Aknack for crafting some of the finest defensive gameplans in NFL history means the Baltimore Ravens should listen to longtime foe Bill Belichick’s advice on how to stop rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels and the Washington Commanders in Week 6.
Daniels has the Commanders on a four-game winning streak powered by a prolific offense producing big plays for fun. Six-time Super Bowl-winning former New England Patriots head coach Belichick laid out a plan for containing the second pick in the 2024 NFL draft.
It’s a plan the Ravens can adopt at M&T Bank Stadium on Sunday, October 13. A strategy based upon keeping Daniels in the pocket, forcing throws into the middle of the field and taking away deep shots outside the numbers.
Bill Belichick Warns Ravens About Jayden Daniels’ Biggest Strengths
Belichick told “Inside the NFL” how Daniels is “really good throwing the ball outside the numbers. That’s where he’s had most of his success, outside the numbers and deep and on extended plays and scrambles.”
Doing a “great job defending the deep pass” is the priority for the Ravens this week, but Belichick also said “we do not want to let Daniels run up the middle of the defense. This guy’s really, really fast.”
There’s nothing particularly revolutionary here, but Belichick has pinpointed how Daniels does defenses the most damage. Attacking vertically through the air and amassing yards on the ground during broken plays.
Preventing those things isn’t easy, but Belichick did highlight one potential weakness in the Heisman Trophy winner’s game. He looked at a clip of Daniels missing wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. breaking open across the middle, underneath deep coverage during their collegiate days at LSU.
As Belichick said, “reading coverages, following his progression and just in general, throwing the ball inside is not a strength of his.”
It’s up to the Ravens to force Daniels to have to attack the middle of the field more often. Fortunately, a former Belichick assistant can help put the plan into practice.
Dean Pees Can Help Ravens Stop Jayden Daniels
The Ravens bringing back former defensive coordinator Dean Pees as a senior advisor to current play-caller Zach Orr is an underrated factor ahead of this game. Pees, whose return was confirmed by Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic, served as DC in Baltimore from 2012 to ’17, but his experience with Belichick could be more valuable against Daniels.
That experience involves Pees calling defenses for Belichick in New England from 2006-09. Pees can pass on what he learned about gameplan-specific and opponent-focused defense from Belichick onto first-year coordinator Orr.
Pees has already been working closely with Orr at practice, per Fox Baltimore’s Morgan Adsit (h/t Fox45 photojournalist Kenny Christopher).
The savvy of 75-year-old Pees will be vital in showing Daniels things the rookie hasn’t seen before. Coverage and pressure concepts designed to flummox a signal-caller already being compared to Baltimore QB1 Lamar Jackson.
Pees’ influence can help the Ravens create five- and six-man fronts to take running lanes away from Daniels and force him to stand in against pressure sent from anywhere. Like when Pees came up with this elaborate blitz while serving as defensive coordinator for the Atlanta Falcons in 2022, highlighted by Nate Tice of Yahoo! Sports.
The Ravens have the players to keep Daniels in a box. Players like edge-rushers Odafe Oweh and former Belichick favorite Kyle Van Noy, who know how to set the edge and rush with discipline.
Daniels should also struggle to find escape lanes through the middle, where burly defensive tackles Nnamdi Madubuike and Travis Jones reside. Select stunting from All-Pro middle linebacker Roquan Smith will force quick and errant throws from the Commanders’ rising star.
Condensing the pocket, defending the sideline in coverage and changing looks up front are how the Ravens avoid becoming the latest victims of the league’s most dynamic player through five games.
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