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John Keim: Redskins 2014 Offensive Line Rankings, Stats And Breakdown

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Late to the party, but ...

I think the way many Skins fans view our OL play over the past few years has mirrored how they've seen our QB play for even longer. We've been [insert adjective of choice implying less-than-good-enough) for so long that we may only finally recognize "good enough" once we actually see it again one day.

We all know what a good OL looks like ... we see them on the weekends sometimes ... almost always when the Skins aren't playing.

Once in a while we get a teaser. We were watching when the Skins curb-stomped Jacksonville early in the year. It was a stark reminder of how different the game looks when the team you're rooting for controls the line of scrimmage. It's a very different game than what we've been watching our team play--on both sides of the ball--almost exclusively, for longer than I care to pin down.

OL, DL and QB. In any order of preference. When we're once again "good enough" in all three of those areas indispensable areas again, we'll be a legitimate contender.

Won't that be special?
 
I've said before that for Snyder to be such a big fan of the Gibbs years, it's mind boggling how long and completely he and his Klown Kollege of "personnel goo-roos" have ignored the OL and to a slightly lesser degree, the DL as well.

Anyone looking at the performance of our line over the past several years knows it doesn't pass the smell test. However, looking at the numbers may in some ways make a case that we're al least average. *Spoiler Alert!* We're just not. When taking a deeper look at more meaningful stats, the situation becomes much clearer. We're a slightly below average run blocking line (19th) that as others have mentioned, struggles in power situations (58% vs. 65% NFL avg.) and absolutely awful at pass pro. (31st) And though I based this on 2014 data, previous recent years look awfully similar. Sure, some of that is Gruden's play calling and even more, Robert's holding the ball too long. Nonetheless, I think even QBs with a very quick release would struggle behind our line.
 
Russ Grimm said it all in his HOF induction speech.

"Moving another man, from point A to point B, against his will..."

Trent Williams is the only starting lineman we've had for the last 4 years, that can do such a thing.

The other 4 could barely hold their own at the point of attack. Often getting manhandled, or embarrassed, instead.

Stats be damned!
 
Most NFL people I have seen comment on the Redskins note the lack of talent up front.

Some websites might carry rankings that try and duplicate what Bill James did in baseball. But it's easier to see correlations when you are looking at individuals that log individual statistics than when considering how a group performs and the evidence is indirect.

In re the NFL I am more likely to believe coaches that have built OLs and personnel guys that draft them over our internet statisticians.
 
Diesel, here's the thing, that statement just isn't accurate.

The Redskins were 12th best in the league at yards before contact. 20 other teams had it worse in that regard.

20 other teams wish their RBs were hit as early as Alfred Morris.

I'm not saying that we have a great O-line. We can definitely make improvements there, just like we can in the secondary--a much worse unit in comparison to the other teams in the league.

What is clear is that most O-lines in the league are lacking. And by no means is ours the worst.

In addition, teams that have similiar or even worse O-lines than ours like Indy almost made the SB.

you do know thats a function of the scheme right? we ran a lot of stretch and inside zone, against teams with bad or average front7's we looked stellar, against teams with decent ones, not so much
 
Again, I think looking at those stats in isolation don't tell the whole story.

Remember, if the OC knows he can't depend on the OL, he has to change his scheme and what kind of plays are run.

The OL can't protect for the five step drop so no long passing game.

The OL can't win the battle in short yardage and goal line and the team has to throw in those situations.

The end result is an offense that doesn't score consistently in the red zone and fails to win the time of possession battle.
 
Again, I think looking at those stats in isolation don't tell the whole story.

Remember, if the OC knows he can't depend on the OL, he has to change his scheme and what kind of plays are run.

The OL can't protect for the five step drop so no long passing game.

The OL can't win the battle in short yardage and goal line and the team has to throw in those situations.

The end result is an offense that doesn't score consistently in the red zone and fails to win the time of possession battle.




Don't forget that Alf stood on his head for a good period. One of the most appealing things about him is that he has been able to break through initial contact and gain positive yards. That itself skews the stats of the O-line. A net loss turning into a marginal gain due to the RB can make a bad o-line look mediocre based on averages.
 
From the article: The Redskins ranked 11th in the NFL in pass protection percentage (50.9), according to ESPN Stats & Information. That measures the number of times a team won the line of scrimmage (yes, tough to gauge sometimes because so many factors involved, but the metrics are the same for all teams). Seattle, for example, ranked last at 43.9 percent and New England was 28th.

So the Redskins were in the top third in the league in pass protection and the best 2 teams in football were 2 of the worst in the entire league in pass protection? Sounds like some very poorly constructed stats to me. All you have to do is watch the games to see that the Redskins oline is terrible.
 
Advanced analytics don't work for NFL linemen like they do for baseball players.

The NFL really lacks clear measuring stats for linemen.

It's so much a team game based on interconnected play and depending on the guy next to you there are too many variables in the equation.
 
Advanced analytics don't work for NFL linemen like they do for baseball players.

The NFL really lacks clear measuring stats for linemen.

It's so much a team game based on interconnected play and depending on the guy next to you there are too many variables in the equation.

Either that or the Redskins' oline is actually too good for success and they need to downgrade there so they can be as good as Seattle and New England.
 
It may be partially due to the invention of the internet and news availability these days, but I can't ever recall seeing the "experts" and the fans going in such different directions.

I'd argue that a great majority of our fans believe the O-line is our biggest need. The "experts" see it much differently. It will be interesting to see where the new GM weighs in.

OL: Trent Williams, Shawn Lauvao, Kory Lichtensteiger, Chris Chester, Tom Compton, Spencer Long, Morgan Moses, Josh LeRibeus, Tyler Larsen, Xavier Nixon
There probably won’t be as much change here between now and the start of the season as some would like. But there are likely to be some new faces and some competition for positions, especially on the right side. C Tyler Larsen and T Xavier Nixon are street free agent pickups who will be worth watching.

DB: David Amerson, Bashaud Breeland, Phillip Thomas, Vacant, DeAngelo Hall, Tracy Porter, Akeem Davis, Duke Ihenacho
The Redskins need to find someone to line up at free safety and at least a Plan B in case Thomas can’t get it done at strong. Between free agency and the draft as many as five defensive backs could be added.

Need to Know: Examining the Redskins? pre-free agency depth chart | Rich Tandler's Real Redskins

Floored that 'Skins never were a player in the McCourty market. Hard to figure that one out.

--@LRiddickESPN

I suspect that we'll see at least 2 DBs taken for every 1 O-lineman in this draft.

How desperate are we at the DB position? We just brought a safety in for a look whose health only allowed him to appear in 5 games total over the last two seasons. Tyvon Branch.

Now that's desperation.
 
I don't think it was desperation. The GM looked at it as a chance to bring in a talented guy that he hoped would take a cheap deal to re-establish himself after suffering some injury problems at age 27/28.

McCourty would have been a GREAT addition if the Redskins were a 12-4 team that needed to find a free safety to sew things up for a Super Bowl bid.

With this many holes you can't afford to spend too much money on one player.

A pro bowl safety and no defensive line doesn't add up to a good unit.
 
McD, your argument always seems to be, though you never come out and clearly state it, that Griffin made the line look worse than it really was. I agree with that sentiment, but I don't think it tells the whole story. Colt and Kirk were also getting knocked around like rag dolls during their time in the pocket, and I can't count how many times Alfred got touched in the backfield last year and had to make something out of nothing. In my mind, there are a couple of alternatives truths, or a combination of all of them, which I think is most likely. First, our line wasn't that great. Advanced metrics don't work in football as well as they do in baseball, besides which you can almost always find a statistic to support your way of thinking. Second, our QB's weren't that great. I think this is undeniable. Lastly, our coaching wasn't that great. I think there is probably some grain of truth to this as well. I think our OLine play will be immediately upgraded with Callahan replacing Foerrester (I'm sure I misspelled that, but he isn't a Redskins coach anymore, so who cares). Gruden with another year under his belt will hopefully improve his playcalling as well.

Looking at the three issues, OLine, coaching and QBs, we know we (more than likely) aren't going to do much to address QB; we have clearly addressed coaching as much as we are going to, so that leaves the line. I'm thrilled with the emphasis on the DLine in FA and am confident we will see a focus on the OLine in the draft. The line needs improving, and Scot knows it.
 
I agree with all of that Goal.

What surprises me is the extent to which our fan base continues to hammer the O-line. I get that some of that comes from the Hogs, and the desire to return to those days. I also know that an O-line is very important. I don't believe our O-line is nearly as bad as people believe. We've certainly seen teams go deep into the playoffs, and even win SBs with O-lines like ours.

I'm also aware that we don't have a Tom Brady or Rodgers at QB, and that our passing plays take too long to execute. Therefore, we need a better O-line than most teams.

What I don't understand is that the same fan base that witnessed the Hogs, also witnessed Sean Taylor and D Green. Where are the secondary comments? For every "fix the secondary" comment I've seen, I've literally seen at least 100 "fix the O-line" comments. 100-1 ratio. That's way out of whack.

There are tons of numbers and stats to show how bad our secondary is.....but this one right here I think sums it up best:

Amerson was rated as the single worst CB in the league last season. The absolute worst.

His backup? Tracy Porter.

Similar comments could be made about our safeties.

But it seems like our fans have their heads in the sand on that topic.
 
A couple of things come to mind. First, I think a lot of us believe that the secondary would look a little better if the front 3 or 4 were able to generate a consistent pass rush that could disrupt QB rhythm. We are told repeatedly these days that there is no such thing as a shut-down corner anymore, and we see what an impact Watt has on the game, and... well, I'd love a pass rush. I do think a consistent pass rush, generated without a blitz would make an enormous difference.

Secondly, Raheem is gone. You, yourself, have said repeatedly that would be one of the biggest steps forward we could make. And it is done. So now we can hopefully get some good coaching bereft of 10 yard cushions on third and 3. That is a step in the right direction.

All that is not to say that I am going to be mad if we pick a lot of secondary players in the draft. We need help there, just as we do in MANY positions on both sides of the ball. I think there are several paths towards an improved D. Haslett gone is a big step in the right direction, and Raheem gone reinforces that. Not sure about Barry, but I'm willing to see how it goes. The emphasis on DLine has been encouraging.
 
I don't think it was desperation. The GM looked at it as a chance to bring in a talented guy that he hoped would take a cheap deal to re-establish himself after suffering some injury problems at age 27/28.

McCourty would have been a GREAT addition if the Redskins were a 12-4 team that needed to find a free safety to sew things up for a Super Bowl bid.

With this many holes you can't afford to spend too much money on one player.

A pro bowl safety and no defensive line doesn't add up to a good unit.

I agree with your overall premise.

I'd like all future signings to be 25 yrs old or younger. McCourty is only 27 years old fwiw--he's not exactly old.

I think the thing people are overlooking is that it's very rare for a safety to actually start his first season. That means if we draft one this year, he shouldn't even be starting until next year.

If we don't draft one this year, then we won't have one this year, or next year. That's two years of waste.

We also have to hope that unlike this season, that next year's draft actually has at least a few safeties that grade out highly in the draft.

The remaining FA safeties this year are not exactly inspiring, to say the least.
 
A couple of things come to mind. First, I think a lot of us believe that the secondary would look a little better if the front 3 or 4 were able to generate a consistent pass rush that could disrupt QB rhythm. We are told repeatedly these days that there is no such thing as a shut-down corner anymore, and we see what an impact Watt has on the game, and... well, I'd love a pass rush. I do think a consistent pass rush, generated without a blitz would make an enormous difference.

Secondly, Raheem is gone. You, yourself, have said repeatedly that would be one of the biggest steps forward we could make. And it is done. So now we can hopefully get some good coaching bereft of 10 yard cushions on third and 3. That is a step in the right direction.

All that is not to say that I am going to be mad if we pick a lot of secondary players in the draft. We need help there, just as we do in MANY positions on both sides of the ball. I think there are several paths towards an improved D. Haslett gone is a big step in the right direction, and Raheem gone reinforces that. Not sure about Barry, but I'm willing to see how it goes. The emphasis on DLine has been encouraging.

I'm also a big believer in that a D-line can bring the pressure and hide a porous secondary--to an extent. It may be our only and best option right now. However Detroit's secondary was exposed all of last season--and their line was ferocious.

This is what strikes me as so out-of-balance. How many times have you seen either here, or on social media or other places, comments like "I'd be thrilled if we did nothing but pick O-linemen with every single pick?" Maybe 50 times or more, right?

How many times have you read "I'd be thrilled if we did nothing but pick DBs with every single pick?" Never? Maybe once?

It just seems to me that the scales within our fan base seem tilted 95% to the O-line, and only 5% to the secondary. But the "experts" continue to suggest otherwise.

Wouldn't a 60/40, or even 70/30 percent split seem a little more rational?

I've seen the "Chester sucks!" comments all over the place. I don't see many comments like that about our secondary.

Just an observation.
 
Most members here haven't been shy about crushing Amerson, he had a dreadful season last year. Some think he can bounce back, others don't.

As to the rest, I have said I would be fine with our draft picks being all O & DLine, I don't recall too many people here advocating all OLine. My hope is that Scot is a better OLine talent evaluator than what we have had previously so we can get a nice base in place and then continually restock with a pick or two a year. But in order to get to that point, we're going to need a lot of change.
 
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