More on the Wildcat

about the wildcat offense.. Since the QB might not be the "QB" and might play WR etc... couldn't we rough him up hard to make them think twice about putting QB on those formations? I am not saying purposely hurt him but having a free shot at the QB is always welcome..

excellent article by cowher

Great article by Kirwan and Cowher. However, Cowher's defense would be very vulnerable to the "Lead Weak" play if the ILBs blitz to the strong side as he suggests. The T could take out the OLB, the RB could kick out the DE (who's already playing contain), and the C and G could double on the NT, with the G then going onto the next level. Since the ILBs both blitz to the other side, the G could potentially reach the safety's. Since the play happens so quickly, the ballcarrier could easily get through the line of scrimmage before the ILBs reach him. He'd then be off to the secondary, potentially with a lead blocker (the guard). Just goes to show you that there's no one defense that would work in every situation.

Mike R., you and your team are setting a new standard for online sports coverage. I'm blown away by the depth of this season's reporting/analysis and your use of the media forms. I mean, just look at this week's juicy wildcat breakdowns alone.

We fans should be almost as well prepared for Sunday as the Pats themselves!

I have seen several places where it has been mentioned that , " the Dolphins have run 59 plays out of the package, for 420 yards (7.1-yard average) and 8 touchdowns (6 rushing, 2 passing)"

I am wondering and not sure how to look up how much of that was against the Patriots in the previous match up? From memory Miami scored at least 3 touch downs against the pats.

I believe the Pats game was the first time they used the wild cat and it caught the patriots completely by surprise. Since then the numbers are OK, but not nearly as impressive.

Hi Tony. The Dolphins ran the Wildcat six times against the Patriots in that first matchup. They had touchdown runs of 2, 5 and 62 yards and a touchdown pass of 19 yards as part of those six plays.
--Mike

Mike -- in HS our team ran a multiple offense mixing wing T, pro-set and, yes, SINGLE WING (ala Princeton way back when). I went on to college FB and then HS and college coaching, but the multiple offense and the principles of the various looks never left me. For many younger fans the wildcat is new. But nothing is "new" in football (except, maybe, the introduction of something called the forward pass). This is merely a 2008 adaptation of the single wing. It is deceptive (don't get me started on its buck-lateral series), it attacks the minds and reading capability of the defense, and it is a change of pace that forces opponents to spend extra time preparing to defend it. When Arkansas ran the Wild Hog last year, they had a tailback that more closely than anyone in the last few decades epitomized the old single wing triple threat tail back -- Heisman Trophy finalist Darren McFadden. Watching film of him at Arkansas posing the threat to run, hand-off, or occasionally pass must have been a challenge. The Ronnie Brown/Ricky Williams backfield is in the same mold though Brown is not as good a passer. But it is defendable. Bill Cowher's strategic assessment shows that. Yet, just like the triple option if you don't play against it very often it poses big problems. Defending it requires more than just raw athleticism and skill; it requires discipline and intelligence -- all of which are characteristics of the NE Patriots. The only question that remains: Have the Pats had enough time and reps to assimilate the complexities and internalize the reads? Personally, I think they'll be OK.

Just please beat this team down and end this "Wildcat" nonsense. It's the dumbest fad this league has seen since running QB's.

Excellent analysis by Cowher only ruined by comment #3 posted by Drew. Of course there would some plays that would have a higher success rate if the offense knew the defense would only run one defensive play against the wildcat. I think the Patriots best shot at stopping the wildcat is to electronically intercept the offensive play calls when they are transmitted to the QB. There has to be some techie geek at MIT/Harvard/Boston Community College that can bust the encryption. This is the next most logical step for Belichick to take after Videogate. If you are going to break the rules, do it against a 'tricky' offense like the wildcat.