PatsPropaganda

An Independent Patriots Blog

Erhardt-Perkins Offense

The Patriots and the Erhardt-Perkins Offense

by

I definitely tend to lean toward the defensive side of the football when it comes to Xs and Os so this week’s exploration of all things Erhardt-Perkins Offense was an interesting one. As we did with our defensive system week we’ll sum things up here with the most need-to-know information.

The biggest thing to take away from it is that while the Patriots current offense is a derivative of the Erhardt-Perkins “pass to score, run to win” offense it has evolved into something much different than what it was at it’s inception.

Of course many of the core concepts remain the same, especially when it comes to moving the football and maintaining possession. However today’s Patriots offense has elements of Charlie Weis, Urban Meyer, and Josh McDaniels that are very much a part of it (among others I’m sure… Bill O’Brien anyone?).

This is how all football schemes are: ever-evolving. The Patriots version is often referred to as an “amoeba” offense, in that it can take any form they need for the purpose of moving the football. Perhaps more specifically they are fans of running the same play out of multiple formations, whereas other teams will often run multiple plays out of the same formation. The shape changes, but what comes out of it is often the same.

The origins of the Erhardt-Perkins offense are very much of the “ground and pound” variety, and obviously the Patriots would no longer be considered a “ground and pound” team. They can when they need to, but it’s just one tool in a much larger toolbox.

The other evidence of this is how many different types of running backs and tight ends the Patriots will have on their roster whenever the 2011 gets under way. Each different player brings a different strength to the party, enabling the Patriots to do a variety of different things, often from the same personnel groupings.

Clearly Bill Belichick’s football philosophy on both sides of the ball is one of disguise, and keeping the other team on their toes at all times. This might seem like a common sense approach, but it is not easy to coordinate 11 men on a field with multiple shifts, checks, and audibles. It’s clearer to me now why the Patriots put such a premium on FBI (Football Intelligence) when acquiring personnel.

While the terminology might be the last holdover from the true Erhardt-Perkins offensive system, the core of building a tough, diverse offense that can play in all weather conditions remains.

Over the course of Bill Belichick’s tenure the offense has evolved a great deal, primarily due to Charlie Weis, and later expanded upon by Josh McDaniels. Clearly the Bill O’Brien modifications and additions will be ones based around a diverse group of tight ends and running backs.  Clearly this Amoeba Belichick version of the Erhardt-Perkins offense will continue to grow and evolve.

This ensures that the effect of the Patriots’ systems and influence of Bill Belichick will continue to reverberate throughout the NFL for decades.

MileHighReport: Analysis of Patriots passing offense

by

MileHighReport: Analysis of Patriots passing offense

Great stuff here back from 2009 when the fanalysts over at Mile High Report were still excited to get a taste of what Josh McDaniels would do for their offense.

I’ve been posting these articles as much for myself as you the readers, and I’ve really be intrigued by a lot of what I have come across while really diving into offensive football like I never have before.

One huge thing that this article reinforced for me was the use of multiple formations to run the same plays. One of my favorite nuggets:

The thing that struck me about the Patriots’ style is that they are constantly probing, pushing, and looking for a weakness. You can watch it unfold, attacking one point after another, quickly, but in sequence. It’s not as smash-mouth an approach as the original Erhardt-Perkins or, say, Miami or Pittsburgh would use.  It’s perhaps more like fencing than boxing.

Playing the Colts is probably a bit like being in a knife fight – they are constantly cutting at you until you are exhausted. New England seems slightly different – you  can watch them constantly looking for the best adjustments. This probing side of the amoeba tendency alone will win its own certain share of close games. Making adjustments is a huge skill, the Broncos has often lacked in over the past years and Josh McDaniels does it very well.

The Patriots obviously like being unpredictable. Most teams do, of course, but in the film I watched, New England took it to the extreme. While there are statistical norms, in any single game there are no specific passing or rushing downs for the Pats. They will pass on short yardage, run (often a draw) on 3rd and long, 2nd and short or any other situation. Overall, it’s hard to stop, and I suspect that it’s nearly impossible to predict.

Charlie Weis’ impact on the Erhardt-Perkins system

by

Charlie Weis’ impact on the Erhardt-Perkins system

This article is also a good short breakdown of the other two primary ancestors of modern offensive football: The Air Coryell system and the West Coast system. A little bit on both:

Air Coryell

The Air Coryell offense is one that is being used by a handful of teams in the league today. Oakland and San Diego use it, New Orleans runs a variation of it along with some Erhardt-Perkins, and Chicago will be using it this year now that Mike Martz is the offensive coordinator in Chicago. It’s an offense that was created by Sid Gillman back in the 60′s while with the Chargers. Later Don Coryell perfected it or made it what it eventually became remembered for while with the Chargers in the 70′s and 80′s. Another notable name to be associated with this offense is none other than Al Davis who was an assistant under Sid Gillman and took the offense to Oakland. The offense is based on timing and precession with the emphasis being on deep passes to stretch the field, and make the defense over commit to certain aspects of the passing attack.

West Coast Offense

The West Coast offense utilizes short, horizontal passing plays to stretch the defense, which then enables them to have bigger run plays and longer passes. Typical plays happen within ten to fifteen yards of the line of scrimmage. By the quarterback taking short drops, it makes the defense focus on the intermediate short routes & not on the running backs coming out of the backfield. The term “West Coast” is a term that Bill Parcells gave the offense back in 1985 after the Giants beat the 49ers in the playoffs. As people know, Parcells believes in hard nose football and tough defense over finesse football which everyone said the 49ers played finesse football back then.

Finally we have how Charlie Weis set the stage for Josh McDaniels to take the Erhardt-Perkins offense to contain elements of a modern spread.

Charlie Weis can be credited for installing the heavily modified version of this offense that we see in New England and Denver. His version of the offense became the complicated, very intricate and versatile passing attack that we have witnessed over the past ten years. He even went as far as to run five wide out sets a lot during the course of a game which was unheard of back in the day when Erhardt and Perkins created this offense. Weis left for Notre Dame which open the door for the young protege Josh McDaniels to run what he had learned under Weis as the QB coach in New England. Josh took it to another level back in 2007 with Randy Moss, Wes Welker and Donte Stallworth. He made the offense almost exclusively a spread offense that teams weren’t ready for nor knew how to stop with Moss & Welker needing to be double teamed. In leau of the expanded wide open passing attack, he was able to keep the running game portion of this offense a key component in the Patriots record breaking season.

Ideal lineman for the Erhardt-Perkins offensive system

by

Ideal lineman for the Erhardt-Perkins offensive system

Good article here with another fundamental breakdown of the offense, but what I’d like to focus on are the types of offensive lineman required to run it because clearly this is still very much a part of the system.

This system uses bigger offensive lineman and typically bigger Running Backs who can sustain running between the tackles on a regular basis. The Offensive Tackles and Guards in this system typically “Pull” and “Trap”. What this means is, on a Running play that is designed to run to the right, let’s say in the B Gap or between the Guard and Tackle on the Right Side, the Left Guard will quickly leave his original position and become the lead blocker for the Running Back. This type of Rushing attack usually requires big Offensive Lineman who will be able to handle a large Defensive Tackle head on.

Hmmm, big, athletic offensive lineman? Clearly Vollmer and Solder are perfect examples.

by

So what does a quarterback need to play in [the Erhardt-Perkins] offense? Not very much. The quarterback needs to possess only limited ability: good football smarts, short to medium passing accuracy, an arm good enough to make the deep ball a possibility, and a good play action fake. Brady fits this mold perfectly and plays as one would expect a quarterback who fits a system perfectly to perform.

https://www.patspropaganda.com/so-what-does-a-quarterback-need-to-play-in-the/

by

While no team exclusively runs the Erhardt-Perkins offensive, many teams use its philosophy as the basis for creating the playbook. Bill Parcells, Bill Belichick, Josh McDaniels, Charlie Weis, Jeff Davidson, Bill Cowher, Marty Schottenheimer, and Chan Gailey-led teams typically base their attacks on ball control and/or running the ball.

https://www.patspropaganda.com/while-no-team-exclusively-runs-the-erhardt-perkins/