Yahoo Finance Check the Tape: Myles Garrett is dominant, and the NFL’s prettiest pass-rush move is a big reason why
Earlier this year, we broke down one hyper-effective pass rush move that’s storming the league this year: the cross-chop. And you guys seemed to like it!
So on this week’s edition of the original Yahoo Sports web series “Check the Tape,” I thought it would be great to have former Dallas and Denver defensive end DeMarcus Ware — a future Hall of Famer in my book — break down another time-tested and super-effective pass rush move: the spin.
Check out the video above, produced by Ron Schiltz and the Yahoo Sports video team. Many of the NFL’s best pass rushers are working it into their pass rush plan, including Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett, who is tied for third in the league with 10 1/2 sacks.
And while Garrett’s ability to pull it off certainly has something to do with his freakish combination of length (6-foot-4, 271 pounds) and athleticism (4.57 40-yard dash), Ware explains that executing the spin move at the NFL level is about more than that. You also need technique and instincts, which Ware lays out while breaking down one of Garrett’s snaps from Cleveland’s Week 4 win over Dallas.
Ware should be considered an expert on the subject. His 138.5 career sacks, ninth all-time, make it so. And some of those sacks came against other future Hall of Famers, one of which even went viral in 2014, when Ware unleashed a killer fake spin against San Francisco 49ers left tackle Joe Staley.
“Some tackles will actually spin with you, like Joe Staley,” Ware told Yahoo Sports. “So I did a stab-chop-rip and I actually went halfway around to see if he’s spinning or not and then I went outside again.
“It’s a chess match when you’re out there, and sometimes you have to change things up as you go.”
Fortunately for us, Ware was all too willing to explain the elements that go into that chess match, and in a future episode, we’ll also talk about the move that Ware once used to set the spin up — the stab.
In the meantime, keep an eye on your favorite pass rusher. Chances are, if they’re heating up the quarterback regularly, they’re likely mixing in the spin to do it.
And now, when you see them do it, you’ll know exactly how they pulled it off.
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