Zone Blocking Scheme 101

Zone blocking is one of the most discussed - yet least understood - strategies in football today. There are nearly as many different opinions on zone blocking as there are people who have heard of zone blocking, and most of the debate comes from people who couldn't tell you the first thing about how a zone block differs from a man block. So with Tennessee adopting a "100% Zone" blocking scheme, I felt it was a good time to go through some of the basic concepts of zone blocking so that we can have a more intelligent conversation on it. Here, I'll use a standard play - the stretch sweep with inside zone blocking - to illustrate how zone blocking works. It's one of the simplest situations to illustrate as well as one of the most devastatingly effective runs available to a team willing to commit to it.

Overview

If anybody ever asks you what zone blocking is, the shortest possible answer you can give is that the linemen block zones rather than block defenders. (If the asker is particularly annoying, you can always say that in a matter-of-fact, how-could-you-not-already-know-that tone. Very effective.) Digging a little deeper, what this really means is that the linemen are looking for specific areas of the field to block; if a defender happens to be there, they block the defender in such a way as to control the spot. If a defender isn't there, they continue toward that spot, offering double-team assistance only if it's convenient. Once they control a zone, if they're not fully engaged, the linemen can then look to the "second level" for somebody in the defensive backfield to block (on run plays).

The reason teams came up with zone blocking is rather simple: big, hulking offensive linemen who are agile enough to keep up with defensive shifts are hard to come by. In the NFL, the problem is quite simply that there are not enough quality big linemen for every team to assemble a dominant offensive line. Instead of competing against 31 other teams for a scarce resource, some teams sought to find ways to use smaller, quicker linemen effectively. Because of the acknowledged weight disadvantage these linemen would face, the goal was to scheme away from the straight-up shoving contests and find ways to maximize leverage on the opponent.

As we step through the following diagrams, keep these principles in mind.

The ideal linemen for zone blocking are:

Quick, even at the cost of size.
Disciplined, even if the assignment seems pointless.
Consistent, not giving visual cues to the defender as to their initial intention.
Smart, able to keep up with defensive shifts before the snap.

The ideal running backs for zone blocking rushes are:

Disciplined, willing to do their job and not improvise.
Decisive.
Crisp runners - not necessarily fast, but they must have sharp cuts.
Committed, willing to blast toward a gap that doesn't exist - yet.
Decisive. No, really. A backfield dancer is absolutely doomed.

Those characteristics in runners and linemen are relatively cheap to come by in the NFL draft. For years, Denver was the only team that was fully committed to a zone blocking scheme; during those years, their best linemen and runners were routinely found on the second day of the draft. Just as routinely, Denver was cranking out a different 1,000-yard rusher every year, subsequently selling them off to other teams for capital to be spent later. Meanwhile, the rest of the NFL was tripping over themselves to get the top-rated players at these positions. (Recently, the significant increase in the number of zone blocking teams has changed the market, and Denver spent a #12 pick on an offensive lineman last year.)

The point is that you don't have to have the superstars to run an effective system. While that always helps, zone blocking was an advent created to atone for talent shortfalls. So let's see the zone blocking principles."

Great post about Jason Campbell from Extremeskins.com...all credit goes to Oldskool here.

I know how troublesome stats are to some of the haters, but these are things that will be taken into account by the front office before making a decision on the draft, free agency or the Quarterback position.

OFFENSIVE LINE PRODUCTION:


Quote:
Redskins were 29th in protecting the QB from being sacked, allowing 46 sacks.

Redskins were 28th in protecting the QB from hits, allowing 94.

Redskins OL was 27th in the league, producing 1,508 yards on the ground.

RUNNING BACK PRODUCTION


Quote:
Redskins rushing attack was ranked 29th in the league, averaging 3.9 yards per carry.

Redskins rushing attack was 26th in the league, averaging 16.6 points per game.

Redskins rushing attack was 26th in the league, totaling 266 points on the ground.

Redskins rushing attack was 27th in the league, with 391 attempts.

Redskins rushing attack was 27th in the league, with 24.4 attempts per game.

Redskins rushing attack was 27th in the league, with 94.2 yards per game.

Redskins rushing attack was tied 25th in the league, with 8 rushing TD's.

Redskins rushing attack was 30th in the league with 72 1st downs via the rush.

Redskins rushing attack was 32nd in the league with 18.4% completion percentage via the rush.

Redskins rushing attack was tied 29th in the league with 6 rushes of 20+ yards or more.

Redskins rushing attack was tied 21th in the league with 1 rush of 40+ yards or more.

JASON CAMPBELL/QUARTERBACK STATISTICS

Quote:
Campbell was 12th in total comp (327)

Campbell was 10th in the league in comp% (64.5%)

Campbell was 20th in attempts per game (31.7)

Campbell was 14th in yards (3,618)

Campbell was 15th in average (7.1)

Campbell was 16th in yards/game (226.1)

Campbell was 18th in TD (20)

Campbell was T9th in INT's (15)

Campbell was T11th in 1st downs (186)

Campbell was 11th in 1st down % (36.7)

Campbell was T 5th with a pass play of 84 yards.

Campbell was 17th with 40 pass plays of 20+ yards.

Campbell was 17th with 8 pass plays of 40+ yards.

Campbell was 15th in the league with a 86.4 QB rating.


CONCLUSION:

Campbell played behind the on average statistically 28th worst OL this year.

Campbell had no run support, playing with on average the 27th best rushing game in the league.

In spite of these negatives, he still had career numbers in Attempts, Completions, Comp%, Attempts/game, yards, avg, yards/game and TD's

The only conclusion that can be logically made is that Campbell was not the problem in 2009. The lack of a running attack and complete lack of protection from the Offensive Line were hindrances to success this year, not the play of the QB.

Bill Polian Needs to shut his mouth

For this past decade, Bill Polian has been the one of the best GMs in the NFL. He has consistently built a contender in Indianapolis and has reloaded the weapons for one Peyton Manning in order for him to be successful. This recruitment of talent lead the Colts to have the most wins in the regular season ever in a decade over the 49ers in the 90s and 80sand the Dallas Cowboys in the 70s. Of those three previous teams, only the 49ers of the 90s had only one title. Now you can add the ’00 Colts. The Colts are 1-1 in Superbowls this past decade but for the amount of expectations, 1-1 is a little disappointing. The Colts have been outplayed by the Patriots, Steelers, and Chargers in playoff situations. Many of those games have been in the RCA Dome or Lucas Oil Stadium. The main reason for having these expectations is because of their All Pro QB Peyton Manning, who had been widely considered before Superbowl XLIV as being The Greatest of All Time. So when you lose the Superbowl to a franchise in the New Orleans Saints that not only is in its first Superbowl but has the 25th ranked defense, it was considered that Peyton Manning would lay waste to the Saints in route to is 2nd Lombardi Trophy. Obviously, that didn’t happen as Manning threw a game clinching Pick 6 to CB Tracy Porter to make the score 31-17 with 3 minutes left in the game. On his final drive Pierre Garcon saved Manning the embarrassment of throwing a second interception in the endzone by drawing a PI call on himself. Clearly Manning didn’t have his best game in SB44 but Bill Polian seems to believe that the Offensive line and special teams are the biggest reasons why the Colts lost the Superbowl. If Bill Polian truly believes this, he really needs to reassess what actually transpired in the game.
Lets start with the Offensive line. This is an O-Line anchored by Jeff Saturday who Peyton Manning is very comfortable and familiar with for the past decade. Saturday and the rest of the unit in SB44 didn’t even allow a sack. To my memory, I only saw Manning get hit three or four times through 60 minutes. They also opened up rushing lanes to let Joseph Addai and Donald Brown to rush for 95 yards that game, most of those rushing yards came in the 1st half. A unit that doesn’t allow a sack and allows for the RBs to rush for 95 yds don’t deserve the majority of blame for a loss. Now onto the special teams. I understand Matt Stover missed a long field goal but it was hardly a chip shot for a kicker to convert. The onsides kick was a shock to everyone watching and playing. The Colts were lucky to even have an opportunity to recover that kick. Now once the Saints get the ball. It’s the defense’s responsibility to play good football and stop the Saint’s Offense which they couldn’t do for the entire second half. The Defense had a big reason as to why the Colts lost, the wide receivers had a hand in the loss, and so did Peyton Manning. Most importantly, the Saints were the reason why the Colts lost. 82% passing and 2 TDs by Drew Brees is the reason why the Colts lost. The Saints shined brighter on February 7th. They were the better team and Bill Polian needs to be quiet, take the loss like a man, and not whine about two units that had the least to do with the Colts losing. Be classy and prepare for next season Bill.