For the uninitiated like myself, I always enjoy reading things like this...

http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/...brady-patriots

Quick summary:
There are 3 main offensive systems in the NFL: Coryell (what the Ravens run), West Coast, and Ehrdhart-Perkins (what the Patriots run). All NFL offenses call a lot of the same stuff. What differentiates them anymore is terminology.

According to the author, the Coryell and West Coast specify individual routes and have become overbearing as they've attempted to keep up with the vast NFL route tree. The Ehrdhart-Perkins terminology remains simple (relatively speaking) by specifying concepts (route combinations).

One advantage is that this allows the Patriots to quickly communicate ideas in the no huddle. Sometimes they do this so quickly that the defense can't keep up (much to the chagrin of Ayenbadejo apparently). If you watch the Pats-Texans game, or if you've watched the Pats at all recently, they always seem to get in a few plays before the defense is set. Now, perhaps, I understand how they pull that off.

To anyone who's more familiar with X's and O's and the associated terminology, I'd love to hear your thoughts on the authors take.


As a side note, I believe the Ravens were the next most frequent user of the no huddle (someone in another thread posted a graphic to this effect). And I know I've seen and read quite a bit of Flacco wanting to speed up our no huddle. Since we booted Cam, is it also time to boot the Coryell and adopt a system that better complements the no-huddle/quick snap philosophy seemingly favored by our QB? If so, this off-season might be the perfect time.