Kavell Conner and Jerrell Freeman: Why it Works
After Pat Angerer went down during the preseason with a fractured bone in his foot, the Colts' community let out a collective groan. Angerer had a very nice sophomore season in 2011, one of the few bright spots on the team, and most Colts fans were excited to see him get another season under his belt in 2011.
The Colts linebacker group was already thin with a season-ending ACL tear for linebacker A.J. Edds, and weren't helped by Scott Lutrus season ending injury during week one of the preseason either.
However, the Colts have not looked to be weak at the inside linebacker spot thus far, in fact, the combination of Kavell Conner and ex-CFLer Jerrell Freeman has looked very effective so far in this short season.
Freeman has been a player that has been exciting us since the preseason, and he's exceeded expectations in place of Pat Angerer. After his 13 tackle and strip-sack performance against the Vikings, some even questioned whether Angerer's starting spot was in danger. While I don't agree with that, it's clear that Freeman's performance so far has been both unexpected and rejuvenating for a defense who's inside linebackers were questioned throughout the offseason, wondering if they could make the transition.
But, as good as Freeman has been, Kavell Conner has been even better. Conner's been active in the run game, consistently plugging holes and meeting running backs at or behind the line of scrimmage. Conner is the more dynamic player, more prone to big hits with his physical style of play.
Yet, Freeman has been the one directly causing both of the Colts defensive turnovers so far this year, intercepting Jay Cutler (and returning it for a TD) last week and forcing Christian Ponder to cough up the ball on a sack this week.
The two players are very different, which is exactly why the defense works with the two of them. Conner, as I said before, is more dynamic. He's very instinctual, and once he thinks he knows where the play is going, he immediately shoots off to try and make the stop at the line of scrimmage. His tackles often come at full speed, as his quickness allows him to beat blockers to the hole and get a clean hit on the running back.
Freeman, on the other hand, is more patient, and tends to stick to his gap. This means that a lot of times he allows himself to get blocked, but he's very good at shedding the block and making the tackle on the running back. The announcers parroted the fact that Adrian Peterson's longest run on Sunday was a six-yard run (although he did have a 9-yarder early in the game), and a big part of that was Freeman. Because he stuck to his gap, and because he was able to make tackles off of a blocker, he saved runs from getting into the second level.
As a result, Conner's tackles tend to come closer to the line of scrimmage, while Freeman's more often come farther from the line of scrimmage. It may sound like an indictment of Freeman, but it's not at all. On the contrary, the Colts need the difference between them. If both 'backers took chances like Conner, they would be susceptible to far more long running plays. With Freeman being patient, he helps keep the runs to a salvageable gain.
Because of the two differences, Conner has a higher percentage of tackles that are categorized as defensive "stops" a play that constitutes an offensive failure. In fact, Conner's play this season has put given him the sixth-best run stop percentage in the league for inside linebackers. But, Freeman's no slouch either, sitting at 13th in the league. Between the two, they have 11 stops, tied with Pittsburgh for most stops for an inside linebacker duo.
Freeman is also more versatile than Conner, while Freeman did allow the game-tying touchdown to Kyle Rudolph on Sunday, he's a capable linebacker in coverage, leading to him playing the fourth most snaps in the league at inside linebacker. Only D'Qwell Jackson, Paul Posluszny, and Ray Lewis have played more snaps as an inside linebacker through two weeks. When the Colts want to go to a coverage lineup, Freeman and Moise Fokou are generally the coverage linebackers.
The final reason why Freeman and Conner work so well at inside linebacker is their ability to get to the quarterback. Part of this is due to defensive playcalling, part due to Freeman and Conner's production thus far.
So far this season, Conner and Freeman have been by far the most effective ILB duo at rushing the quarterback, with three hurries, one hit, and two sacks (including a fumble) on just 19 pass rushing snaps between the two of them. The first week, the two were good, but in week two Conner was second in pass rushing productivity and Freeman fifth. Overall this season (short as it may be), Conner has been the most effective inside linebacker in the league at pass rushing, and Conner tied for sixth. (All pass rushing stats brought to us by Pro Football Focus)
Overall, the linebacker group can only get better with Pat Angerer coming back after the bye. But, until then, let's just say they're in good hands.
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I am super excited about the potential of this defense. Say what you will about Freeney in the 3-4, but he's a HOF pass rusher for a reason and he and Robert Mathis are still one of the best 1-2 pass rushing tandems in the league. Pat Angerer was trending to pro bowl status before his foot injury.
With a healthy Freeney and Angerer, the emergence of Jerraud Powers (ranked #1 in PFFs coverage metric this week), Bathea eating up mistakes, Jerry Hughes finally turning the corner (god willing - +2.2 in the PFF pass rush this week, 3rd behind Clay Matthews and Lamarr Woodley), Vontae Davis regaining his rookie form (good bounce back game this week, +1.4 in pass coverage, good for 16th out of the 93 CBs by PFF), Cory Redding being a force on the right side (his +4.1 good for 2nd best in the league this week), Kavell Conner (who I believe was #1 in Football Outsiders run stop metric last season and is off to another good start as Kyle points out) and Jerrell Freeman adding depth in the middle, and the addition of Josh Chapman near the middle of the season... this defense could be fantastic by the end of the year (I think week 1 was a fluke, not to mention 5 turnovers by the offense). A statement that would have sounded crazy 6 months ago (and maybe still does to some people). Even Fili Moala is quietly having a decent season so far.
The Colts were a top 10 unit in the last 5 games of 2011, and there's a ton better now. I'm pretty hopeful.
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@Colt_Following You know, when you put it like that... I agree that individually, there seems to be a bright light at the end of the tunnel. The numbers are impressive by the way, but it´s still a small sample, so maybe confidence should await a bit. My doubts stem from the fact that a) defense, much like OL play, needs to not have a weak link, and so the scheme and coaching matter quite a lot. At this point, I believe we still lack too many elements to know in what direction this is going. b) As has been stated a ton of times here at ColtsAuthority, we´re still one safety short of defensive stoutness (if Zbikowski is the answer, I´m a fire-breathing Komodo dragon), and that position has been one of the more concerning in the draft for a few years, with few stars, lots of mediocre players, and a ton of hit-and-miss picks where even good players have been lost just a few years later to injuries...
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@Goéland @Colt_Following You nailed it, the problem isn't where we have strengths, but the depth of the weaknesses. Namely, we don't have a 3rd CB that can cover anyone. Our OLB's are liabilities any time they have to drop into coverage (and if they are not going to drop, why make the transition to 3-4?).
This coaching staff has worked hard to hide the weaknesses, but good teams will expose them. Taking the good with the bad, I would expect a middle of the line defense this year.
@Goéland There are definitely some strong pieces here. But yeah, we need a good nickle corner, a NT (perhaps Chapman is the answer, time will tell), another DE (Fili Moala is okay, but not great), and another safety. Like you said, a lot will also depend on the scheme and how well the players adapt. I think it's kind of overlooked how well the Defense played for much of this game though. We didn't move the ball really at all in the second half and until that double tipped TD the defense was pretty much keeping the Vikings in check despite a pretty good game from Ponder and a great one from Harvin.
If they improve at the same rate going forward (with a very winnable game this week and then the bye), I don't know, I think the Colts defense could surprise some people.
Very nice work, Kyle. Seeing the numbers is great, and a little bit surprising too, since I hadn´t realized they´d be ranked so high. I think you hit the nail on the head regarding the differences in their playing styles. Conner has always been a very dynamic run stopper, with the ability to lay spectacular hits, while Freeman, from the little of him I´ve seen this season, is less flashy, but really good at being where he needs to be in the scheme. When Angerer comes back, it´ll give the Colts a very good combination against all packages, seeing how Conner´s main weakness is pass coverage.
I was quietly excited about the Freeman signing way back in March (I think that's when he was signed). He put up big numbers in the CFL and thought he could be a gem of a player. Hope he continues to get better.
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It's been really exciting watching these two guys develop, especially seeing how good Freeman is. I know his highlights from the CFL were good, but to see them translate so well is awesome.
What I don't know is what will happen to Freeman when Angerer comes back? Would he possibly take Conner's slot or maybe just used on passing downs like Fokou is now (Conner out, Freeman in)? Honestly, at this point, I'd hate to see him off the field since he's lighting it up so much.
