Quote Originally Posted by wist43 View Post
ayn, how many times have we seen an opponent run for a 1st down against dunderdummy when he abandons the middle of the field and goes to a 2-4 with the G-C-G completely uncovered??
It depends on the down and distance, and the QB. Packers played the 2-4 extensively on passing and QB run plays versus guys like Kap and other QBs with running chops - but only on passing downs, longer to gain than 10 yard downs and sometimes first downs, depending on field position. It's a trade-off of course. But SPH and Trgo both told me that essentially nickel is base and they are willing to give up runs to stop the passing game. Again, that will of course vary based on the skill of the opposing QB and their team's ability to run the ball, esp. versus a nickel. Also, Packers and SPH value the ability of their guys to adapt, so even if they have undersized guys for pass defense, they still expect to be able to limit the run damage.

I agree, every once in a while the defense is set up to allow a run, and it can look foolish close to the goal line, but that's not all that frequent, and EVEN IN those cases, the opposition typically has 3-4 receiving threats on the field (think 2013 season finale agains Chicago with Marshall Jeffrey, the TE and Forte all on the field, all threats to burn you in the passing game. You just can't bring in three fatties to defend that).