Differences between the Giants and Eagles game -- Pass Protection

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I was looking at the adjusted sack rate for defensive teams, that is posted right here: FOOTBALL OUTSIDERS: Football analysis and NFL stats for the Moneyball era - Authors of Pro Football Prospectus 2008

I was not surprised that the teams with the two best pass rushes in the NFL by a large margin are the Eagles and the Giants. Now, we've played both of these teams. We allowed only one sack against each of the teams. But in one game, our offense struggled to move the ball through the air. In the other, we weren't great through the air, but at least we were good on third downs.

So if the difference in the two games was the percentage at which we converted third downs through the air, was there an improvement somewhere in the offense over the four weeks that separated the game? I took a look back at my game notes from the Giants game.

3rd down pass attemtps
vs Giants 12
vs Eagles 13

3rd down pass conversions
vs Giants 2 (17%)
vs Eagles 8 (62%)

This was the only real difference in our passing efficiency between the Giants and the Eagles. Every other down we did essentially the same. Of course, teams respect our passing offense a lot more now, which gives Portis bigger running lanes, but we'll have to ignore that for now. Why the conversions? Better protection? Better playcalling? Receivers more open? QB playing better? Let's look at the causes of failure according to my game notes:

Against Giants -- 10 failed plays

1) 3rd and 12: Quick Slant well covered [coverage, d&d]
2) 3rd and 6: Pass pro mixup, pressure on Campbell causes errant throw for Thrash [pressure]
3) 3rd and 8: Campbell is pressured as Samuels was beaten. The pass to Moss was bobbled and caught short of the first. [pressure, wr route]
4) 3rd and 6: Devin Thomas made the catch, but wasn't aware of the sticks [wr route]
5) 3rd and 5: Despite Portis knocking Kiwanuka into Wednesday, Tuck beat Heyer and Campbell got rid of it short of the sticks [pressure]
6) 3rd and 15: Pass to Randle El short of the sticks, Heyer was beat again, but Campbell had learned his lesson. Ball was out very early. [d&d]
7) 3rd and 17: Drag to Santana for 3. The playcall was designed to take advantage of the Giants' coverage, but they had Ross following Moss on this play. [coverage, d&d]
8) 4th and 14: Tuck flushes Campbell, who leaves the pocket and can't find anyone but Betts. [pressure, coverage]
9) 3rd and 2: Campbell throws errantly to Thrash. [bad throw]
10) 3rd and 10: Holding on Samuels. [pressure]

d&d=down and distance unreasonable

Against Eagles -- 6 failed plays

1) 3rd and 10: Hard roll, Jansen is beat inside by Juqua Parker and Campbell is pressured and hit. [pressure]
2) 3rd and 8: Randy Thomas picks up a stunt, but Campbell feels pressure (the pocket was well protected) and darts up the middle for two. [QB decision]
3) 3rd and 6: Pass knocked down at line. [good defense]
4) 3rd and 4: Devin Thomas OPI [WR decision]
5) 3rd and 1: Campbell off PA rolls and throws ball away [coverage]

The only thing that stands out is that the Redskins stayed out of third and unreasonable, but to find out what made them more successful against a similar defense, we will have to look at the 8 successful attempts vs. Philly. Specifically, things that COULD have gone wrong, but didn't.

Against Eagles -- 8 successful conversions

1) 3rd and 3: The Redskins had a poor pass pro scheme on, Trent Cole vs. Portis. Cole beat Portis, but despite that Campbell hits Cooley vs. Dawkins, a mismatch in the Skins favor. [pressure]
2) 3rd and 11: Juqua Parker chips Cooley before coming on an inside stunt, and Rabach doesn't pick him up. He runs right throw and hits Campbell, but Campbell hung in and hit Devin Thomas. [pressure]
3) 3rd and 6: Blitz comes, and Campbell quick releases to Portis at the sticks. [blitz beaten]
4) 3rd and 3: Cooley runs a crossing pattern against Omar Gaither. Easy completion. Time was a factor, so the Eagles were in prevent. [poor coverage]
5) 3rd and 9: Campbell beats an overload blitz and finds an open ARE. [blitz beaten]
6) 3rd and 9: Illegal contact on Samuel. [penalty]
7) 3rd and 3: Campbell is flushed from the pocket, but puts the defense in a run/pass bind, hitting Randle El. Was he touched? [pressure]
8) 3rd and 9: Eagles get out of rush lanes, and Campbell takes off for a first down run. [crazy legs, defensive over pursuit]

I count an identical amount of 3rd down pressure, proportional to the number of third downs. So the OL wasn't any better against Philly than it was vs. New York. We saw a pressure on about 40% of third down passes with both teams, and that number favors the defense strongly. It also supports the assertion by Football Outsiders that Philly and NYG are the best defenses at pressuring and sacking QBs.

The big difference is what happened on those plays where Campbell was pressured. Against the Giants, he got the ball out of his hands, but to a receiver short of the marker. Against the Eagles, Campbell (with the exception of one play) either beat the pressure mismatch by taking advantage of his own mismatch in coverage, or he stepped up and kept the play alive and made the conversion himself.

We are also seeing the maturation of the Redskin WRs over the last few games. They now know where they have to get to and keep working downfield to get open assuming that Campbell will keep the play alive.

Jason Campbell has always been good at getting the ball out of his hands and avoiding sacks, but his maturation over this season has led to an improved conversion rate on third downs. That, combined with the offenses ability to stay out of the third and longs they were in against the Giants has led to the Redskins offense becoming one of the very best offenses in the entire NFL.