Running quarterbacks. They are truly a defensive coordinator’s worst nightmare. Just when you think you have them in your clutches they pull off some nifty move and dart up field for a big gain. Just when you think a team is going to go three and out someone like Tim Tebow, Cam Newton or Michael Vick will move the chains by making a play with their feet.
It’s not like defensive coordinators don’t plan for things like that. Defensive coordinators like to assign “spies” or “rovers” to keep these guys in check but it rarely works. You just have to cross your fingers and hope your offense can outscore their offense or hope that one of these guys just has a bad day.
Cause on a bad day you might get a 13-yard rushing performance like Tebow had in last Sunday’s win versus the Minnesota Vikings or the 18-yard rushing game Newton had in his very first game of the season. You might even get a 25-yard performance like the one Michael Vick had in a loss to the Falcons. Vick even lost two fumbles in that game.
But low and behold if you catch them on a good day. You know, one of those days that defensive coordinators relive over and over in their sleep. Days like the three-touchdown rushing performance Newton had in a win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday. Days like the 118-yard rushing day Tebow had in a win over the Oakland Raiders in Oakland a month ago. Even a day like Michael Vick had running for 97 yards with only 11 carries in a win versus the St. Louis Rams.
Days when nothing a defensive coordinator throws at these guys seems to work. Even when you think you have slowed Tebow down and the game is within reach, you look up and he has torched you with two passing touchdowns to seal the game.
You can see the effect these guys have when they are in the game. The Panthers are the eighth best scoring team in the league this year scoring 24.2 points-per-game with Cam Newton at the helm. Last year they were dead last scoring only 12.2 points-per-game. If the Carolina Panthers’ defense could stop anybody this team could be playoff-bound.
The Denver Broncos were only 1-4 before inserting Tebow into the lineup. They have gone 6-1 since inserting Tebow as a starter and are tied with the Oakland Raiders for the division lead. Denver’s scoring only improved by .6 of a point with Tebow starting but Tebow takes care of the ball and the defense has shaved seven points off the 28 points-per-game they were giving up before he became quarterback.
Philadelphia hasn’t had quite the success they had last season but the offense has produced points and the Eagles are the second best rushing team in the league behind….yeah you guessed it; the Denver Broncos. Philadelphia’s defense has been terrible but that doesn’t obscure the fact that Vick needs to take better care of the ball. He has thrown 11 interceptions so far this year as opposed to six interceptions all of last season.
He has also matched his total for lost fumbles from last season with three so far this year.
But the blueprint is there and teams know they can score with running quarterbacks running the show. Conversely, defenses have recognized how hard it is to defend against these guys. Don’t believe me? Just ask the sleep-deprived defensive coordinators they will be facing this week.
Roosevelt Hall is an NFL Blogger for The Sport Mentalist and also writes for both The Penalty Flag and Outside The Redzone. He can be contacted at RHall_TPFB@Yahoo.com. Follow him on Twitter @Sportmentalist.
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