Giants DC Perry Fewell Unveiling Innovative New Defensive Fronts
August 13th, 2010 at 3:52 PM
By Rich O'Callaghan
New Giants defensive coordinator Perry Fewell has brought a lot of fresh energy to the Giants defense this off season, as our own Simon GC documented in the previous post, which is something the team clearly lacked under Bill Sheridan last season. However, he has also brought some innovative formations Giants fans are likely to see early and often in 2010, which should help get the right players in the right positions to succeed in the right situations. I am extremely excited to see these new looks when the Giants take on the Jets, when we will get the first look at how effective they will be in game situations. These are the new formations I wanted to touch on:
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The Four Aces – The four aces in this defensive scheme are the Giants quartet of excellent pass rushing defensive ends all lined up together at the same time, with Justin Tuck and Jason-Pierre Paul inside and Osi Umenyiora and Mathais Kiwanuka outside, although they have shown looks where JPP and Kiwi switch spots and Dave Tollefson has also been used inside in this alignment. This look has Michael Boley and Jonathan Goff at linebacker, with three corners and two safeties, and looks like a basic nickel. However there have been plays where a linebacker rushes for a five-man rush and stunts where Boley rushes and Osi or Kiwi drop into coverage. Fewell has used this defense only in clear passing situations and in the two-minute drill, where it has had a lot of success, including a Goff interception. The rush has really dominated the offensive line and has gotten consistent pressure on the quarterback in this set, and it will be very exciting to see if this defensive formation is used on Monday night.
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The Big Base – A short yardage defense, which is designed to get the most beef possible on the line, this front features Justin Tuck and Chris Canty at ends and Barry Cofield and Rocky Bernard as the tackles. The most interesting thing about this defense is that Mathais Kiwanuka is also on the field, returning to his roots, at linebacker. However, Kiwi is on the weak side of this formation, with Clint Sintim on the strong side and Keith Bulluck in the middle. Kiwanuka has not missed a beat, often rushing in this formation, and has made some nice plays stuffing runs in the backfield and knocked down a few passes in coverage. I am a little disappointed that rookie defensive tackle Linval Joseph has not been very involved in this front, but Bernard seems to be ahead of him on the depth chart, at least in this formation.
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NASCAR – Another formation that the Giants have been using which includes four defensive ends, called NASCAR because it is all about speed. This formation is a three-man front with Kiwanuka, Pierre-Paul and Tuck up front and Umenyiora standing up as an outside linebacker. There is a lot of movement in this alignment and the Giants have shown a look where safety Antrel Rolle rushes the line and both blitzes or backs off at the snap of the ball. This scheme seems to be all about confusing the offense. It is much like the four aces, but with a three man front and more blitzing from the back seven.
Keep an eye on these formations during the preseason. The Giants are getting their best players on the field under Perry Fewell and are showing many new looks to do so. These innovative ideas are another credit to Fewell and the job he is doing as the Giants defensive coordinator.
http://www.giants101.com/2010/08/13/perry-...fensive-fronts/
NASCAR has gotten burned in camp each time they've run it.
Odd, this says Sintim has stayed in on big base, I'll look for the links from Garafolo where he says Kiwi goes in for Sintim.
