Post by Purple Pain on Jun 13, 2021 13:00:05 GMT -6
Zone Coverage: Place Your Trust In Harrison Hand by Luke Braun
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Star Tribune's OTA observations: Harrison Hand gets a lot of run with the 1's, including at slot corner -
On the whole, the 119 coverage snaps Hand played can only be so informative. But for whatever that small sample is worth, it went well. He was only targeted every eighth snap or so, which led the Vikings. Since he was usually playing in relief and only started one game in earnest, the fact that quarterbacks didn’t opt to attack him immediately is a good sign. Either every coach decided to be kind to the Vikings about their cornerback injury situation, or Hand encouraged quarterbacks to move to their next read.
Instead of relying on production metrics on small samples, we can look at the Vikings’ behavior to get a read on what they think. When Harrison Hand had to play extensive time due to injury in Weeks 6 and 8, they didn’t hide him with soft zone coverage. They asked him to play man-match principles. That means reading a route concept and covering a wide receiver. He had some help but still carried his fair share of the responsibility. Against go routes straight down the field, this looks like simple man coverage. Importantly, Hand dealt with these well.
That Zimmer didn’t have to baby Hand with constant deep safety help is a big deal. That is enough on its own to justify Hand as a roster-worthy backup. The Vikings had a big problem with Kris Boyd, Chris Jones, and early-season Cameron Dantzler. Zimmer couldn’t trust them to carry deep patterns. He had to protect the young secondary by keeping Harrison Smith and Anthony Harris in deep coverage. That meant out of the run game and out of the pressure game, which wreaked havoc on the usually dynamic and unpredictable Zimmer defense. In the event that either Dantzler or Peterson goes down, Hand could come in and prevent this same fate.
Hand had to contend with some of the league’s greats in his limited exposure, including Julio Jones and Davante Adams. The bigger receivers that faced Hand often tried to beat him with superior physicality. At 5’11” and under 200 lbs., that’s an attractive option for bigger receivers like Julio Jones or Marvin Jones. Hand stood up fantastically against this particular strategy, and sometimes the opponent ended up on the ground himself.
That may look like illegal contact, and it may well be. But since the offensive player initiated it, Hand won’t have to worry too much. At the breaking point of the route, it’s hard to look too much like you’ve illegally influenced the receiver. If anything, the opponent should be flagged in some of those instances.
It’s worth noting that Hand played a lot of slot cornerback, playing almost exclusively there in Week 13 against the Jacksonville Jaguars. By December, the Vikings ran spot-drop Cover 2, leaving Hand with a watered-down assignment. Minnesota’s defense had lost a lot of corners between the Atlanta Falcons and Green Bay Packers games heavily featured here. Still, that versatility will go a long way toward determining his roster status come September.
This is all a glowing review so far. As a backup corner, you want someone who may not be as consistent but won’t require you to water down your system. Hand can fill in at both inside and outside cornerback spots without requiring that the Vikings bend over backward to protect him. If Hand keeps up his rookie year level of play, he should make the 53-man roster no problem. So let’s step it up a notch: Why not put him in the starting rotation?
Instead of relying on production metrics on small samples, we can look at the Vikings’ behavior to get a read on what they think. When Harrison Hand had to play extensive time due to injury in Weeks 6 and 8, they didn’t hide him with soft zone coverage. They asked him to play man-match principles. That means reading a route concept and covering a wide receiver. He had some help but still carried his fair share of the responsibility. Against go routes straight down the field, this looks like simple man coverage. Importantly, Hand dealt with these well.
That Zimmer didn’t have to baby Hand with constant deep safety help is a big deal. That is enough on its own to justify Hand as a roster-worthy backup. The Vikings had a big problem with Kris Boyd, Chris Jones, and early-season Cameron Dantzler. Zimmer couldn’t trust them to carry deep patterns. He had to protect the young secondary by keeping Harrison Smith and Anthony Harris in deep coverage. That meant out of the run game and out of the pressure game, which wreaked havoc on the usually dynamic and unpredictable Zimmer defense. In the event that either Dantzler or Peterson goes down, Hand could come in and prevent this same fate.
Hand had to contend with some of the league’s greats in his limited exposure, including Julio Jones and Davante Adams. The bigger receivers that faced Hand often tried to beat him with superior physicality. At 5’11” and under 200 lbs., that’s an attractive option for bigger receivers like Julio Jones or Marvin Jones. Hand stood up fantastically against this particular strategy, and sometimes the opponent ended up on the ground himself.
That may look like illegal contact, and it may well be. But since the offensive player initiated it, Hand won’t have to worry too much. At the breaking point of the route, it’s hard to look too much like you’ve illegally influenced the receiver. If anything, the opponent should be flagged in some of those instances.
It’s worth noting that Hand played a lot of slot cornerback, playing almost exclusively there in Week 13 against the Jacksonville Jaguars. By December, the Vikings ran spot-drop Cover 2, leaving Hand with a watered-down assignment. Minnesota’s defense had lost a lot of corners between the Atlanta Falcons and Green Bay Packers games heavily featured here. Still, that versatility will go a long way toward determining his roster status come September.
This is all a glowing review so far. As a backup corner, you want someone who may not be as consistent but won’t require you to water down your system. Hand can fill in at both inside and outside cornerback spots without requiring that the Vikings bend over backward to protect him. If Hand keeps up his rookie year level of play, he should make the 53-man roster no problem. So let’s step it up a notch: Why not put him in the starting rotation?
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Of course, we have to be wary about a sample size of 119 coverage snaps, but the traits displayed on those snaps are more positive than negative. Hand can play man-match coverage on the outside. If he has a halfway decent camp, he could be called upon to rotate in Jeff Gladney’s place during his probable suspension. If those games go as well as his 2020 duty went, Hand could carve his way onto the defense for as long as he can keep it up
Star Tribune's OTA observations: Harrison Hand gets a lot of run with the 1's, including at slot corner -
— If you read this weekly installment, you already knew Hand was getting work as a slot defender by shadowing Alexander in earlier practices. Well, Hand became the Vikings' first-team nickel corner on Wednesday with Alexander absent. Alexander is expected to be the team's starting slot corner, but Hand is learning some coveted versatility that could help him stick as a reserve.
... and neither is this Chris guy.