Inside the Game: Expect Chargers to attack Broncos man coverage
Oct 13, 2016, 12:00 AM | Updated: Nov 18, 2016, 9:32 am
In the Broncos first loss of the season Sunday, the Atlanta Falcons created what some would call a blueprint for how to attack the Denver defense, or at the very least exposed some weaknesses by using its two top-flight running backs.
On the day, the Falcons’ Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman combined for 119 yards and a touchdown on the ground and 167 yards and a touchdown through the air.
And earlier this week, “Schlereth and Evans” co-host Mark Schlereth said Atlanta used “heavier personnel groupings” and split those guys out against man coverage, which left the Broncos linebackers vulnerable specifically in coverage against Coleman and Freeman.
“You’re talking about one of the supreme defenses in all of football, one of the defenses that everybody aspires to be. This Broncos defense,” Schlereth said. “You saw a coach in (Falcons offensive coordinator) Kyle Shanahan come into Denver, on the road, and put a game plan together that exposed this Broncos defense. That’s what you saw. And I’m telling you, they didn’t have an answer for it.”
In this week’s Inside the Game, Schlereth dives into exactly how the Falcons used their running backs to expose the Denver defense and how the Chargers could follow suit on Thursday night.
In fact, with the NFL being the copycat league that it is, Schlereth said earlier this week that teams throughout the rest of the season will likely try to imitate what the Falcons did.
“You’re going to get a steady diet of, ‘Hey guys. Let’s get in this personnel grouping. We can run it out of this personnel grouping. And now we can split you out, get you covered in man with those line backers,’” Schlereth said earlier this week.
Follow Sports Radio 104.3 The Fan’s digital content producer Johnny Hart on Twitter: @johnnyhart7.
