Detroit Lions: How Miles Killebrew Maximized His Impact vs. Jaguars

Detroit Lions strong safety Miles Killebrew had the best game of his career last Sunday vs the Jacksonville Jaguars. This film study will show you how he made the most out of his 12 snaps.

When the Detroit Lions selected safety Miles Killebrew in the fourth round of the 2016 NFL Draft, it generated lots of excitement in the fan base. His athletic profile, combined with his highlight reel hits, was something fans were looking forward to seeing on Sundays.

Killebrew played his college ball at Southern Utah and his lack of experience with a high level of competition, proved to be a hurdle, early on in his rookie season.  But the Lions had a plan for him and have slowly been brought him along, using him in packages that feature his skill set.

This past Sunday against Jacksonville, Killebrew was limited to nickel and dime formations on defense and only played on third downs. Jacksonville ran 14 third down plays and Killebrew played on 12 of them.

Here’s a breakdown of those 12 plays:

Snap Count: 1

Situation: 3rd and 3 at the Jacksonville 42
Defensive position: Sam linebacker
Assignment: Man coverage vs tight end in the slot
Play Result: Check down to running back for a gain of 14

Impact: Covered his man

Snap Count: 2

Situation: 3rd and 13 at the Detroit 47
Defensive position: Money linebacker
Assignment: Spy coverage on the running back
Play Result: Screen to running back, the Jaguars center released to the second level and keyed on Killebrew. Killebrew uses the center’s momentum and easily sheds the block. He then squares up the running back and tackles him, only allowing a two yard gain.

Impact: Makes tackle for a 3rd down stop 

Snap Count: 3A

Situation: 3rd and 9 at the Detroit 46
Defensive position: Money linebacker, lined up in A-gap at line of scrimmage
Assignment: Unknown
Play Result: Jacksonville false start

Snap Count : 3B

Situation: 3rd and 14 at the Jacksonville 49, after the penalty
Defensive position: Sam linebacker, lined up at line of scrimmage, outside of left defensive end
Assignment: Blitz
Play Result: The running back engages him with a block but Killebrew is able to get leverage and bend the edge. This forces Blake Bortles to leave the pocket and escape towards Ziggy Ansah. Ansah grabs Bortles by the ankles and Killebrew tracks him down and makes a diving tackle (pictured below).

Impact: Makes tackle for a 3rd down stop

Snap Count: 4

Situation: 3rd and 8 at Detroit 9
Defensive position: Sam linebacker
Assignment: Man coverage on tight end
Play Result: Incomplete pass as Ansah gets a hit on Bortles while throwing.

Impact: Covered his man

Snap Count: 5

Situation: 3rd and 4 at Jacksonville 40
Defensive position: Sam linebacker
Assignment: Deep zone coverage
Play Result: Killebrew runs with the slot wide receiver deep into his zone. Bortles hits a wide receiver on crossing route underneath for a first down.

Impact: Covered his man

Snap Count: 6

Situation: 3rd and 8 and Jacksonville 7
Defensive position: Sam linebacker
Assignment: Zone coverage, middle of the field, eight yards deep
Play Result: Pressure on Bortles forces an errand throw and an incomplete pass

Impact: Covered his zone

Snap Count: 7

Situation: 3rd and 10 on Jacksonville 35
Defensive position: Nickelback
Assignment: Zone coverage, outside the numbers, 10 yards deep
Play Result: Killebrew covers the wide receiver through his zone and passes him off to the safety. The Jaguars pass to the running back who slipped into the zone vacated by the wide receiver. Killebrew stays home and recognizes the running back entering his zone. He then squares up the running back and makes the tackle.

Impact: Makes the tackle for a 3rd down stop

Snap Count: 8

Situation: 3rd and 8 on Detroit 28
Defensive position: Money linebacker, lined up in the A-gap at line of scrimmage
Assignment: Block down on left tackle to free up teammate (Ziggy Ansah)
Play Result: Killebrew successfully engages the left tackle and Ansah dips behind him and pressures Bortles. Bortles back pedals long enough to throw a pass to the running back for a first down.

Impact: Executes his block to free up the pass rush

Snap Count: 9

Situation: 3rd and 7 on Jacksonville 27
Defensive position: Money linebacker
Assignment: Zone coverage, seven yards deep
Play Result: Killebrew covers the tight end in his zone, Bortles throw outside the numbers, Lawson tips the pass, Rafael Bush intercepts the ball. Killebrew recognizes the interception and runs ahead of the play and gets a block on the center. This block frees up a path along the sideline for Bush to run for the touchdown.

Impact: Covers zone, executes critical block on interception return

Snap Count: 10

Situation: 3rd and 2 at Lions 33
Defensive position: Sam linebacker
Assignment: Zone coverage, four yards deep
Play Result: Pass goes to the running back in opposite field zone, Bush makes the tackle for loss.

Impact: Covers his zone

Snap Count: 11

Situation: 3rd and 5 at Jacksonville 39
Defensive position: Sam linebacker
Assignment: Man coverage vs tight end
Play Result: Killebrew is covering the tight end and Bortles passes to him. Killebrew makes immediate contact before the first down marker and drives the tight end backwards and out-of-bounds.

Impact: Makes tackle for a 3rd down stop

Snap Count: 12

Situation: 3rd and 15 at Jacksonville 39
Defensive position: Sam linebacker
Assignment: Blitz quarterback
Play Result: Killebrew blitzes and is picked up by the running back. Bortles throws a pass short of the first down and the Jaguars are forced to punt.

Impact: None, as he was blocked

Breakdown

• He’s only playing 3rd downs right now
• 11 of his 12 snaps were as a third safety and he lined up in linebacker position
  • Sam = Eight snaps
  • Money = Three snaps, plus one on a false start
• One snap was at nickelback
• Defensive Responsibilities:
  • Man coverage = four times
  • Zone coverage = five times
  • Blitz = twice
  • Blocked to free up pass rusher = once

Summary

Detroit stopped Jacksonville 10 times on 3rd down and Miles Killebrew made four of those stops by himself. While Killebrew is still limited to specific roles on defense, his responsibilities are expanding. As the season progresses, expect both his roles and responsibilities to expand. But for now, he is making the most of his snaps.

Next: Detroit Lions Week 11 Game Ball: The Safeties

With Miles Killebrew expanding his role, Bob Quinn’s first draft class appears to be quite successful. Seven of his 10 picks are either starting, rotating, or have a scheme specific role. One is on IR, and another on the practice squad. That is the type of draft success rate is one any general manager would enjoy.