Ali Marpet’s Favorite Play In The Super Bowl
May 17th, 2021
Breaks down key scoring play.
Somewhere, Joe could hear Vince Lombardi hollering in satisfaction.
Bucs left guard Ali Marpet appeared on the “Bucs UK TV” podcast with co-hosts Tim Lewis and Alex Oldham. Among the questions, Marpet was asked to name his favorite play of the Super Bowl win.
It was an easy guess.
Guards and centers don’t get to make many plays. So when they do get a chance to directly impact a scoring play, it’s like winning the lottery.
When Playoff Lenny scored midway through the third quarter to put the Bucs up 28-9 on a 27-yard run on the right side, the key block on the play came from Marpet, who pulled to the right, had a head of steam, and took out Chiefs defensive back Charvarius Ward to spring Playoff Lenny free.
Marpet looked like Packers Hall of Fame guard Jerry Kramer pulling in one of those Packers highlights from NFL Films. You could hear Lombardi as Marpet was trucking across the field — Joe never saw Marpet run that fast — “What we are trying to get is a seal here, and a seal here, and try to run this play in the alley.”
And that’s exactly what happened for the Bucs.
Marpet explained how that play was installed in the days leading up to the Super Bowl. Of course, Marpet had no idea if that play would even be called, though he was hopeful.
“Each week we go into a game with a specific set of plays,” Marpet explained. “You will change [plays] out week to week. When I knew that [play] was going to be up for the Super Bowl [gameplan], I was like [laughs], that you are excited it [may] get called the night before. You’re in bed hoping it gets called.
“I felt confident that it was going to work. As soon as it got called at the right time. Tom did a good job of quick-counting [the Chiefs defense] with a different cadence. It looked like one formation than what we ran.
“I was trying not to smile as I was going to the line of scrimmage when I heard that play called.”
And who was the first teammate to greet Fournette in the end zone? It was Marpet.
It was an old school Packers sweep play, the way Marpet pulled and rumbled up the right side where he tossed Ward away. And the way Ward reacted seeing Marpet barreling toward him, Ward wanted no part of Marpet.
Talk about imposing your will!
It isn’t often that a guard makes a key play and a key block on a Super Bowl touchdown that basically seals a championship. Marpet will likely remember that play for as long as he is breathing.
May 17th, 2021 at 5:26 am
That’s the play when The Den of Depression (formerly The C.I.T.S.) officially became The Licht House
May 17th, 2021 at 6:12 am
This was a favorite of mine too. At that point, we were simply imposing our will and out-muscling them
May 17th, 2021 at 6:55 am
Sweet ….. the game is won in the trenches…. Thank God that they develope the OL and DL ” imposing our will “
May 17th, 2021 at 7:09 am
This is probably the best O Line the Bucs have ever had.
AND it will be better this year.
The Bucs own the Line of Scrimmage in the NFL on both sides of the ball.
So without Dumb Mistakes they are going to Consistently DOMINATE.
Football is not complicated, OWN the Trenches and you will win the war.
Going to be a very fun year.
GO WORLD CHAMPION BUCS!!! 20-0 BABY!!!!
May 17th, 2021 at 7:10 am
This is probably the best O Line the Bucs have ever had.
AND it will be better this year.
The Bucs own the Line of Scrimmage in the NFL on both sides of the ball.
So without Dumb Mistakes they are going to Consistently DOMINATE.
Football is not complicated, OWN the Trenches and you will win the war.
Going to be a very fun year.
GO WORLD CHAMPION BUCS!!! 20-0 BABY!!!!
May 17th, 2021 at 7:36 am
I’ve replayed that TD several times. And every time I am surprised that KC never laid a finger on Lenny.
Once Marpet kicked the DB out, Lenny is not known for his speed. From the endzone angle you could see the entire KC defense deflate and give up. I don’t think they could have stopped the TD but they should have been able to physically touch the RB before he scored.
May 17th, 2021 at 7:49 am
Love it !
May 17th, 2021 at 8:00 am
Great play! And credit also goes to Wirfs, Gronk and Brate for sealing the left side of that hole.
May 17th, 2021 at 8:12 am
It wasn’t a sweep. It a variation of a Duo, which was by far the most called run play by the Bucs all last season. It entails the LT dropping into pass set to set the left edge, the LG and C double teaming the right DT, the RG blocking the left DT, the RT trying to get to the 2nd level against a LB or double teaming the DT with the RG, and the TE blocking the left DE or OLB. With the goal of the RB being to run between the gap that was hopefully made by the RG and RT or to bounce it outside like Lenny did vs the Packers.
But this play was a good way to break tendency and involved Ali Marpet pulling like it was a Power run with everyone else blocking like it was Duo. So it was like a Duo/ Single back Power run.
The Packers sweep has 2 pulling guards and FB lead blocker out of a 2 back set.
May 17th, 2021 at 8:33 am
A signature play at The Licht House of Jason off of Dale Mabry Highway!
May 17th, 2021 at 9:07 am
Very cool story.
May 17th, 2021 at 9:08 am
I’ve heard Duo commonly called “power without a puller”
So I am not sure how that could be called a variation of the Duo since Marpet was clearly a pulling guard. Further it appeared that he was designed to pull all the way outside of Wirfs.
I am ok with Joe calling that a sweep. 1st there are more types of sweeps than just the Lombardi sweep. Fournette clearly started his run towards the middle and then broke way outside.
Comfortable with calling that a variation of the toss sweep as compared to variation of the Duo.
May 17th, 2021 at 9:32 am
BA actually knew this play would work he saw a missed opportunity earlier in the same formation. It’s on a miced up video Lenny missed the bounce out before Bruce said it. When the ran it again they pulled the guard.
May 17th, 2021 at 9:36 am
There is no doubt that this is the best OL in franchise history. An indicator of just how much the game has changed since Jerry Kramer played for the Packers, a HOF lineman from that era would not make the roster as a backup for our Bucs. He wouldn’t meet the size requirements of today’s game.
May 17th, 2021 at 9:47 am
@geno
They brought in an extra blocker and had everyone but Ali block like a Duo play and had Ali pull. It was an awesome play design and worked like a dream.
May 17th, 2021 at 9:53 am
You can watch the play yourself. The dead give away that its a variation of Duo is the way Donovan Smith drops into a pass set.
And the main reason why the play worked as well as it did, is because the Bucs called Duo more than any other run play all year last season, and they had called it several times in the Super Bowl before that play, so the Chiefs expected it again, the Bucs knew the Chiefs were expecting it and called this play to punch them in the gut for thinking they knew what was coming.
May 17th, 2021 at 9:55 am
Again, it’s not a sweep because a sweep involves 2 pulling guards and a fullback.
May 17th, 2021 at 10:04 am
Thing I also remember about that play was Mathieu running away from Furnette as he approached the end zone. Wuzzy!
May 17th, 2021 at 10:32 am
That is a play I can’t stop watching.
May 17th, 2021 at 10:57 am
I will repeat because it best makes my point. Duo is commonly known as power without a puller. There was a pulling guard.
I will repeat this part as well because it best makes my point. There is more than just the Lombardi sweep in the world of sweeps. Some sweep plays involve just one guard pulling.
If you disagree, I am fine with that. I just do not accept you as the authority.
May 17th, 2021 at 11:11 am
geno, do you know what the word variation means?
If every other blocker on the field blocks as though it were a Duo play in an effort to make the defense think it’s a Duo, and then 1 guard is pulled to be a lead blocker, that to me is a variation of a Duo. And I’d be willing to bet that Harold Goodwin, Byron Leftwich and BA would all agree with that assessment if you asked them.
Now, you could just call it a power run, and that would be partially accurate but not tell the full story. And most power runs also involve either a FB or H-back in the back field to serve as a lead blocker
Also, do yourself a favor and look up the Wiki page for Sweep (American Football) you will see several play design diagrams, in each of them you will see something in common. 2, not 1, but 2 pulling guards in addition to either a FB or a WR (Flanker) as a lead blocker.
Yes there, are different kinds of sweeps, but 2 guards have to pull for it to be considered a sweep. That’s the entire basis of the concept.
May 17th, 2021 at 12:27 pm
Your original definition of a sweep above at 9:55 am. Has to have two guards pulling and a fullback in the game.
I subscribe to the X’s and O’s of CoachHuey.com to get some football knowledge. In that site, one coach talks about running a sweep all season long with just one guard pull.
The thing is in football – there are variations of what coaches may call things. Possibly you are correct that Arians and Leftwich may call that a Duo play. But what is the variation of their Duo play. Could it be Duo play with “sweep variation”. Yet another coaching staff (or even the Bucs) may not ever call that a Duo play for the reason I first mentioned. (Duo never involves a pulling guard).
If I utilize your Wiki definition(only) on what a sweep is then a sweep does include 2 pulling guards and a fullback. That same Wiki link also suggests that a power run game uses a fullback. That same Wiki link site also suggests an Off Tackle run uses a fullback. That site feels a little antiquated for me to rely on personally.
Based upon the Wiki definition’s in two seasons Bucs have run very few power runs because they did not have full backs on the field. They also never ran much off tackle because they rarely had a full back on the field. By the way the diagrams for off tackle runs and power runs show full backs on the field on that Wiki site.
May 17th, 2021 at 12:28 pm
P.S. Have you done any research on my very first comment that Duo is commonly called “power without a puller”?
May 17th, 2021 at 12:55 pm
Jesus… Dude, yes. I know that Duo does not involve a pulling guard. As I explicitly stated in my first post when I was describing the different blocking assignments for the line on a base Duo call. I know that Duo is a power running concept without a pulling guard.
The fact that on this particular play, we had 4 offensive lineman and 2 tight ends block as if it were Duo, while pulling 1 guard to serve as a lead blocker IS the variation. This is not hard to understand.
I’m not saying the play that was called is a base Duo play. I’m saying a base Duo was the most frequently called run play for the Bucs last season, and that they specifically designed this play to make the defense THINK that the call is Duo, when its actually a power run with a pulling guard serving as the lead blocker. Jesus dude.
The widely accepted nomenclature says that a Sweep involves 2 pulling guards. I guarantee the play your guy Coach Huey is referring to is blocked differently than the one called for Lennys SB TD which I know for a fact was a not a sweep.
Also there is a reason why a power play without a fullback is called a Single back power and not just a power run. Because traditional a power does involve 1 pulling guard and a fullback.
May 17th, 2021 at 1:01 pm
Geno and dingleberry,,,I call it a TD,,,lol
May 17th, 2021 at 1:07 pm
Hey guys whatever or however you want to describe it, Lombardi would have been proud.
Remember the classic play that they show Lombardi describing on a blackboard – “A seal here and a seal there and run the play in the alley”
It was one of the best runs in the history of the Bucs.
Great play, a thing of beauty.
GO WORLD CHAMPION BUCS!!!! 20-0!!!!
May 17th, 2021 at 1:14 pm
I am sooooo proud of Ali! I am from New York, and he really worked his tail off to make the team, and now he is a Super Bowl Champion! He didn’t know if the play would be run, but HE WAS READY!!! Let’s kick every teams DERRIERE and bring another Lombardi home!!!! You go Ali!!! You Go Bucs!!!
May 17th, 2021 at 1:50 pm
and where is the video and the diagram?
May 17th, 2021 at 1:58 pm
just found it on you tube–sweet, perfect execution, Ward looks afraid to take on Marpet who has a full head of steam, and in fact Marpet sends him reeling
May 17th, 2021 at 2:05 pm
LOL You didn’t have to search for it. Joe linked to it in the story. smh
Always pays to read the story. 🙂
May 17th, 2021 at 7:14 pm
@Dingleberry
How many times do you have to write and show your ignorance about football to everybody before you will stop.
Duo is a variation of Inside Zone Blocking.
Power is a gap scheme run blocking concept that is completely different than zone.
Zone blocking like Duo has an area of attack with a cutback option or bounce outside option depending on the blocking. No predetermined hole EVER.
Power has definite hole assignments, with a fullback, TE or H-back, Wingback sealing or kicking out the end and the backside pulling guard logging if the end is kicked or wrapping if the end is sealed.
This was 13 personnel, aka goal line.
It was an unbalanced single wing.
The play call was 28 Power.
The OLine blocked down 1 gap left perfectly following Power Run Blocking Rules.
Kansas City’s defense alignment was bonkers. 4-3 personnel vs Goal line is crazy. 4 DLineman, 3 backers and 4 secondary players vs 13 personnel is nuts!
The 4 DLineman were blocked before the ball was snapped.
KC 53 and 56 are blocked before the play is snapped.
KC CB covering Evan’s with safety help overtop, both CB and FS are blocked before the snap.
KC had their Line shading strong left, with no DLINE man outside containing the unbalanced single wing which the defense should have aligned strong right to.
Chris Jones was head up on a Haeg/TE, and thus blocked before the play even started.
Gronk vs KC LB is just plain unfair.
Brate vs KC SS #49 who is shooting inside is stealing candy from a baby with 6 inch splits. #49 is in the wash with Brate’s two hand punch.
KC had a CB, #35, assigned to contain. A CB! Are you kidding me!?
#35 saw Marpet and wanted nothing to do with him.
Power is a completely different play from Zone/Duo blocking Dingle. It’s not a variant as you claim. Google is your friend as you often say to people. Those OC us who know football don’t need Google to tell us the difference between Power and Zone Run blocking rules.
People who know football know this.
People like Dingle who don’t know football, don’t know this.
May 17th, 2021 at 7:41 pm
Saw a POV pic on Bucs.com of BA talking to all the rookies together. Hainsey is such a beast 😀
May 17th, 2021 at 9:40 pm
Baby Grace
Except Duo is a man/gap blocking scheme and not inside zone. But I thought you knew that since youre apparently some kind of genius and I dont know what I’m talking about.
May 17th, 2021 at 11:46 pm
Personally it’s a lot more interesting to debate Scotty Miller than someone pulling something and then sweeping.
May 18th, 2021 at 8:46 pm
@DingleBerry and @BelleGladeBuc,
The play has elements of Duo and Power, but not Inside Zone. Duo uses ‘gap away’ blocking by the C and RT. Their job is to help on the line briefly if it’s zone and then get up into the 2nd level and push defenders away from the direction of the run (playside). You see Jensen and Wirfs do that. Although, Wirfs could have had a better block on the LB, to seal the backside edge.
Inside Zone is more of a vertical push into 2nd level by the C and T, but that was not the case here. But, it’s not traditional Duo either, since Duo doesn’t use a pulling guard. So, this has a bit of power run as well with the sweep.
I can’t say this blocking scheme is very common in 13 Personnel. But, they may have dialed in this play for the SB based on the Chief’s LDE cheating inside a lot by either seeing it or from film. The fact that they lined up Mike Evans on the backside shows how much faith they have in Marpet’s athleticism (speed) to pull around and handle the corner. Normally the WR runs the corner away from the play or blocks while being lined up on the playside.
This play is a variation on the Buck Sweep in 13 Personnel. Instead of 3 TEs, they put Joe Haeg in alongside Gronk and Brate.
This play was masterful because they blended in things from different blocking schemes and personnel, which added a wrinkle to the buck sweep.
May 18th, 2021 at 8:55 pm
I guess you could call that play the Buc Sweep, since it was uniquely designed to perfection.
May 18th, 2021 at 10:41 pm
@lambchop
The reason why I say it resembles inside zone way more than duo is because every one of the Bucs line inside stepped left and blocked most dangerous man.
If it’s duo, Jensen is double teaming with Marpet. Because that doesn’t happen at all in this play it’s crazy to call it duo. A center guar double team is way different than center gap blocking down the pulling guards man all by himself.
Because of the one backside pulling guard it obviously follows the rules of Power the most, and that’s why I say it is Power.
I have never seen Power run from 13 with an off balanced single wing until this play. This was the first time and it was brilliant.
Uncovered and playside tackle Tristan Wirfs worked to second level, blocking KC LB #53, just like you are taught to do in Power. I think it is 28 Power way more than duo or zone.
Inside zone = Man head up you block. No man head up, stomper step inside and block most dangerous man in front of your helmet or work up to second level. Man outside shoulder you don’t worry about. Duo follows those zone rules with zone rules on double teams.
Power without pulling is not a power play in my book. As a center I know that I can screw up the play if I get pushed back in Power. I’m cutting my guy and going to the die in my hole before that happens, making sure that my guard has clearance to get around me. In Duo or Zone I don’t have that worry at all.
The center always blocks the backside pulling guards man in Power. Snap and left hand punch, turn your hips and right hand punch, engage him for a second or 1.5 second, and you have done your job.
As a former center I loved the block on Power because I had the angle, knew that I could get my left punch on him, get in front of him and turn my hips and that I did my job.
Easy block if I get off fast, making sure that I cheat my right foot up ever so slightly to help create a better angle going left. Once I got my right punch on him I knew it was over and that I did my job. After that I loved watching my guys run the ball and block after making that backside seal. #68 Jensen did just that on this play. So much fun watching a TD! The best center in the game in my opinion, but I am a little biased.
In Duo the TB, in this case Fournette, would attack the MLB downhill immediately, aiming at the 1/0/2 hole, before attacking outside or cutback inside. That didn’t happen in this play at all.
It is obvious that Fournette is watching Marpet before Brady hands the ball of to him off of his left hip, and then follows Marpet just like a back is taught to do in Power, or Power’s variant the counter/buck sweep.
Nowhere in Duo is the back taught to follow a pulling guard. Nowhere in Duo is the line taught gap blocking with a pulling guard.
It is clear that Fournette’s assignment is to follow the logging or wrapping pulling guard dependent upon the seal or kick block of the DE. That’s 28 Power all day using your backside pulling guard.
I love using Evans as a decoy that took 2 defenders out of the play before the snap, and agree that Marpet is a special weapon as an offensive lineman.
Great play design by Leftwich.
Marpet is very talented, and not given the respect he deserves in the league.
I would argue he’s one of the best guards in all of football.
I love your suggestion though of Buck Sweep. I agree that it resembles Buck way more than Duo, minus the second pulling guard.
Maybe call it 28 Bucs Sweep?