Kareem Hunt and Tyreek Hill were two of the NFL’s most effective players out of RPOs — can the Chiefs replace their production?" />Skip to main contentclockmenumore-arrownoyesHorizontal - WhiteArrowhead PrideArrowhead Pride | Kansas City Chiefs Schedule Derrick Thomas Jersey , News, Roster and StatsLog In or Sign UpLog InSign UpSeriesLatest NewsFanpostsFanshotsCommunityAboutStubHubMoreAll 322 blogs on Horizontal - WhiteSeries Stagner ThingsLottery Tickets ’19Summer of SpagsDixon’s MailbagLatest News Fanposts Most recentMost activeFanshots Community Community GuidelinesContactAbout StubHub ✕PFF says the Chiefs may regress in their RPO plays without key playersNew,81commentsKareem Hunt and Tyreek Hill were two of the NFL’s most effective players out of RPOs — can the Chiefs replace their production?CDTShareTweetShareSharePFF says the Chiefs may regress in their RPO plays without key playersPhoto by Peter Aiken/Getty ImagesOn Friday, Pro Football Focus writer Anthony Treash published an article addressing the NFL’s rising use of run-pass option plays (RPOs) and its leading proponent: Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid.Noting that the use of RPOs has steadily increased in the last couple of seasons — just 4% of NFL offensive plays in 2016 to 8% in 2018 — Treash pointed out that according to PFF’s data, they also tend to be more effective; since 2016; RPOs have averaged 4.7 yards per play, while non-RPO running plays have averaged just 3.9.And according to Treash, the Chiefs lead the way.So what is an RPO?It’s pretty much what the name implies — a play that when called in the huddle could be either a run or a pass.Either before or after the snap, the quarterback decides which way the play will go based on what he sees the defense doing.But how can you tell an RPO has been called?Threash referenced a PFF article by Mike Renner from last year that gives an answer:Renner explains that in an RPO play, quarterbacks will typically decide whether to run or pass based on the defensive coverage call (pre-snap) or what the conflict defender does post-snap.The conflict defender is a specific defensive player who is identified in the offensive play call; the quarterback simply watches what that player does after the snap. For example, if a conflict defender is a specific linebacker, the quarterback will hand the ball to a running back if that linebacker moves out wide or drops into coverage; otherwise, the quarterback will pass.Treash said that according to PFF’s data Christian Okoye Jersey , most RPOs end up being running plays.Since 2016, 69% of RPO calls end up as running plays, while 31% ended up being passing plays.But Treash believes that the Chiefs’ success in RPO plays could suffer this season.But Treash’s concern isn’t just about Hill.While Treash didn’t explicitly say so, this suggests Chiefs running back Damien Williams either wasn’t as effective in RPO plays, or they were rarely called when he was on the field after Hunt was released in November and Ware was injured in December.But Treash also believes that the moves the Chiefs made in the draft were specifically intended to help remedy the situation.Sixth-round running back Darwin Thompson played in an RPO-heavy scheme at Utah State, with 101 snaps in RPOs that were good for a 81.1 rushing grade.PFF also says Thompson was one of the most elusive running backs in RPO systems, with 0.33 missed tackles forced per attempt and 4.9 yards after contact per attempt.Second-round wide receiver Mecole Hardman played in a program that didn’t emphasize RPOs the way Utah State did. Georgia had just 30 RPO pass attempts, but Hardman got more than half of those targets and gained 9.5 yards after the catch per reception. PFF gave him a 76.6 receiving grade on his RPO snaps. Yes, the Los Angeles Rams got away with a flagrant foul (or two) by cornerback Nickell Robey-Coleman that allowed them to sneak out of New Orleans with the NFC championship, right past the highway sign on the causeway over Lake Pontchartrain reading, “WE WERE ROBBED .”Yes, the Patriots won in Kansas City thanks to four critical calls going New England’s way in the fourth quarter Marcus Allen Jersey , three of which were iffy: a replay reversal of Julian Edelman’s muffed punt , a phantom roughing-the-passer call on Chris Jones and Chris Hogan’s drive-sustaining one-handed catch with a little help from the ground.The fourth flag was indisputable: Dee Ford lined up in the neutral zone, negating rookie cornerback Charvarius Ward’s game-clinching interception with 55 seconds left and Kansas City ahead 28-24.“I thought the game was over,” Chiefs safety Daniel Sorensen said. “And it wasn’t.”Just like the Saints did when Tommylee Lewis blatantly was interfered with inside the Los Angeles 5-yard line by Robey-Coleman, whose helmet-to-helmet hit didn’t draw the flag but will surely result in a hefty fine.“I thought it was a flag for that split second,” acknowledged Robey-Coleman, who was as surprised as everyone else when two officials near the play ruled it an incomplete pass on third down with 1:45 remaining in regulation and the game tied at 20.“I knew if that had been a flag, they probably would have scored on the next play,” Robey-Coleman said.The call kept the Rams close as New Orleans settled for a field goal on the next play, Greg Zuerlein tied it in regulation with a 48-yarder and won it in overtime with a 57-yarder , two field goals that likely never would have happened had Robey-Coleman been flagged for clobbering Lewis well before the ball arrived.On Monday, Saints wide receiver Michael Thomas implored NFL commissioner Roger Goodell to undo the outcome of the game Larry Johnson Jersey , citing an NFL rule that allows for “the reversal of a game’s result or the rescheduling of a game, either from the beginning or from the point at which the extraordinary occurred.”The league has never invoked the rule to reverse a game’s outcome.The George Halas and Lamar Hunt Trophies may be smudged amid the backlash over the officiating gaffes, but they aren’t entirely tarnished because strategy and execution had as much to do with the outcomes of these overtime thrillers as the yellow flags that were or weren’t thrown.The Rams (15-3) roared back from a pair of double-digit deficits to beat the Saints 26-23 in overtime because they stuck with the plan and didn’t panic after falling behind 13-0 in the first quarter and 20-10 in the third quarter.After managing just 5 yards in the first quarter when nothing went right, the Rams righted themselves thanks to a fake punt and cut New Orleans’ lead to 13-10 at halftime.“Our team demonstrated great mental toughness,” Rams coach Sean McVay said. “It was a tough start, but I thought the way (quarterback Jared Goff) played and handled the noise was outstanding.”The Rams outscored the Saints 16-3 down the stretch.The Patriots (13-5) overcame a 24-point fourth-quarter outburst fueled by Patrick Mahomes to beat the Chiefs 37-31 in overtime because Tom Brady was hardly touched, aside from Jones’ shoulder swipe that the officials thought hit him in the facemask.New England’s much-maligned offensive line didn’t allow a single sack to the Chiefs, whose 52 sacks during the regular season were tied with the Steelers for the league lead and who pummeled Andrew Luck a week earlier, sacking him three times.Brady “played great,” Patriots coach Bill Belichick said for what, the 1,000th time? “They were playing a lot of man coverage and it was either a good gain or an incompletion. … They gave us some three-man rush and there was a lot of four-man rush with Justin Houston Joe Montana Jersey , Chris Jones and Dee Ford. Those are tough matchups. I thought they did a good job of standing up to those guys and giving Tom a chance to deliver the ball.”In overtime, Brady, who has thrown 90 passes in the playoffs and has not been sacked a single time, converted a trio of third-and-10 pass plays on the winning touchdown drive.“Brady got rid of the ball fast,” Jones said. “We didn’t get to the quarterback like we usually do.”So the Patriots rushed for 176 yards and Brady threw for 348.By dominating the time of possession — 44 minutes to 21 minutes — Brady and the Patriots kept Mahomes, Travis Kelce and Tyreek Hill on the sideline during most of the freezing night.“You play on the road, it is going to be tough,” Brady said. “What travels well is running the ball and playing tough. That is good in any weather, any condition, any environment and any stadium.”