitchen is amply stocked with the necessary ingredients to match up with your Julius Thomas' and Knowshon Moreno's from wherever. Further making the onus more on the receivers getting open and less on Manning picking open spots apart. Thoughts?

nsport":tr5atycs said:

Sgt. Largent":tr5atycs said:

This is a great matchup for us. Peyton is brilliant at exposing weak defensive backfields because most teams only have one, maybe two good DB's, so teams can't matchup with all the good WR's Denver has. Peyton looks for the mismatch, and carves it up.

But we not only have 5-6 above average to Pro Bowl caliber DB's, we have LB's that have the length and speed to cover every single one of Denver's WR's and TE's like a blanket.

That's the problem with Manning, if he can't find his WR within three seconds, he's toast...........and he's going to be TOAST a lot.

Click to expand...

I do agree with this. Perhaps we need to send him some P&J?

Click to expand...

Fixed that for ya