Stop being run first

[Tecno]

I say we stop being a run first, run mostly team. It hasn't worked for about 2 years. We don't have the OL horses. And Brady isn't AH33.

The argument, in a nutshell, is illustrated by the first play of our second last drive vs EDM. We're ahead, we need to kill clock. Brady gets stuffed for maybe a gain of 3. Now we're 2nd and long and we botch it.

How many times in 2025 and this year have we seen this? Grey cups too.

I think we, and Brady, would do better if we ran more like Montreal, sask, or Hamilton. They don't go to the run on most first downs. They keep you guessing. Then the run comes when you're so used to the pass, and their mediocre backs get bigger yards.

They have structured their O to get enough short pass yards on first to not be in 2nd and long most of the time.

Unless Broxton rapidly becomes Yoshi, and Wallace becomes Dobson, and Brady AH33, we're just wasting a down, especially at critical moments.

[Waffler]

Pass protect not been that great either. Imagine having Bryant and Hardrick in their prime again. That was bully ball. Everyone knew what we were going to do but it made no difference. Now we will have to be less predictable.

[Blue In BC]

Mostly agree. Our runs are too often predictable. Teams know when we'll run and we're an inside run team. The OL is certainly part of the problem but even when we were better, it was not uncommon to see BO stuffed.

No one else sees the ball on a run play very often. Demski every now and then. Collaros is not longer a threat to run or escape the pocket.

That said I think you're being a bit harsh. Offence includes the passing game and as discussed the change to a 3 Canadian receiver and 3 import OL has not proven to be completely successful.

There are several issues.

[dd]

Biggest issue is our O line stinks. Run or pass, they aren't getting the job done. Broxton has been a bust

[Blue In BC]

Biggest issue is our O line stinks. Run or pass, they aren't getting the job done. Broxton has been a bust

If that's true then the brain trust needs an overhaul.

[dd]

 We continue to be outplayed on both sides of the ball, out D line gets zero pressure and our O line can't run or pass both effectively. Our O line has never been the same since Yoshi left, and then Dobson, and our D line has never recovered since Jeffcoat retired. The game is tough when you're getting beat on both sides of the ball at the line.

[RebusRankin]

I say we stop being a run first, run mostly team. It hasn't worked for about 2 years. We don't have the OL horses. And Brady isn't AH33.

The argument, in a nutshell, is illustrated by the first play of our second last drive vs EDM. We're ahead, we need to kill clock. Brady gets stuffed for maybe a gain of 3. Now we're 2nd and long and we botch it.

How many times in 2025 and this year have we seen this? Grey cups too.

I think we, and Brady, would do better if we ran more like Montreal, sask, or Hamilton. They don't go to the run on most first downs. They keep you guessing. Then the run comes when you're so used to the pass, and their mediocre backs get bigger yards.

They have structured their O to get enough short pass yards on first to not be in 2nd and long most of the time.

Unless Broxton rapidly becomes Yoshi, and Wallace becomes Dobson, and Brady AH33, we're just wasting a down, especially at critical moments.

Zach isn't at a point of his career where we should make him the focal point. We don't have the WR talent to make it a focal point.

[Tecno]

Zach isn't at a point of his career where we should make him the focal point. We don't have the WR talent to make it a focal point.

Zach is still a better, more dynamic QB than T.Harris.  And T.Harris and his O are arguably the best or 2nd best in the league right now.  If you had to pick who is in the cup right now, it's SSK v HAM.  (EDM will fade away, as always.)

My point is, if T.Harris can look like a world beater using a 90% short game... why can't we?  Can't blame the RECs, SSK often started 4 NAT RECs and still kicked butt.

Why aren't we re-imagining Zach's game like they did Trevor?  If we ran our run game more like SSK, we might do better too.  They run a lot, but still aren't a "run first, run mostly" team.

[Tecno]

If that's true then the brain trust needs an overhaul.

That's the gist of my "no preparation" "no planning" posts.  We're being out-schemed and out-coached by even Killam and the mediocres in EDM.

In another post I questioned Marty Costello's tenure.  He's the common thread throughout the massive continual OL decline since ~2022.  He has supposedly best-in-league Broxton, human tank Wallace, and seemingly-capable Elsbury added this past 1-2 seasons and the result is... whatever you call our OL so far in 2026.

Watch what all the other OLs are doing!  With far less name recognition than our line has!  It makes me cry watching EDM's OL dominate in every aspect.  Well-oiled machines are many other OLs.  Sad.

[Tecno]

Mostly agree. Our runs are too often predictable. Teams know when we'll run and we're an inside run team. The OL is certainly part of the problem but even when we were better, it was not uncommon to see BO stuffed.

Maybe that's half the problem.  You watch EDM when they suspect (more like know!) we are going to run.  All 7 stuff between the tackles.  Maybe someone feigns covering the C or D gap, but not really: they crash down on the box pretty quickly.

Everyone knows Brady won't kick it outside when the gaps are filled.  He may squirt through the B or C and kick outside if he gets through, but he never attacks the open air outside where all the players are.

It's the complete opposite of what Rankin does, or even Oullette or Scott.  Everyone else sees the stuffed holes and kicks it out -- they gamble on a -1 vs a 20Y romp: Brady takes the sure 1-3 into a stuffed box every time with zero chance of 20.

That said, it may be HC/OC direction forcing him to do this.  He may literally be told "never kick it outside, just get the 1-3Y".  We can't know.  If so, this goes back to the braintrust issues.

There are several issues.

Of course, and this is one aspect.  But one critical aspect, because we are league-renowned for being "run first, run mostly" "the O runs through Brady".  And no, it won't be easy to change, especially mid-season.  We won't suddenly get an unstoppable quick pass game like SSK -- that takes an entire off-season and half an in-season to achieve.

[Tecno]

We are also somehow giving away that we are going to run.  Even we don't run on every first down, or to start every series.  Watch the EDM game.  Watch the EDM LBs.  There are some plays where they cheat up more, like they know we are going to run with 90% certainty.

And there are others where it's 1st down or 1st play or whatever and you'd suspect WPG will run... but the LBs don't cheat up as much or are quicker to bounce back into coverage.

It's very noticeable.  And they are right 90-100% of the time.  It's bizarre, and I'm not making this up, go watch.

This means they somehow KNOW we are going to run.  And they KNOW when we aren't going to run.  Pre-snap, or during early motion.  And that means our set, or motion, or some tell, is giving away that THIS IS A RUN.  Something is telling them "ignore the playfake, and the motion, and load the box to stop Brady in the A or B gap".

This is a major problem and probably why our run game stinks.  They've identified tells on film.  This means we aren't disguising things properly, or our sets are too obvious, or the other players aren't selling their threat.

Yes, other teams can do this, and it's normal, but not at the rate of success that EDM was having.  They were so good at sniffing out the run, KNOWING Zach wasn't going to drop back to pass instead.

The only thing I saw that surprised them was a sweep, which we fake on may runs.  They still loaded the box, but their LBs are athletic enough to redirect when they suss it out and still stop us for a mediocre gain.  This needs to be fixed if our runs are to succeed.

[Sir Blue and Gold]

... They don't "know" we're going to run Tecno. There is no tell. It's just film study and personnel evaluation.

Defenses will always play us stronger down the middle of the field so long as Collaros and Oliveria are a tandem. Run defense against us means cheating A+B and has for a long time.

You've correctly identified the symptom but the problem isn't better slight of hand. It's just the way the roster has been developed and the skill set we have.

It's always been my criticism of Oliveria (for as good as he is) as a one cut runner. He doesn't have the wheels to threaten anywhere else and Collaros can't anymore either. One thing that Hogan did last year that was actually interesting is more perimeter run game with Brady. It didn't really work because Brady isn't the player for it, but it was the correct determination.

The reason Streveler was so effective as a runner (not a QB per se) was because he could pull it and go laterally which then kept run defense more honest.

There's no way out of it until we change the players there. We can still be an effective offense but we'll going to see teams attack us like that all season. It was the same last year and mostly the one before that too. If only we could play JYs defense. We'd be well suited to truck that style.

[Tecno]

... They don't "know" we're going to run Tecno. There is no tell. It's just film study and personnel evaluation.

Sounds reasonable.  But rewatch the EDM game and look at how the EDM LBs react on any given play.  Before they can possibly know if it's run or pass they have made up their minds.  Or, let me rephrase that, before the should possibly know, they have made up their minds.  And they're invariably correct.

That should not happen to that extent.

Our whole O is centered around play action and getting D's to bite on the Brady fake.  It's really all we have.  It's part of why we often stick with the run even when we are getting stuffed almost every attempt.

And that premise requires that the D cannot know if it's a Brady run or a Zach-pull-and-pass before the moment that Zach stuffs it or yanks it.

Yes, you can tell by certain formations and movement that we are 60% going to run it, or 70%, or 80%.  But not more than 80%, and thus the D should guess wrong 20, 30 or 40% of the time.  EDM almost never guessed wrong.  That should be impossible.

And if teams are pegging our call that well, Condell should be making them pay by having passes planned when we know they'll bite on the run, and vice versa.

And of course you can have "tells": a REC might make slightly different moves or gestures in pass vs run -- even though they're trying to show the same formation and pre-snap movement.  Zach might be acting a bit differently.  Who knows.  But it could be anything.

I'm going to rewatch our O vs EDM one more time and get a count of how many times their LBs get it right vs wrong.  I'm positive this is a thing.  And we've seen it before in the past over the Mafia tenure.  It basically looks like the D is listening in on Zach's headset and knows the call, at least insofar as whether it's a pass or run.

(Yes, Condell can call RPOs where Zach is the only determining factor, but I think that we actually do that very little, especially on first down that is the staple of Brady runs -- for instance, first play of the 2nd last drive was a called Brady run with zero pass options.)

[Blue In BC]

We are also somehow giving away that we are going to run.  Even we don't run on every first down, or to start every series.  Watch the EDM game.  Watch the EDM LBs.  There are some plays where they cheat up more, like they know we are going to run with 90% certainty.

And there are others where it's 1st down or 1st play or whatever and you'd suspect WPG will run... but the LBs don't cheat up as much or are quicker to bounce back into coverage.

It's very noticeable.  And they are right 90-100% of the time.  It's bizarre, and I'm not making this up, go watch.

This means they somehow KNOW we are going to run.  And they KNOW when we aren't going to run.  Pre-snap, or during early motion.  And that means our set, or motion, or some tell, is giving away that THIS IS A RUN.  Something is telling them "ignore the playfake, and the motion, and load the box to stop Brady in the A or B gap".

This is a major problem and probably why our run game stinks.  They've identified tells on film.  This means we aren't disguising things properly, or our sets are too obvious, or the other players aren't selling their threat.

Yes, other teams can do this, and it's normal, but not at the rate of success that EDM was having.  They were so good at sniffing out the run, KNOWING Zach wasn't going to drop back to pass instead.

The only thing I saw that surprised them was a sweep, which we fake on may runs.  They still loaded the box, but their LBs are athletic enough to redirect when they suss it out and still stop us for a mediocre gain.  This needs to be fixed if our runs are to succeed.

Watching on TV I can predict they are going to run most often. It's more than a gut feeling and I'd say a little like film study of tendencies, formations and down / distance.

At the very least we're very predictable and defences recognize that. However Condell is starting to become less predictable.

As has been discussed we need to use MCI as a run threat every now and again as a dual RB set. Whether he gets the ball, blocks or swings out as a receiver, it's another offensive look.

[Sir Blue and Gold]

Sounds reasonable.  But rewatch the EDM game and look at how the EDM LBs react on any given play.  Before they can possibly know if it's run or pass they have made up their minds.  Or, let me rephrase that, before the should possibly know, they have made up their minds.  And they're invariably correct.

That should not happen to that extent.

Maybe, I'm not going to rewatch it but I believe you. I would suggest that the plan for them was simply to come down hill and do that as a first motion in certain looks/play calls/situations though. Not that they are identifying some code that we leave that secretly means runs. Invariably, there's wasn't much downside to doing so was there? Everyone's gonna keep doing it.

Receiver screens could help. More sweep motion also. More play action and throw over top the linebackers. Maybe we run two flea flickers a game. There's things we can do to help and I'm sure we will. But the core of the issue is personnel and foot speed at QB and in the backfield on a lot of plays.