And here is a bad play:
The only real difference in these two plays is the A-Back block. Tevin makes the right read, and in both cases we have a chance for a big gain. If the A-Back puts his man on the ground, both might be well over 10 yards. Just get a decent block and its a 5-8 yard gain. Miss the block and its no gain. On those two actual plays, one goes for 8 yards and one goes for 0 yards. One was a decent block, one was a missed block. Obviously, this won’t always be the case. Many of our plays don’t depend on the A-Back block at all (Like the B-Back dive for example). But when we run a pitch, the A-Back block is crucial. With a great block, there will often be open space for 10+ yards. Any running back will have a big gain there. If the block is missed, then even a great running back will struggle to get more than 3 or 4 yards. This is why you hear Coach Johnson say “whoever blocks the best will play”. The most important skill at A-Back is not running. Its blocking. Having a guy like Orwin is nice, but he still needs to be able to block. (and thankfully Orwin is a pretty good blocker).
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