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[L]et’s start our review of McCaffrey by looking at what he did well at the start of the season, when he had a few games with multiple catches.
Here against the Cardinals, McCaffrey lines up as the point man in a bunch set to the right. The Commanders run a Bow concept, which consists of a basic cross over the middle, a flat route and then a third receiver spotting up in between the other two. McCaffrey runs the basic cross here and the idea is to try and create a high-low read, where if a zone defender attaches to the spot route underneath, McCaffrey can break open behind him but if the defender sinks back to McCaffrey, the spot route will be open. However, the Cardinals play man coverage rather than zone, with McCaffrey matched up on safety Jalen Thompson.
McCaffrey runs a nice route, closing up the gap between himself and the defender quickly and then selling a little fake to the outside before making his cut. He really makes a point of stepping on the defenders toes as he gets close, which helps him sell the fake to the outside even more. The defender reacts to that fake, which enables McCaffrey to separate as he breaks over the middle. Jayden Daniels initially works to his left off the snap but comes back to the right side when he doesn’t like what he sees. McCaffrey’s route is the first one that comes into his vision as he progresses to the right side and he immediately pulls the trigger. From the end zone replay angle, we can see McCaffrey does a nice job reaching out and making a good hands catch away from his body. It’s a sneaky tough catch because McCaffrey is at full extension while running at full speed and the ball is slightly high with a lot of heat on it. But he secures the pass and picks up the first down before the safety makes the tackle.
Working across the middle of the field can be daunting for some receivers because you never quite know where that safety is that could land a big hit. But McCaffrey did show he has no fear in being targeted over the middle and will happily make a catch in traffic.
That play seemed to indicate that McCaffrey was developing a good rapport with Jayden Daniels and was ready to take a step up in terms of role and importance within the offense. However, that step up never materialized as the season progressed. What did materialize was how unlucky McCaffrey was throughout stretches of his rookie season.
This clip shows a few examples of...
