Zero2Cool
13 years ago

The shouts came ever louder, and Bills running back Fred Jackson looked across the line of scrimmage. His team was driving against the Ravens at the end of regulation last October, tired but alive, with a chance to tie and force overtime (which they did, before losing). Baltimore linebacker Terrell Suggs was barking incessantly at Jackson, "I'm gonna get that ball from you! I'm gonna get it! You better protect that ball!"

Ten months later Suggs sat at his locker at the Ravens' practice facility and laughed at the memory as a small army of free agents and low draft picks cluttered the locker room. "You want to get guys thinking about putting the ball on the ground," says Suggs. "If they're thinking about fumbling, they're going to fumble. Guys are pretty good in this league, but some of them will take the bait."

Think of defense as a financial market. Tackling skills are down. Big hits are trending that way. Ball stripping is way up. "They've eliminated the big hits," says Cleveland cornerback Sheldon Brown. "You've got to find other ways of creating turnovers." Adds Ravens coach John Harbaugh, "We've done an analysis of what causes fumbles. By far the most common thing is jarring hits. Put a guy's lights out, he drops the ball. It's good that there are rules against that now."

Whether by concussive hits or stripping, there is little doubt that turnovers swing games. "That's what coaches keep telling us," says New England safety Patrick Chung. "Win the turnover battle, win the game." The supporting analytics are among the most compelling in the sport. A year ago the top three teams in turnover margin were the Patriots (plus 1.6 per game), who finished 14--2 in the regular season; the Packers (plus 0.8), who won the Super Bowl; and the Steelers (plus 0.7), who lost in the Super Bowl.

In 2010 nine of the 12 playoff teams had positive turnover margins. The three who didn't—the Colts, Saints and Seahawks—won a combined single playoff game. In '09, 10 of the 12 playoff teams had positive turnover margins, and the Super Bowl--champion Saints were a plus 0.9, second to the Packers in the NFL. "We really emphasized stripping in New Orleans," says former Saints linebacker Scott Fujita, now with Cleveland. "We would do walk-through drills and talk about how to approach the ballcarrier to dislodge the ball."

Stripping is both a physical skill and an instinctive art. Fumbles are forced not only when a defender drives his helmet into the ball at full speed but also when a defender pokes or swings it loose from behind with almost no contact at all. They are forced when the first arrival keeps a ballcarrier on his feet (or the ballcarrier struggles to stay up) and teammates attack the ball. They are forced when a quarterback dangles the ball behind him, cocking to deliver a pass. "At that point," says Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, "they're doing anything they can to tomahawk and break your hand and get you to drop the ball."

Saints safety Roman Harper, who had six forced fumbles in 2010 (tied with Pittsburgh's James Harrison for second-most in the league), says, "Obviously, the first thing is to secure the tackle and wrap up. But you do your homework and you put things in the back of your mind. Does a guy let the ball get away from his body when he cuts? Does he try to stay up too long and fight for extra yards? And then you react when you're out there."

The acknowledged king of the strip is cornerback Charles Woodson, the Packers' 14-year veteran who has forced 27 fumbles in his career (and who, while with the Raiders, was the instigator of perhaps the most influential strip in league history, the shot on Tom Brady in the January 2002 playoffs in what has become known as the Tuck Rule game). The strip is a risk-reward play; it can result in missed tackles and touchdowns. But Woodson is renowned among his peers for a singular ability to both tackle and strip at the same time. "Incredible ball skills, great athlete," says Barnett, Woodson's teammate from 2006 to '10. "The ball just looks bigger to him."

Ballcarriers, meanwhile, have been forced to recalibrate their techniques to better protect the leather. Browns all-purpose runner Josh Cribbs grabbed a football to demonstrate and held the point almost under his chin, curling his fingers over the top of the ball until the back of his hand was against the NFL logo at the neckline of his jersey front. "When I can feel that logo," said Cribbs, "I know I have the ball in a good place."

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1189948/index.htm 

Tim Layden wrote:


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dfosterf (12h) : FYI civilian companies swipe the S2 designation from the military. S2 is the intelligence branch up to brigade level. G2 is division level.
dfosterf (14h) : Google it. Make sure to tack NFL on it or you will get the military meaning
Zero2Cool (14h) : S2?
beast (15h) : Seems like the S2 has a love/hate relationship with professional scouts.
beast (15h) : In theory, the S2 test how quickly a QBs brain can solve game like issues and how quickly they can do it.
dfosterf (15h) : Are you gentlemen and at least one lady familiar with the S2 cognition
Zero2Cool (16h) : Maybe there isn't an issue.
beast (17h) : NFL really needs to fix their position labeling issue, but I don't think they care
Zero2Cool (1-May) : Packers did not activate the fifth-year options for linebacker Quay Walker, with the goal of signing him to a contract extension.
Zero2Cool (1-May) : Matthew Golden spoke with Randall Cobb before draft. Looked like chance encounter.
packerfanoutwest (1-May) : from a head left turn?
packerfanoutwest (1-May) : someone drunk?
Zero2Cool (1-May) : Unlikely.
dfosterf (30-Apr) : How long until Jeff Sperbeck's family sues John Elway ?
Zero2Cool (30-Apr) : Packers are exercising the fifth-year option on DT Devonte Wyatt, locking in a guaranteed $12.9M for the 2026 season.
beast (30-Apr) : Sounds like P Luke Elzinga has a rookie try out opportunity from the Titans
dfosterf (30-Apr) : Luke Elzinga Punter Oklahoma stil unsigned. Green Bay has been mentioned as good fit
beast (30-Apr) : The Packers re-signed three exclusive rights free agents WR Melton, P Whelan and RB Wilson.
Zero2Cool (29-Apr) : February 5, 2002 (age 23) ok no. packers.com is wrong
Zero2Cool (29-Apr) : Micah Robinson is only 19??
Zero2Cool (29-Apr) : 6 first rounders on Packers defense now
Zero2Cool (29-Apr) : LB Isaiah Simmons. Signed. Called it!!! Oh yeah!
Martha Careful (29-Apr) : ty bboystyle...fat fingers
bboystyle (29-Apr) : Tom*
Martha Careful (28-Apr) : RIP Packer Safety Tim Brown
beast (27-Apr) : Yeah, but also some of the wording suggestions Jax only pranked called the QB, not the others... and if he had an open spreadsheet & 3 calls
beast (27-Apr) : Thank goodness he's not leaving the Turtle in the Red Tide
Mucky Tundra (27-Apr) : Cowboys 1st round pick Tyler Booker will indeed be bringing his pet turtle to Dallas with him
Mucky Tundra (27-Apr) : that contained all prospects info and contact
Mucky Tundra (27-Apr) : beast, according the Falcons statement Jax came across it on an ipad. If I had to guess, probably an open spread sheet or something
Zero2Cool (27-Apr) : Simmons put up an emoji with cheese.
beast (27-Apr) : Not sure anyone is interested in Isaiah Simmons... Collin Oliver might of taken his potential slot
beast (27-Apr) : I'm going with Jax Ulbrich is not telling the whole truth... he accidentally came across it? Why would a defensive coordinator have a QB #?
Zero2Cool (27-Apr) : He's not that great, but final piece of the script.\
Zero2Cool (27-Apr) : If we add Isaiah Simmons, book your Super Bowl tickets
Mucky Tundra (27-Apr) : Colts 1st round TE Tyler Warren also got prank called, was that Jax Ulbrich as well?
Zero2Cool (27-Apr) : Jax Ulbrich, Jeff Ulbrich’s son, released an apology for his role in the Shedeur Sanders prank call.
Martha Careful (27-Apr) : apparently he did not participate in practice or play on the east west shrine game nor the NFL combine. The kid was a mediocre spoiled brat
Mucky Tundra (27-Apr) : Yeah that one that was a super wounded duck that Sanders supporters are highlighting to prove a point
Zero2Cool (27-Apr) : Shough is the guy who missed guys at combine isn't he?
beast (27-Apr) : It's not official until I'm dead! I have a chance still! (Not really)
Mucky Tundra (27-Apr) : I could feel my body decomposing in real time when I read that
Mucky Tundra (27-Apr) : @MIKEYSAINRISTIL Tyler Shough will officially be the last person drafted to the NFL born in the 1900’s
Mucky Tundra (26-Apr) : saw the tweet, he meant the city
Mucky Tundra (26-Apr) : Was that for the team or the city?
Zero2Cool (26-Apr) : Adam Schefter @AdamSchefter · 3m Draft grade is in: Green Bay gets an A. The people, the city, the venue were all superb. NFL Draft’s next
Zero2Cool (26-Apr) : Matt LaFleur says Jaire Alexander is participating in #Packers offseason program, which has been conducted virtually during this first week
Zero2Cool (26-Apr) : ✅ ...
buckeyepackfan (26-Apr) : Check
Zero2Cool (26-Apr) : Matthew Golden cahanged 81 to 22??
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