Matt Bowen Break Down Urlacher's Pick for Six; Good Read...........

NFL Week 9: Breaking down the top three plays

Matt Bowen

November 04, 2012, 11:00 PM
Let’s break this down and get into some coaching points.

1. Brian Urlacher’s “pick-six” vs. Titans
Personnel: Posse (3WR-1TE-1RB)
Formation: Empty
Route: Hi-Lo
Defensive scheme: Cover 1 “Rover”
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- Cover 1 (man-free) from the Bears with FS Chris Conte walked down over the TE and MLB Brian Urlacher playing the “Rover” (inside hook drop, read the QB). This gives the Bears help on two levels: inside hook and the deep middle of the field. Play with outside leverage and funnel receivers back inside of the numbers.


- Nothing complicated here from the Titans. A Smash-Seam concept to the open (weak) side of the formation with the Hi-Lo to the closed side. The TE will release up the field on the intermediate dig route (Hi) with the slot receiver on the inside shallow crosser (Lo). A concept we see in every club’s offensive playbook.
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- By playing the inside hook, Urlacher will take his drop, read the QB and break on the throw. As a “rover” in Cover 1, let the QB take you to the play.
- Hasselbeck can’t throw this ball. I was surprised to see the veteran QB force this one. He is locked in on an inside breaking cut and brings Urlacher right to the play.
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- This is exactly how Cover 1 “Rover” plays out on the chalkboard or in the game plan on Wednesday. All Urlacher has to do is read the eyes of Hasselbeck, break on the throw and then get to the sidelines for six points. Just one of the five turnovers the Bears defense produced today as they whipped the Titans 51-20 down in Nashville to move to 7-1 on the season.

I think this shows pretty clearly where Brian Urlacher is most dangerous and most valuable in the Bears defense. He never was a "run stuffer" in the mold of previous Bears HOF MLBs like Singletary and Butkus or a guy like Ray Lewis but few are smarter in coverage and play the pass better than Urlacher.

On this play he's actually playing somewhat of the the "Rover SS" position he played in college. He reads the QB perfectly and doesn't allow himself to be taken out of the play by the TE on his crossing route. Instead he instinctively reads Hasselbeck's eyes and jumps the throw and once he does that he heads for the sidelines, picks up some blocking and motors in for the TD.

Did he look a little slow on that return to me? Yep, he did. I wasn't as fast at age 34 as I was at age 26 either but I was a whole lot smarter, LOL, and so is Brian Urlacher. Without his top speed he can't afford wasted movement or steps and in this case there were none. He may no longer be at the very top of his game physically but mentally he just as sharp or sharper than he ever was and it's still him out there setting the defense and making sure guys are in position and fired up to make plays.

I'd say that seems to be working pretty well and I hope he can stay at it for another year or two. He really does deserve a SB ring and this year or next I think we just might help him get it.

I thought he looked slow, but also thought he was allowing his blockers to get on the O trying to get to him; at the end you see him speed up considerably.

He doesn't look quite as loose or fluid as he has in the past but all of that makes little difference when you still know how to get out there and get the job done. It's pretty obvious he hasn't lost that.