Analyzing Torrey Smith's Breakout Game

by Bruce Raffel on Sep 28, 2011 11:01 AM EDT

Over at theScore.com, they took a look at Baltimore Ravens rookie wide receiver Torrey Smith's record-setting performance last Sunday when he caught his first three NFL receptions for TD's, all in the first quarter of the Ravens 37-7 win over the St. Louis Rams. Their analyst just published a fantastic breakdown of the X's and O's behind Torrey Smith's debut performance.

Titled, "The Tape Never Lies: Breaking Down Torrey Smith's Debut," by Alen Dumonjic, they discuss Smith's routes as well as the Rams' defensive positioning that led to the touchdowns. Alen utilizes stop-action photographs that show Smith's explosive ability to get off the line and put the defensive back in a bad position within steps.

He also breaks down the Rams 'Cover-3' zone in a diagram, explaining the strengths and weaknesses of it and finishes up with his assessment on the future of the Ravens speedy receiver, saying,

"Rookie wide receiver Torrey Smith of the Ravens had an outstanding debut and the Ravens hope that he builds on his performance in the following weeks. Smith had more touchdowns in the first quarter of his first game than Mark Clayton had in his rookie season, and the same amount of catches that Yamon Figurs has in his career. Despite a quality debut that showed a lot of potential and promise, Smith will have to continue to work hard to improve his technique, route running and overall skills. He certainly has the potential to do damage in the NFL with his natural skills."

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Can anyone explain the positions refered to in the cover-3 diagram?

I understand what QB is, but the rest…
FS
C
M
SS
W
T
N
Much appreciated if someone would demistify this for me!

by rsty on Sep 28, 2011 2:56 PM EDT reply actions

FS= free safety
C= Center
M= middle or mike line backer (same thing), but it is usually MLB.
SS= Strong Safety
W= is weak or will side line backer
S= strong or sam line backer
T= tackle, but is usually DT.
N= Nose tackle which is usually NT.

On Ed Reed:
"I’ve told him to his face many times, ‘You’re the greatest safety ever to play the game,’"
"We all learn from each other, but we all learn most from him."
- Troy Polamalu

by AV23 on Sep 28, 2011 4:06 PM EDT up reply actions

Thanks! But, is C is center? not cornerback? (forgot to press reply :s)

Thanks for the explanation dude, much obliged. Ask anything about hockey if you ever have an itch that needs scratchin’.

Just to clarify – I now think that C is for cornerback, because the cover-3 zone is a defensive scheme, and as the post says:
"Cover 3 is a 3 deep (1 safety and two cornerbacks) set with the field divided into thirds while there are four zone defenders underneath"
So C makes sense for cornerback. I guess cornerbacks are supposed to cover wide receivers

by rsty on Sep 28, 2011 5:10 PM EDT up reply actions

Cornerback is typically represented with a “CB;” I think that’s the first time I’ve seen just “C” used for cornerbacks.

I guess cornerbacks are supposed to cover wide receivers

In general, yes. There are occasions, though, where a cornerback will cover something besides a receiver (such as a tight end), or other positions on the defense will cover a receiver (a linebacker may have that kind of coverage duty depending on the zone setup and the route the receiver is running). Pagano also likes to send our cornerbacks on blitzes. There’s a lot of overlap in modern defensive schemes.

Water covers 2/3 of the Earth's surface. Ed Reed covers the rest.

State your case, back it up with facts and reasonable opinions ...
Bruce Raffel

by Ampallang on Sep 28, 2011 5:22 PM EDT up reply actions

Football is complicated, thanks for the help! People really need to get their acronyms straight, it’s terribly exclusive.

by rsty on Sep 28, 2011 5:36 PM EDT up reply actions

You’re right I didn’t look at the chart and pay attention. C is usually center and CB is usually corner, but they are using the C for corner for some reason.

On Ed Reed:
"I’ve told him to his face many times, ‘You’re the greatest safety ever to play the game,’"
"We all learn from each other, but we all learn most from him."
- Troy Polamalu

by AV23 on Sep 28, 2011 8:32 PM EDT up reply actions

For same reason

they are only using M for MLB and S for The Sam and W formthe Will/weak side LB.

aka 'Rexx'

by Bruce Raffel on Sep 29, 2011 11:16 PM EDT up reply actions

Thanks! But, is C is center? not cornerback?

Thanks for the explanation dude, much obliged. Ask anything about hockey if you ever have an itch that needs scratchin’.

Just to clarify – I now think that C is for cornerback, because the cover-3 zone is a defensive scheme, and as the post says:
“Cover 3 is a 3 deep (1 safety and two cornerbacks) set with the field divided into thirds while there are four zone defenders underneath”
So C makes sense for cornerback. I guess cornerbacks are supposed to cover wide receivers.

by rsty on Sep 28, 2011 5:09 PM EDT reply actions

Awesome breakdown. I love this stuff.

The writer formerly known as This White Man Can Jump; Powah Stached; Bear Killer; Da Dude; The Other Bambino; TJ Dropped The Season; Harbaugh Is My Co-Pilot; Billick's Alter Ego; Mr. Poopy Pants.

by El.Dude on Sep 29, 2011 8:15 AM EDT reply actions

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