'Gun debate
Everyone seems to be doing it, but Bears just don't appear too enamored with shotgun
The shotgun formation, which seems to go in and out of vogue in the NFL, is proving quite popular these days. Peyton Manning (116-for-168 in shotgun-formation passing, according to Stats Inc.), Tom Brady (97-for-155), Ben Roethlisberger (104-for-152) and Brett Favre (109-for-186) are all making good use of the formation. As are Eli Manning (89-for-146), Steve McNair (72-for-115), Drew Brees (70-for-96), Carson Palmer (34-for-60), Damon Huard (21-for-35), Michael Vick (73-for-138), Philip Rivers (55-for-77) and Matt Leinart (53-for-105). Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren recently gave quarterback Matt Hasselbeck the go-ahead to call for the shotgun whenever he feels vulnerable to defensive pressure. Of the league's 32 teams, only the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have yet to run a play from the formation.
Then there are the Bears, who joined the in crowd, if barely, last Sunday against the New York Giants. The Bears' initial excursion into shotgun territory was not successful, however, with quarterback Rex Grossman going 0-for-2 on pass attempts, and false starts negating two other plays. And judging from the tone around Halas Hall last week, the Bears are in no hurry to try again.
(Tom Cruze/Sun-Times)
''It's not going to be one of those things where we go to it all the time, but if we think it will help a little bit, then we'll use it,'' offensive coordinator Ron Turner said.
With the New York Jets, today's opponent, expected to pressure the offense with an assortment of confusing blitzes, the Bears might find that there's no time like the present for a little bit of help.
''It's no big deal for me either way,'' Grossman said. ''I'm kind of fascinated with everyone's fascination with the shotgun, like it's a play in itself. It's not. It's just a way to get the ball in my hands.''
Grossman has had plenty of experience with the shotgun -- just not with the Bears. But it's safe to say he's not intimidated with this particular way of getting the ball into his hands. As a redshirt freshman making his first start for Florida in 2002, in a third-and-goal situation during a home game against LSU, a shotgun snap sailed over his head. Instead of catching up to the ball and falling on it for a loss, Grossman scooped it up, turned and fired a nine-yard touchdown pass to Jabar Gaffney. After the game, a Florida win, Gators coach Steve Spurrier called the play ''one of the all-time greatest'' in the history of football at The Swamp.
Bears fans are unlikely to see similar heroics from Grossman because under Turner, the Bears have shown a dislike for the shotgun.
''We always have it in our system,'' Turner said. ''It's not always in our game plan, but it's in our system.''
Center Olin Kreutz, who in the past has indicated he's not a big fan of the formation, insists he has no problem with it.
''I don't really care,'' he said. ''Whatever they ask me to do, I'll do. It doesn't matter to me. I ran the shotgun under [former offensive coordinator Gary Crowton] -- we ran it almost every play. And under Terry Shea [Turner's predecessor], we ran it almost every third down. So it doesn't bug me one way or the other.''
Tight end Des Clark said it makes no difference to him what formation is called.
''It doesn't affect us at all,'' Clark said. ''Whatever is going to help [Grossman] play well. The ball is coming to me the same way. Everything else is the same, the routes and everything. That's just between him and the offensive linemen. For the rest of the offense, it doesn't matter. If I hear him say 'gun,' I say OK. If I hear him say 'formation' instead, I say OK.''
Turner realizes that the formation can be useful.
''[Grossman] is reading the defense, then in the shotgun he gets his eyes down just long enough to catch it,'' he said. ''It gives him an advantage if they're bringing some A-gap pressure and stuff like that. It gets him away from the center, obviously, quicker, and it does enable him to see downfield.''
But, Turner added, ''I personally think [a quarterback] can see well enough under the center, as well. That's why we do it that way most of the time.''
It seems that Turner has never been a big shotgun proponent. During his first stint as the Bears' offensive coordinator, he butted heads with quarterback Jim Harbaugh, who favored the shotgun. And as head coach at Illinois, he employed a pro-style drop-back offense. After one Illinois loss during the 1998 season, when reporters asked if he considered going to the shotgun, Turner insisted it wouldn't have made a difference. ''Making plays is the solution,'' he said. ''Running the right routes is a solution. Catching the ball is a solution.''
''The shotgun helps the quarterback's vision,'' said Sirius NFL radio host Gil Brandt, who was vice president of player personnel for the Cowboys from 1960-89. ''You can see the field as to what people are doing, and it also gets the quarterback back quicker.''
Brandt was with the Cowboys when coach Tom Landry had Red Hickey, who's credited with inventing the shotgun, teach it to the Cowboys and Roger Staubach.
''Landry ran the shotgun about 40 percent of the time, and during the '70s, we led the league in offense [most] of the years,'' Brandt said.
Despite the success that Staubach and other great quarterbacks, including John Elway and Dan Marino, have had with the shotgun, the formation has always had detractors.
''Certain players don't like it,'' Brandt said. ''Troy Aikman didn't like it at first, but then he realized it was pretty good. And Bill Parcells never liked it. Until he got [quarterback Tony Romo], he wasn't a great believer in the shotgun. But Romo [who played out of the shotgun at Eastern Illinois] loves it. I think any quarterback that does it enough is going to end up liking it. And we're seeing more and more of it everyplace. We're a copycat society. People see the success of the shotgun, and they want to use it.''
Norv Turner, the 49ers' offensive coordinator and the brother of the Bears' coordinator, once was opposed to the shotgun. But he recognized its usefulness many tours of duty ago, when he was with the Redskins. This season, 49ers quarterback Alex Smith (18-for-28) has thrown effectively out of the formation.
The many upsides of the shotgun are obvious: Rather than wasting time dropping back to pass, the quarterback is already five to seven yards behind center when he receives the snap. By doing this, he creates space, offsetting the defensive pressure, and can see the field better. For a shorter quarterback -- Grossman is listed at 6-1 -- the shotgun can be an especially valuable tool. Those big linebackers can be tough to see over.
The shotgun's downside? Many say the formation broadcasts that a pass is coming and takes the offense out of a potential running play.
''You lose the illusion of a run,'' said Bears quarterback Kyle Orton, who frequently threw out of the shotgun at Purdue. ''A lot of teams don't run out of it unless it's a major part of their offense. We [the Bears] can run out of it, but we just don't use it a whole bunch.''
There is nothing stopping teams from calling a running play out of the shotgun, Brandt said.
''People think there aren't a lot of running options out of it, but you're starting to see so many more ways to execute it,'' he said. ''You used to only see it with one back, but now you're seeing it with two backs, on on each side. I've seen Romo and others have run a quarterback draw out of it. That's a good play when [the defense] isn't expecting it.''
And on an obvious pass play, say third-and-long, with a blitz likely on the way, what would an offense have to lose by using the shotgun?
''The only thing about it is, if you hand the ball to the quarterback and there's a fumble, he'll likely be able to recover the ball and lose only a couple of yards,'' Brandt said. ''But if there's a bad snap in the shotgun, you can lose eight or nine yards.''
Another factor to consider: If a quarterback is in the habit of operating under center, he can be thrown off rhythm when switching to the shotgun. That appeared to be what happened to Grossman last week, as he overthrew his first pass out of the shotgun and underthrew the second. And the two false starts in the shotgun might have resulted from a lack of familiarity with the formation. All of which might lead one to conclude that the Bears should practice the shotgun more. Just in case they find themselves needing it.
Or maybe, as they contend, it's no big deal.