September 28, 2015
Jimmy Kempski/PhillyVoice
Jets QB Ryan Fitzpatrick is going to see Brandon Bair in his sleep.
As we noted in our "10 awards" post following the Eagles-Jets game, Brandon Bair was a key part of the Eagles' win on Sunday, as he was able to bat down three passes at the line of scrimmage. Bair's three batted passes lead the NFL.
Batted passes can lead to great things for a defense. At a minimum, if you can bat a pass at the line of scrimmage, you're going to get an incomplete pass, barring some flukey play in which the pass lands in the arms of an opposing receiver anyway. They can also lead to interceptions if you can affect the trajectory of the pass by tipping it, or by simply getting a hand in the QBs face, making the him adjust his throw in the same way a basketball player might throw up a bad shot to avoid it from being blocked.
The Eagles emphasize batted passes, and against a "smallish" quarterback like Ryan Fitzpatrick, who is 6'2, they become an even bigger focus. Here were Bair's three batted passes on the day:
The Eagles' blitz scheme helped Bair on this one. The Eagles sent a blitz to the right side of the Jets' OL, where their RT was forced to choose between blocking Bair or DeMeco Ryans. He picked Ryans, and Bair got a free run at Fitzpatrick. He couldn't get there in time to get the sack, so he did the next best thing, which was getting a hand up and blocking the pass, a la Moses Malone.
The second batted pass led to an interception by Jordan Hicks. Bair is doubled here, but he fights off the blocks and gets just enough of the ball to make it flutter in the air for Hicks to pick it off. If you notice, it looks like you can see Fitzpatrick move to his right to get a better throwing angle away from Bair, but Bair mirrors him and shuts down that lane.
And finally, one last rejection:
But that wasn't all Bair was able to do on Sunday. He was also effective in the run game, stacking up the line of scrimmage. Here's Bair easily pushing the tight end into the backfield, getting off the block, and stopping the RB for a one-yard gain.
And here's Bair chasing down a fairly mobile quarterback in Ryan Fitzpatrick. He has better athleticism than I would have expected.
So far, the Eagles' depth on defense has come to play. Jordan Hicks filled in and looks great at ILB, Eric Rowe stepped up when the Eagles lost Chris Maragos, and Bair made a lot of key plays in the absence of Cedric Thornton.
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