Questionable Play Calling in Pittsburgh

There were several play calls that had me scratching my head. Brad Childress has been criticized in the past for his play calling, but since the Vikings have won all their games until Sunday, nobody really pressed the issue. Now that the Vikings have lost, there is quite a bit of second-guessing both amongst the media and fans.

Bootleg Pass

In the first and second quarters, the Vikings called three bootleg passes. All three ended either in a sack, hurry or an incompletion. These calls were mind-boggling for three reasons:

1. Favre is not a mobile quarterback that can elude pressure from the front side linebacker;

2.The running game was not producing big gains, so the Steelers had no reason to buy the run-fake. Bootlegs are productive only when the off-tackle run has worked for at least two to three times beforehand; and

3. The Steelers’ outside linebackers are quick and athletic, making Favre a sitting target once he gets out of the play-fake.

Screen Pass to Chester Taylor

This play call was arguably the most questionable one of the day. Two plays after Adrian Peterson ran over William Gay for a 29-yard catch and run, the Vikings were at the Steelers’ 19-yard line with less than two minutes to go in the game.

Childress called a screen pass to Chester Taylor, which tipped off of Taylor’s hand and ended up as a pick-six. This was a bad call for the following three reasons:

1. Screen passes are in order only when defensive ends are overplaying the pass and are rushing up the field, thereby creating a void off-tackle. To this point, the Steelers’ defensive ends were not rushing up the field and were playing gap-discipline defense on the outside;

2. The running game was not generating substantial results, which allowed the Steelers to focus on the pass. Screen passes are effective when the running game, particularly off-tackle, go for big chunks of yards; and

3. The proximity to the goal line did not create enough space or time for the play to develop. If you saw the play, there were three defenders around Chester Taylor. Had he even caught the pass, it would have gone for no gain (at best), but likely would have been a negative play. Although the outcome determined the fate of the game, the design itself was flawed.

Goal Line Offense

With five minutes to go in the fourth quarter, the Vikings marched all the way down to the Steelers’ 1-yard line. After Peterson was stuffed, Rice was missed and Kleinsasser dropped a pass, Childress elected for the field goal.

The prudent move is to take the points and kick a field goal, particularly when the team is on the road. However, the Vikings’ defense was containing the Steelers’ offense up until this point. A touchdown at this juncture would have given the Vikings a 14-13 lead and, more importantly, momentum.

Hindsight is always 20-20, and I am certain Childress would have been berated for not kicking the field goal and take the points. But, Childress should have taken into account the momentum factor and the play of the defense and went for the touchdown.

It wasn’t as if the Steelers were stopping the pass, as Favre was able to move the offense down the field with passes to Rice, Harvin and Shiancoe. At worst, the Steelers would have been pinned down at the 1-yard line, making them vulnerable to a safety.

[Shahaab Tehrani can be reached at: shahaabt@yahoo.com]