Quick, run out and buy some duct tape; Joe Flacco has broken the NFL.
Flacco’s Baltimore Ravens are so good at drawing defensive pass interference penalties, it defies all logic that opposing teams haven’t either tried to replicate the quarterbacks’ success or, at the very least, combat it.
Flacco is like a bored 12-year-old kid, who decided to mess with the penalty settings in Madden. He might not be elite in some — or many — quarterbacking attributes, but he’s the best in the NFL at throwing the ball a far distance and crossing his fingers for a yellow flag.
The Ravens have led the NFL in yards gained off pass interference penalties in four of the last five seasons, and they’ve been top five in yards gained off pass interference for the last six years. Not only are teams not combating or matching the Ravens’ methods, Flacco is actually getting better at drawing penalties.
2014: 15 DPIs (first in the NFL), 315 yards (first in the NFL)
2013: 14 DPIs (second in the NFL), 295 yards (first in the NFL)
2012: 16 DPIs (first in the NFL), 243 yards (second in the NFL)
2011: 11 DPIs (fourth in the NFL), 280 yards (first in the NFL)
2010: 12 DPIs (second in the NFL), 269 yards (first in the NFL)
2009: 6 DPIs (14th in the NFL), 160 yards (fifth in the NFL)
Stats via NFLPenalties.com
All credit goes to Flacco, too. The QB had been through three offensive coordinators during his time in Baltimore, and he has outpaced the rest of the NFL in benefiting from defensive pass interference calls with Cam Cameron, Jim Caldwell and Gary Kubiak at the helm.
So, how does he do it?
Flacco chucks up a slightly under-thrown jump ball, causing opposing defensive backs to stop and careen into the Ravens receiver. The officials see contact, throw a flag, and the Ravens get a bunch of free yards.
Patriots head coach Bill Belichick seems to have it figured out, though. Check out this portion of his news conference from Thursday:
Q: No team has drawn more pass interference calls this season or since Flacco came into the league than the Ravens. Is that a result of the nature of their offense taking more shots downfield on the edges? Is there an art to drawing defensive pass interference?
BB: Part of it is I think defenders, (a) guy’s behind them and interfering. Part of it is the underthrown balls that receivers come back for that the defenders interfere with. Pittsburgh had one of those last week. I’m trying to think of the interference calls that Pittsburgh had last week, they definitely had one. I think the underthrown balls are an issue. That was the personal foul on (Mike) Mitchell. It wasn’t really interference; he hit the guy in the head, but it was the same thing. They were behind him and he was running full speed to catch up and it’s hard to have the kind of body control when you’re just running as fast as you can to try to make up that ground. So if anything happens that’s a bit off of what a guy’s expecting or what he’s going for, those are the fouls you can get. But yeah, I think their deep balls cause a lot of — they get a lot of penalties on those, more so than five-yard crossing routes and stuff like that.
Q: Is a defensive back on the outside virtually helpless on an underthrown ball when a receiver stops short and starts running back? What’s he supposed to do?
BB: Turn and look for the ball.
Q: If you’re running top speed and stop.
BB: Well, the receiver you’re covering slows down, right?
Q: If he slows down.
BB: Why is he slowing down?
Q: For the ball.
BB: Turn and look for the ball.
Q: If you’re running stride for stride with someone right on them.
BB: When the guy slows down —
Q: What if there is no slow down?
BB: Then he’s not coming back for the ball. Then it’s a back-shoulder throw and you’re going to try to match his hands and put your hands where his hands are on the back shoulder. But if you’re chasing a guy and then all the sudden you catch up to him as he slows down, then why is he slowing down? That means the ball is about to be caught, that means you turn around and look for it. If you turn around and look for it and contact the receiver, then it’s not a foul. If you keep running into him and you contact the receiver, then it’s a foul.
Q: Even when the head turns, you’re still sometimes going to see that flag. It’s a difficult spot on those underthrown balls.
BB: It’s a technique thing. If you play the technique properly then you’re OK. If you don’t play it properly, then it’s going to be a foul. Back-shoulder throws, that ball comes in a lot tighter. The receiver, he doesn’t come back through the defender. He usually comes back behind the defender. The ball is behind him so the defender has to try to quickly turn and match where the receiver’s hands are and try to get his hand in there. Assuming he’s looking at the receiver, which is usually the case. It’s usually when the quarterback throws it. If you’re chasing a guy down the field and the guy slows down, why is he slowing down? You’re not that much faster than the other guy. Really, you have to see that space close and close quickly and then turn around and react to it.
It certainly sounds like Belichick knows what he’s talking about, but that doesn’t explain why the Patriots have nine pass interference penalties this season (third in the NFL) for 148 yards (11th in the NFL). Cornerback Brandon Browner’s reputation and physical style of play doesn’t help — he’s been flagged five times for 53 yards on pass interference penalties, and since he’s likely to be matched up against speedy go-route expert Torrey Smith, this could be a recipe for disaster for the Patriots.
Based on what Belichick and All-Pro cornerback Darrelle Revis said this week, however, it seems like the Patriots have diagnosed this issue, and if defensive pass interference is committed, there could be hell to pay on the sidelines.
The stats are out there, the film is out there and Belichick knows how the Ravens are doing it, so there’s no excuse to get hit on a costly penalty this week.
Thumbnail photo via Mitch Stringer/USA TODAY Sports Images
