Jay Gruden's Rushing Attack Explained: Part 3
For the past two decades, the Gruden family name has become synonymous with offense in football. The brothers, Jay and John, have built a reputation on retooling offenses and building a team from the offensive side up. With Jay Gruden taking over the reins for the Jacksonville Jaguars this fall as the new offensive coordinator, we here at JaguarReport are taking a look back at his past offenses in a three-part series.
While in Tampa and on the heels of winning a Super Bowl with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, John Gruden adapted the phrase “Pound the Rock” for his team, a promise to run the ball in route to wins. It’s a motto that Jay—an offensive assistant on that team—has carried with him. Since becoming an offensive coordinator—and subsequently a head coach—in the NFL, Gruden’s rushing offenses have never finished higher than 17th. His teams total offense has typically floated around the same tier, save 2013 when the Cincinnati Bengals finished 10th in total offense overall.
Yet the rushing attack for Gruden’s offenses have developed characteristics that have served it well over the years. With a developing quarterback—Gardner Minshew II— and a first rounder entering his fourth year—Leonard Fournette—as well as a versatile back signed from Gruden’s former team—Chris Thompson—there are pieces in place to mold this into an ideal Gruden rushing offense. To better understand what that could look like this fall, we examine the three defining qualities of a Jay Gruden rushing attack.
Related: Jay Gruden's Rushing Attack Explained Part 1
Related: Jay Gruden's Rushing Attack Explained Part 2
For the sake of time and brevity, we looked only at his stints as either a head coach (AFL, UFL or NFL) or as offensive coordinator in the NFL. That breaks down as such:
- Head Coach, Orlando Predators of the Arena Football League (2004-2008)
- Head Coach, Florida Tuskers of the United Football League (2010)
- Offensive Coordinator, Cincinnati Bengals (2011-2013)
- Head Coach, Washington Redskins (2014-2019/Week 5)
Trait 3: The quarterback is going to run
There’s a perception among mobile quarterbacks that their effectiveness must be due to an extra athletic skill, some sort of God-given ability that has primed them to be a running quarterback. And in some ways, it can be true, especially when applied to those truly magnificent elusive passers. But a quarterback doesn’t have to be an excellent runner to be an effective one — they just must be willing.
When Gruden became head coach of the Orlando Predators in 2004, he actually had a quarterback around whom an offenses rushing plan could be shaped. Joe Hamilton had played quarterback at Georgia Tech which at the time meant deciding to hand off or run yourself as the Yellow Jackets ran the triple option. Hamilton ran all the way to become a Heisman Finalist, finishing second in the voting behind Ron Dayne. Hamilton even spent the 2002 season with Gruden and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, albeit on the injured reserved list. But with the Predators, Hamilton and Gruden created a mobile-friendly quarterback system in which Hamilton was the team's second-leading rusher in 2004 and 2005 then led the team in rushing the 2006 season.
Shane Stafford followed Hamilton and was the teams third-leading rusher in his two seasons under Gruden. While Hamilton’s numbers are marginally better than Stafford’s, neither are record-breaking. What stands out though is the amount of touchdowns relative to rushing attempts by the quarterbacks here. Stafford and Hamilton scored a touchdown every 5.7 rushes. We can glean from this that Gruden was using his signal-callers as rushers on the goal line essentially creating a 12 personnel.
Andy Dalton, running here during a 2012 game, was the Bengals second leading rusher that season under Jay Gruden. © Joseph Fuqua II, Cincinnati Enquirer
While the amount of pay dirt rushes from the quarterback position went down as Gruden transitioned to the NFL, the sheer amount of yardage rose drastically. Andy Dalton was his first real example of what could be possible within the system. In three years under Gruden, Dalton was third, second then third again on the teams total rushing chart. He ran a total of 145 times for 455 yards and seven touchdowns. The 2013 season alone, Dalton rushed 61 times, eighth-most among league quarterbacks that year. The Bengals finished first in the AFC North.
When Gruden became head coach of the Washington Redskins, he inherited Robert Griffin III, the mobile QB who had led Washington to a playoff appearance his rookie season. RG3 was injured in Week 2 and missed the next six weeks. Despite the prolonged absence, Griffin still finished third on the team that season in rushing (38-176-1).
It’s hard to give all credit for this one to Gruden considering Griffin had won the Heisman Trophy while at Baylor thanks in large part to his mesmerizing rushing ability in addition to his stellar passing performance. Yet Griffin does continue what at that point had become a trend in Gruden quarterbacks.
After Kirk Cousins took over as the Redskins passer, Gruden didn’t change his philosophy entirely on asking his field generals to lower their shoulder and go. Cousins is by no means the dual-threat QB that others are, but he still finished his three seasons under Gruden with 111 rushes for 323 yards and 13 touchdowns. Before Gruden arrived, and while serving as the backup for RG3, Cousins had never attempted more than 10 rushes in a season.
During his first year as a starter, the Redskins faced Tampa Bay in mid-October. During a game that took place primarily in the air, Cousins put up his most rushing attempts and yards yet as Washington completed the largest comeback in franchise history. How do you like that?
The trend continued the next two years as Cousins rushing production doubled each subsequent season and with Alex Smith in 2018. It should be noted, an offense relying on a willing rusher and not a stunning one is the college system within which Alex Smith became a first-round pick (at Utah under Urban Meyer).
So what does all of this mean for Gardner Minshew II and the Jacksonville Jaguars this season? Most likely that Minshew will be asked to tote the rock a significant amount of times. This was something Minshew wasn’t afraid to do as a rookie. He isn’t Lamar Jackson or Russell Wilson or Kyler Murray, but Minshew has shown a tenacity outside the pocket that served him well thus far. He finished his rookie campaign with 344 rushing yards on 67 attempts, good enough for fifth amongst all NFL quarterbacks, even a spot ahead of Wilson. This was done with Minshew not playing in two games.
Gruden's history with quarterbacks tells us Gardner Minshew II will be asked to be a part of the rushing attack. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports
Pro Football Focus also found that their highest-rated rookie quarterback of 2019 finished second amongst all league QB’s in scramble yards (350) behind only Lamar Jackson (430). Scramble yards don’t always equal rushing yards (see below video) as a passer can still make a throw on a scramble. But they can also lead to a running lane and a quarterback pulling and running.
Whether up the middle, on a bootleg or a designed run, there is an implied danger with turning the quarterback into a ball carrier, especially if they are hanging behind the line of scrimmage and continuing to look for a receiver. As mobility looks to become a bigger part of Minshew’s playbook in 2020 under Gruden, the young passer—who had 13 fumbles last fall—is looking back at his rookie season to learn the lessons he’ll need for the change.
Related: PFF: Jaguars' Gardner Minshew Recorded Second-Most Scramble Yards in 2019
“By the end of the year I think the biggest thing was just ball security. And the fumbles that come with that and I think the last—when I came back in, I did a little bit better job and just having that awareness of when to call the play dead, when to keep pushing, trying to make the big play and it’s a credit to the coaches around me, teaching me up and I think that’s something I’ll continue to strive for and find that balance.”
The balance will be helpful but if there’s anything statistical history has taught us about Jay Gruden’s offense, there is another attribute Gardner Minshew II will have to bring to his role with the Jacksonville Jaguars this season; a willingness, at least a willingness to run…because he’s definitely going to be asked to do so.
