There are a lot of flaws in this analysis. It has been years since I played football in high school , but I did play. The result of this play is due to 95% of the players following their assignments.
One player decided to not follow his assignment, the quarterback. He was supposed to stay on the ground behind his linemen. The three players in the backfield were supposed to follow the QB and push him into the end zone. It’s a common play today. Instead he tried to jump nearly six feet and break the plane.
Number 94 kept his assignment, he followed down the line to pressure the play to stay inside. He made no attempt to converge on the QB for two reasons. One, there were two players between him and the QB. Two, and most important, pursuing from that angle he could have pushed the QB forward.
The defense setting up a convoy is something they practice. There is a second breakdown for the Ravens when their running back made a business decision not to pursue. In fairness to him, camera placement distort angles and distances. He might not have been as close as it looks on camera. But, we can’t discount that pro players, especially veterans, make decisions based on preserving their careers, not winning games.
Is it possible games are rigged? Sure.
Is this analysis definitive proof? No.
There are a lot of flaws in this analysis. It has been years since I played football in high school , but I did play. The result of this play is due to 95% of the players following their assignments.
One player decided to not follow his assignment, the quarterback. He was supposed to stay on the ground behind his linemen. The three players in the backfield were supposed to follow the QB and push him into the end zone. It’s a common play today. Instead he tried to jump nearly six feet and break the plane.
Number 94 kept his assignment, he followed down the line to pressure the play to stay inside. He made no attempt to converge on the QB for two reasons. One, there were two players between him and the QB. Two, and most important, pursuing from that angle he could have pushed the QB forward.
The defense setting up a convoy is something they practice. There is a second breakdown for the Ravens when their running back made a business decision not to pursue. In fairness to him, camera placement distort angles and distances. He might not have been as close as it looks on camera. But, we can’t discount that pro players, especially veterans, make decisions based on preserving their careers, not winning games.
Also, it is possible that the Baltimore QB bet against his own team. But why would you try a QB sneak at 3rd and goal from the 2?
That play was... counter-intuitive, to say the least.