The Brian Daboll File - Alabama's next OC : Saban wants the Patriot Offense

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He is committed to running the football.

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- his numbers, regardless of situations, are at best mediocre and at worst ugly

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if he is truly the heir to the throne of Patriots OC, is he going to be gone in 12 months with Josh McDaniels takes the Colts/Texans/Jets/Bears job?

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- how will what he does translate to our current crop of QBs?

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From William & Mary, Daboll moved on to a coveted graduate assistant position with Nick Saban's Michigan state coaching staff in 1998. Saban had previously served as an assistant to Bill Belichick in Cleveland.

While at Michigan State, Daboll apparently impressed Saban, because he recommended Daboll to Belichick when the NFL coach was looking for a defensive assistant in 2000. Eric Mangini was the defensive backs coach when Daboll came to New England.

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(On where he takes his offensive principles from) - "That's a good question. I've learned offense from a couple different people. I've been in this league for about 10 years. Some of it is from Charlie (Weis), some of it is from Brian Schottenheimer, some from Bill Callahan, Dante Scarnecchia, Tater (Carl) Smith; there is a lot of guys. Our offense is kind of a conglomeration of a lot of different things. They are the things that we believe in as coaches on this staff to make up the Browns offense."

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(On what he likes about the quarterbacks) - "The things I like about them are basically the things I've been talking about. They are smart, tough, competitive, and they can both throw the football. What we are looking for at the quarterback position is someone who can get into the huddle, call the football play, get the people lined up, understand where to make the Mike points, understand when they are hot sight, the whole mechanics of the huddle operation. The next thing is decision making and who can perform the best under pressure. Right now we have been out there without any pads on. The situations that we have presented them are that we have been trying to put as much pressure situations as we can, but when the pads come on that will kind of sort itself out."

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(On if offensive penalties are a reflection of the quarterback) - "I think it's a reflection of the entire unit. It will start with me and it will permeate throughout the rest of the guys on offense. That just goes back to the goals I said earlier, we are going to be smart, we are going to be tough and we are going to be competitive. The players that give us the best chance to do that will be the ones out there playing."

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(On what he tells the quarterbacks) - "I tell them to be smart with the football, make good decisions, be good in the pocket and be an accurate passer. That's not going to change for the quarterback spot."

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He has done so, in part, with a lively, hands-on style. Daboll is loud. He freely slaps players' backsides. He yells. He celebrates big plays in practices with a loud scream. Once, during training camp, he dropped back into pass coverage during a drill with his wide receivers.

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“It’s a different style than I’m used to, but very energetic, very in-your-face,” Hoomanawanui said. “He’s going to get the best out of you. He’s been around for a long time and coached a lot of great players, so we’re all excited about having him.”

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That will change under new offensive coordinator Brian Daboll, who will coach Henne to a breakout season and get the offense back on track.

On the surface, that statement would appear idiotic based on Daboll's struggles as the Cleveland Browns' play-caller for two seasons. Daboll directed a unit that averaged 16.1 points per game, a number that portrays an offense that struggled in all areas.

However, it was the surprising play of rookie quarterback Colt McCoy in 2010 that should encourage Dolphins fans. McCoy's success can be attributed to Daboll tailoring his system to fit his quarterback's game.

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Daboll has talked about installing a quarterback-friendly system in Miami that is built around the talent already on the roster. This system would grant Henne the freedom to make checks and adjustments at the line, while also featuring a variety of formations, shifts and personnel groupings designed to create mismatches.

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The Erhardt - Perkins system traditionally had a reputation (whether or not earned) of being a traditional smash mouth offense that maximizes a team's time of possession and does not as frequently call upon its running backs to serve as receivers.

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This offense traditionally used the run to set up the pass via play-action passing, faking the run in order to throw deep downfield when the defense is least expecting it. Despite its earlier reputation, this system is no longer a run first offense. Erhardt commonly ran the system in his later years spread wide open with multiple receivers (earning the moniker "Air Erhardt"), as NFL rules evolved to benefit the passing game. As a result of this influence, the Patriots will frequently run this offense with five potential receivers and an empty backfield should a favorable matchup present itself or as a function of available personnel.

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Another benefit of the Erhardt-Perkins system is that you can use the same personnel in multiple ways. You can split a running back out wide and the play call doesn't change. The tight end can motion into the slot and the play call doesn't change. Line up with three tight-ends and two running backs, split them all out wide, call out two words, and boom -?? new play. The Erhardt-Perkins offense gives teams a lot of flexibility to teams with dynamic personnel.

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The original concepts of this offense looked like a ground-and-pound run-based playbook. The phrase "Pass to score, run to win" was often associated with the Erhardt-Perkins style. The simple terminology for receivers on the outside stemmed from their secondary importance to the overall offense. In later years, these ideas were taken and flipped when teams discovered that the simple terminology actually enhanced the passing game rather than putting it on the back burner.

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The QB only has to remember the shape of the route combinations to understand the play, regardless of personnel in the huddle. Add to this the ability to run the ball out of any of these plays, and the offense can easily run the same play multiple times in a series with minimal worry. The simplicity gives the offense a huge advantage in no-huddle situations, while also maintaining disguises when they want to substitute personnel. When run effectively, the Erhardt-Perkins scheme can be deadly.

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So, in conclusion, I think Saban identified the Patriots system as the perfect mesh of power running, explosive passing and the ability to create mismatches, while still being able to control time of possession.

He couldn't hire Josh McDaniels, so he found the next two guys in line (Godsey and Daboll) and he picked the one he liked more.

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So, in conclusion, I think Saban identified the Patriots system as the perfect mesh of power running, explosive passing and the ability to create mismatches, while still being able to control time of possession.

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