Shane Steichen Staples: The QB Run Game
The Indianapolis Colts just completed a fairly successful season in 2023, as the team finished with a winning record at 9-8. Rookie Head Coach Shane Steichen took a positive first step with this roster in his debut season, and the next step is continuing this progress going forward.
One of the major wins for Steichen's first season in Indy was the return of the run game. The Colts finished 22nd in the NFL in total rushing yards in 2022 and ranked 23rd in the league in yards per carry. Under Steichen, and new Offensive Line Coach Tony Sparano Jr., those numbers improved to 10th and 9th overall respectively.
The Colts' return to form in the ground game happened for a multitude of reasons, and this series will highlight the schematic impact on the overall productivity rushing the football. Steichen's scheme is built on a few core concepts but those calls helped get this run game back to the dominance we once knew.
The next installment of this series will dive into the QB run game and how this short-lived burst of excitement led to explosive plays for the Colts' offense.
The QB Run Game Was Explosive
For some proper background into this topic, it is important to note that quarterback Anthony Richardson played in roughly 10-ish quarters this past NFL season. This lack of playing time severely limited the Colts' quarterback run game, as backup quarterback Gardner Minshew simply wasn't suited for those type of plays.
In those four games in which Richardson appeared in, the Colts called 15 designed quarterback runs. Those 15 runs resulted in 100 yards from scrimmage (6.66 yards per carry) and four rushing touchdowns. The Colts had four explosive runs on these designs for an explosive run rate of 26.7%.
While the Colts weren't able to fully expand upon this aspect of the gameplan due to Richardson's early season injury, the small taste we got to start the year was enough to see how explosive it could be. If Richardson can learn to better protect himself (like Lamar Jackson did this past year in Baltimore), it is easy to project him rushing for 800+ yards in 2024 on these designs.
Types of QB Designed Runs
The Colts were diverse in the small sample size we saw in the QB run game this past season. They mostly operated out of 11 personnel, but they added unique twists to this by designing QB runs out of empty set and pistol formation looks.
The most common run call was simply the read-option play. The play design is simple enough in itself, as the quarterback has the option to either hand the ball off to the running back or keep it himself depending on what the conflict defender is reacting to.
With Richardson's unique ability as a rushing threat, the Colts liked to inverse the roles of the running back and the quarterback on their read-option designs. Typically, read-option runs work with the running back being the main option and the quarterback keeper being a secondary adjustment, but the Colts would design these runs for Richardson to be the primary run threat.
This run against the Los Angeles Rams is a good example of this, as tight end Drew Ogletree pulls around the outside to act as the lead blocker for Richardson on this zone read bluff call:
Another example is guard-tackle counter bash. Again, on typical read-option designs, the running back would be the designated ball carrier following the pulling guard and tackle through the hole.
The Colts, however, design this call for Richardson to be the main rusher up the gut, as he follows his blockers for a solid gain on the play:
The Colts' empty PRO (pass-run option) game was truly their deadliest design, though. The Colts loved to use RPO concepts on the season, and these empty PRO calls combined the best of the RPO game and the QB run game into one play.
One of the major downsides of empty personnel is the lack of a run threat (for most teams). This eliminates the illusion of a run game and makes the throwing windows tighter with a completely spread out formation. The Colts countered this fatal flaw by giving Richardson PRO concepts out of empty personnel.
These calls are labeled as PRO rather than RPO because the pass option comes first in the progression before the run option takes effect. This touchdown run against the Houston Texans is a good play to dive into for this.
The Colts are giving Richardson two options on this play; throw the swing pass to the running back (if the conflict linebacker stays home) or keep it up the middle for a run (if the linebacker follows the back in pursuit). The linebacker bites on the swing pass as Richardson is able to run up the gut against a favorable box for an 18-yard score:
The Colts' devastating goal line play would also fall into this same bucket. The Colts may not be in empty on these calls, but the premise remains the same with no real run threat beside Richardson on the goal line.
Richardson is reading one conflict defender (the linebacker on the flat tight end) before making his decision to pass or run. The Colts were 3 for 3 on this play design this past season, scoring all three times that they called it with Richardson at quarterback:
The final design that I want to discuss in this article is the RPR (run-pass-run) call. This design is essentially the modern day triple option in the NFL, as the quarterback runs a typical RPO pass but is moving out of the pocket on the pass option. If the pass option becomes too muddied up, then the quarterback can keep the ball on a designed run himself.
These designs are especially tricky in the NFL with the illegal man downfield rules, but they can be quite effective when the entire offense is in sync. The Colts notoriously hit on two RPR calls against the Cleveland Browns this season, as Minshew was able to shimmy his way past the defense for rushing scores.
The Bottom Line
The Indianapolis Colts were going to do big things with the designed quarterback run game in 2023 but an injury to their rookie starter derailed those big plans. With Richardson coming back in 2024, and hopefully with an emphasis on protecting himself, the Colts can get this explosive element of their offense back on track.
If Richardson can simply stay healthy in 2024, he can easily rush for 800+ yards in this offense. He has the skillset and Shane Steichen has the gameplan, he just needs to learn how to protect himself from taking the big hits we saw in 2023.
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