A few weeks ago, people were talking about an inability of the line to create pressure. Last week with 4 sacks and this week with 7, they seem to have some of that figured out. Some of it is scheme. Some of it is players coming into their own. Here's a breakdown of the 7 sacks against Indy and really speaks to the different ways they're getting to the QB along with how many contributors they have.
1st sack 6:14 1st - Barrett on a LB blitz in the A gap, shows right side and goes left. Total MA by Indiana and Barrett is unblocked. This is about as easy as it gets.
2nd sack :42 1st - Harrell from R EDGE. Initially stands up the LT and gains good inside leverage and pulls himself by. QB tries to escape but Harrell is at full speed. Absolutely ridiculous unsportsmanlike call here on the celebration to give a 1st down on what would've been 3rd and a mile.
3rd sack :27 2nd - Morris from R EDGE. Does a great job getting upfield and maintaining outside leverage before redirecting underneath and getting a big hit on QB. This and the previous one were great one on one wins with technique.
4th sack 13:38 3rd - Colson on a C gap blitz. Interesting play here. Colson is obviously blitzing from the defensive alignment but the protection is shifted to the right and the C doubles with the LG on Mazi. Morris beats the LT across is face and if Colson doesn't get this sack, he likely will. As is, Colson was unblocked on the back side with a free shot.
5th sack 13:12 4th - Okie and Morris both stand up on the left side. Okie is about 2 yards off the ball and gets a 6 yard running head start on the RG and puts him flat on his back with a bull rush. QB had nowhere to go after that. At NG, Mazi takes the LG one on one and literally throws him aside. QB is probably fortunate Okie got there first.
6th sack 9:27 4th - Derrick Moore standing up R EDGE. Gets good extension with his hands and maintains outside leverage while collapsing the pocket. As QB tries to escape, he's simply able to grab him with his free hand. Harrell does the exact same thing on the left side and once Moore grabs him, gets an easy assist.
7th sack 1:47 4th - McGregor on an Y stunt (aka line twist). Upshaw goes first from his DT spot and takes the RG and RT with him to the outside. McGregor starts up the field and cuts inside once he sees Upshaw. RG is late to recognize and McGregor gets inside of him unblocked.
This really shows that scheme (including MAs) were responsible for 3 sacks and one on one rep wins for 4. This is a nice balance and they're going to need both going forward. What's really encouraging is the younger guys getting in on this action, McGregor and Moore especially. Okie is new to the team but he's been around awhile and is a former 5 star. Glad to see him looking the part the last several games. The other guys have been contributors for awhile and really good to see Morris starting to show the range of his potential. IMO, I think he has some more to go but there's 6 games left for him to show it. He could certainly end up being a solid draft pick for someone.
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