Stephone Anthony Is The Fins Cover LB! We Breakdown the Film.
PhinsNews has tape to convince even the most skeptical of Phins fans.
Stephone Anthony came to Miami via trade last September, right in the midst of the Timmons AWOL blow up. He came to Miami via a 5th round pick in 2018 sent to the Saints… Then he quietly disappeared. Anthony was working intensively with the defensive coaches to save his career. From mid September to mid November, he studied the system and worked on the problems that led this 2015 1st Round Draft Pick to be traded in the first place.
Then came Anthony’s first step on the road to redemption against the Bucs. Anthony played well enough and began to see more and more game reps each week subbing for Timmons, mostly in the Nickel. For those who watched closely, he was a nice surprise.
Anthony Flashed in December. Watch the Tape.
We are again going into another season with the LBs a major question mark.
At WSB, Alonzo simply can’t cover TEs and RBs… he’s at best, a MLB–maybe even just for 2 downs.
Meanwhile, at SLB, Timmons showed the effects of age and a long season and will likely be cut. We can only hope.
Then there’s Raekwon McMillian coming off season ending surgery… he’s an unknown, as far as health and play. Even if he does bounce back, it will be a 2nd RD pick and high-priced player fighting for one spot in him and Kiko. Not the best scenario for the Phins.
Chase Allen is another MLB who showed promise. Maybe he could slide into the SLB with an offseason in an NFL weight training program. Likely he’s just solid depth inside.
But then Anthony started getting snaps in substitution for Timmons and offered possibilities. He performed well enough that I thought that he might start at SLB in 2018, given his size and history of use.
That was before I dug into the tape… and wrongly thought Miami didn’t have a Weak Side / Cover Linebacker.
Anthony’s Tape Is Loud and Clear. He’s a Gifted Cover / WLB Linebacker.
Most of PhinsNews film study time this past season was consumed with studying the offense–for obvious reasons. We spent very little time going over the defense’s tape. Recently we’ve unpacked the ‘D’ tapes for a thorough review. As a result, the true quality of Anthony’s play took us a bit by surprise.
Back to basics. The initial run through the tapes convinced me of two things. First, I was wrong that we don’t have a WLB. Second, Anthony is that WLB, not the SLB I had assumed. He’s simply far better suited to play WLB than SLB. And he’s very good at it.
You’ve Got Doubts? We’ve Got an Exhaustive, Soup to Nuts, Study of Anthony!
With doubts in mind, and considering the Phins dire need for a WLB / cover defender, I did our most exhaustive film / player study yet. That’s key to reduce the level of conjecture. Not to mention minimizing the, ‘you’re an idiot statements.’ I’m married. I get enough of that at home.
This player profile and film study is likely too deep for all but the most ardent football freaks. I posted a load of links within this article to try and minimize the overt info, but left bread crumbs for those who want a deeper look. I also broke the article down into two parts: History and Present. If you just want to see just his film with the Phins, scroll down to the Present. If you can stomach the whole enchilada, take your first bite with History.
History:
How Did Anthony Wind Up a Phin?
Anthony began his track to the NFL as the scout’s #1 LB after a week of practice for the Senior Bowl. Bleacher reported: “An easy-moving linebacker who jumped off the field at the Senior Bowl and quickly made an impact, Stephone Anthony looks like an NFL starter on the hoof… Coaches rave about his work ethic.” His interviews went very well.
The video below shows Anthony performing his drills at the NFL combine. His highlights included being the 3rd fastest front 7 defender, fastest LB, high score in 3-cone drill and top 10 in every drill. Scouts were astounded at his speed and agility and talk about him being a 1st round pick started heating up.
Anthony was pegged as an in-between the tackles ‘plugger’ with concerns about his instincts and technique in gap assignments and recognition.
Pre-Draft Profile: Strengths
- Desired build for position
- Good play speed and is generally under control
- Steady, consistent tackler when he’s squared up
- Speed to chase to the sidelines and finish the play
- Able to cover tight ends, flashes ball skills, plays through pass-catches
- Will compete through whistle and is physical against skill-position players
- Proper attitude: Lost job as junior, regained start with hard work, good attitude
Pre-Draft Profile: Weaknesses
- Below average take-on skills.
- Plays with poor leverage when taking on blocks.
- Needs to improve hand usage, utilize better arm extension to keep blockers off.
- Has tendency to side-step blocks and open run lanes.
- Can be mismatched by running backs down the field in passing game.
- Slow to process and recover against play-action.
- Gets downhill without diagnosing first, creating bad angles against outside runs.
Anthony drafted #31 by Saints in 2015 1st Round
The former first-team All-ACC college player was named to the Professional Football Writers Association 2015 All-Rookie team. Anthony led the Saints in tackles with 112 tackles, 2 forced fumbles, a sack, and an interception. As a cherry on the cake in Week 13, along with a returned fumble for a touchdown, he became the first NFL player to return a blocked extra point for a two-point conversion. Anthony was the first Saints’ rookie to reach 100 tackles since 1981 (Ricky Jackson).
Watch Stephone Anthony Saints 2015 Highlights by Who Dat? and you’ll see undeniable talent.
All wasn’t peachy though for the rookie. Anthony missed 15 tackles as a rookie and had breakdowns in coverage. Pro Football Focus rated him only 71st among about 90 qualifying linebackers. Kiko Alonso anyone?
Prior to the trade, Saints coach Sean Payton assessed Anthony, 25, as “explosive” and “disruptive”, but “keys, diagnosis and instincts at times are off.”
Anthony obviously struggled learning the defense. Having two defensive coordinators early with Rob Ryan and then Dennis Allen likely didn’t help. Neither did moving him from MLB, to SLB, to WLB. Here is a good article from a local reporter on it. Anthony was injured in early 2017 and did not play before being traded.
Present:
So why did Miami trade for Anthony?… Results?
The devil is always in the details. Joe Vitt was the Assistant H.C. for the Saints during Anthony’s tenure. He became a consultant with the Dolphins in 2017. His opinion counts since Adam Gase is also his son-in-law. It’s reasonable to believe that in the scramble around Timmons going AWOL, Vitt had something to do with both suggesting the trade and making it happen.
Anthony saw 1 Special Teams snap against the Saints in Week 4, then sat for awhile. It wasn’t until Week 11 that Anthony began to see extended action swapping in for Timmons in the nickel. He had his most snaps against Denver and then in the final 2 weeks. After his final game PFF said this, “Linebacker Stephone Anthony led the Dolphins with an 83.2 grade. Anthony did not have a huge day statistically with pressures or defensive run stops but he was solid in pass coverage, yielding 1 reception for 6 yards on 12 pass-coverage snaps and making nice plays on the field for the Fins’ defense.”
Pro Football Focus Caught the Change. Was it Anthony, Coaching… or both?
That’s a pretty big change in PFF’s outlook on Anthony between NO and Miami. Anthony obviously didn’t change, so why the difference? Was it just a fluke or coming trend?
PhinsNews believes “Good football coaches put their players in position to accentuate their talents and keep them from getting their weaknesses exposed.”
Anthony’s development and growth is simply the staff putting him in situations to be successful… and him taking full advantage of it.
Watch the Tape… Draw Your Own Conclusions… But I’m Right.
Okay, here’s the crux of the article: Watch the film below and do your own evaluation of whether Anthony’s, “keys, diagnosis and instincts at times are off.” My analysis and conclusions will hopefully make more sense after you’ve watched the tapes for yourself. But after going back and watching his game from JV to the pros, he was always meh with taking on blockers… but his coverage and ball skills always flashed.
Okay… on to the tape…
Below, Anthony back-peddles very well for a large man. He gets in passing lanes, takes away proper areas in Option Routes, and disrupts timing of routes. And a major asset to his game, he keeps his eyes on the QB when in zone coverage.
In the first segment of this clip, Anthony shows he understands route combinations and down and distance. In particular, he strings out the coverage on the primary route with patience, before peeling off to the secondary routes in his zone. This can only be accomplished if you are reading the quarterback AND if you possess the speed and first step to rebound. Anthony displays a key to playing zone: a grasp of zone range and responsibilities.
The second segment shows that Anthony has the potential to play man and cover TE’s or RB’s straight up or if they leak. Note how he’s physical enough to disrupt the TE’s route and is also fast enough to run stride for stride with a RB on a streak. Love his back peddle and rotate–very little wobble in the transition.
Earlier, we saw a glimpse of his read and react and burst, but here’s a longer look in the first segment. Notice the timing and violence of his hits–exceptional.
Anthony should have been a WLB from the start
Second segment shows quality tackling, which is crucial in zone coverage. This is the type of player Miami claims they’ve been looking for.
We see in this clip why Anthony wasn’t successful at MLB or SLB. His take on skills of blockers is only passable. He doesn’t break blocks, but at least he holds his position–better than Kiko at least. This skill set will never be great–ever. Never has and never will. But at WLB–the position he should’ve been playing all along–this isn’t a deal breaker.
But on the good side, in the rest of the segments we see more glimpses of his potential at cover LB. Here are some good signs that Anthony can handle other crucial assignments at WLB: spying the QB, blitzing, recognition of screens.
Last segment is a collection of his bad plays. I could have sworn he was beat with a WR pick for a T.D. at some point. But either I’m wrong or missed it somehow. Anyone remember? It’s driving me nuts. Either way, given his 150 snaps, this isn’t a lot of mistakes or bad plays.
Anthony has the tools needed to play WLB at a high level.
On a final note, history tends repeat itself: “Demoted to backup midway through the 2012 season but he came roaring back in 2013, when he was selected third-team All-ACC with 131 tackles, 13.5 tackles for loss and 4 sacks.”
Is Anthony set to make another comeback with the Dolphins at WLB? Free Agency and the Draft have much to say about that. But based on his film, PhinsNews believes Anthony is the long sought answer at WLB.