What do you do when a player is covered? Throw him open. That’s the difference between college and NFL. In college, you’re throwing to receivers. Guys who are visibly open. The NFL doesn’t offer that sort of luxury. Players are too big, too fast, too smart. This is how these guys put food on the table each night.
For Kenny Pickett’s second year, that’s the jump he needs to take. It’s not a knock on him. It’s an adjustment all quarterbacks, first overall picks to undrafted rookies, have to make. In Saturday’s preseason game against the Buffalo Bills, Pickett showed it. That came on his 25-yard touchdown to TE Pat Freiermuth. Let’s dive into the tape.
First and 10 from the Bills’ 25, the offense’s first play following Calvin Austin III’s electric 54-yard punt return. Pittsburgh comes out in a 3×1 formation. On the snap of the ball, you can see the Bills’ two safeties rotate to their deep-halves in a two-deep shell.
As QBs Coach Mike Sullivan teaches it in his “family of coverages,” the basic structure all NFL defenses are built around, this is 2Hz or 2 High Zone.
Against two-high, the weakness is down the middle between the safeties. The corners are taking away the flats and the safeties are responsible for carrying anything vertical and outside the numbers. It’s MOFO (middle of the field open) and that’s where Pickett should attack.
Now, different teams play Cover 2 differently. As Sullivan has noted, some ask the MIKE linebacker to work more underneath. Others play more of a Tampa 2 where the MIKE gets depth and runs with the seams, as Derrick Brooks did so well with the Buccaneers that made Tony Dungy’s scheme so effective.
Here, the Bills’ MIKE linebacker carries Freiermuth down the seam. He’s playing to Freiermuth’s inside hip. To put the ball away from him, Pickett must throw to the outside and back shoulder of Freiermuth. But the pass can’t be too far outside either or else the throw will drift Freiermuth into the safety, who can impact the player/ball.
Pickett is able to put the ball on Freiermuth perfectly. Outside and away from the linebacker but not into harm’s way of the strong safety. Freiermuth adjusts back to the ball that makes himself look open and finishes the play with the catch and score.
I know it’s blurry but here’s the receiver/defender relationship the second Freiermuth enters the frame on the end zone few.
And here is their relationship at the catch point. Freiermuth went from well-covered to wide open.
Here’s the whole play.
If Pickett tries to loft it to Freiermuth’s front/inside shoulder, it’s probably incomplete. It would require a higher arc, which would allow more time for the safeties to rally, and, of course, allow the linebacker to contest. Pickett read the coverage, knew where to go, and threw his man open. That’s high-level stuff. Put that under the category of “making the jump” plays Pickett will need more of in 2023.
