Sanders' super role is to imitate Lynch
A few weeks ago it looked like Chargers running back LaDainian Tomlinson might run for 300 yards against an Indianapolis Colts run defense had the Chargers advanced to the AFC Championship game.
But that was before the Colts righted themselves in the playoffs by stopping Kansas City’s Larry Johnson in the Wild-Card round, Baltimore’s Jamal Lewis in the Divisional Round and New England’s Cory Dillon in the AFC Championship.
Now the Colts are on the verge of winning Super Bowl XVI Sunday in Miami when a month ago it looked like they wouldn’t get past the Wild-Card round against Kansas City. How did Colts head coach Tony Dungy turn around his defense in the playoffs?
He did it with the Tampa Two, a defense he designed when he coached the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. An impetus for the innovative defense was strong safety John Lynch, the Torrey Pines High alumnus now with the Denver Broncos.
In the Colts’ defense, Bob Sanders plays Lynch’s role. When Sanders was hurt, the Colts’ defense was shredded. When he returned for the playoffs, the Colts began to stop people.
Sanders is questionable for Sunday’s game because of a knee injury, so if you don’t see him in the lineup, start adjusting your prediction. Bears running backs Thomas Jones and Cedric Benson might be in for big days.
The Tampa Two, as the defense is known around the NFL, was strong up the middle, like a baseball team, with Warren Sapp at defensive tackle, Derrick Brooks at inside linebacker and Lynch at strong safety.
The key was that Lynch could stay back with an eye on where the quarterback was throwing or come up and make sure tackles for short gains. For the Tampa Two to be effective, the safety must be a sure tackler who can stop a runner without being dragged for a three or four yards. That’s the difference between second-and-8 and second-and-4.
Strange in sports how sometimes a scheme that fits a player can combine to make everyone around him better, but this is one of those examples.
--TOM SHANAHAN
Friday, Feb. 2, 2007
