CCBoy
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Something Steven Ruiz addressed in his scathing piece on McCarthy’s offense last week was how Prescott had only thrown 13 passes of 10 yards or more into the middle of the field.I have never heard the west coast offense described as "simple"
If that is what you think, we are done here.
Intermediate passes in the middle of the field are often the most fruitful in EPA, yet the Cowboys were in the bottom of the NFL in these attempts.
On Monday night, the Cowboys attacked the middle of the field. While the vast majority were less than 10-yards, they showed a willingness to deliver the ball between the hashes. Prescott completed five-of-nine passes here, for a passer rating of 95.6.
In his one attempt in the 10-20 yard range, Dallas gained 23 yards on the play, good for a 118.8 passer rating.
Over the offseason, we addressed middle of the field passing and how it’s more often a byproduct of play design than a willingness by the passer. Since it doesn’t involve high-end skills or elite processing, even some of the most pedestrian QBs earn a living over the middle. Provided, of course, they have a good play-caller designing the opportunities.
Mid-tier passers usually get exposed on the outside. This is where franchise passers like Prescott often work the field. Windows are tight and timing is crucial here, so it’s hard for average QBs to fake it on the boundary.
The best passers in the NFL make impacts both inside and outside. It takes a skilled passer and a skilled play designer to make it happen.
Moore, the previous play-caller, shied away from middle of the field passes. McCarthy, the current play-caller, seems almost allergic to it. But it’s the one area of the field that can really take the Cowboys passing attack to the next level, so it has to be a point of emphasis over the bye the week.
https://cowboyswire.usatoday.com/lists/cowboys-what-we-learned-week-6-chargers/