Chalk talk: The Stunt
Sometimes they try to beat guys with speed; other times it’s with force. But Washington’s defensive linemen also have to beat their men with something else: deception.
That’s where the stunt enters in, which requires equal parts precision and salesmanship. They’ll use it as a changeup, hoping to create a pass-rush lane for the end, usually through the middle. And the Redskins like to use it, as most defenses do, when they feel they’re more in control of a game. The stunt will take a bit longer to work than just a regular rush, which means the secondary must help out with slightly tighter coverage.
It tests a line’s ability to recognize changes and to communicate.
“I prefer guys getting their fannies up in the air and going on the snap of the ball,” Redskins defensive line coach John Palermo said. “But when people take those away from you from a protection standpoint, then you run some stunts.”
Stunts can be run in various combinations, but the basic end/tackle stunt is where the end goes inside and the tackle goes outside. Sometimes linebackers can get involved, too, but those mostly are just blitzes.
And there’s a difference in their responsibilities if they’re stunting to stop a run or rush the passer.
When linemen stunt to stop the rush, they go right into the stunt on the snap of the ball. There’s no setting up the linemen, it’s immediate. They want to plug a gap. On a pass stunt, the linemen will get upfield, taking, most likely, two steps, and then getting into the stunt. The idea is to create gaps for the end inside.
“You have to sell the stunt,” end Andre Carter said.
Footwork is crucial.
“I take off up the field like it’s a regular rush,” end Phillip Daniels said. “But on my second step I’m coming inside. While I’m doing this the tackle is making his guy think he’s rushing and all along he knows he’s coming outside. It’s all about the setup. You can’t give it away by how you step. You have to make it look like you’re doing the same thing. You can’t change your footwork and think they don’t know what’s coming. If you start to lean inside or start to cross over early or take baby steps, they’ll know something’s up….You have to be patient.”
Opposing linemen will pick up on any change in footwork; on run stunts, the backs will look at the footwork of the defensive linemen at times, trying to gauge what hole might be available.
And if the end is a speed rusher, they can’t take their first two steps and be straight up. That’ll give it away, too. The end would have to stay low because that’s how they typically rush.
The ends must set the width, by lining up a bit wider and getting the offensive tackle to have a wider drop. The defensive tackle, when he stunts inside, will go to the inside shoulder of the tackle. If the guard follows the tackle’s direction, then the end can loop to the inside and have a clear path to the quarterback.
The Redskins are still getting their timing down on the stunts, particularly on the right side with Albert Haynesworth and Brian Orakpo. One trick is knowing how the other person involved in the stunt will react if they’re blocked a certain way.
“You see all the time people running into each other,” Daniels said. “If you don’t know
what the other man is doing, it will hurt you.”
