Is this really a 'Air Raid' offense anymore...

Jetstream Green

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Yes, the foundation initially was full of heavy WR sets but after the last couple of games we are seeing TEs and double back sets which are productive and production seems to have a obvious fan in Kliff Kingsbury. Yes, it never was really a full college offense which is expected and why Clements was brought in but it seems the Air Raid is now the icing and not the cake of the offense
 

Hoodhero

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One reddit poster mentioned that he has noticed a few plays from Panthers & Ravens playbooks if I remember correctly.
 

football karma

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KK in interviews (at least the first few months) took pains to note that the Air Raid was Mike Leach' offense and that his was different -- he noted "we led the SEC (iirc) in rushing one year"
 

mwanamatapa

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Kliff is still experimenting but is meshing more and more NFL concepts as he said he was going to do - and it's working.

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RugbyMuffin

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One can assume that if the trend continues, the least valuable position currently on the team msy become the most valuable position.....and that would be the TE.

Turning this into a more Air raid/Run and Shoot type offense that uses TE's as WR's to keep flexibility between the run game and the passing game.

Or in other words, run the offense the Patriots prefer to run when they have the TE's to do so.

This puts significant pressure on a defense.

You put a dime defense out there and the TE should easily block the smaller defenders, and if you put linebackers out there then the TE (the right type and talented) should beat the linebacker in the passing game.

When Gronk and the murderer where on the field together for the Pats, they were as dangerous as they ever had been

Its also why when Dwaste was still a football player, he was so valuable. Dwaste could beat the TE in the rumning game and cover them in the passing game.

And to be fair, Maxx Williams and Charles Clay are not too bad a combo. In order to pull off what I describe above, the talent level has to increase but for now, they are or at least could be an unintended asset.

The post-bye week adjustments will be very interesting.

A tangent off this, is the Cardinals DO have sonething special with the roster. Murray, Johnson, and Edmunds are a threat. Heck, you can even put Fitzgerald into the group.

Looking at the options for each player you have:

Kyler Murray: Pass, scramble, or run

David Johnson: Run, Receiver, or block

Chase Edmunds: Run, Receiver, or block

Larry Fitzgerald: Reciever, block, or pass


The play I would be very scared about is the QB draw with Johnson lead blocking.

That is a red zone nightmare.

You can put a linebacker fast enough to spy Kyler Murray, but I will put my money on David Johnson being able to block that linebacker.

You block the spying linebacker and there is room to run for a good gain.

What are you going to do then, use two players to spy the QB? Is that 2nd spy able to cover David Johnson if you split him out wide? I doubt it.


The Cardinals may have the wide receivers they need, just not the tight ends they need.

Throw that into the Murray/Johnson/Edmunds situation, and now you have a lot of options to run a bunch of plays to maximize match up issues.

Again, much like the Patriots when they had there two good TE's you start to not have "positions" but roles and roles that can be handled by different players at different times.




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devilalum

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They're all in on Murray. The offense starts and ends with him for the foreseeable future.

KK seems smart and innovative enough to make this happen.
 

slanidrac16

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A te forced the defense to at least think about the run therefore not being able to flood the secondary with 7 guys.

I love the fact KK is adapting. It’s working and is only going to get better.
 

blindseyed

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With the way he's changing and adapting I think we'll see a different offense next year compared to this year, one that has taken out the gimmick plays that just don't work in the NFL but using the trick plays and motion disguising plays that did along with new innovative plays.... that's what I'm hoping at least lol
 

HoodieBets

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No it's the 1800 yards in 5 games offense. Gigantic improvement from last year.

We are 16th in yards per game and 22nd in yards per play. If it wasn’t for our rushing offense being 11th we would be in the bottom third in total offense. I wouldn’t say this offense is a legit offense yet. Better than last year for sure but no better than average.

Also to be honest I would have thought this offenses best weeks would be the first half of the year. Mostly because even though the offense is new it’s simple and KM had a better grip of it than anyone coming into the year. Also my expectation would be around mid year if this is a “new offense” teams would have tape and would make gameplay adjustments. I think the offense we see now if basically the offense for the rest of the year. Personnel may change and formations but yard and point wise I don’t see much change coming.


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Chopper0080

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Please keep in mind that the "Air Raid" offense is based upon the play designs not based upon the personnel groupings. Maximizing your matchups and creating mismatches is going to vary based upon the level you are competing at. Mismatches at the college level are different than those at the High School or Professional level.
 

Dr. Jones

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I am pleased that he has made adjustments and is not one of these coaches that forces the players into a system . Instead he is adapting the offense to what he has.

Yep. Been awhile since we've had one of those.

I love it. K2 has been humble, been adaptive, provided unique calls that have impressed his players (recent cards underground pod, nice story about Suggs), and he continues to fiddle with the engine to make the performance as top notch as possible.

We can't ask for more than that in a growth year.
 

kerouac9

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We are 16th in yards per game and 22nd in yards per play. If it wasn’t for our rushing offense being 11th we would be in the bottom third in total offense. I wouldn’t say this offense is a legit offense yet. Better than last year for sure but no better than average.

Also to be honest I would have thought this offenses best weeks would be the first half of the year. Mostly because even though the offense is new it’s simple and KM had a better grip of it than anyone coming into the year. Also my expectation would be around mid year if this is a “new offense” teams would have tape and would make gameplay adjustments. I think the offense we see now if basically the offense for the rest of the year. Personnel may change and formations but yard and point wise I don’t see much change coming.


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https://www.footballoutsiders.com/stats/teamoff/2019

Shockingly, we are the #1 rushing offense in the NFL by DVOA. We're the 29th-ranked passing offense right now, which is why we're 23rd overall.

It's pretty tremendous improvement considering the baseline we started with was a HISTORICALLY AWFUL offense. I think that we'll see a quantum leap next season when we get another couple of playmakers.
 

Chopper0080

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https://www.footballoutsiders.com/stats/teamoff/2019

Shockingly, we are the #1 rushing offense in the NFL by DVOA. We're the 29th-ranked passing offense right now, which is why we're 23rd overall.

It's pretty tremendous improvement considering the baseline we started with was a HISTORICALLY AWFUL offense. I think that we'll see a quantum leap next season when we get another couple of playmakers.
This is important to remember. Our offense isn't too far away in terms of personnel. We have s some key holes to fill, but as a whole, it isn't as bad as many think it is.
 
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