Nickel Defense Carrying Heavy Load for Washington Redskins

November 13, 2015   ·   James Dudko   ·   Jump to comments

Tom Brady knew where he wanted to go with the ball. The pre-snap look was just too inviting. As he turned one way, he saw all-world tight end Rob Gronkowski split out wide in one-on-one coverage. When he looked the other way, Brady saw Julian Edelman, his go-to target, aligned in the slot.
With his two best receivers facing man coverage, Brady had everything he needed to dissect the Washington Redskins defense. But what the New England Patriots quarterback saw pre-snap had radically changed once he'd dropped back to pass. Now No. 12 saw both of his premier weapons blanketed in coverage.
Gronkowski was doubled on the outside, while Edelman had been encased by two defenders over the middle. Brady had no choice. He had to attempt that difficult and dangerous throw to the sideline. But his desperate pass toward Danny Amendola fell incomplete and the Patriots punted.
Brady had just met Washington's 3-3-5 nickel defense, the cunning sub-package designed by coordinato...

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