So what's wrong and how do we fix the running game?

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EricTighe
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I still believe it is more philosophy than anything else. Your coach needs to be committed to running the ball or not.

Nagy is not and as much as I am a fan of pounding a team into submission, I can not argue with his results. Just hate seeing Howard rot away.
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HisRoyalSweetness
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KhalilSackDaddy wrote:He defintely wants chunk/explosive plays. And Howard hasn't given him a reason to believe he can give him that consistantly througout the season.

I cannot imagine how he doesn't look to find a RB either in the draft or in FA that can do what he's looking for.
The problem is for all his talk of adapting to his players' strengths Nagy hasn't managed to do that for Howard.

We've seen what Howard is capable of as a runner when he finished 2nd and 6th in the league in rushing yards. The concerns were over his pass catching and perhaps to a much lesser extent his pass blocking. He's been excellent at both this year. When he's had to carry the ball he's been hit at or behind the line of scrimmage so often he's had no chance to gain much yardage. This shouldn't be the case when defenses are no longer able to stack 8 or 9 in the box. Howard just needs a seam and he'll hit it and regularly carry defenders for 6 yards or more. Nagy and his staff haven't been able to put him in a position to do that very often.

What I find frustrating and downright unfathomable is why when Nagy finally managed to get Howard going against the Giants he abandoned it.

Both TD drives in the first half showcased what Howard can do.

1st TD: 10 plays, 57 yards.
6 carries from Howard for 38 yards, including 5 in succession where he gained 3 yards, 2 yards, 22 yards (on 3rd and 5), 8 yards and 3 yards. The next play they faked to Howard from the 2 yard line and Shaheen was left wide open for an easy TD.

2nd TD: 9 plays 69 yards.
The drive started with a 25 yard run from Howard. He also had runs of 1 yard and 4 yards before Nagy tried one of his 'creative' plays, lined him up at QB and he was stopped for no gain. Hicks barrelled in on the next play.

That's two drives where Howard contributed 68 yards on 10 carries including two chunk/explosive plays. It demonstrates how much better he does when he stays on the field and gets into a rhythm.

In the second half he had 2 carries.

I just don't understand that. It's not like the Bears were trying to make up a large deficit (until the last minute or so). It's not like Daniel was having a great game. Nagy just stopped using the most effective weapon he had in the first half, the player who played the biggest role on both TD drives. If he's going to do that then what difference is bringing in another RB going to make?
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KhalilSackDaddy
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HisRoyalSweetness wrote:
KhalilSackDaddy wrote:He defintely wants chunk/explosive plays. And Howard hasn't given him a reason to believe he can give him that consistantly througout the season.

I cannot imagine how he doesn't look to find a RB either in the draft or in FA that can do what he's looking for.
The problem is for all his talk of adapting to his players' strengths Nagy hasn't managed to do that for Howard.

We've seen what Howard is capable of as a runner when he finished 2nd and 6th in the league in rushing yards. The concerns were over his pass catching and perhaps to a much lesser extent his pass blocking. He's been excellent at both this year. When he's had to carry the ball he's been hit at or behind the line of scrimmage so often he's had no chance to gain much yardage. This shouldn't be the case when defenses are no longer able to stack 8 or 9 in the box. Howard just needs a seam and he'll hit it and regularly carry defenders for 6 yards or more. Nagy and his staff haven't been able to put him in a position to do that very often.

What I find frustrating and downright unfathomable is why when Nagy finally managed to get Howard going against the Giants he abandoned it.

Both TD drives in the first half showcased what Howard can do.

1st TD: 10 plays, 57 yards.
6 carries from Howard for 38 yards, including 5 in succession where he gained 3 yards, 2 yards, 22 yards (on 3rd and 5), 8 yards and 3 yards. The next play they faked to Howard from the 2 yard line and Shaheen was left wide open for an easy TD.

2nd TD: 9 plays 69 yards.
The drive started with a 25 yard run from Howard. He also had runs of 1 yard and 4 yards before Nagy tried one of his 'creative' plays, lined him up at QB and he was stopped for no gain. Hicks barrelled in on the next play.

That's two drives where Howard contributed 68 yards on 10 carries including two chunk/explosive plays. It demonstrates how much better he does when he stays on the field and gets into a rhythm.

In the second half he had 2 carries.

I just don't understand that. It's not like the Bears were trying to make up a large deficit (until the last minute or so). It's not like Daniel was having a great game. Nagy just stopped using the most effective weapon he had in the first half, the player who played the biggest role on both TD drives. If he's going to do that then what difference is bringing in another RB going to make?
Why did people think he would use players to their strenghts and not use them how they fit into his system? Name the HC's that adjust what they want to do to the strengths of the players? Not even Bill Bellechk does this. he goes after people, no matter how limited, that do what he needs them to do. It's a myth imo sounds good but it rarely if ever happens. Players are used in the system and they adapt/adjust or go to another team. The coach isn't going to change what he wants to do b/c 1 or a few players don't fit.

Howard is very limited in what he does well. He does those things REALLY well, but its limited. If the rest of the playcalls don't adhere to what he does then it's just sending giant tells to the def what is going on. Running zone coverage out of shotgun is what Howard does well; in stacked boxes. If the rest of the shotgun plays aren't zone blocking w/the rb running lateral to find the hole then the def is going to know what is happening.

If Nagy doesn't call TO and give all the momentum to NY, giving up 10 points in 2 drives(end of 2nd qtr, start of 3rd) then he likely stays w/the run.
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Mikefive
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Not sure I completely buy this well made video. There is something to be said for the logic here. Although, it did seem weird in the one example where he questioned the play design (Kush vs. Daniels 1-on-1), when the problem was a poor decision to call that play with such a bad matchup. What my eyes tell me is that we've had too many cases where Howard is hit at the line or in the backfield. Glad to see that it has improved of late. And while the lack of big gainers is certainly an issue to which non-stacked boxes will contribute, the tape should show Howard breaking thru and having the DBs gather him up after a few yards. I'm just not sure how much I'm seeing that. But with better run blocking at the POA, I'd be happy with Howard against 2 DBs 8 yards downfield several times a game.

Pretty good work here though and well worth the watch.
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Mikefive wrote:Not sure I completely buy this well made video. There is something to be said for the logic here. Although, it did seem weird in the one example where he questioned the play design (Kush vs. Daniels 1-on-1), when the problem was a poor decision to call that play with such a bad matchup. What my eyes tell me is that we've had too many cases where Howard is hit at the line or in the backfield. Glad to see that it has improved of late. And while the lack of big gainers is certainly an issue to which non-stacked boxes will contribute, the tape should show Howard breaking thru and having the DBs gather him up after a few yards. I'm just not sure how much I'm seeing that. But with better run blocking at the POA, I'd be happy with Howard against 2 DBs 8 yards downfield several times a game.

Pretty good work here though and well worth the watch.

Good find Mike. Interesting to note that without the 3 50 yard runs, his average this year is the same as last. That explains a lot.
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