I want to see more situational plays for rainy games. Against Miami, the outside plays were killing them. Then it started raining, and CPJ refused to call tosses or options, meaning almost everything went between the tackles or downfield on a pass. If he's insistent that the ball not fly laterally in the rain, he needs to implement:
- Jet Sweep/Jet Sweep motion. It's not as effective as Rocket Toss, but I'd rather see it tried than to give up on the outside if that's the opponent's weak point. Since it's a handoff rather than a toss, there's minimal risk of fumbling due to wet conditions.
- Read Option. It isn't as effective as Triple Option, but it at least keeps the DEs from pinning their ears back, and once again doesn't involve a pitch or a toss, so fumble risk is minimal as long as the QB and BB are on the same page. It also threatens to attack both the inside and outside.
- Inverted Veer. This is a great play for attacking the outside. Since both options are essentially outside runs, it really forces the defense to try to defend everything when this play is mixed in. And like the Read Option, it's a mesh read, so there's no worry of a dropped pitch.
I was really disappointed in the conservative playcalling that seemed to happen every time it rained. We usually know well in advance whether it's likely to rain. If CPJ isn't comfortable running parts of our playbook in the rain, he needs to have a package of plays that can accomplish the same things as the plays that get removed. We're not a pro-style team, so resorting to only passes and runs between the tackles won't work (and didn't work).
