Film Room: How Falcons' Julio Jones continues to dominate deep

The Atlanta Falcons throw deep a lot. As a matter of fact, they’ve thrown deep 28 times in 2014, third-most in the NFL, according to Pro Football Focus. 

It happens when you least expect it, such as on early downs, when the Falcons line up in various personnel groupings. They spread out running backs, fullbacks and tight ends all over the field to create mismatches and openings for receivers. Offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter is the mastermind behind it all.

Koetter favors matchups that allow him to dial up deep passes to Julio Jones, who is the Falcons’ top wide receiver and arguably the league’s best deep threat.

Jones is explosive and physical, with astronomical leaping ability and hands like glue. Regardless of where the ball comes in, it sticks. And when it’s quarterback Matt Ryan throwing it, he’s usually pretty accurate. Ryan is third in the NFL with a 46 percent deep passing accuracy, according Pro Football Focus.

Koetter bases his offense out of 11 personnel (one back, one tight end), but he also mixes it up at times. There’s 12, 20 and 21 personnel. All are designed to force defenses into man coverages, mostly single-high sets, and to bait defenders into covering a pass-catcher who is actually clearing room out for Jones.

In Week 1 against the rival New Orleans Saints, the Falcons needed a big play because they were down 10 in the third quarter. Jones was to the left, outside the 30-yard number and on the back side of a trips formation. He was the lone pass-catcher until Ryan, who was in shotgun, motioned the offset running back outside.

When the running back jogged past Jones, a safety followed him. This, along with the single safety in the middle of the field, signaled man coverage. It could have been a variation of Cover 0 or Cover 1 (Man-Free). With the pass-catchers the Falcons had, it was destined to be Cover 0. That meant the Saints were playing man coverage across the board. That, too, meant that Jones was one-on-one with a cornerback once he shifted inside the 30.

Jones released vertically and pressed the cornerback onto his heels. The eight-yard cushion that was there when the play began evaporated. The coverage would soon, too.

The free safety covered the third receiver in from the trips side, leaving the middle of the field unoccupied. That cleared the way for Jones to run a post route. He ran with his shoulders straight and knees high, like a sergeant would. Then he swung his arms and abruptly cut inside, blew past the cornerback who was circling in coverage and caught Ryan’s throw easily. Before he was tackled at the 1-yard line, he gained 27 yards.

Koetter’s play calling sets up these kind of situations often for Jones. Cornerbacks struggle defending the fourth-year receiver on an island. He’s too big, too fast, too athletic and he catches nearly everything. He has only two drops on 55 targets this season, according to Pro Football Focus. It’s not a matter of if cornerbacks can defend him, but rather how long it takes for Jones to beat them. 

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers found out the hard way in Week 3, when Jones lit them up for nine catches, 161 yards and two touchdowns despite missing 20 snaps.

Up 28 in the second quarter, the Falcons didn’t let up on the drubbing. They lined up in an empty backfield set with Ryan in shotgun. Koetter’s personnel grouping of choice, 21 personnel, was curious. A tight end was flexed to Ryan’s near right. Next to him, a fullback was in the slot. And across the field, in the left slot, a running back stood. Jones was on the far left, on top of the numbers, where a cornerback was in his grill.

The Bucs were in a base defense with two deep safeties. They had the right personnel to defend the Falcons, but the wrong matchups. Their outside linebackers were lined up over the running back and tight end, but their strong safety was set to cover the fullback.

Better yet, when the fullback ran a flat route after the snap, the strong safety came down in coverage, which forced the free safety to rotate into the middle of the field and away from Jones. Jones beat the cornerback inside and ran for a dozen yards before cutting toward the middle.

He ran a post route outside the near hash, where the free safety once stood. Even though the free safety was late coming back outside, the cornerback had good coverage. He was draped all over Jones, but it still wasn’t enough. Jones overpowered him and reached down near his ankles to catch the pass for an 18-yard pickup.

At times, it seems impossible to defend Jones and the Falcons’ deep passing attack. Defenses have to respect the run or they’ll get punched in the teeth by it, so they commit linebackers into the box and bring down safeties. The Falcons have been able to take advantage of these defensive checks - for the Bucs, there was no hope.

A quarter later, the Falcons went deep again. This time, they had 12 personnel. Ryan was under center with both tight ends inline. Jones was isolated outside the 40-yard number to Ryan’s right. The Bucs, again, showed two-deep coverage from base defense.

The key was the second tight end. He was the wing two yards off the line of scrimmage. When he ran a flat route, the strong safety came down and the Bucs rotated their free safety yet again to the middle of the field. The coverage was Cover 1 Robber, leaving the free safety responsible for defending deep.

While the free safety rotated, he watched Ryan’s eyes and upfield shoulder. They were focused to the far left, where the wing ran the flat route and another receiver ran a hook route. The free safety watched intently and seemingly forgot about Jones running behind him.

Jones released inside and hand-fought with the cornerback. The cornerback was wrestling with Jones to slow him down and allow the free safety to work his way back over to that side, so he could help cover Jones over the top. But the free safety was ball-watching to the opposite side of the field, leaving the cornerback on his own.

Once Jones saw that he had single coverage, he shook the cornerback off, worked his way in front of him and on top of the route to run outside the numbers again. Ryan then snapped his head back to the right, where the free safety had his back turned, and fired a deep ball to Jones. Jones tracked it and eventually caught it over his outside shoulder in the end zone. A 40-yard score.

Through five weeks, Jones is tied for the most deep receptions with seven, according to Pro Football Focus. He’s second in targets with 14, seven less than Jeremy Maclin of the Philadelphia Eagles. He had the potential for more in Week 5 against the New York Giants, but he dropped one and couldn’t beat press coverage on another.

If there’s one way to slow Jones down, it’s by pressing him and forcing him to release outside. He sometimes struggles with that because he’s still learning how to play with great technique and route running. That’s what the Giants did, and it’s what the Chicago Bears should do in Week 6. Otherwise they’ll get torn apart trying to match Koetter’s personnel, which will leave Jones celebrating in the end zone.

Around the NFL

• There’s debate over the importance of New York Jets quarterback Geno Smith’s missed meeting, but this can’t be debated: He’s still not reading the field quick enough and his receivers can’t get open. And, no, Michael Vick is not the answer.

• C.J. Mosley’s run defense is impressive. The Baltimore Ravens inside linebacker is using his quickness to get off blocks and fill gaps. He needs to make sure to keep his pads square, though.

• San Francisco 49ers cornerback Perrish Cox didn’t see a ton of action against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 5, but did manage a critical late-game interception. He peeled off the No. 1 receiver to get over top of the No. 2 vertical receiver in Cover 3 to seal the game. Heady.