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Watching the Vikings offense on Sunday got me to thinking.  Receivers today, for whatever reason (skill, gloves, practice) are so amazing at catching balls that they really don't need to be open to make a play.  On Sunday, there were many plays where Keenum just threw the ball up high to his receiver and let his receiver go up and make a play.  Theilan and Diggs made some great catches but also, every time, there was the possibility of an interference call.  The chances of an interception seem small compared to the positive results (catch or call).

Maybe scheming to get receivers open is going to become a thing of the past.  Maybe the NFL of the future will feature tall athletic receivers running down field and waiting for high passes to be lobbed to them.  Maybe cornerbacks are all going to have to become 6' 8" to defend this offense.  

As long as receivers continue to make the impossible catches they are making ..... no pass is really defendable anymore.  Not if the receiver can get his hands on it.

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Some of what you saw in the NO/MIN game was the result of an effort by the refs to "let them play".  This was true across all games this last weekend.  Ratings are down and fans across the spectrum are complaining about excessive flags and the resulting slowing down of the game.  You also had top defenses playing that were set up to limit scoring, another thing "fans" cry about.  Because of how often PI has been getting called for the last X years, DB's are a lot more timid now (see final play at the tool shed sunday night) and receivers and qb's are more fearless than ever.  Chuck it up and get a reception or a PI.  It's also why you see even the best pass defenses give up tons of yards and points at some point. 

It's just really tough to defend the pass these days because of all of the above.

I don't think it's anything new, JAPF. We watched Calvin Johnson make a great career out of doing just that.

The concept of purposely throwing a high pass to an otherwise-covered receiver reminds me of forwards working the ball into the center's hands underneath the basket.
My opinion is that it's not sustainable to the point it creates championships. Moss didn't lead the Vikes to squat.
Ditto Johnson and the Loins.

I agree under current rules, and, more importantly, how they are interpreted on the field, skews the odds towards the receiver on what are essentially jump balls.
It could be the only way to defend them is with a pass rush....

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