Football-- The A-11:Future of Offense??

First off, thanks to Shutdown Corner for finding this. I will summarize what the A-11 offense is, but I also recommend this post: http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/blog/shutdown_corner/post/The-A-11-offense-Buddy-Ryan-is-spinning-in-his-?urn=nfl,95915

The A-11 offense, or "all eleven players eligible" is a radical new offense developed in the high school football ranks. In this scheme, you line up with a center, two tight ends on the sides, two quarterbacks (one in shotgun, one on the side), and the rest of the players are running backs or wide receivers. The goal is to spread the defense out, create mismatches, and create confusion for the defense. Shutdown Corner posted a video in his blog which I also recommend, to get a better feel of how it works.

Upon seeing this, I loved it. I think it is progressive, intelligent, and if nothing else, entertaining. This brand of offense does not require the highest level of talent, which makes it perfect for the high school game. It is hard to slow down because there are endless combinations of plays (screens, draws, options, passes if need be). The A-11 is the future of offense, and is a classic in the idea of sports identity ("This is what our team does that wins us games, come beat it"). This offense challenges the defense to figure out a way to stop it or slow it down, which puts tremendous pressure on a defensive coordinator.

The question of the A-11 offense then arises: what game of football is this offense suited for? I feel that any offense where the quarterback is the best ATHLETE is suitable for the A-11. That is why I believe it fits perfectly for the high school game. The same idea applies for the college game. Putting a quarterback like a Dennis Dixon, Terrelle Pryor, either Vick, even Eric Crouch (obscurity points), where the quarterback is mobile and can make the throw allows this offense to work very well. In the college game, it also needs to be accompanied by a good offensive coach (Rich Rodriguez, Pete Carroll, Charlie Weis, and Bobby Petrino are the first guys that come to mind). A good coach allows for better execution of plays so that there is more than just a quarterback running around. The college game is offense-based, and could definitely succeed there. But what about the pro game?

The A-11 in the NFL is a completely different concept. Why? The speed of the game and the quality of the game. In the NFL, most quarterbacks are quarterbacks, not just athletes. Peyton Manning would not be effective in this offense because he is a pure quarterback. A passer is very good at passing the ball, whereas the offense caters more toward a thrower who can move and put some zip on the ball (Brett Favre, Jay Cutler are better suited). This does not account for an NFL defense. Unlike the other games, each player can be accounted for in the NFL (i.e. a linebacker can jam a receiver or running back off the line, disrupting timing). The three-person line of the A-11 is mismatched against either 2 defensive ends and a defensive tackle or even three defensive tackles (or if the defense lines up 4 down linemen). These are all more quality points, yet I mentioned the speed of the game as most important. When I say speed, I specifically key in on the secondary. Defensive backs all have good closing speed, and safeties can be big hitters. The biggest enemy of the A-11 would be a zone defense, where the corners and safeties can sit and wait, which actually shrinks the field for the offense. I do not see how this offense could function with a line that constantly loses the battle, quarterbacks that have to constantly create, and a secondary that can sit in coverage while the defensive line can get to the quarterback. Maybe as a change of pace this type of offense would be great, especially from a smash mouth team (imagine the Redskins lining up Jason Campbell and Antwaan Randle-El as quarterbacks). Which is another issue with the NFL: the personnel. It is simply much harder to bring together the necessary personnel for the A-11 in the NFL than it is the college game or high school game, where more players are interchangeable.

Overall, I would love to see this offense take over the college game. It would be a blast to watch teams run this (Anyone who caught Arkansas games can testify it was exciting to see the Razorbacks line up in Wild Hog formation, where Darren McFadden took the snap), and it would challenge the college game to grow up defensively. However, the NFL is grown up, that is why these players and coaches are paid handsomely. I see it having no long term success in the NFL.