This past off-season, there were a lot of Detroit Lions fans that were upset with the Lions giving linebacker Alex Anzalone a three-year contract worth $18.75 million dollars. Many fans had felt like the Lions could have moved on from the veteran linebacker out of Florida by drafting a linebacker or because there was an expectation for last season sensation Malcolm Rodriguez to take a huge step forward.
Fortunately, the Lions stayed true to what they believe in and continue to add and/or keep players that fit the culture they’ve built. Like it or not, Alex Anzalone is one of those players.
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Since his arrival to Detroit, Anzalone has registered more tackles than anybody on the roster with 203 total tackles during his first two years with the team. So far this season, he’s registered 44 tackles with one sack and four pass deflections. Currently, he’s on pace for 100+ tackles this season and he should surpass that easily. Meanwhile, it’s starting to look like Anzalone is going to have a career year this season for the Lions. Let’s jump into the film room to see how Anzalone continues to lead and make play after play for the Lions defense!
Starting with one of the first defensive plays of the game, it’s a play that sets the tone. It’s a play that indicates that it’s going to be tough sledding when trying to run against this Detroit Lions defense. Much of that is credited to how Alex Anzalone attacks blockers and gets downhill.
Looking at the play above, the Buccaneers come out in a pistol formation with their 12 personnel (one running back and two tight ends). Once the ball is snapped, the offensive line all reach block to the left. During the play, the right guard and right tackle combo block on the defensive tackle that is aligned as a 3-technique.
In that process, this creates an opening in the A-gap between the center and right guard. This creates a slight opening for Anzalone, who reads the hand-off perfectly and he attacks downhill immediately.
Once the quarterback hands the ball off, Anzalone gets square to the running back and starts to throttle down to form tackle. Sure, he stumbles some and reaches rather than shooting his hands, but it’s enough to slow the running back down. Lastly, it forces the running back to change direction. This is a great run fill by the seven-year veteran.
In coverage against the Buccaneers, Anzalone had a season-high two pass deflections. On the play above, we look at one of those pass deflections. The Bucs come out in an empty set with three receivers to the right of the formation. To defend this, the Lions come out in a 4-3 but they run Cover 2 Man out of this defense.
Aligned in the slot (bottom of the screen) is Anzalone. As the receiver pushes vertically up the field, Anzalone stays square to the receiver and is prepared to break inside or outside with the receiver. One thing that Anzalone isn’t concerned with is if there’s a vertical route because he’s got a safety over the top.
Once the receiver throttles down and breaks towards the middle of the field with an in-breaking route, Anzalone jumps into the hip pocket of the receiver to trail him. In the process, the pass is delivered and rather than trying to jump the route, Anzalone swats the arms of the defender and breaks up the pass.
Next, I want to focus on one of the many run stops that were made by Anzalone on Sunday against the Buccaneers. According to Pro Football Focus (PFF), he had a 38.5% run stop rate. That was highest of any defender in the NFL this past week.
Looking at the play above, the Bucs come out in their 11 personnel (one running back and one tight end). For the Lions, they come out in their nickel defense. Aligned as double 0 (head up over the center) is Anzalone (LB 34).
Prior to the snap, the quarterback motions a wide receiver away from where the ball is intended on being ran. For the Lions defense, it doesn’t change anything. Cam Sutton (CB 1) is aligned in the box prior to the motion but he just follows the motion towards the sideline. Meanwhile, the two inside linebackers motion slightly towards the motion to ensure they’re balanced to that motion.
Once the ball is snapped, you can see how the offensive line reach blocks to their left. With how the running back takes the handoff, it appears to be an outside zone run and he’s looking to get to the perimeter or bend the run back inside. Unfortunately for the running back, Anzalone does a great job staying square to the open rushing lane created by the center and right guard.
This forces hesitation for the running back and as he tries to bend it back inside, he’s immediately met from Anzalone in the hole. This is textbook from him and it’s something that he does consistently for the Lions defense.
Lastly, I want to focus on a huge run stop by Anzalone during a 2nd & 8 in the 3rd quarter with 2:23 left on the clock. Looking at the play above, the Bucs come out in a trips bunch formation to the right. While this trips bunch is a condensed set, it doesn’t mean anything to Anzalone, who is aligned as the WILL linebacker for the defense.
Prior to the snap, you can see that the Lions are aligned in a 4-2-5 defense or their nickel package. From his alignment, you’ll notice that Anzalone is aligned in a ’20’ (head up over the guard). Right before the snap, the Bucs will motion a receiver to the left and this makes it a 2×2 set after the ball is snapped.
As the quarterback hands the ball off to the running back, you’ll see the tight end run to his left and behind the offensive line. The tight end is trying to set a block on the perimeter for this counter run by the Bucs. However, Anzalone swipes the back of the tight end and continues his path downhill to meet the ball carrier for a half-yard gain. This stop made it 3rd down and the Bucs would punt it to Detroit. The Lions ended up scoring a field goal after this defensive stop.
Earlier this year, I mentioned in a film article how the Lions defense needs contributors alongside Aidan Hutchinson. Just a few short weeks later and the Lions are getting solid contribution on a weekly basis from their veteran linebacker. Like it or not but Alex Anzalone has provided a much needed spark to the middle of the Lions defense this season.