Ted Roof is fighting for barely perceptible improvement that could result in vast gains.
In spring practice, the Georgia Tech defensive coordinator has been devoting considerable time to his defensive backs on footwork techniques to help improve a defense that by many metrics was among the weakest in the country.
It matters, Roof said, “because that’s going to impact the completion percentage, it’s going to impact tackling, it’s going to impact yardage after catch, it’s going to impact pursuit angles. All the things. It has an impact on so much.”
Specifically, Roof has been devoting attention to how defensive backs transition from backpedaling to driving forward toward a receiver or a running back or to turning to run downfield. When he reviewed game video from the 2014 season, he saw players not taking a direct path toward their target or wasting steps as they changed direction.
“It was too much rounding,” Roof said. “The transition wasn’t good overall. We weren’t very pleased with that.”
The Jackets' defensive issues last fall extended far past sloppy footwork. But it was evidently part of the problem for a defense that was 109th in opponent completion percentage (62.9) and tied for 108th in 20-yard pass plays by the opposition (48), according to cfbstats.com. Tech was also 114th in defensive third-down conversion percentage (46.1).
Often, the difference between a third-down conversion and a punt can be a matter of a cornerback getting his fingertips on a pass or a safety corralling a wide receiver quickly enough to keep him in front of the first-down marker. Each step matters.
Safety Jamal Golden said that, during spring practice, the first two or three periods of practice have been devoted to improving transition technique, details like the angle that a player will place his foot after planting with his other foot to charge out of his backpedal. Essentially, it needs to be pointed in the direction the player is going.
Said Golden, “You don’t want to run a hump to go where you’re going.”
Perhaps the more critical aspect of transitioning effectively is knowing where to go, which means keeping an eye on the correct key. If a safety’s assignment is to read a particular receiver, for instance, he can’t be watching the quarterback.
“It all starts with your eyes,” Golden said. “If you’re looking at the right thing, then your transition will probably come with it.”
Golden sees improvement. In passing drills, he said, “I get my hands on the ball a pretty good bit. All the DB’s do. Zach Allen has a pick almost every day.”
Roof was a little more measured, saying that, “It’s got to be better, but it looks better.”
Better footwork won’t solve all of Tech’s problems. There’s a reason that improving the four-man pass rush, in order to leave more defenders in pass coverage, has been another priority this spring.
Transitioning effectively won’t guarantee that a defensive back will make the play, Roof said, but “it’s a big, big deal in defending the pass in the secondary.”
About the Author
