Rookie running back Lorenzo Taliaferro saw his first snaps of the season in place of the injured Bernard Pierce on Sunday. Pierce had been struggling with finding cut back lanes in the Ravens new zone blocking scheme, but Baltimore had been reluctant to put in the rookie Taliaferro. When Taliaferro finally got his chance, he provided a spark in the running game, picking up 91 yards on just 18 rushes.

(Discuss this post on the BSL board here)

Early in the second quarter, Taliaferro got things going with a big 31-yard run.

31 yards 1a

Baltimore call for a stretch run to the right.

31 yards 1b

Right tackle Ricky Wagner works up to the second level to block a linebacker while fullback Kyle Juszczyk kicks out the edge defender. The Ravens also have receiver Steve Smith aligned tight to the formation. He sifts back across the line, drawing the attention of cornerback Joe Haden.

31 yards 1c

All of these parts come together perfectly to open up a huge lane for Taliaferro. He bursts through the hole and is into the second level in no time.

31 yards 1d

This is your worst nightmare as a free safety. Taliaferro has open field to run into with just the safety to beat. Fortunately for the Browns, the safety plays it well and makes the tackle, but not before Taliaferro picks up 31 yards.

A few plays later, Taliaferro comes back with another strong run.

good 8 1a

This time, the Ravens call for the stretch run to the left. Cleveland run a gap switch up front, with the defensive end crashing inside into the ‘A gap’ and the linebacker behind him taking up his responsibility in the ‘B gap’.

good 8 1b

The stunt from Cleveland works perfectly, with the linebacker getting a free run into the backfield.

good 8 1c

Taliaferro meets the linebacker in the hole, but quickly bounces his run outside.

good 8 1d

He does an excellent job avoiding both the linebacker and the edge defender. Taliaferro turns the corner and looks to get up the field. Once again, the Browns rely on their safety coming up to make the tackle, but Taliaferro still picks up eight yards on what should have been a negative play.

Another run that impressed me from Taliaferro came in the third quarter.

patient 1a

On this play, the Ravens run a stunt of their own up front. The stretch run usually sees all the offensive lineman work together in the same direction. But here, Baltimore run what’s sometimes known as ‘Guard Bounce’. This has the right tackle downblock inside, allowing the guard to pull and bounce outside the tackle.

patient 1b

The stunt works well, with guard Marshall Yanda working up the second level after Wagner blocked down on the defensive lineman. Juszczyk also makes his way to the second level to make a block. Taliaferro displays excellent patience here. Rookies are often too eager to make a play and will outrun their blockers. But Taliaferro stays calm and waits for his blocks to set up.

patient 1c

Once the blocks in front of him develop, Taliaferro then makes his move, making a cut to get to the inside of Juszczyk’s block and then burst up field.

patient 1d

The Browns secondary are forced to make another tackle to stop Taliaferro, who picks up another nine yards on the carry.

Taliaferro played well, but I felt that he left yards on the field. Pierce failed to spot cut back lanes and left it too late once he did find them, but Taliaferro was the opposite. I saw Taliaferro cut back on a number of occasions that he didn’t need to.

1 yard run 1a

In the first quarter, the Ravens moved into the red zone and Taliaferro was in for a stretch run to the left.

1 yard run 1b

As he approaches the line of scrimmage, the edge defender beats his block inside. Taliaferro opts to immediately cut back inside. But as a result of the defender crashing inside, the edge was sealed for Taliaferro to bounce his run outside.

1 yard run 1c

But Taliaferro missed out as the edge defender was able to tackle him after he cut back inside for a one yard gain.

This wasn’t a one-off either. This continued throughout the game.

bad 7 1a

This was another zone run to the right.

bad 7 1b

This time there is no immediate threat to Taliaferro. The edge is sealed, with the tight end driving back the edge defender. But instead, he opts to cut back inside.

bad 7 1c

Taliaferro actually makes a good cut and finds a solid lane to pick up seven yards. But the edge was sealed and he should have continued the run to the outside, where he could have picked up 10 yards or possibly even more.

Even in the second half, Taliaferro cut back too early and missed out on getting to the edge.

-2 yards 1a

Once again, we have a zone run to the right.

-2 yards 1b

Taliaferro has a clear lane between his right tackle and tight end, with Yanda working up the second level to block the incoming linebacker. But Taliaferro fails to even press the hole, cutting back straight away.

-2 yards 1c

Taliaferro gets caught in the backfield by a pursuing linebacker from the backside of the run and losses two yards on the run.

Hopefully for Taliaferro, this is just a case of him being over-eager to make a big play. For large portions of the game, he ran the zone scheme well, which was promising. But you cannot afford to leave yards on the field, especially with the news that starting left tackle Eugene Monroe looks set to miss significant time after his knee surgery.

Mark Bullock
Mark Bullock

Mark is an NFL follower from across the pond. He began analyzing Redskins football for SBNation’s HogsHaven.com, before moving on to The Washington Post. He also helps with NFL Draft coverage on FanSpeak.com. Mark was born and still lives in England, often battling the time difference to watch every minute of football he can.

X