Film Study on Randall Cobb and Nick Perry

[RulingWalnut]

I've recently had some free time to watch the All-22 footage of the last two Green Bay Packers games (against the Bengals and Lions). We all know all the great stuff about Aaron Rodgers but I was more interested in two fairly young players, WR Randall Cobb and OLB Nick Perry. So I watched all of the snaps in both games, focusing on Cobb when the Packers were on offense and Perry when the Packers were on defense. These two kids are powerful players and should grow to be even better, but I'm going to specifically address what we as Ravens fans may see on Sunday based on what my perceptions over these two games.

Randall Cobb almost always lines up as a slot receiver when GB's offense is on the field. If he ever lines up outside another receiver at the end of the field, watch for the motion into a WR screen. He also had one notable series set up in the backfield. The Packers will try to get him the ball in space where he can do the most damage. This is because Cobb has top end speed. When in the open field, he is very hard to bring down. Cobb can outrun anyone if he gets a good angle. At least one Packers' touchdown was directly the result of Cobb beating his man and drawing the safety over to his side of the field, leaving James Jones with a 1-on-1.

When running routes, Cobb is very talented at seeing and exploiting holes in zone defenses. He is willing to go up and make the play when the ball is contested. When asked to run-block or for another receiver downfield, Cobb is fairly aggressive most of the time. After one Aaron Rodgers interception against the Bengals, Cobb caught up from behind and knocked the ball loose out of the Cincinatti's hands. Another Bengals player picked up the fumble and ran it in for the touchdown but that doesn't discount Cobb's effort.

Cobb's most glaring weakness is his struggles with man coverage, especially against the press. He seems to have trouble disengaging from physical corners and getting jammed at the line severely throws off his rhythm. If you let him start his route cleanly, Cobb will hurt you. Webb can definitely shut down Cobb, the issue is that Green Bay has too many other passing weapons.

As a side-note, Cobb had a false start called on him against the Lions. This was triggered by a Lions defender across the formation jumping offsides and Cobb moved on that. Yes, he should know when the play actually starts. But it wasn't entirely his fault.

With Clay Matthews out for the game, Nick Perry is going to have some additional pressure on him to perform. Always standing on the line of scrimmage, Perry is predominantly on the left side but slid to the right for multiple series. His primary role is attacking the O-line, he is only rarely asked to drop back into coverage but performs the task adequately.

Perry has good ball awareness. When the play passes by him, he is quick to recognize where the ball is and move to engage. He plays to the whistle and doesn't give up on plays, often making tackles from behind. I was very impressed with his ability against interior runs. Once Perry identifies a running play, he immediately pushes his man into the nearest hole. Quite often I saw him collect up an interior lineman as well to completely shut-down the running lane with bodies.

When focused on pass rushing, Perry will attempt to get the first step on the tackle. If he does, he can beat the tackle to the outside and grab the QB from behind. There were many uncalled holds on Perry after after beating the offensive lineman in this manner. He can also rely on his strength. Perry is almost never defeated in a straight-up shoving match. The matchup will either end in a stalemate or Perry getting the upper-hand and collapsing the pocket. He will occasionally attempt a spin-move which sometimes works. When locked at the line, Perry isn't afraid to jump to swat at the ball. I would not be surprised if he has a pass deflection against the Ravens.

While Perry is a good interior run defender, he is not a big threat to the QB cutting in between the tackle and the guard. He also does not necessarily command a double team when pass rushing. If our tackles can get the initial step on him and hold their ground, they shouldn't need help with Perry.

[lobachevsky]

And coincidentally, both were taken off the field injured, Cobb on a cart.

Not that it's going to matter while the offense continues to shit the bed.