Cover1 Video: Rousseau breaks down Leonhard's new defense

[DrDawkinstein]

45minute video!

 

At work so havent watched the whole thing yet but wanted to share.

 

[Dillenger4]

Thanks for posting!

[DrDawkinstein]

My main take away so far isnt so much about the difference in schemes and Xs and Os, but rather how much stuff all these players have to process so quickly.

 

Just hearing Groot talk through what he's seeing and reacting to within in milliseconds from the snap... how much a difference it makes have your foot slightly angled differently before the snap... 

 

It's the little things that will need to be relearned that will make the biggest differences.

[TheyCallMeAndy]

I love nitty-gritty details.

 

I think Groot will excel in this role.

He also confirmed again:

 

OLB

Staying at 260-265

[DrDawkinstein]

16 minutes ago, TheyCallMeAndy said:

I love nitty-gritty details.

 

I think Groot will excel in this role.

He also confirmed again:

 

OLB

Staying at 260-265

 

 

Much better than Vrabel/Russini and Diggs Drama, imo.

[TheyCallMeAndy]

23 minutes ago, DrDawkinstein said:

 

 

Much better than Vrabel/Russini and Diggs Drama, imo.

And just under Josh Allen in Shorts 👍🏼

[Shaw66]

First, thanks for posting. 

 

Second, Cover 1 is great. It's really impressive that Turner can talk with a veteran pro as an equal, that he sees what Rousseau sees and can discuss nuances with him.  Fabulous.

 

Third, I can't watch this without getting more excited about what we're going to see. The unspoken but obviously implication of what they were saying is that Rousseau has been playing with one hand tied behind his back. His physical skills are made for playing out there at the 9, where he can get a running start.  He's good inside where he's been playing, but he's going to be a different guy when he's truly out there on the edge. 

 

Fourth, he runs with receivers better than Edmunds ever did. He looks like a really big 4-3 outside linebacker. And he understands that role. I loved when he said about a couple of the plays on film that he wanted the QB to throw it. He's an athlete, and he's begging the QB to throw at his man, because he's ready to make a play. 

 

Great, great stuff. 

[Bleeding Bills Blue]

1 hour ago, DrDawkinstein said:

My main take away so far isnt so much about the difference in schemes and Xs and Os, but rather how much stuff all these players have to process so quickly.

 

Just hearing Groot talk through what he's seeing and reacting to within in milliseconds from the snap... how much a difference it makes have your foot slightly angled differently before the snap... 

 

It's the little things that will need to be relearned that will make the biggest differences.

 

I feel like this is usually why fringe guys who miss camp end up struggling or cut - you miss install and everything feels off.  

[colin]

that guy and the film breakdowns from cover 1 are great, a couple of the other guys on their chat podcast appeal to me like nails on a chalkboard.

 

anyhow, it was illuminating to see just how successful groot has been rushing the passer (i knew it was good, didn't know top 10) and how much wide 9 he played.  his best work came as an OLB last season.  

 

im gonna homer out and predict a solid d for the championship 2026 buffalo bills.

[GaryPinC]

My takeaways are:

-Rousseau is excited because overall there will be more space to operate for everyone.  He has a really fast 10 yard split and long stride so loves the 9 wide. 

-Loves the 2 point because he  can see more of the play and diagnose quicker. 

-Feels like this scheme allows him a little more flexibility to exploit either of his gaps.

-Likes working with Bobby April III as edge is a little different than interior line and appreciates the linebacker perspective to pass rush.

-Says everyone is excited that there will be more creativity up frontunder Leonhard.

-Feels like Javon Solomon is a player to watch for the new scheme really opening up his game.

 

[pennstate10]

1 hour ago, Shaw66 said:

First, thanks for posting. 

 

Second, Cover 1 is great. It's really impressive that Turner can talk with a veteran pro as an equal, that he sees what Rousseau sees and can discuss nuances with him.  Fabulous.

 

Third, I can't watch this without getting more excited about what we're going to see. The unspoken but obviously implication of what they were saying is that Rousseau has been playing with one hand tied behind his back. His physical skills are made for playing out there at the 9, where he can get a running start.  He's good inside where he's been playing, but he's going to be a different guy when he's truly out there on the edge. 

 

Fourth, he runs with receivers better than Edmunds ever did. He looks like a really big 4-3 outside linebacker. And he understands that role. I loved when he said about a couple of the plays on film that he wanted the QB to throw it. He's an athlete, and he's begging the QB to throw at his man, because he's ready to make a play. 

 

Great, great stuff. 

 

For what its worth re: coverage skills, Rousseau played safety in high school.

 

To be clear, I can count on one hand the times I can remember playing in coverage for the Bills.  But I'm really looking forward to this fall.

[No_Matter_What]

1 hour ago, GaryPinC said:

My takeaways are:

-Rousseau is excited because overall there will be more space to operate for everyone.  He has a really fast 10 yard split and long stride so loves the 9 wide. 

-Loves the 2 point because he  can see more of the play and diagnose quicker. 

-Feels like this scheme allows him a little more flexibility to exploit either of his gaps.

-Likes working with Bobby April III as edge is a little different than interior line and appreciates the linebacker perspective to pass rush.

-Says everyone is excited that there will be more creativity up frontunder Leonhard.

-Feels like Javon Solomon is a player to watch for the new scheme really opening up his game.

 

If Javon Solomon really thrives in the new scheme then kudos to Beane anticipating scheme change two years in advance!

Edited May 5 by No_Matter_What

[H2o]

1 hour ago, pennstate10 said:

 

For what its worth re: coverage skills, Rousseau played safety in high school.

 

To be clear, I can count on one hand the times I can remember playing in coverage for the Bills.  But I'm really looking forward to this fall.

I'm sure it was always more fun just to murder opposing QB's for you anyway 

[Sierra Foothills]

13 hours ago, DrDawkinstein said:

At work so havent watched the whole thing yet but wanted to share.

 

Thanks very much for posting. After watching the entirety I am super excited for the Leon Hard Defense.

 

Groot will definitely benefit from the scheme change as it will better take advantage of his god-given skills. BTW, what an impressive person. He is clearly a thoughtful, deep, and mature young man and he exhibited a nuanced diplomacy when speaking about the past. You can tell he's excited and optimistic about the changes.

 

Also as @Shaw66 mentioned, kudos to Eric Turner for his considerable knowledge and his ability to speak equally well to players and also to fans about football. I was very impressed with his understanding of NFL football.

 

9 hours ago, pennstate10 said:

For what its worth re: coverage skills, Rousseau played safety in high school.

 

To be clear, I can count on one hand the times I can remember playing in coverage for the Bills.  But I'm really looking forward to this fall.

 

For those who haven't or won't end up watching the Cover 1 video, you should feel much better about Greg Rousseau playing OLB. Beyond what @pennstate10 and Shaw mentioned, there were several clips of Groot dropping off into coverage and pattern matching receivers 15-23 yards downfield. With his athleticism, length, and wingspan I think a lot of posters here will feel a lot less concern about him dropping into coverage.

 

Edited May 6 by Sierra Foothills

[Simon]

I tried to watch it but couldn't see who that Turner guy was talking to because he was invisible.

[Shaw66]

20 hours ago, pennstate10 said:

 

For what its worth re: coverage skills, Rousseau played safety in high school.

 

To be clear, I can count on one hand the times I can remember playing in coverage for the Bills.  But I'm really looking forward to this fall.

There is film of him doing it two or three times, 30 minutes into the piece, maybe more. It's pretty impressive to see him running with tight ends. This move to 3-4 edge is going to show off his physical skills. 

Edited May 6 by Shaw66

[atomicpwrd]

@pennstate10 is a former Buffalo Bills player?

[BuffaloRebound]

Rousseau definitely a high IQ player, especially for a guy with his physical gifts.  Extremely impressive dude.  Didn’t realize how well he drops into coverage.  

[Don Otreply]

This gives me the feeling that our defensive players may not have been used in ways that took best advantage of their skill sets in the past…, or am I reading in…,  is it just me? 

[PoundingDog]

6 minutes ago, Don Otreply said:

This gives me the feeling that our defensive players may not have been used in ways that took best advantage of their skill sets in the past…, or am I reading in…,  is it just me? 

Different philosophy: getting a player fits my scheme or get a good player and I'll adjust the scheme (not changing it completely) to use him. McDermott is the former, whereas Andy Reid (or McVay) is the latter.

 

That explains some average good players in Bills D looked great under McDermott in the past because they fit so well.

 

19 hours ago, Sierra Foothills said:

kudos to Eric Turner for his considerable knowledge and his ability to speak equally well to players and also to fans about football. I was very impressed with his understanding of NFL football.

Eric is no ordinary fan. He played RB for St John Fisher college team, tried some coaching from California to western NY, then went on to graduate from scouting academy (a school preparing for those to pursue career of scouting), worked for NDT scouting, before he started Cover 1 into the media world. I remember he was upset that Bills turned down requests from cover 1 for Bills media credentials, but you can see from his career, he's likely to have some connections to some team front offices. When someone starts out for coaching, your first job is always breaking down film.