Friday, January 23, 2015

How Oregon Uses a Sweep Play to Constrain Defenses



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Oregon uses inside zone as their main running scheme. My previous article details an example of this, with the quarterback running it in an empty backfield.


Oregon will use the inside zone scheme over and over when they are operating at a high tempo. Naturally, the Ducks use a sweep play to keep the defense from keying on their base scheme. The figure below shows Oregon lined up in a formation that they typically use for their inside zone scheme with a bubble screen attached. The play diagrammed is a sweep play that the Ducks like to use to the closed side of the formation. Up to this point in the drive, the Ducks has successfully used inside zone multiple times.




Mariota is reading the #3 defender at the top of the screen to see if he should throw the bubble. Florida State accounts for all three receivers and Mariota properly hands the ball off.

The linebackers are sent on an inside run blitz in order to be in a better position for the inside zone scheme. The Ducks guessed right, as you can see in the figure below, the linebackers are unblocked and will not make a play on the running back.



 Both the right guard and the center will lead through the C gap. The center peels back to pick up one of the blitzing linebackers. As you can see below, the running back has plenty of space to operate in.



It is important to make your secondary plays look like your base scheme, both in formation and initial movements. Your secondary plays must create hesitation in the defenders that are disrupting your main plays. Your secondary plays serve to take advantage of nosy defenders for big plays as well as open up your base scheme.

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