The NFL is a copycat league. Most teams follow a pretty similar pattern when they install plays -- the head coach or offensive coordinator does his routine in front of the entire offense, then the position coaches take their groups through a reinstall, then there's a walk-through, then practice and then a film session to review everything. Repeat.
But there are a few coaches who have broken that mold, and I was fortunate enough to be coached by one of them: Steve Spurrier.
I know what you're thinking, and it's true that Spurrier didn't have much success at the NFL level. But he certainly did things his own way, and he was also very good at designing plays to get receivers open, which is the key to the passing game.
When Spurrier installed his plays, he'd stand at the whiteboard in the front of the room, and seemingly draw the plays up on the fly, almost like we were playing backyard football. And those plays? Well, they didn't always work, but sometimes they worked perfectly.
In fact, my brother called me up after I threw a touchdown pass to Darnerien McCants one week, and said, "Your anticipation on that throw to No. 85 was ridiculous! How did you know he'd be so wide open?"
The truth is, I didn't know McCants would be so wide open. But it was a timing play where Spurrier told me to just take a three-step drop and throw to the back of the end zone -- McCants would be there.
A similar situation is playing out with the Philadelphia Eagles this season, although it's Chip Kelly as the visionary "mold-breaker," and with Michael Vick in at QB.