Week 9 ATL Falcons coaches film analysis

So, I know this thread is a day later than normal, part of it was the game film was a little late coming available, part of it was that my time was a little limited yesterday so I didn't want to start a thread that I couldn't contribute a whole lot to until I had the time. So, thankfully, today I have that. On we go.

It's always better breaking down a win than a loss. Whereas, our wins against the Vikings and Ravens, I felt like I was watching a game where we won, despite our best efforts(maybe more the Ravens game). In the Ravens game, it was like the other team lost, we didn't necessarily win. It was like watching a game where you thought, "wow...we better not play like that against some other teams", which proved to be true.

This game, however, felt like the first time this season that we truly beat a team, not them either beating themselves or us taking advantage of a completely injury riddled secondary. The defense played a very solid game and the offense had some rhythm to it - which I think was more important than anything. The offense felt like something that could be built on. The first couple drives stalled out, but, it looked like by the 2nd quarter, Gabbert, in particular, really started to find a groove.

Over the past couple seasons a lot of games were looked back on with a, "man, we left a lot of food on the table", but I didn't feel that way this game. There were definitely some plays up for grabs due to some drops, but it wasn't like we were missing a ton of open guys or opportunities. Bear in mind, the Atlanta defense is one of the better defenses we've played this year. Their secondary isn't stellar, but their front 7 are pretty good. They were ranked #3 against the run coming into that game. I know that everyone probably wants to hear a Kaep vs. Gabbert shpiel - so I'll try and provide a little comparison of the two that I've seen from film - albeit the sampling size from Gabbert is much smaller.

Gabbert -His got a very quick release and his footwork was pretty darn good. The ball does come out of his hands very quickly whereas, I think we all know, Kaep's release is more elongated. It allows him more velocity on his throw, but takes a split second longer to come out of his hand. That split second - as we'll see with the 2nd TD of the game, is sometimes the difference between a TD and a sack. His release reminds me a lot of Aaron Rodgers, actually. I know it's a lofty comparison, but, the way he throws the ball and moves around remind me a lot of Aaron Rodgers. I'm not saying he's that kind of elite talent, but you can definitely see why the Jaguars liked him so much.

He's got good presence in the pocket. His quick feet allow him to maneuver the pocket well. Kaep, on the other hand, may have a stride like a gazelle, but his feet are slow and he struggles maneuvering in the pocket. It's like he's either full speed or no speed.

Decisive. Gabbert was very decisive with where he was gonna go with the football and worked through his progressions very quickly, doing a good job of reading the key defenders. Kaep's biggest thing over the past seaon and a half are indecisiveness. He's seemed to become overwhelmed by what's on the field and has become more tunnel visioned.

He was also willing to stand in the pocket and deliver the ball when he knew he was gonna take a hit. That's huge. I would say that's been the biggest difference between him and Kaep in their pocket presence. People have talked a lot this year about how the O-line has failed Kaep and, if given time, he's great. The problem I have with it is, if he feels a rush coming, he bails. I don't think it's because he's afraid of getting creamed, I think it's because he trusts his legs so much. Gabbert was willing to stay in the pocket and deliver throws when the rush was in his face. That's what the good QB's in this league can do. Were all those throws completed? No. But, they weren't sacks.

Overall, I was impressed with Gabbert. The numbers wouldn't blow you away, but 15/25 for 185 yards with 2 TD's and 2 INT's - and he very well could've been around 250 with one less INT if it weren't for some key drops. Even then, his yards per attempt were 7.4. Whereas Matt Ryan threw for 303 but his yards per attempt were 6.7. It means he was efficient with his throws when the opportunity was there.

Kaep definitely has him beat on running speed and throwing velocity. But, from what I saw, that was about it.

There were a lot of other things that went on during the game - but, if you're interested to know about that, just mention it in a post. Because, really, I think the thing most people are concerned about right now is the QB play.

"annnd...here...we..go!"(in my best Joker voice)

Here's one throw that really impressed me. Now, bear in mind, this is the same play Kaep has made before this season too. So, don't jump to a conclusion that Gabbert can do this and Kaep can't. He had the same results on the same play against the NYG.


Here, it's 3rd and 3. The Falcons line up in a press man formation. They're not disguising the fact that they're bringing 5 and they're gonna look to take away anything short and quick with the press coverage. We're going to run a "fade smash" concept. It's the same concept of a "smash" but with a fade instead. The fade allows the throw to happen off a 3 step drop and a lob instead of a 5 step drop with the QB having to wait for the receiver to at least approach his break. This way, the qb can take a 3 step drop and put the ball out there for the WR to get it.


Gabbert knew the coverage before the snap, so, you know your only real option is the fade route vs. the man coverage with quick pressure coming. Knowing that, he does a good job, at the snap, of keeping his head in the middle of the field to hold the safety from breaking on the route.



From this angle, you can see him holding the safety.


Then, on his 3rd step he turns to throw the ball[good footwork(notice the bend in his knees and his straight posture, good mechanics)].

When he turns to throw it, the safety was held long enough to keep him from jumping towards the route. you see the outside defender's back turned because of the outside release on the curl by TS.


He then does a good job of leading the receiver away from the defenders. Patton does have to turn around a little awkwardly for the catch, but, leading the receiver into open space is usually higher percentage than trying to drop a perfect pass over the defender. So, I like the throw.


It's complete for a 21 yard gain.
Just a good, all around play with Gabbert doing the little things right.

here's a play that really, really impressed me. He gets to his 5th read on the play and completes a pass for a first down.


ATL shows a cover 3 zone pre-snap, so the play has a good chance. We're going to try and hit a little bubble screen or WR swing pass to either Ellington or patton - I can't tell which.


After the snap, the flat defender comes flying down on the screen route, so Gabbert pulls up on the throw. Here he's seen the streak and swing taken away(reads 1&2).


He checks the middle of the field and see's McD is bracketed.


He then checks TS(4th read) and see's that there's no flat receiver and dumps the ball off to the RB.


He gets it to Draugh who picks up 13 yards and a first down. Great job of moving quickly through progressions, maneuvering in the pocket and getting the ball out for a good gain.

Wanted to touch on the 2nd TD pass to Celek. Thought it was a great throw and catch and a good job of Gabbert staying in the pocket with a defender coming at him. You should recognize this play, it's very similar to, "the catch III".


We're going to run an out/in post with Celek and a snag route with Draugh(sucker concept). While the backside we run a scissors/smash concept. Note the safety to the 3 receiver side. This reveals that it's going to be cover 2, not cover 3. Against cover 3 you're going to look for the other side, cover 2 you'll look for the post.


At the snap, Gabbert, again, does a good job of keeping his head in the middle of the field. This holds the LB covering the middle. You see the outside defender pressing up on the "snag" route from the RB - this is the sucker concept, the key read is on that defender, if he trails back with the TE you hit the snag, if he comes up, you look to the post or DIG.


I like the out/in post(it escapes me what the route is called, for some reason....)because it causes the safety to turn his hips. You see how the LB in the middle has turned towards teh 3 receiver side because Gabbert has kept his head down the middle of the field(I'm sure his eyes are on that outside LB though).


Gabbert delivers the ball into a small window - though the window is only there because he did some other things right.


you see that while he was in his motion, he had a defender bearing down on him. That's tough to stand in there to make this throw with a defender in your face.


You see he gets hit right after he throws the ball.

Originally posted by jonnydel:
So, I know this thread is a day later than normal, part of it was the game film was a little late coming available, part of it was that my time was a little limited yesterday so I didn't want to start a thread that I couldn't contribute a whole lot to until I had the time. So, thankfully, today I have that. On we go.

It's always better breaking down a win than a loss. Whereas, our wins against the Vikings and Ravens, I felt like I was watching a game where we won, despite our best efforts(maybe more the Ravens game). In the Ravens game, it was like the other team lost, we didn't necessarily win. It was like watching a game where you thought, "wow...we better not play like that against some other teams", which proved to be true.

This game, however, felt like the first time this season that we truly beat a team, not them either beating themselves or us taking advantage of a completely injury riddled secondary. The defense played a very solid game and the offense had some rhythm to it - which I think was more important than anything. The offense felt like something that could be built on. The first couple drives stalled out, but, it looked like by the 2nd quarter, Gabbert, in particular, really started to find a groove.

Over the past couple seasons a lot of games were looked back on with a, "man, we left a lot of food on the table", but I didn't feel that way this game. There were definitely some plays up for grabs due to some drops, but it wasn't like we were missing a ton of open guys or opportunities. Bear in mind, the Atlanta defense is one of the better defenses we've played this year. Their secondary isn't stellar, but their front 7 are pretty good. They were ranked #3 against the run coming into that game. I know that everyone probably wants to hear a Kaep vs. Gabbert shpiel - so I'll try and provide a little comparison of the two that I've seen from film - albeit the sampling size from Gabbert is much smaller.

Gabbert -His got a very quick release and his footwork was pretty darn good. The ball does come out of his hands very quickly whereas, I think we all know, Kaep's release is more elongated. It allows him more velocity on his throw, but takes a split second longer to come out of his hand. That split second - as we'll see with the 2nd TD of the game, is sometimes the difference between a TD and a sack. His release reminds me a lot of Aaron Rodgers, actually. I know it's a lofty comparison, but, the way he throws the ball and moves around remind me a lot of Aaron Rodgers. I'm not saying he's that kind of elite talent, but you can definitely see why the Jaguars liked him so much.

He's got good presence in the pocket. His quick feet allow him to maneuver the pocket well. Kaep, on the other hand, may have a stride like a gazelle, but his feet are slow and he struggles maneuvering in the pocket. It's like he's either full speed or no speed.

Decisive. Gabbert was very decisive with where he was gonna go with the football and worked through his progressions very quickly, doing a good job of reading the key defenders. Kaep's biggest thing over the past seaon and a half are indecisiveness. He's seemed to become overwhelmed by what's on the field and has become more tunnel visioned.

He was also willing to stand in the pocket and deliver the ball when he knew he was gonna take a hit. That's huge. I would say that's been the biggest difference between him and Kaep in their pocket presence. People have talked a lot this year about how the O-line has failed Kaep and, if given time, he's great. The problem I have with it is, if he feels a rush coming, he bails. I don't think it's because he's afraid of getting creamed, I think it's because he trusts his legs so much. Gabbert was willing to stay in the pocket and deliver throws when the rush was in his face. That's what the good QB's in this league can do. Were all those throws completed? No. But, they weren't sacks.

Overall, I was impressed with Gabbert. The numbers wouldn't blow you away, but 15/25 for 185 yards with 2 TD's and 2 INT's - and he very well could've been around 250 with one less INT if it weren't for some key drops. Even then, his yards per attempt were 7.4. Whereas Matt Ryan threw for 303 but his yards per attempt were 6.7. It means he was efficient with his throws when the opportunity was there.

Kaep definitely has him beat on running speed and throwing velocity. But, from what I saw, that was about it.

There were a lot of other things that went on during the game - but, if you're interested to know about that, just mention it in a post. Because, really, I think the thing most people are concerned about right now is the QB play.

"annnd...here...we..go!"(in my best Joker voice)

Nice rundown of Gabbert's strengths. I know Gabbert is the hot topic of this game, but the defense was ballin and deserves a lot of love.

The 49ers were excellent on 3rd down defense and that was what allowed them to win this game defensively. Chris Davis and Marcus Cromartie...who?? Those were the starting CBs against Julio and Roddy. Granted this is 33(?) year old Roddy, but still a dynamic duo nonetheless. The 49ers came with some very nicely disguised blitzes and rushes, and put the pressure on their secondary to cover. Whether is was from a blitz from the slot CB, safety, or disguised 4 man rush where the 4th rusher was someone that was not lined up on the LoS, it seemed Ryan was never truly comfortable in the pocket. Although only sacked twice, Ryan on some occasions settled for harmless checkdowns for minimal yards.

The run defense was amazing and it came from all the players. It was a different player on every run that went for tackle for loss or minimal gain: Wilhoite, Bow, Tartt, Ian, Cormartie, all those players registered 'blow up' plays where they completely disrupted the run blocking and got DFreeman in the backfield. It seemed like there was something tipping off the 49ers that it was a run play as Tartt would often run up to the LoS right before the snap and attack the run, disrupting it. 12 carries for 12 yards for the NFL leading rusher - that's ownage and made the Falcons one dimensional. The 49ers paid special attention to Julio, often providing over the top help with a very odd coverage I'll show. It seemed like Fire Zone, but the middle safety was clearly shaded towards Julio's side of the field. Take away that huge bomb to Julio and he's 9 catches for 83 yards - that's keeping the lid on an elite WR. Like jonnydel mentioned, Ryan had a very meh 6.7 YPA.

Offensively for the 49ers I thought the run blocking was horrible. There were only two run plays that I thought were well blocked. A 12 yard gain to Draughn and an 8 yard run for Gaskins on the final possession. Everything else was grind it out yards including the 30 yarder by Draughn which should have been stopped for minimal yards. I know little of ATL's front 7 regarding run defense but MMartin looked silly all game long run blocking. I really hope ATL's nose tackle is a good player because he played like an all pro versus Martin.

Gabbert showed efficiency and decisiveness - throws on rhythm. We've all discussed this over the past couple days so not much to add. I'll just mention that the throw to Simpson where Simpson bobbled and it turned into an INT was Gabbert's best read of the day imo. Good awareness of the safety, nice throw. The most exciting thing for me to take away regarding the passing offense is that on most plays, 5 routes were sent into play at the snap of the ball - even when ATL came with Cover1 blitz. ATL's lack of a natural pass rush for sure played a role, but I think Gabbert's willingness to quickly get rid of the ball also plays a role in Geep dialing these plays up. It shows confidence in the QB to make a good presnap read and get rid of the ball. ATL came with Cover3 or Cover1 blitz for the majority of pass plays.

Originally posted by jonnydel:
here's a play that really, really impressed me. He gets to his 5th read on the play and completes a pass for a first down.


ATL shows a cover 3 zone pre-snap, so the play has a good chance. We're going to try and hit a little bubble screen or WR swing pass to either Ellington or patton - I can't tell which.


After the snap, the flat defender comes flying down on the screen route, so Gabbert pulls up on the throw. Here he's seen the streak and swing taken away(reads 1&2).


He checks the middle of the field and see's McD is bracketed.


He then checks TS(4th read) and see's that there's no flat receiver and dumps the ball off to the RB.


He gets it to Draugh who picks up 13 yards and a first down. Great job of moving quickly through progressions, maneuvering in the pocket and getting the ball out for a good gain.

Defenses have been abandoning the flats not fearing the 49er RBs catching passes out there. There was another play near the 49er endzone that Gabbert completed very similar to this. The flat completely uncovered and Gabbert takes the easy first down. Draughn caught a couple simple passes that helped make it '2nd and very manageable'. Two of those catches were on RB circle routes and later in the game, that helped set up Celek's second TD catch.

Not everything he did was good though. Here's his 2nd INT of the game. Though, i don't really fault him too bad for this. It was more of a pre-snap error than a post snap error. Be warned, there's going to be more to explain here than on most breakdowns.



Before the snap, ATL shows more of a cover 3 look, but it's actually going to be a cover 6. But, that's not what fools Gabbert. We're going to run a verticals concept.


The error on his part is that he doesn't notice is that the defense is in a 3-4 "under" front. This changes which OLB will be coming on the pass rush)light green is the "under" formation of the tackle and the rusher coming and black is the traditional Okie or Eagle front - sometimes called, "odd". In the under front, the weakside backer is the pass rusher(just like he is in the "4-3 under"). So, he doesn't realize that the OLB over the TE's is going to drop in coverage.


He correctly picks the cover 2 side of the field vs the verticals. This should be a win as it puts the safety in a 2 vs 1 situation. You see how he's reading the safety on the play.


You see how the safety is playing the inside streak, so Gabbert is going to try and throw the ball away from the safety. His error is that he never see's the OLB - or, because the backers shoulders are turned he isn't worried about the defender making a play on the ball.


You see how the inside streak occupies the safety and ILB. Personally, I think Gabbert never saw the OLB because he was expecting him to be rushing and read the safety as his key. Really, he's making the correct throw based off his key read. It's also a good play by the defender to recognize no threat in the flat and turn and run with the TE. You'll see Gabbert try and place the throw away from the safety - that's why I think he never saw the OLB.


Unfortunately, it's picked off.


This is just before the throw, you see Gabbert reading the safety - again, why I think he didn't see the OLB. He saw the front and thought the OLB on the strong side was rushing and then zeroed in on the safety.

Gabbert played really well I thought from the first look.
And you are totally confirming what I thought I saw

Originally posted by thl408:
Nice rundown of Gabbert's strengths. I know Gabbert is the hot topic of this game, but the defense was ballin and deserves a lot of love.

The 49ers were excellent on 3rd down defense and that was what allowed them to win this game defensively. Chris Davis and Marcus Cromartie...who?? Those were the starting CBs against Julio and Roddy. Granted this is 33(?) year old Roddy, but still a dynamic duo nonetheless. The 49ers came with some very nicely disguised blitzes and rushes, and put the pressure on their secondary to cover. Whether is was from a blitz from the slot CB, safety, or disguised 4 man rush where the 4th rusher was someone that was not lined up on the LoS, it seemed Ryan was never truly comfortable in the pocket. Although only sacked twice, Ryan on some occasions settled for harmless checkdowns for minimal yards.

The run defense was amazing and it came from all the players. It was a different player on every run that went for tackle for loss or minimal gain: Wilhoite, Bow, Tartt, Ian, Cormartie, all those players registered 'blow up' plays where they completely disrupted the run blocking and got DFreeman in the backfield. It seemed like there was something tipping off the 49ers that it was a run play as Tartt would often run up to the LoS right before the snap and attack the run, disrupting it. 12 carries for 12 yards for the NFL leading rusher - that's ownage and made the Falcons one dimensional. The 49ers paid special attention to Julio, often providing over the top help with a very odd coverage I'll show. It seemed like Fire Zone, but the middle safety was clearly shaded towards Julio's side of the field. Take away that huge bomb to Julio and he's 9 catches for 83 yards - that's keeping the lid on an elite WR. Like jonnydel mentioned, Ryan had a very meh 6.7 YPA.

Offensively for the 49ers I thought the run blocking was horrible. There were only two run plays that I thought were well blocked. A 12 yard gain to Draughn and an 8 yard run for Gaskins on the final possession. Everything else was grind it out yards including the 30 yarder by Draughn which should have been stopped for minimal yards. I know little of ATL's front 7 regarding run defense but MMartin looked silly all game long run blocking. I really hope ATL's nose tackle is a good player because he played like an all pro versus Martin.

Gabbert showed efficiency and decisiveness - throws on rhythm. We've all discussed this over the past couple days so not much to add. I'll just mention that the throw to Simpson where Simpson bobbled and it turned into an INT was Gabbert's best read of the day imo. Good awareness of the safety, nice throw. The most exciting thing for me to take away regarding the passing offense is that on most plays, 5 routes were sent into play at the snap of the ball - even when ATL came with Cover1 blitz. ATL's lack of a natural pass rush for sure played a role, but I think Gabbert's willingness to quickly get rid of the ball also plays a role in Geep dialing these plays up. It shows confidence in the QB to make a good presnap read and get rid of the ball. ATL came with Cover3 or Cover1 blitz for the majority of pass plays.

Agreed! I saw that throw and thought, "dang...nice play by Gabbert." He executed the play perfectly, he moved the safety with his eyes and delivered a strike on a rope down the field. Too bad Simpson had to drop it(seriously???)

Originally posted by thl408:
Defenses have been abandoning the flats not fearing the 49er RBs catching passes out there. There was another play near the 49er endzone that Gabbert completed very similar to this. The flat completely uncovered and Gabbert takes the easy first down. Draughn caught a couple simple passes that helped make it '2nd and very manageable'. Two of those catches were on RB circle routes and later in the game, that helped set up Celek's second TD catch.

I'll let you handle those, but one of them really, really impressed me because Gabbert got clobbered right when he threw the ball. Reminded me of the circle route that Kaep missed to Bush where he had a defender bearing down on him - that's the difference to me, right now.

Originally posted by jonnydel:
Wanted to touch on the 2nd TD pass to Celek. Thought it was a great throw and catch and a good job of Gabbert staying in the pocket with a defender coming at him. You should recognize this play, it's very similar to, "the catch III".


We're going to run an out/in post with Celek and a snag route with Draugh(sucker concept). While the backside we run a scissors/smash concept. Note the safety to the 3 receiver side. This reveals that it's going to be cover 2, not cover 3. Against cover 3 you're going to look for the other side, cover 2 you'll look for the post.


At the snap, Gabbert, again, does a good job of keeping his head in the middle of the field. This holds the LB covering the middle. You see the outside defender pressing up on the "snag" route from the RB - this is the sucker concept, the key read is on that defender, if he trails back with the TE you hit the snag, if he comes up, you look to the post or DIG.


I like the out/in post(it escapes me what the route is called, for some reason....)because it causes the safety to turn his hips. You see how the LB in the middle has turned towards teh 3 receiver side because Gabbert has kept his head down the middle of the field(I'm sure his eyes are on that outside LB though).


Gabbert delivers the ball into a small window - though the window is only there because he did some other things right.


you see that while he was in his motion, he had a defender bearing down on him. That's tough to stand in there to make this throw with a defender in your face.


You see he gets hit right after he throws the ball.

You see the outside defender pressing up on the "snag" route from the RB - this is the sucker concept, the key read is on that defender, if he trails back with the TE you hit the snag, if he comes up, you look to the post or DIG.

The reason Draughn's route was able to suck in that defender was due to two successfully completed HB circle routes. One on a previous drive, and one on this TD drive. After those two plays, the defense had to start honoring Draughn coming out of the backfield and that's what opens the passing lane to Celek, like you pointed out. I'll show the two circle routes later.

I know you guys will probably get to it, but what was the concept on the first pick? All Verts? Edit: I just rewatched a reply, Simpsons route almost looks vertical, but at least what I can see from tv view, looks like you almost have a spacing type concepts going on the trips side.

It's almost criminal that was an interception. I thought it was a great rope on his part and Simpsons f**ked it up bad. You give him that and his day is more like a 16/25 200ish 2 TD to 1 pick day.

I'm very interested in the Seattle game! I was one as I'm sure everybody was when we traded for him like WTF. He sucks but I realize he was on a bad team and helluv young, damn I didn't even know he's 2 years younger than Kap....that alone poses a interesting off season if he continues to play descent....

Originally posted by thl408:
The 49ers were excellent on 3rd down defense and that was what allowed them to win this game defensively. Chris Davis and Marcus Cromartie...who?? Those were the starting CBs against Julio and Roddy. Granted this is 33(?) year old Roddy, but still a dynamic duo nonetheless. The 49ers came with some very nicely disguised blitzes and rushes, and put the pressure on their secondary to cover. Whether is was from a blitz from the slot CB, safety, or disguised 4 man rush where the 4th rusher was someone that was not lined up on the LoS, it seemed Ryan was never truly comfortable in the pocket. Although only sacked twice, Ryan on some occasions settled for harmless checkdowns for minimal yards.

once in my football lifetime, thl is wrong and I am not so wrong
Dontae and Cromartie were the starters, Chris Davis was way behind them, according to following source:
http://www.ninersnation.com/2015/11/9/9696160/49ers-defensive-snap-count-tank-carradine-benched-backup-cornerbacks

Here was a great back shoulder throw that did have a big impact in the game. Think of the Rams game. Here, ATLs punter(who was really good all day) backed us up inside our own 5. We had just run a 3 yard dive from Miller(dive..inside the 5...sounds familiar ) From there, we run a pass play.


What's awesome about this play is that Atlanta is going to run Seattle's D right here - and they do it well, but we still get the gain.


With the press coverage and no safety help, Gabbert decides right at the snap where he's going with the ball.


They actually run a "sluggo"(slant and go). It's not a straight fade. TS makes a little shift inside and Gabbert gives a mini pump fake. Then he lobs the ball out. He gets rid of the ball really quickly. From snap to release I timed it(with a stopwatch) at 1.96 seconds. This is where the QB can help out his struggling O-line. Kaep, very rarely, gets rid of the ball in less than 2.5 seconds.


Gabbert throws a great touch pass. It's got enough arc to get over the underneath defender(the ball is highlighted in yellow) but with enough zip to where the defender isn't going to be able to make a play on it.


the cherry on top is that Gabbert puts the ball where only his receiver can get it(hello!! - I don't think we need to go over that....) It requires TS to make a great catch, but, the ball has zero chance of getting picked or tipped up for a pick.

That's a hackuva play right there!

This had a huge impact on the game, actually. It allowed us to move the ball a little bit, drain some clock and changed field position. ATL then got the ball at their 40 and moved it a bit, but still had to punt. If we're punting from our own endzone, they likely get it on our side of the 50 and most likely kick a field goal with how far they moved it in the game.