As most who know me
personally, know that I am NOT a fan at all of the Toss play, Toss Sweep or any
type of outside run play in that regard. There are more negatives then
positives, in my opinion, when you run the play.
Most people who
want to run the toss play say, "we want or need to get the edge." In
today’s football that is a big fallacy, simply because you don't
"need" to get the edge. There is enough run plays to keep teams
honest inside the tackle box to give your linemen an advantage. Why do you need
to get the edge? Or have to get outside on a run play? Too many coaches this
day in age want to try to live in the past with that play, because of those
reasons alone. It is a negative thought process.
Another negative I see with the play
is you're asking one or possibly 2 linemen to pull and get outside of the
tackle box, which is something that they are not used to doing. I mean
seriously, an offensive lineman pulling around and trying to block a defensive
back? It is absurd in my opinion. There are plenty of ways of getting outside using Screens, Reverses, Keeps, etc without having to ask your linemen to pull
and get out onto the perimeter. This is putting your most important people on
the field at a disadvantage.
Another negative I want to talk
about with the toss play is that when you pull a lineman especially out onto
the perimeter, you are now creating a seam or a lane for a defensive back or
linebacker to run through. If you are a defensive coach you must be licking
your chops scouting teams that show outside runs such as Toss or Jet Sweep.
For defenses, it is a fast flowing play. Defensive players are taught that
when they see that type of action to get to the edge faster than the offense.
For defensive coaches, it is an easy read to make an easy read to teach your
players.
Coaches who are obsessed with
running this play, don't realize that it is the only play when you have no
counter action off of it. What I mean by that is when you're trying to get to
the edge or perimeter and the play is not there, it's not like you can stop on
a dime and cut it back because you're just taking yourself out of the play in
general.
An example of this would be a simple
isolation play. When you run an Iso play, and if the play design is not there
you can still go forward into another gap in get some sort of positive yards.
On a Toss or Jet Sweep, you can't. You just have to live with lost yardage
because the play is so far behind the line of scrimmage.
Now, most coaches who do like the
play and run it will say: "I will just bring two more people to the point
of attack to get out on the edge then the defense can handle." I think
this is a little misleading. When you bring more people to the point of attack
or a formation that coaches think gives them an advantage to run this play,
that just brings more people from the defensive side of the ball to that point
of attack. And in my opinion it’s just too much for something you really don't
have to do.
My final example of this is teams who
come out in Bunch. The formation itself is great but, it’s pretty predictable.
Sure, you have your basic run plays that work. But the only main runs
that you have is the toss and defenses already have an advantage just by
scouting you.
Give me some feedback.
As always, COACH LIKE YOU STOLE IT!!!
Coach Marrogy
