SB Nation User Blog: airtyme

Should Dallas toy with the West Coast Offense

airtyme — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 03:31:22 -0000

I think that we could pull this off. We have the talent to make it work. What are you thoughts?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Coast_offense

The popular term "West Coast Offense" is more of a philosophy and an approach to the game than it is a set of plays or formations. Traditional offensive thinking argues that a team must establish its running game first, which will draw the defense in and open up vertical passing lanes downfield (i.e., passing lanes that run perpendicular to the line of scrimmage).

Bill Walsh's West Coast Offense, however, differs from traditional offense by instead emphasizing a short, horizontal passing attack to help stretch the defense out, thus opening up running lanes. The West Coast Offense as implemented under Walsh features precisely run pass patterns by the receivers that make up about 65% to 80% of the offensive scheme. With the defense stretched out, the offense is then free to focus the remaining plays on longer throws (more than 14 yards) and mid to long yard rushes.

Walsh's West Coast Offense attempts to open up running and passing lanes for the backs and receivers to exploit, by causing the defense to concentrate on short passes. Since most down and distance situations can be attacked with a pass or a run, the intent is to make offensive play calling unpredictable and thus keep the defense's play "honest".

Beyond the basic principle of passing to set up the run, there are few rules that govern Walsh's West Coast Offense. Originally the offense used two split backs, giving it an uneven alignment in which five players aligned to one side of the ball and four players aligned on the other side (with the quarterback and center directly behind the ball). Although Walsh-influenced teams now commonly use formations with more or fewer than two backs, the offense's unevenness is still reflected in its pass protection philosophy and continues to distinguish it from single back passing offenses. Throughout the years, coaches have added to, adjusted, modified, simplified, and enhanced Bill Walsh's original adaptation of the Paul Brown offense. Formations and plays vary greatly, as does play calling.

Another key part of the Walsh implementation was "pass first, run later." It was Walsh's intention to gain an early lead by passing the ball, then run the ball on a tired defense late in the game, wearing them down further and running down the clock. The San Francisco 49ers under Walsh often executed this very effectively.

Another key element in Walsh's attack was the three step dropback instead of traditional seven step drops or shotgun formations. The three step drop helped the quarterback get the ball out faster resulting in far fewer sacks. "WCO" plays unfold quicker than in traditional offenses and are usually based on timing routes by the receivers. In this offense the receivers also have reads and change their routes based on the coverages presented to them. The quarterback makes three reads and if no opportunity is available after three reads, the QB will then check off to a back or tight end. Five step and even 7 step dropbacks are now implemented in modern day WCO's because defensive speed has increased since the 80's. Some modern WCO's have even used shotgun formations (e.g. Green Bay, Atlanta '04-'06).

The majority of West Coast Offense routes occur within 15 yards of the line of scrimmage. 3-step and 5-step drops by the quarterback to take the place of the run and force the opposing defense to commit their focus solely on those intermediate routes. Contrary to popular belief, the offense also uses the 7-step drop for shallow crosses, deep ins and comebacks. For instance, the Michigan Wolverines utilize the 5- and 7-step drops about 85% of the time with West Coast pass schemes implemented by Quarterbacks Coach Scot Loeffler. Because of the speed of modern defenses, only utilizing the 3- and 5-step pass game would be ineffective since the defense could squat and break hard on short-to-intermediate throws with no fear of a downfield pass.

The original West Coast Offense of Sid Gillman uses some of the same principles (pass to establish the run, quarterback throws to timed spots), but offensive formations are generally less complicated with more wideouts and motion. The timed spots are often farther downfield than in the Walsh-style offense, and the system requires a greater reliance on traditional pocket passing.

A Walsh innovation was scripting the first 15 offensive plays of the game (Walsh went as far as to scripting the first 25 plays but most teams stop at 15). Since the offensive team knew that the first 15 plays would be run as scripted no matter what, they could practice those plays to perfection, minimizing mistakes and penalties. Success of the offense could establish momentum and dictate the flow of the game. Scripting also added an element of surprise, since a defense could be caught off guard by a scripted play that had no relationship to the current situation (e.g., a run play on third-and-long). It also gave the coaching staff an opportunity to run test plays against the defense to gauge their reactions in game situations. Later in the game, an observed tendency in a certain situation by the opposing defense could be exploited.

Finally, the West Coast offense, with its emphasis on quick reactive skills, can be seen to further develop the running quarterback motif, where extremely fast running quarterbacks (Michael Vick, Vince Young) and other notable scrambling quarterbacks (Jake Plummer and Donovan McNabb) are valued, if they are good passers, because in blitz or short-yardage situations, when the West Coast offense's value is negated, the running quarterback can make up this difference by posing a threat to make the first down himself, paralyzing an aggressive defense.

How do we beat the Eagles you ask????

airtyme — Sun, 28 Dec 2008 19:04:57 -0000

RUN, RUN, and RUN some more with a few short passes and a few screens and a hurry up type offense.

This will limit turn overs and allow Tony to get into a rythym. Once he has that, then unleash the deep throws, but not until the defense is on their heels.

We all know that Tony is not geat out of the gate, and that is O.K. If red-ball will play to his strengths and keep it conservative AT FIRST, it will keep the Eagles honest and take away their best defensive threats, rushing the passer and defendig the pass. We can beat them up with the run, even if we are not getting much at the begining.

How say you?????

Win and we are in

airtyme — Sun, 21 Dec 2008 20:55:09 -0000

If I am not mistaken, with Tampa Bays loss, a win over the Eagles will put us in the playoffs. As bad as the game was yesterday, we are not done. If the boys can somehow take all their frustrations out on the Eagles next week (Which I think they will), then it is a new game.

Also, Holland should be back and we are a different team when we do not have to rely on Proctor.

Let's focus on the positive!!!!

We need to Cheer T.O. at the game!!!!

airtyme — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 03:39:28 -0000

I must say, I was really upset that so many people booed T.O. at the Giants game. It was unfounded and uncalled for. This guy has done so much for the organization and was really the target of something ugly last week, that he did not start. No matter his past with other organizations, he has been great here in Big D. A true team leader as well.

So bring down the house, bring the signs to support T.O.....he deserves our appology!!!

Pass this around...Texas Stadium needs to rock when T.O. is introduced this weekend, the last regular game at Texas Stadium. We owe him and we owe the team.

Stop the Hipocrisy

airtyme — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:52:20 -0000

I write the diary with a heavy heart, I feel the loss of yesterdays (and end of the season) as if a big part of my life just ended because, for the time being, it has. You see, being a Cowboy fan is not just something I enjoy, it is a way of life for me and my family. Being a dedicated fan is in my blood, passed down from my father before me. I have dreams of my son’s being draft picks for future Cowboys. I envision my daughter on the sidelines yelling "Go Cowboys" as a member of the prestigious Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders. It is a part of me...it is who I am.

As Tony Romo threw his last pass for the season, I felt the life drain out of me as the ball ended up in the arms of the enemy...excitement suddenly shifted to despair. I could not breath, I just sat there like a corpse, feeling my life just slipping away. For a moment, I thought "Not Again", "How could they do this", and all kinds of other thoughts that I really do not want to relive.

A couple of hours later, I thought I would torture myself a little more and went to the NFL site and notice a video something to the effect "T.O. in tears". I had to see it. Why, because in the back of mind I had been thinking "was who was T.O. going to blame?"

As I watched this man, this athlete cry in front of the cameras, upset and standing up for, as he called it, "My Quarterback", "My Teammate", telling people "Don’t you dare blame him"...suddenly I was ashamed of myself for all the negative feelings I had for my Cowboys.

You see, that is what we should be doing, standing up for our team. They are the 4th youngest team in the NFL, the QB had his first full season as the starter, our coaching staff had had a complete turnover in philosophy and a major tune-up in regards to personnel, yet we went 13-3, broke all kinds of records, won the number one seed and are the Division Champs, etc.

BUT MANY OF YOU STILL COMPLAIN!!!!!!!!!

It is okay to be upset, lord knows I am. I wanted a Superbowl just like the rest of us. But as you look at yourself in the mirror, who do you thing hurts more? Who do you think is disappointed more? You, or Tony Romo? You, or Patrick Crayton? You, or T.O.? You, or the Offensive Line? You, or Wade Phillips? Get my point????

These are still "our" Dallas Cowboys!!! We shouldn’t be pointing fingers, blaming this and blaming that, pointing out the negatives. You say "Tony Romo lost his cool in the second half!" But if that last past wound have been a TD, you would have said "That’s the competitiveness that drove his team to victory". You say "The OL lost the Game in the second half!" If they would have won, it would have been "They gave Tony just enough time to make something happen.

We shouldn’t be cursing them for what they did not do, we should be supporting them and proud of what they accomplished. STOP THE HYPOCRISY OR GET OFF THE BUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This is Airtyme...I am a Dallas Cowboy fan...I am proud of what they have done!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

GO COWBOYS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

HELP!!!! Any Cowboys fans in Idaho???

airtyme — Mon, 20 Aug 2007 17:34:45 -0000

I just moved up here from Texas, where I was able to watch every game, and went to several too.

Now I am in Idaho, and so far it is mostly Seattle and Denver fans up here. I will get all the games (thanks to hefty $$$ to pay for Direct TV's NFL sunday ticket), but I am having a hard time finding fans, and I am having serious withdrawls!

Anyone out there in Idaho (Boise area)!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Where are our "hole's"???

airtyme — Mon, 13 Aug 2007 19:08:09 -0000

Seriously, where do we have any holes, and I am talking both side's of the ball. The nearest thing I can think of is a BACK-UP NT. BUt I am talking about Starters. Is their another team in the NFL that can say that they have all their hole's filled?

Even the championship Colt's have a few major holes.

This Cowboy's team is primed and ready for a serious SB run. We have a team that is stacked with talent, and several, that I feel, are going to have monster breakout seasons (Canty, Spears, Ware (yes, I say Ware because he will crush his own numbers from last year), Jones, Fasano, and ofcourse Romo). You stack that up with a young offensive play caller who learned from the best, and will be aggressive as they come. A head coach who has a strong defensive background with an aggressive mind set who has a history of creating dominant defenses....WHERE ARE OUR HOLES!!!!

Damn, it gives me chills just thinking about how this whole team/organization stacks up this year!!!

Let me hear your thoughts!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Just Updated

airtyme — Sun, 13 May 2007 06:28:04 -0000

Just Updated

Okay, other than the mini-camp this weekend, I am really bored waiting for training camp. To keep something going related to the boy's, I just updated my page on myspace to include a Dallas Cowboys layout. Check it out and tell me what you think. If you know of any better ones, please let me know.

In my pic's, I have a few pictures from when we went to a couple of the games 2 years ago and got a few good shots of Keyshawn, Roy and Ellis. We were right on the 5O, and one of the games just happens to be the game that Flozell went down in (ugh).

http://www.myspace.com/cwn71

Why Jimmy Johnson IS a realistic option

airtyme — Tue, 23 Jan 2007 01:59:24 -0000

One word...EGO!!!!

Somebody said it before, that Jimmy Johnson needs a few more seasons, with wins, to be considered a for the HOF. His ego probably would want that.
What better bost to his ego is there than to come into Dallas and do what BP couldn't.
What better way to show JJ that he should have never been let go.

I know it is a long shot, but I do believe it is a viable possibility. I also think that he is one of a select few that could handle TO and get the most out of him.

Romo - Pro Bowl

airtyme — Fri, 24 Nov 2006 04:27:10 -0000

Okay, somebody help me on this one. If Romo continues to play at this level, he would definately be deserving of the Pro Bowl.

However...is he "actually" eligible? When you go to the Pro Bowl voting on NFL.com, it still has Drew Bledsoe on the ballet sheet. TR is not on there. I know the players and coaches count for a large percent, but doesn't the fan voting?

Somebody please shed light on this for me...is it possible????