A recent article over at PackersNews.com mentions that the Packers OC Jeff Jagodzinski has now added in the controversial "cut blocking" technique for the OL. For those who don't know, I shall endevour to facilitate your understanding.
"Cut blocking" is the practice by the OL of going low, by the knees and ankles, on the DL on the back side of a running play in order to knock them down so that the RB can see the entire field better and make a good decision on where to run the ball. Example: if a play is designed to run to the right, the OL on the left side of the line "cut" down the pursuing defensive players. This aides in helping the RB in seeing if he can cut the run back to the left.
The controversy lies in that this low blocking can lead to a greater chance of injuries by the defensive players (sprained ankles being the main one). Many defensive players that played against the two teams that currently do this, Denver and Atlanta, have been very vocal against this type of what they call "dirty play". According to the rules, there is nothing illegal about what is being done so long as the OL are in front of the defender and no other offensive player is currently blocking that man. It is similar to what you see Favre do on the reverses, he goes down by the players knees and ankles to knock him down. For those defenders who call this "dirty", please explain the well-documented actions such as grabbing a man's "jewels" that happens in the pileup on a fumble and how that is just "part of the game" (I'm in a quotation marks mood today).
For my own opinion, I'm not a fan of this. I realize that this is a very successful system and could very well work as good here as in Denver and Atlanta and lead the Packers back to being a successful team. Also as stated previously, there is nothing illegal about it. But it being legal and successful should not be the defining factors if you should do something. I believe that the increase in injuries to other players is simply too great to implement this system. You know damn well that if say, the Bears used this system and Nick Barnett or Aaron Kampman got an ankle or knee hurt by a "cut block", that Packer fans would be up in arms about it. I will support my beloved Packers and hope the good parts of the system (insane rushing yardage) can be maximized with very little of the bad parts (injuries to defenders).
1 comment:
I was never a big fan of this type of play, but it is often the result of offensive line units that block well downfield and across field, thus opening up occasional chances for turning 3 or 4 yard runs into long runs and TD's. Some label it aggressive, others dirty, it depends on your point of view and who you are rooting for.
This type of blocking, along with the much more serious and dangerous chop blocking, has been done by linemen for years. Linemen are always looking for an edge, and some will 'block at all costs', clean or otherwise.
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