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  1. #1

    What does "Bend but don't break mean"?

    does a defense play poorly from the opponents 20 yard line to their own 20 yard line and then become a super defense? if they were a super defense they wouldn't have let the opposing team march 60 yards before they tightened up. is there that much scheming in the red zone that a defense who was overmatched by an offense for 60 yards now becomes superior to that same offense?

    i heard that the 2012 ravens defense bent but didn't break. i would like to know how much of that is luck or real technical scheming.

    i felt our defense was extremly suspect in 2012. it wasn't just their ranking but their ability to stop teams when it counted. the eagles game was a prime example.

    i am excited about our defense for 2013. if harbaugh can get these guys to jell then the new talent far exceeds the old talent. the question is how do you quantify "chemistry". depsite the ravens 2012 slow defense that had a hard time tackleing they had chemistry. the 2013 defense will be a case study of talent vs chemistry.

    i think about the ravens last stand in the SB. 1st and goal from the seven and we have nghata on the side lines, cody and kemo up the middle. i don't know how we did it but i'm not complaining. i do give credit to pees for the blitzing and ellerbe's effectiveness blitzing.





  2. #2
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    Re: What does "Bend but don't break mean"?

    Quote Originally Posted by Section 502 Raven View Post
    does a defense play poorly from the opponents 20 yard line to their own 20 yard line and then become a super defense? if they were a super defense they wouldn't have let the opposing team march 60 yards before they tightened up. is there that much scheming in the red zone that a defense who was overmatched by an offense for 60 yards now becomes superior to that same offense?

    i heard that the 2012 ravens defense bent but didn't break. i would like to know how much of that is luck or real technical scheming.

    i felt our defense was extremly suspect in 2012. it wasn't just their ranking but their ability to stop teams when it counted. the eagles game was a prime example.

    i am excited about our defense for 2013. if harbaugh can get these guys to jell then the new talent far exceeds the old talent. the question is how do you quantify "chemistry". depsite the ravens 2012 slow defense that had a hard time tackleing they had chemistry. the 2013 defense will be a case study of talent vs chemistry.

    i think about the ravens last stand in the SB. 1st and goal from the seven and we have nghata on the side lines, cody and kemo up the middle. i don't know how we did it but i'm not complaining. i do give credit to pees for the blitzing and ellerbe's effectiveness blitzing.
    sometimes a defense is simply outmatched or outsped in between redzones because of the ground needed to be covered but has much less problems inside the 20. that was the ravens defense last year. maybe someone with more technical knowledge of the types of defense packages we ran down there can add to this. i personally don't think pees was in meetings like, 'well hell let's just let 'em pile up yardage and then we stop 'em in the redzone,' but it worked out that way alot in '12. obviously it wasn't really 'planned' because so far the Ravens have spent a lot of time shoring up the defense; they don't want to give up nearly as many yards as they did last year.





  3. #3
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    Re: What does "Bend but don't break mean"?

    Quote Originally Posted by rlh445 View Post
    sometimes a defense is simply outmatched or outsped in between redzones because of the ground needed to be covered but has much less problems inside the 20. that was the ravens defense last year. maybe someone with more technical knowledge of the types of defense packages we ran down there can add to this. i personally don't think pees was in meetings like, 'well hell let's just let 'em pile up yardage and then we stop 'em in the redzone,' but it worked out that way alot in '12. obviously it wasn't really 'planned' because so far the Ravens have spent a lot of time shoring up the defense; they don't want to give up nearly as many yards as they did last year.
    youre basically describing it. Zones have larger areas to cover vertically in the middle of the field. Man coverage has to stick pretty much regardless, but speed is more utilized out further where they can separate by it than inside 20 where its minimized.
    -JAB





  4. #4

    Re: What does "Bend but don't break mean"?

    Sometimes the bend don't break mentality is to play conservative and be less susceptible to the big play. That can go with not having the speed to cover all the open space as noted above. It can also be related to making the offense execute their offense without making mistakes for a longer period of time. So, you make then use 12 plays, hopefully they make a mistake, a missed pass, a stupid penalty....





  5. #5
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    Re: What does "Bend but don't break mean"?

    Quote Originally Posted by blah3 View Post
    Sometimes the bend don't break mentality is to play conservative and be less susceptible to the big play. That can go with not having the speed to cover all the open space as noted above. It can also be related to making the offense execute their offense without making mistakes for a longer period of time. So, you make then use 12 plays, hopefully they make a mistake, a missed pass, a stupid penalty....
    This is the basis of my thoughts about bend don't break. Don't gamble and give up an 80 yard bomb. Instead, let them get 10 yards here, 7 yards there, 12 yards here. When you get to the redzone, those routes tighten up and it becomes tougher for a WR to break completely open.

    We've seen teams take FGs against us over and over and lose (Chargers in 2009, the one where Ray PERFECTLY timed a run blitz through the A gap to smash Sproles and put the nail in the coffin on 4th down)
    .
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    “When I think of a Baltimore Raven - we go in there, we take your lunch box, we take your sandwich, we take your juice box, we take your applesauce, and we take your spork and we break it. And we leave you with an empty lunch. That’s the Baltimore Raven way.” - Steve Smith Sr.


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  6. #6
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    Re: What does "Bend but don't break mean"?

    Bend but don't break - don't give up the big play.

    Our defense was pretty awful against the run. Cody was getting manhandled all the time.
    In between the 20s, the DBs have to stay back and respect the pass, so they can't help out as quick on the running plays. So, it creates a natural hole in the middle. So, opposing offenses were moving the chains until they got to the 20.

    Now, the field is compressed which helps the defense because they have less real estate to defend which means the 11 defenders are also closer to the line of scrimmage, helping stop the run.
    And the Ravens had something else, they had tons of experience (which makes up for much of the loss of speed with the aging vets) and two of the best at diagnosing plays, Ray and Ed.

    To make a stop, you have to be in the right place at the right time.
    Against the Niners at the goalline, the Niners made the biggest mistake and DIDN'T RUN because they did not realize the change in our defense.
    Because at that time in the game, our great redzone defense was dead tired and were physically getting beat.
    But the Niners decided to pass against our young guys on the outside which was IMHO, stupid.





  7. #7
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    Allowing yardage is fine but keep them out of the end Zone


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  8. #8
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    Re: What does "Bend but don't break mean"?

    It is pretty well covered by others.

    I'd add that it is yardage defended.
    If they are on their 20, we have 90 yards to defens (80 + end zone)
    When they are on our 20, we have 30 yards to defend (20 + endzone)
    11 guys can cover 30 far more effectively than 90, hence the bend...
    bend = give up what you have to, just keep it in front of you, don't allow a Flacco to pass of 70 yds to Jacoby to be a TD. Give up 45 yards to Pitta if you have to bend, but Denver broke.

    Inside the 20, much less bending has to take place, so things effectively tighten up big time.
    at one point of my life I was exactly Pi years old





  9. #9
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    Re: What does "Bend but don't break mean"?

    Quote Originally Posted by JAB1985 View Post
    youre basically describing it. Zones have larger areas to cover vertically in the middle of the field. Man coverage has to stick pretty much regardless, but speed is more utilized out further where they can separate by it than inside 20 where its minimized.
    That's a very good analysis of the situation.





  10. #10
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    Re: What does "Bend but don't break mean"?

    It means the Indianapolis Colts defense of the latter stages of the Peyton Manning Era.
    "Please take with you this final sword, The Excellector. I am praying that your journey will be guided by the light", Leon Shore





  11. #11

    Re: What does "Bend but don't break mean"?

    It means:

    1) You don't give up the big play

    2) But you can't get off the field, and give up medium-sized chunks of yardage and too many first downs

    3) But you're better in the red zone, when the offense has fewer options

    4) And if you don't have good depth, you let leads slip away in the fourth quarter and play way too many close games.

    Watching a BBDB defense can be absolute torture, but it keeps the game interesting.
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  12. #12
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    Re: What does "Bend but don't break mean"?

    I was thinking about this stuff during the playoff runs.
    Colts moved the ball and scored 3 times but all FGs.
    Broncos got 21 points (on offense) in five quarters.
    Pats got shut out in the second half.
    I felt that I could see the frustration on these teams as the game went on. Ravens took away the long pass and forced the short and outside and it got harder and harder to string enough plays together for a drive; plus Peyton and Brady have late-30s arms, which I think was a factor. (compare that to the Flacco Cannon that threw for three tds in the 2nd half--Belichik was thinking 'I wish I had one of them').
    I'd prefer the three-and-out D myself but we'll take what we can get. and we really never had the whole D together last year, as Suggs, Ray, JamMac and Webb (probly others I don't remember) were all out at one time or other. (Thank God and Ozzie for depth).
    "Nothing stops these Baltimore Ravens. Beat them, injure them, shove them to the bottom of the standings, drag them into a hostile environment and mount a big lead, and they just keep trudging forward like nothing fazes them." (Bleacher Report)





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