Packers Defense vs Mobile Quarterback

Packers vs Colin KaepernickThere are two types of mobile quarterbacks, the “he’s getting away” type and the “where the heck did he go” type. Tomorrow the Packers meet one of these mobile quarterbacks…

But, which one?

Change-of-Direction Quarterbacks

These “where the heck did he go” quarterbacks are hard to get a bead on and bring down. They’re the Michael Vicks and the RGIIIs of the league. Their running back counterparts are Adrian Peterson and Barry Sanders.

These guys can stop on a dime and change direction while defenders grab at empty air. Bringing them down is less like roping calves and more like catching cats.

The Packers did a fairly good job against one of these quarterbacks last week. Webb did get a couple good runs, but the Packers kept him from springing loose too many times. (Of course, it helped that Webb was zero threat in the passing game.)

Straight-Line Running Quarterbacks

These “he’s getting away” quarterbacks aren’t elusive, but they can pick up yardage if they have a seam. In the running back world there are a lot more examples of this than of the elusive type of running back. They’re the Arian Foster and Jerome Bettis type of runner. They’re smart enough to cut back where the seam is opening, but they aren’t the type of runner that’s going to make you look like a fool while a chunk of sod dangles from your helmet.

Colin Kaepernick is one of these mobile quarterbacks. You can see from the clips below that if he has a seam, he’s going to take it. He’s really tall which gives him a stride length that gets him quite a ways downfield before defenders can close on him.

The solution to containing this type of mobile quarterback is to avoid giving him seams. The Packer defense is going to have to collapse the pocket uniformly to force Kaepernick to bounce outside where they can stretch the play and keep him moving towards the sideline. If they can do that, Kaepernick’s running threat will look more like this…

Immobilizing the Mobile Quarterback

In the end, I don’t expect Kaepernick to hurt the Packers too badly with his feet. He may extend a drive or two, but we should be able to corral him effectively enough. He certainly won’t do THIS to us…

Packers Defense vs Mobile Quarterback

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