FanPost

Is it West Coast Time?

Here in KC, we're all pretty well accustomed to some West Coast football. For a decade Marty was so dedicated to WC football that it even took his namesake. No matter what you thought of "martyball," you could never complain too loud because we were in the midst of winning more games than would any other team that decade. Now, a full decade has passed since the era of martyball. I ask, is it time to go back to it?

Chris Collisnworth likes to poke fun at WC systems as "dink and dunk" football. I, however, appreciate it for the goal it has for itself. WC offenses operate on the idea that 10/3 = 3.3, and that isn't too difficult an amount of yards to muster per play. Whereas most offensive schemes are about racking up yards, WC is about racking up first downs. Pace no matter, so long as you keep the ball moving, eventually you'll find the end zone. Most of of us know this,so what's my point you may wonder. Point is, I think that the current crop of talent on our team, I feel, is more suited to shorter range WC football.

Matt Cassel's arm strength is a shade below average. Furthermore, he over thinks his reads resulting in frequent rendezvous with the turf. We've observed on AP that Matt Cassel tends to improve markedly in the 4th quarter. I submit to you that this is because he doesn't have the luxury of time and forces his decisions. A WC offense with shorter routes and built in hot reads will get the ball out of Cassel's hand quicker. He will also be more likely to get away with his line drive passing. Speaking of which, Cassel's best passes are mid range down the middle, so I'd toss is a bunch of slants, but I digress. To sum up, WC plays are shorter and faster, exactly the remedy I think Matt Cassel needs. I suppose some pass blocking would be cool too.

We're stocked up with possession receivers. Bowe, Chambers, and Urban will presumably be our top 3 on the field, and they are bigger guys who are better at out fighting defenders than blowing you away with their speed. You could dispute that characterization with Chambers, but I think he's closer to a possession guy at this stage of his career. He is the the smallest and fastest of those three though. We really just don't have a guy who is going to torch a secondary with his speed. Lawrence might be able to but I worry some stout LB or DB will rush up on him and break his life (see White, Pat). Let them fight (more finesse for Chambers)their way open on 5-15 yard slants, comebacks, digs, and curls. Leave the playbook with the big ben's and posts at home.

Charles and Jones vaguely remind me of Tony Richardson and Kimble Anders. Two backs with very capable hands who are lethal in the flats. You really couldn't want better dump off options either.

So there you have it. I think our offensive talent is best suited for a WC type system. That said, I don't think Haley/ Weis will field anything close to it.

This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of Arrowhead Pride's writers or editors. It does reflect the views of this particular fan though, which is as important as the views of Arrowhead Pride writers or editors.