The Battle of Jimmy Smith vs. Calvin Johnson

Leading up to Monday Night’s game, many wondered how the Ravens defense would approach the Lions elite wide receiver Calvin Johnson.  Would Dean Pees align his cornerbacks on the sides they are accustomed to or would Jimmy Smith mirror Johnson all over the field?  The Ravens chose the latter approach and were surprisingly effective.

Discuss this piece on our Message Board.

Jimmy Smith aligned over Calvin Johnson on both sides of the field when split out wide.  The only way Calvin could avoid Jimmy Smith was in the slot:

Overall, Calvin Johnson had a respectable day with 6 receptions and 98 yards although both stats would have increased without 2 costly drops.  After watching the tape, I came away impressed with Jimmy Smith’s performance particularly in difficult coverage situations.

The Ravens rolled coverage to Johnson early in the game

During the Lions first drive or two, the Ravens did what I expected them to do: roll coverage to Calvin Johnson and/or Buzz underneath of him:

[portfolio_slideshow include=”13763,13764″]

This was an example of the Ravens schematic attempts to account for Calvin Johnson.  Similar methods were sprinkled throughout the game but after a short period, the Ravens decided to just line up in their standard coverages (Man-Free, 2-Man, Cover-2, Cover-3) and trust Corey Graham and Jimmy Smith to play well.

Man Coverage

I was surprised how much faith Dean Pees had in Jimmy Smith vs. the league’s best wide receiver.  Jimmy delivered snap after snap in man coverage.  Pees went as far as to align Smith over Calvin Johnson in “Solo” or 0-Man coverage, meaning no safety help:

[portfolio_slideshow include=”13772,13773″]

Jimmy Smith continually played press coverage with his hands effectively.  Smith also cleaned up a good deal of his footwork issues that have plagued him in his first few seasons.  This allowed him to stick in the hip of vertical receivers which afforded him the luxury of turning his head to find the ball in the air.  Smith has struggled in the past because he would often lose contact with receivers on vertical routes by looking back to the ball too soon.

Cleaning up some zone coverage issues

Jimmy Smith hasn’t been the most technically sound cornerback in Ravens history.  Smith’s reputation coming out of Colorado was that he was athletic and had physical length but lacked some of the fundamentals of the position.  After some hiccups early in the year, it appears that Smith is coming along nicely as a deep zone corner to compliment his man-coverage strength.  This allows the defense to be multiple and intricate:

[portfolio_slideshow include=”13782,13783,13800,13809″]

 

Jimmy Smith needs a lot of work at Cover-2 cornerback

Relative to last season, the Ravens have used a ton of Cover/Tampa-2 this season.  This coverage concept fits the Ravens defensive personnel except for Jimmy Smith.  A Cover-2 corner has its own skill-set and Smith is not quite there:

[portfolio_slideshow include=”13813,13814,13815,13816″]

Cover-2 is a situation where Smith is a liability.  He used poor technique in Cover-2 several times Monday Night.  However, with the strides he’s made in Off and Press coverage, Smith is well on his way to being the Ravens top corner.

Wrap Up

After watching Jimmy Smith vs. Calvin Johnson on film, I tweeted this:

Without context, this stat seems amazing.  Smith, however, did not have a flawless game.  Smith was responsible for receptions in zone coverage including zone coverages that reduced to man coverage.

Ultimately, Jimmy Smith’s performance was impressive and if he can become a defensive anchor that can lock down a top receiver, the Ravens can be optimistic about a post-season run.