Doing Things Different

by Ryan

Ronnie Brown.

If you said his name a month ago your first thought would be his surgery and questions about the Dolphins offensive line. Brown was a potential keeper in my fantasy league, and I wasn't going to waste a first round pick to keep all that uncertainty. Who knows how well the Dolphins will play, so why not let him go and get a guy you trust, right?

Ask someone about Ronnie Brown these days and you will get one response: the Wildcat Offense.

You have to admit, it's pretty brilliant. A few weeks ago Rich and I were out watching the USC/Ohio State game and we started talking about the differences between the pro and college game. One of the things I noticed was the different punt formations college teams use. They seem to spread the players out a bit more and have three people back blocking in the backfield. It may not make a difference in effectiveness, but it is... different.

During the process of the conversation I offhandedly asked why teams don't try "different" things more often. I wasn't asking for a play calling revolution, but just lamenting the lack of originality in the league. It is such a copycat sport, but very rarely do teams go out on a limb and try something completely new.

My theory was that if you have a distinct disadvantage with regards to talent, coaching, or otherwise; why not take a chance? If you are being set up to fail, why not try something new? I understand people on bad teams have their jobs to fear, but already we have had two coaches fired this year, and the only thing out of the ordinary they did was attempt a 76 yard field goal. Okay, so that's pretty crazy, but when you are working for Al Davis it's pretty hard to stay sane.

St. Louis has a franchise running back that isn't getting touches while his quarterback gets yanked week by week. Why not develop a scheme or two and try getting your back more involved? If it costs you a loss you finish 2-14, and if you win a few more, well, you win a few more. Maybe it's the fan in me dying to see something original, but if you're going down, why not go out with a bang?

This isn't a rallying call for a Texas Tech-style offense to show up in the Pro game. In fact, I don't know if there is any room for more floral shirts in the league, the Pro Bowl is enough. However, I do appreciate the balls it takes to throw that play at the defending AFC champions, and I like the fact that they refuse to stop doing it when they see it works.

But if they run it against us, Donte better bash his facemask in.