Umpires Moved, and a Tactic Is Removed

Officiating in Chicago, Fred Bryan was knocked down in one of the more than 100 collisions involving umpires in 2009. Three sustained concussions.

By JUDY BATTISTA
NYT

Bill Walsh had figured out every angle of his West Coast offense by the time Brent Jones was a young tight end for the San Francisco 49ers. But more than 20 years later, Jones is still struck by an edge Walsh had divined that never appeared in a playbook.

“Every year he said, if you get a chance, the umpire is sitting right there, they’re not athletic, you can use them as a pick,” Jones said last week.

So developed one of football’s unwritten snippets of strategy. The umpire, plunked precariously into the middle of the defense near the linebackers, evolved into something of a 12th man for the offense, with some players, defenders at their hip, running at him purposely, the intention being to turn him into an unexpected, none-too-nimble obstacle in black and white.

The offense popularized by Walsh, with its emphasis on crossing patterns, continues to thrive, but this season the tight ends, wide receivers and running backs who troll the middle of the field are losing their stripes. A year after there were more than 100 collisions involving umpires — three sustained concussions and two others needed surgery for their injuries — the official is being plucked from the defensive side and dropped into the offensive backfield, 12 to 15 yards deep and to the left of the quarterback, opposite where the referee is stationed. From that vantage point, he will continue to fulfill his main responsibilities: scouring the line of scrimmage for holding or illegal blocks. He will return to the defensive end of the field only for field-goal attempts and for the last two minutes of each half.

(More here.)