Playcalling

[joecrisp]

Actually, I can agree with SUNRA somewhat on the Portis cutback issue. I reviewed the Baltimore game, and there were a few instances when Portis should have read the defensive alignment (accounting for number of blockers vs. defenders to each side) and seen the cutback prior to getting the handoff, but he simply followed the flow of the play right into a gaggle of tacklers.

However, I still see some issues with the run-blocking. It's difficult to discern whether the fault lies with the design or with the execution, but it's probably a little of both. There were several plays where the cutback lanes were shutoff by defenders like Terrell Suggs and Adalius Thomas flying in unblocked from the backside of the play. This was usually due to the attention being given to Ray Lewis. Blockers seemed to only be looking for him, rather than accounting for all of the talented defenders on that Baltimore defense. I know some offensive planners love to send multiple blockers at Lewis, but that philosophy (whether planned, or the result of a Ray Lewis-centered tunnel vision on the part of the blockers) is partly responsible for Portis's inability to find any running lanes either to the playside or the cutback.

Baltimore did a fantastic job of flooding the running lanes, though. There was nowhere for Portis to run for most of the game.