“Unpacking the Packers: How They Could Snag a Creative Twist from Ben Johnson’s Playbook!”

As an individual who enjoys writing about football from a cinematic viewpoint, the offseason presents a challenging scenario to manage. The Green Bay Packers didn’t prolong their season into the Divisional Round (which I find quite inconsiderate), so their offseason has commenced. What is a film aficionado to do when there’s no more film available?

The solution, of course, is to view the films of other teams. Because there’s still football being played, and intriguing ideas are abundant.

Thus today – and during this extended, somber offseason – we’re going to analyze teams throughout the league (and perhaps explore the college ranks), uncovering innovative concepts and examining how the Packers can adopt them. We’re beginning with a play from a divisional competitor: the Lions executing a pitch/shovel against the Commanders.

I understand that it can be difficult to commend a rival, but wow, that’s a fantastic play. It’s inventive while also integrating seamlessly into the running offense. Let’s dive into it.

The Lions are in 11 personnel (1 RB, 1 TE, 3 WR) configured in a 2×2 formation. Jared Goff [16] is positioned in the shotgun with David Montgomery [5] lined up to his left. They’re in a compact formation, with Amon Ra St. Brown [14] connected to the formation (but off the line) on the right.

At the snap, Montgomery flares out, and Goff tosses him the ball. On the left, Tim Patrick [17] initially appears to be crashing down on the line before releasing into the slot. On the right, Christian Mahogany [73] and St. Brown pull leftward. From the initial blocking movement – coupled with the pitch to Montgomery – this resembles an outside run.

As the linebackers flow outward, Montgomery then pitches to St. Brown, who follows Mahogany through the line for a 20-yard gain.

Incredible play, indeed. Excellent misdirection, then slicing through the defense in the space they’ve vacated.

Now, to the portion of interest for our discussion: How can the Packers appropriate this?

They must execute it off a pitch play, which necessitates having that in their playbook. While not a predominant feature of their strategy, it’s something they’ve demonstrated enough to establish as a routine, which is essential for running this pitch/shovel as a counter.

So let’s begin here: if the Packers were to replicate this as-is, how would it appear?

The best conclusion I could draw from this alignment is that Tucker Kraft [85] would be taking it. Although Dontayvion Wicks [13] is a solid blocker, he’s never aligned with the line without a TE overshadowing him, like St. Brown in this play. Unless they establish that as a norm, putting Wicks in the TE position seems like a significant giveaway. Thus, it must be Kraft.

I believe this could be successful. Kraft isn’t the fastest player, but he could take this shovel, turn upfield, and seek to inflict some damage. If we replicate it as-is, I think it could work. But can we uncover other methods to execute this?

I attempted to explore various alignments, yet these two are my favorites. I didn’t wish to delve too far: after all, this is the kind of play that’s executed once a season. Maybe twice if the defense heavily commits to the outside run. I aimed to connect it to a fundamental running concept. Hence, I opted for something the Packers focused on this year: the Spinner series. It’s a split-gun running base with multiple variations, and the Packers experienced considerable success with it.

The first concept also targets Kraft. We have Josh Jacobs [8] and Jayden Reed [11] in the backfield. Reed motions behind Jordan Love pre-snap, then releases into the flat. They’re running this off Counter, with Jacobs taking a jab step towards Love – as if he’s about to cross Love’s path and receive the handoff for a run to the right – before flaring out to the left. We have the right guard and Kraft pulling from the right. Love pitches to Jacobs, and this resembles an outside-attacking pitch play, only for Jacobs to pitch to Kraft inside.

The subsequent play embodies a similar concept, but we’ll adjust things slightly. Same personnel and same movements/releases from the backfield, but this time Wicks shifts down pre-snap into an insert position. Although the Packers don’t have Wicks directly attached to the line, he often inserts under the line, so this aligns with their style. This also aids in selling that initial jab step from Jacobs, as running towards the right side – behind Kraft, Wicks, and a strong run-blocking side of the line – is logical for the Packers.

Jacobs receives the pitch, then shovels to Wicks inside behind the pulling right guard.

I am quite fond of this play. It operates off the Spinner series the Packers focused on this year, while distributing the ball to Wicks, who excelled with the ball in his hands.

This seems to be a play many teams will aim to integrate for 2025, and I believe we have a straightforward approach to incorporate this into the Packers’ existing strategies. It also provides yet another option in the arsenal of intriguing variations off the outside toss.

Albums listened to: Julee Cruise – Floating Into the Night; Chromatics – Kill For Love; Danger Mouse & Sparklehorse – Dark Night of the Soul