C Littleton Write up

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Littleton has done a good job this season as a starting linebacker for the Rams. Wade Phillips said after the win over the Niners that Littleton "is way ahead of everybody in the league as far as pass coverage" and praised Littleton's play against both the run and the pass. For an UDFA projected to be no more than a special teams player in the NFL, he's already far exceeded expectations.

I appreciate that McVay and Wade build up their players. It is part of establishing a "We not me" culture and trying to get the best performance out of them possible. In my opinion, however, the tape isn't as flattering to Littleton. With all due respect to wise man Wade, I don't think Littleton is an elite player against either the run or the pass. Some plays from the Niners (in what has been characterized as a monster performance by Littleton) I believe illustrate areas where Littleton could improve his game.

Littleton defending the run

Some runs by Mostert are shown in this video.

Play 1: At 44 seconds of the clip, the Niners run outside to the left. AD gambles and jumps inside (an example of how his aggressive, penetrating style sometimes makes things more difficult for his teammates). Longacre is doing fine setting the edge, which causes Mostert to cut into the gap created between these 2 Ram defenders.

The big mistake is made by Littleton. Instead of staying over the top of his blocker, he tries to go under the block by swimming over the lineman. This turns out to be a very bad decision, because Mostert beats him to the lane, resulting in a huge gain.

Play 2: At 57 seconds, Littleton does a lackluster job taking on his block (see also the play at 39 seconds). Only a phenomenal effort by Brockers to trip up the RB saves the day and prevents a long run. If Littleton did a better job jamming up the blocker and holding ground he could have reduced the gap so that the RB couldn't have fallen forward for as many yards. He doesn't need to make the tackle himself, he just needs to move his blocker into the way so that the RB can't burst between Barron and Brockers at full speed.

Play 3: SF has a 3rd and 1 at 1:06 of the video. AD creates outstanding penetration. Littleton crashes into the backfield, but this appears to be because the RG trips and falls down. Unintentionally, AD might have gotten in the way of Littleton. Not the worst play by Littleton, but when you're unblocked like that, a great LB should be able to get through all that trash and get in on the tackle and prevent a first down.

Littleton against the pass

CJ Beathard's pass attempts are in this video.

Play 1: This is a screen pass to the RB at 24 seconds of the clip. Littleton is the key defender on the play. The way the LT blocks reveals that a screen is coming, but Littleton appears to get distracted by the WR crossing by his face. So, instead of moving laterally to get in better position to stop the screen, Littleton moves forward. This helps make the block by the LT, Joe Staley, very easy and Mostert rumbles down the middle of the field for a huge gain.

Play 2: Littleton is trying to cover the FB, Kyle Juszczyk at 35 seconds. Littleton lacks quickness and instead of being able to turn and run with the FB, he tries to reach out and jam him. This is right on the edge of the 5 yard limit, so it is borderline illegal contact. Juszczyk still gets behind Littleton and better throw by the QB would have beaten him for a nice gain. I see this as an example of poor QB play by SF more than a great pass coverage rep by Littleton.

More telling is that it appears the FB was the primary option, which combined with some of the other plays in the video, establishes a pattern of SF challenging Littleton in coverage.

Play 3: At 43 sec is another screen pass, this time to the right side. Both SF guards, Tomlinson and Person, make a mess of this play. Neither of them attempt to block Littleton as Tomlinson peels back to block Suh, a curious decision, while Person seems to be aimlessly doing nothing. Littleton makes the tackle, but this is a pretty easy play since he's not blocked.

Play 4: Littleton gets a sack at 1:02 on a blitz. Hard to tell if SF had a bad protection call, the FB (or maybe the RT) missed his assignment, but no one blocks Littleton even though you can see him creeping up towards the LOS prior to the snap. The QB Beathard doesn't recognize Littleton coming free until it is too late, which compounds the problem. Good job by Littleton finishing the play, but I think this is another example of poor execution by SF more than a great defensive play.

Play 5: Littleton drops into zone coverage on tight end Kittle at 2:19. As Beathard surveys the field, Littleton completely loses track of Kittle. Beathard finds him and Kittle runs into Rams territory after the catch. This isn't an easy play for a LB, because he has so much field to cover, he has to watch the QB for a scramble and the longer the play goes on the TE should be able to create some separation. Still, I think Littleton has very poor awareness on this play. Kittle is able to settle and is stationary when he turns around and makes the catch, yet Littleton isn't in the same area code. That's really bad pass coverage.

Play 6: The Niners are in a double TE to the right formation at 3:45. The inside TE runs straight down the field. The QB makes a conservative short pass, but the TE is wide open. Littleton doesn't do anything to impede his progress or get depth to squeeze the open area. Another play I'm putting in the "Beathard isn't a good QB" category and not the "Littleton is a great LB" pot.

Play 7: Kittle again exploits Littleton at 4:06. Littleton gets completely turned around and off a very easy dump pass the result is another big gainer.

Play 8: SF goes to the well again, attacking Littleton in coverage at 4:18. A combination of either Celek slowing down or the QB missing the target results in an incomplete pass.

While SF did get Littleton a few times in pass coverage, there were even more plays out there to be made against him. SF just weren't good enough to take full advantage of their opportunities.

Overall, I'm pleased with how Littleton is playing, but I'm not yet ready to anoint him a core player on the defense. He needs to be more physical taking on blocks, diagnose better, and maintain balance in pass coverage. If he can progress as a LB, it should help reduce the number of big plays surrendered by the Rams defense.