City Geoff Schwartz
FOX Sports NFL Analyst
Dirty. Cowardly. Fine. Suspension.
These are the words that some used to describe a legal block that occurred in an NFL preseason contest between the Bengals and Giants on Sunday. Like the thousands of times before and the hundreds of times it will happen this season, a tight end — the Bengals’ Thaddeus Moss in this case — slid backside on an inside zone run to cut the defensive end.
Only this defensive end was Giants first-round pick Kayvon Thibodeaux. The result of the legal cut block was a mild MCL strain for Thibodeaux — and a football public aggressively upset over the incident.
When executed correctly, the cut block is a safe way for an offensive player to knock down a defender. The offensive player is taught to drive his shoulder and arm through the thigh of the defender. As with any blocking technique, there will be instances when it’s done incorrectly. When an offensive player misses the aiming point, he will most often fall flat on his face as the defender is able to play off that block and keep moving towards his target.
While a legal cut block rarely results in an injury to the defensive player, the NFL has moved to outlaw certain cut blocks and all chop blocks in recent years in the name of player safety — a move I’m in agreement with. A cut block (or block below the waist) is allowed to occur within five yards of the line of scrimmage and two yards outside the offensive tackles. A block below the waist outside this window is illegal, including by a defensive player, most often a defensive back, cutting an offensive lineman in space as he is pulling.
A block below the waist must occur in front of the defensive player, with the offensive player having his head in front of the defender. A chop block occurs when an offensive player, most often an interior offensive lineman, makes contact with a defender while a second offensive player moves to cut block that defender. This is where a majority of injuries with this style of block occur. The defender has no way to defend himself from the low block, and his body can often be in vulnerable positions that make his legs more exposed.
The recent rule changes do make the game safer. With all this in mind, let’s discuss the cut block by Moss. The ball is snapped, and Thibodeaux recognizes right away that he is unblocked and on the back side (weak side) of an inside zone run with a handoff to the left of the quarterback. Thibodeaux clearly sees Moss coming for him and, instead of preparing for a low block, he incorrectly braces for contact up high. Thibodeaux does not turn to face Moss but instead lowers his shoulders, expecting Moss to collide with him in the shoulder area. Instead, Moss begins his cut block like he has been coached to do.
Related: Giants avoid further injury misfortune with Kayvon Thibodeaux update
Moss appears to slightly trip as he’s preparing to execute the block, making him slightly out of control and clumsy upon contact. Moss did not target Thibodeaux’s knee — he makes contact at thigh level before his body is into Kayvon’s lower leg. Let me repeat that: Moss did not target Thibodeaux’s knee in a malicious attempt to injure him. What would be the purpose of that? In combination with the pass rusher’s poor body position to play off this cut block and Moss’ hardly perfect cut attempt, Moss eventually makes contact with Thibodeaux’s knee and lower leg, leading to the MCL sprain.
If the former Oregon star had turned his body to face the contact like he’s coached, none of this happens. As mentioned by Giants head coach Brian Daboll, this is a blocking technique used by his team. In fact, this style of block by the tight end is executed countless times throughout a weekend of football. Tight ends are often blocking defensive players much larger and stronger, and if they block those defenders up high, they will be unsuccessful in that block attempt. It could also lead to shoulder and/or collarbone injuries.
When a low block happens without injury each weekend, there is rarely a mention of how “dirty” this block is. Just like offensive linemen practice cut-blocking technique, defensive players also practice how to defend themselves from these blocks. Defenders use their hands to forcefully shove the offensive player’s shoulder pads down to the ground while clearing their feet so they can keep moving once the cut attempt has failed.
This technique should have been used by the No. 5 overall pick to avoid this cut block. Again, he saw it coming and Moss did not hide his intentions well. However, as mentioned by former Oregon and current Miami Hurricanes offensive line coach Alex Mirabel on Twitter, this cannot be practiced at a live tempo, therefore it can be more difficult for both players to use proper technique in a game.
He’s absolutely correct. It’s entirely possible this was the first time that Thibodeaux had seen this cut attempt in a game. This block is rarely seen in college football, and with the ever-changing rule book, it’s possible this exact style of low block has been banned. Thibodeaux has certainly not seen it in practice, as that is not allowed in team drills.
While it’s unfortunate that the promising rookie was injured on this play, teams across the NFL will use it to show their defenders what not to do. Do not brace for contact up high on a block that is routinely attempted as a cut block. Die attempt to move around the cut block or use your technique to shed the tight end and get back into the play.
Thankfully, plenty of former players are on my side. You can search social media to see their reactions to this block. I was pleasantly surprised to see former defensive players, who do not like cut blocks, react in lockstep with all the offensive linemen who made the point about the legality of this block.
I appreciate their support in not calling this block dirty and in bringing awareness that injuries do happen in football. Better technique all around would have prevented this issue. As usual, when an injury occurs via a cut block, there is renewed support for outlawing this block in totality.
I’m open to that discussion. However, that discussion does not matter to what happened on Sunday. Thaddeus Moss executed a routine low block in an effort to prevent a defensive player from making a play on the running back. There was nothing cowardly about it.
Geoff Schwartz played eight seasons in the NFL for five different teams. He started at right tackle for the University of Oregon for three seasons and was a second-team All-Pac-12 selection his senior year. He is an NFL analyst for FOX Sports. Follow him on Twitter @GeoffSchwartz.
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