Oshane Ximines: The Good, the Great and The Ugly
The Giants linebacker corps will be exciting to watch this season, especially now that Markus Golden is back in blue for another season.
Many are looking for the pass rush to come from Golden, Lorenzo Carter, Kyle Fackrell, and Leonard Williams, but let's not forget about Oshane Ximines who in his rookie season turned 45% of the total defensive snaps played into 25 tackles and 4.5 sacks.
Although the linebacking corps is deep, Ximines proved he could make the most of his limited opportunities. Many players find it hard to be effective with limited snaps because they can't find a rhythm.
Ximines' gift is his motor, so he is able to capitalize whenever he is given a chance. And with this young man expected to take a significant leap in Year 2, let's break down what he does well and where he still needs work.
(Video clips via NFL Game Pass.)
The Good: Pursuit
In this first clip, Ximines was lined up in a 9-technique on the right side, where he was going to run a line stunt with the interior defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence II.
Lawrence pushes himself to the outside, allowing Ximines to come underneath. The guard for the Washington Football team picks up Ximines, but he's pushed back into the quarterback's lap.
When the quarterback tries to escape, Ximines sheds the block and is able to pressure the quarterback into a rushed throw.
The key takeaway during this play is that Ximines never stopped going forward and pursuing the quarterback. Even without getting to the quarterback, he has the quarterback thinking about him.
In this next clip, Ximines is lined head-up on the tight end. He engages the tight end on the snap while the end is trying to drive him off the line of scrimmage.
He is able to extend his arms and keep the end from covering him up. The Eagles running back is running zone to the offensive right, but he has identified a cutback lane that he tries to exploit because he sees an open lane.
Ximines does a great job of collapsing the backside lanes down, and when the running back tries to squeeze through a hole on the backside, Ximines is able to shed the blocker and make the tackle, stopping the running back for a minimal gain.
Many defenders lose their gap integrity in these situations because they will look for the path of least resistance. Ximines did not, and that's a big feather in his cap.
This final clip shows what happens when you transfer speed to power. Ximines is lined up on the left side in a 9-technique. He fires off the ball on the snap, instantly eating up the cushion of the Eagles' right tackle. He makes the tackle open his hips, and when he does, Ximines is able to throw him to the ground and redirect to the inside in pursuit of the quarterback.
The pressure makes the quarterback try to escape, and he eventually throws a bad pass.
Once again, the relentlessness of Ximines is on display. There's no doubt that the quarterback for the Eagles saw his offensive tackle tossed aside, and his eyes and feet became more frenetic.
The Great: Athleticism
In this first clip, Ximines is lined up on the right side, outside of the Dolphins' offensive tackle. On the snap, he attacks the outside shoulder of the tackle.
When he shoots his hands at the tackle, the tackle responds but begins to bend at the waist, which puts his ability to anchor in question.
Ximines also gets the tackle to open his hips, which allows him to get a direct line to the quarterback. Ximines uses his speed to apply a one-handed push/pull technique while he changes levels to get the tackle entirely off-balance.
He is then able to fly by the tackle, close the distance on the quarterback, and get the sack.
In this next clip, Ximines is in a three-point stance aligned in a 9-technique to the Eagles run strength (tight end and two wings). The Eagles offense runs a lot of pass plays out of multiple tight end sets, making their play-action more challenging to diagnose.
On the snap, Ximines gets hands on the tight end and then rushes up the field. The offensive tackle is retreating when he sees Ximines attacking, so he tries to alternate between a kick slide and a post step.
This results in him being off-balanced, allowing Ximines to turn speed to power, throw the tackle to the side, and explode into the quarterback for the sack.
In this final clip, Ximines shows how his speed and agility help him sack the quarterback. Ximines is lined up over the tight end on the right side in a 9-technique. He steps in front of the tight end on the snap of the ball, forcing the end to adjust his route and slightly throwing off the timing.
Ximines then rushes towards the quarterback, but the right tackle is kick sliding out to pick him up. Ximines uses the equivalent of a basketball Eurostep (a step left followed by a quick step right) to get by the tackle with him barely laying a hand on Ximines.
The type of body control, footwork, and speed it takes to redirect a tight end by impeding his progress, accelerate towards the quarterback, make a move on the offensive tackle, and then engulf the quarterback is something that can separate a pass rusher. Ximines has that level of explosiveness.
The Ugly: He Gets Too Easily Swallowed Up
In this first clip, Ximines is lined up against the Cowboys right tackle. On the snap, the tackle is kick sliding to take away the pass rush from Ximines.
Ximines tried to use the same change of direction Eurostep move that he used successfully against the Eagles right tackle in the previous clip highlighting his athleticism.
The difference here is that the Cowboys' right tackle has the size and quickness to cover up that move by Ximines. This leaves the Giants' pass rusher trying to find his way around him, which he ultimately does but not before the quarterback is able to get the ball out of his hand.
In this next clip, Ximines is playing over the slot receiver to the right, just out of the video's frame. This is not somewhere he would find himself a lot, but it happens from time to time when you are an outside linebacker in an odd front defense.
The offense is running a toss play to Ximines' side. He is easily blocked by a slot receiver allowing the play to get to the outside. You will see him come in the frame, getting washed down by a receiver.
A guy and strong and athletic as that should never be manhandled by a receiver, not even a big receiver like the Buccaneers Mike Evans. Ximines should have been able to anchor down and fight through that block, making a tackle in the backfield or making the back change his course and allowing the other Giants defenders to rally to the ball.
In this final clip, Ximines has his speed and aggressiveness used against him. He is lined up on the right side in a 5-technique down in a 3-point stance.
On the snap, the offense runs a play-action pass. The run action is directly at Ximines, and he tries to use his speed to beat the block instead of good technique.
When the boot action goes away from him, he tries to adjust, but hew gets steamrolled by the offensive tackle and guard. As a result, he can't give chase on the play and allows the quarterback more time and less pressure to get the ball off.
Final Thoughts
It is hard to envision Ximines being able to command more snaps with the additions the Giants have made defensively.
However, If he is able to repeat his production from last season, he will prove to be a valuable member of this unit that may rely on fewer stars and more collective cohesion to be effective.
Ximines will be an intriguing player to watch in 2020.
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