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Last year was the year we saw the emergence of the running quarterback and its impact on NFL games , but with the RG3 injury, what NFL strategies will be used in 2013?   With highly mobile quarterbacks like Russell Wilson, Cam Newton, Colin Kaepernick, and even the Philadelphia Eagles’ Michael Vick, coaches are still likely to use the read option, but have to be weary of leaving their quarterback vulnerable to get hit.  Robert Griffin III blew out his knee last year during a playoff game against the Seattle Seahawks which could make him miss week one.  While he vows to return in time, I wager that NFL coaches will have to take a close look at his injury and be very wary about their quarterbacks running.

During last year’s Super Bowl, a running quarterback squared off with a traditional quarterback, with the traditional one winning.  Joe Flacco outdueled Colin Kaepernick to win Super Bowl 47.  Kaepernick’s QBR from inside the pocket was only 27.4 during the Super Bowl, while Flacco’s QBR was 96.0.  A vast difference favoring a traditional quarterback. Sports odds favored Kaepernick to win the QB matchup, being touted as the ‘more dynamic among the two, with greater arm strength and scrambling ability’. Flacco proved that a traditional quarterback with athletic receivers can still beat a speedy quarterback and Joe Flacco cemented his place among the best QBs in the NFL.  Successful quarterbacks should not change their style of play to accommodate this new style of play because of this.  Tom Brady does not need to run as he can make highly accurate passes up and down the field and the Patriots’ offense doesn’t require him to do so. What are the odds of him changing his style of play this late in his career? None.

For coaches with mobile quarterbacks, they have the toughest decision.  Teams are no longer fooled by the read option and are prepared to hit the quarterbacks.  Quarterbacks are not fitted with padding to absorb all these hits which can ruin their ability to throw or worse, suffer a season ending injury.  Teams will force these quarterbacks to stand in the pocket and make an accurate throw.  However, running the read option is clearly beneficial as it elevated the Washington Redskins, currently third among NFL franchises in value, into a playoff team in a very tough NFC East division. A closer look at some of the articles featured on Wageronsports.com about various NFL teams would reveal that more and more teams are focusing on coming up with defensive strategies that would likely make it tougher for mobile quarterbacks like RG3, Newton, Kaepernick and company to weave their magic.

You can bet America and the rest of the world will be keeping an eye if RG3 can bounce back from the injury he suffered during a nationally televised NFC Wildcard game against the Seattle Seahawks last year. For avid fans of the NFL and American football  as a whole, sports betting strategies are often dependent on how well your team’s superstar fares in his return from serious injury. The whole team’s success could very well hinge on his ability to bounce back.  For people who are fond of occasionally placing a friendly bet on sports, this might be a good option to wager on. Whether or not RG3 makes a successful return to the Redskins from reconstructive knee surgery would be something  NFL fans would eagerly be looking forward to.

In a league full of skilled quarterbacks, running the read option can help teams establish a new threat.  While it risks the health of the quarterback, teaching and more importantly, training quarterbacks to run out of bounds to avoid being sacked by the opposing team’s defenses can go a long way to help avoid injuries.  The recently married RG3 is one who still needs to learn how to play along the outside, instead of going up the middle like a running back in order to avoid ending his career because of injury.  The betting odds are that the read option is here and it is likely here to stay.

Comments

  1. He has the arm to be a pocket passer or more of a pocket passer as he matures,as An Eagles fan decades i have seen too many great scrambling Qb’s lose their effectiveness due to injuries.Hopefully RGIII learns before he gets hurt seriously again.

  2. The running QB has evolved or devolved depending how you look at it. If you go back to the Fran Tarkenton days, and the Roger Staubach era, you saw elusive running/scrambling QB with great arms and made defenses go insane. Deacon Jones (R.I.P.) always talked about how he hated playing Fran because he always got away. what eventually happened was teams started making QB rely more on their running than throwing ability to make plays (Cunningham, McNabb, and etc) and forgot to teach pocket poise and presence. The perfect combo would have to be Steve Young and Elway when they got past their prime and still knew how to beat everyone with their arms but added the snadlot big play ability. Once the NFL gets this new generation to be thosr types, the running/scrambling QB will become unstoppable. At least until the next year and defenses find a way to stop them. So Shannahan, Harbaugh, whoever is coaching Caroline these days, Carrol, and Kelly make QB’s first and when your play doesnt work let their natural ability do the rest. designed runs are a good mix up, but shouldnt be a staple of an offense

    1. and thanks this article gave me inspiration to write about a topic

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