New York Jets CB Bryce Hall displays tantalizing ability in first start (Film)

New York Jets rookie cornerback Bryce Hall displayed tantalizing ability in his first start against the receiver-loaded Los Angeles Chargers. If you envisioned Deion Sanders-type athleticism, quickly label yourself an idiot and skip town. Only a select group of humans can move the way Prime Time could. If you believe only athleticism matters when playing cornerback in the NFL, you can forget about skipping town. Instead, buy a plane ticket and bolt for a country that loves its soccer. Playing the most discriminated-against position in the NFL requires athleticism, speed, but most importantly, situational awareness and smarts. It's something New York Jets rookie Bryce Hall knows a thing or two about. Joe Douglas's fifth-round draft pick made his starting debut against the Los Angeles Chargers this past Sunday. Racking up seven total tackles, including one for a loss, the kid was seemingly everywhere and displayed tantalizing ability against a loaded receiving group. Awareness/Tackling Hall's situational awareness is by far his greatest attribute. Never thinking about himself alone, the Virginia product is always working as one of 11---a key defensive ability Hall demonstrated in his first-ever NFL start. The very first series featured Hall coming up hard on a bubble screen: https://vimeo.com/483352581 Take note of the defensive call. The Chargers had a ton of green space on this play courtesy of what looked to be a Tampa 2 call with slot corner Arthur Maulet moving into the deep-hole zone (in between the two deep-half safeties). This means Maulet's direction clashed with the natural flow of the play, creating more space. His recognition of the play is also noteworthy. Beating everybody to the punch is the direct result of how he uses his eyes. Hall uses his eyes extremely well, including off the ball when monitoring the receiver's midsection (hip) in order to not take the release bait, and loves to get his head around quickly when playing a hard curl-flat zone. He was able to make the tackle in this situation due to situational awareness. Knowing he has over-the-top help in the form of Marcus Maye (deep-half), he can and should play things aggressively in his flat-curl. Other times, however, he knows he shouldn't. Later in the game, the Chargers roll with a wide receiver screen out of a bunch, but this time they put a bigger blocker out there specifically designed to take on the previously-aggressive Hall. Watch how the kid plays this one: https://vimeo.com/483357592 In spite of his over-the-top deep-third help (Maulet), Hall understands the situation calls for patience. He doesn't aggressively shoot to the tight end's left or right, which would take him out of the play and make things much easier for the ball-carrier. It's boring yet completely correct. Instead of waiting for the blocker to come to him, Hall meets the blocker in a spot that squeezes the play down and makes it rather difficult on the ball-carrier. If he decides to take it outside, Hall's there because he took on the block with his inside shoulder and left his outside free. If he turns it inside, Hall's teammates are ready to rally. Later in the game, the Bolts look to take advantage of the kid's over-aggressive nature. So, they run a fake screen-wheel out of the same formation and pre-snap motion they used on the last play (the WR screen out of the bunch): https://vimeo.com/483381718 Although Hall isn't responsible for the flat-curl in this situation (the three defensive backs are simply matching out of the bunch), Hall doesn't take the bait. He sticks with the wheel and shuts it down. In crunch time, the Bolts looked Kennan Allen's way twice. The first time featured an Allen route designed to hit the sticks (which can be seen later in this article). The very next play, Los Angeles went to Allen on a quick smoke screen with Hall once again manning him up: https://vimeo.com/483372456 Gregg Williams dials up a zero blitz with no safety net. Hall knows he's the last line of defense, which means he has to beat the offensive lineman who's sneaking out. If he can't, Allen scores. Or, at the very least, he picks up a first down and falls down to run out the clock. To beat everybody to the punch this quickly showcases Hall's situational awareness yet again. Coverage Hall faced a steady dose of Mike Williams on Sunday and he held his own against the much bigger weapon. The Jets corner won't win too many foot races with opposing wideouts, but that's OK. Straight-line speed isn't the name of the game. Picking up tips and tricks to go along with superb awareness and technique is how Hall will make his way in the NFL. The next play features Hall pulling out a couple of veteran savvy moves: https://vimeo.com/483359436 First and foremost, the coverage looks to be a 2-man, which means Hall does have over-the-top help. This allows him to play things aggressively at the line. Williams starts inside with every intention of releasing outside. Hall moves laterally and might move a bit too far to the inside, but the contact he initiates saves him. Jamming with the off-arm (right arm) is the move here. Hall loves to get both hands on when he can. It's a move that'll have officials looking at him extra hard at times, but if he keeps his feet active, he can get away with it. The over-the-top action with the right arm while trailing a bit inside is crucial. At that point, after Williams had won a bit off the release, Hall's only objective is to slow him down. Contact and acting skills (post-play) are the savvy moves the rook pulls off on this one. Hall stops Williams again, this time early in the fourth quarter: https://vimeo.com/483376707 Hall prefers to be in press. This way, he can create contact early, trail and feel his way through the play. When he's in off-coverage, he uses the shuffle technique instead of the traditional back-pedal and t-step. Here, he times his break perfectly with the Williams out-route and uses his inside arm (right) to contend with the ball. It's textbook coverage from an off-position with the shuffle. Late in the game, Hall found himself matched up one-on-one against one of the best receivers in the league, Keenan Allen. Not only is Allen one of the best in the business, but he might also be the best route-runner. Fans see the beautiful receiver techniques on Twitter all the time. One such technique is the push-by technique that features a receiver stopping on a dime while allowing the defensive back to fly by. Rarely are the Twitter accounts active when a cornerback successfully stomps the push-by technique: https://vimeo.com/483364398 It's crunch time and the Bolts want to go to their best weapon but Hall snuffs it out. Hall's eye placement off the ball is tremendous. He tends to watch the receiver's midsection/hips, similar to perimeter defense on the hardwood. The head, the shoulder and the feet can juke defenders out, but the midsection never moves. Keying in on the midsection allows Hall to make contact early and hold it throughout. Not jamming with his off-arm is an interesting coaching point, but Hall loves to use both hands when making contact, and it allows him to stick with Allen the entire time on this occasion. Rookie corners aren't supposed to stop Keenan Allen in man coverage in this spot. The New York Jets have a good one in rookie Bryce Hall. Rather than raw athleticism and eye-popping features, it'll be his awareness and toughness that carries him through the NFL---something every cornerback needs in this high-flying league that greatly discriminates against defenders.

New York Jets CB Bryce Hall displays tantalizing ability in first start (Film)

New York Jets rookie cornerback Bryce Hall displayed tantalizing ability in his first start against the receiver-loaded Los Angeles Chargers.

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New York Jets CB Bryce Hall displays tantalizing ability in first start (Film)

New York Jets rookie cornerback Bryce Hall displayed tantalizing ability in his first start against the receiver-loaded Los Angeles Chargers.

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