Liam Coen: YAC Is A Big Focus For Offense In Training Camp
July 24th, 2024
Emphasizing YAC.
You may have heard the last time you visited Hooters that the past two seasons, the Bucs have been the worst rushing team in the league.
For a guy like Todd Bowles who believes in running the ball, this must gall him to no end.
Last year early in training camp, Joe asked then-Bucs offensive coordinator Dave Canales how or if a coach can help improve a team’s YAC. His response was simple: Run more.
Canales’ successor with the Bucs, Liam Coen, has a different approach. Coen told Joe that improving the YAC (yards after contact) from Bucs offensive players has been and will be a key focus in training camp.
In many drills Coen has his offensive players work on daily, Coen said they all include an element to help players get better YAC.
“We’ve got some creative, ball security [drills] we do every day.” Coen explained. “And a lot of [those drills] entails open field running, slash running, sideline stiff-arms.
“We are teaching in our drillwork — we have an obstacle course so they are working the edges on defenders and how to use their agility to simulate making people miss. … One thing we said to the guys [Tuesday] night was, we want to be explosive. We want to create explosive passes and runs. It’s definitely part of our mantra.”
At the end of the day, Coen confessed, there is only so much a coach or drills can do to help a player get YAC. At some point, it’s up to the player.
“The rest is up to their God-given abilities,” he said.
July 24th, 2024 at 4:55 pm
A lot of YAC had to do with where the quarterback delivers the ball
July 24th, 2024 at 5:10 pm
shut tje hell up atlbuc, go watch Cousins.
July 24th, 2024 at 5:12 pm
@ATLBUC is right, but also include getting separation before the catch, and maintaining balance when DB’s only put a shoulder on you and don’t wrap up.
July 24th, 2024 at 6:14 pm
Hey atlbuc
I’ve been stuck up here in ohio for 14 years now , after growing up in st.pete .
I’ve had the displeasure of hearing or watching some browns games when the bucs were not playing . I watched baker since he was drafted & can honestly say I didn’t think he had the throws in his bag of tricks like he did last year for tampa . Plus dude is a fighter ! I will take him with the weapons we have any day of the week & bakerfan is right , maybe you should go watch cousins and or penix lose ! Go BUCS !
July 24th, 2024 at 6:36 pm
Hard to get Yards-After-Contact in the running game if you’re running up the middle into a brick wall on every other play. A better blocking OLine will certainly help. More creative play design & better play-calling will certainly help.
Bucs ran 439 times last year for a meager 1509 yards … a last place 3.4 YPC finish. We had the same 3.4 YPC average in 2022. But we were well above that … 4.3 YPC … in 2021 and almost the same … 4.1 YPC …in 2020. Both those years we had a much better OLine (and potentially some harder-hitting RBs in Fournette & RoJo). HOPEFULLY Rachaad, Bucky & Chase can get us back into that 4.0 YPC (or better) range this year behind a better blocking OLine.
July 24th, 2024 at 6:54 pm
“You got athletes everywhere, give’em the ball and let’em go”
July 24th, 2024 at 8:02 pm
Another way of saying they don’t want Baker throwing deep because he’s incredibly inaccurate – so instead they’ll be dumping off a lot of passes and expecting guys to make plays.
July 24th, 2024 at 8:24 pm
Rod, I think you are incredibly inaccurate, not Baker.
July 24th, 2024 at 8:26 pm
This offense is going to be fun to watch.
July 24th, 2024 at 8:49 pm
Yea Rod, that’s what they’re saying 🙄🤣
July 24th, 2024 at 9:51 pm
Rod Munch Says:
July 24th, 2024 at 8:02 pm
Another way of saying they don’t want Baker throwing deep because he’s incredibly inaccurate
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Baker is incredibly accurate having completed 70% of his passes at Oklahoma, while throwing for 40+TD’s and 5 or 6 INTS in each of his last two years. Mayfield like most QB’s needs the kind of time that Jared Goff has gotten the last couple of years at Detroit. Last year Baker was under siege by a collapsing middle pocket. Hopeful that Licht has improved things this year. Won’t take long to prove the point. Of course, this assumes that RodMunch wants Baker to succeed. Munch has a lot of his ego invested in running down Mayfield for the last 12 months. Bucs may have problems this year–a defense that can’t get off the field chief among them. Mayfield poised to have a great season if he stays healthy.
July 24th, 2024 at 11:02 pm
Gipper Says:
Baker is incredibly accurate having completed 70% of his passes at Oklahoma
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And Danny Wuerffel was amazing in college. Who cares? Did you watch the games last year, Baker missing wide open guys deep all the time? His accuracy over about 10 yards from the LOS was not good at all most of the year.
July 25th, 2024 at 11:10 am
Rod, Are you bagging on Baker’s college days?
He won the Heisman Trophy. It’s just my opinion, but I think that’s pretty good.
July 25th, 2024 at 1:51 pm
Another way of saying they don’t want Baker throwing deep because he’s incredibly inaccurate
Of course, accuracy comes from being able to properly step into your throw and complete the mechanics… and with the swiss cheese middle of the pocket last year, that was not possible. Should improve this season.