dragondawg
12-09-2007, 08:54 AM
Broncos' Lepsis ready to take on Chiefs star Allen
By FRANK SCHWAB
THE GAZETTE
ENGLEWOOD - Denver Broncos left tackle Matt Lepsis often isn’t sure until the first meeting of the week which defensive end he’ll be facing in the next game. This week, he knew well in advance.
Kansas City defensive end Jared Allen has 11½ sacks. He had to get out the notes, start looking at film and prepare for today’s challenge, one of the toughest of the season.
Lepsis wasn’t exactly thrilled to face the NFL’s leader in sacks.
“I’d rather have somebody who wasn’t; if someone told you otherwise they’d be lying,” Lepsis said. “Shoot, I’d much rather play against the starter at Cherry Creek High School.”
Protecting a quarterback’s blind side against players like Allen is why left tackle is one of the most important and well-compensated positions in the NFL. Lepsis’ 2007 salary is $3.15 million. Allen’s sack against the Broncos on Nov. 11 was his first in four years against Lepsis.
The one-on-one duel won’t get much television coverage today unless Allen has a big game, but it will be one of the most interesting. The two have battled often. Today will be the sixth time Lepsis and Allen have started against each other.
The physical challenges don’t change. Lepsis’ athleticism is a good match for Allen, while Allen will use his power because Lepsis is one of the lightest left tackles in the NFL. But strategic adjustments are important.
Allen said he usually watches between 10-12 hours of film on the left tackle he will face during the week. Against Lepsis, there’s a bit of a break.
“I don’t have to watch a whole lot of film on Matt because I’ve played against him so many times,” Allen said.
Allen said the most valuable film to watch was of his previous matchups with Lepsis. Allen said usually during the course of the week, he can find some weakness to exploit in each left tackle.
“You can watch other people play and say, ‘That guy has a similar style to me,’ but your best teaching tool is to watch yourself go against someone you’re getting ready to go against,” Allen said.
Lepsis said he will watch his previous meetings with Kansas City, but he prefers watching different games to see what other left tackles have done to slow down Allen.
“I’ll try and see what has worked and what doesn’t work,” Lepsis said.
In the dance between the left offensive tackle and right defensive end, the defensive player is more likely to do something out of character.
Lepsis said he makes minor adjustments based on the opponent, but his fundamentals stay the same.
“If you have to change what you’re doing every week, you’re probably not going to be around too long,” Lepsis said.
The fundamentals should work as long as Lepsis isn’t surprised much by Allen. And after so many games and film study, he knows Allen well. He has studied what pass rush moves he prefers, and which ones he uses in certain situations. Lepsis also had to figure out a counter to what he called Allen’s biggest strength, which is his understanding of leverage and getting the offensive tackle off balance.
“From that aspect I’m comfortable knowing what he’s going to do,” Lepsis said. “The problem is stopping him.”
http://www.gazette.com/sports/lepsis_30676___article.html/allen_left.html
By FRANK SCHWAB
THE GAZETTE
ENGLEWOOD - Denver Broncos left tackle Matt Lepsis often isn’t sure until the first meeting of the week which defensive end he’ll be facing in the next game. This week, he knew well in advance.
Kansas City defensive end Jared Allen has 11½ sacks. He had to get out the notes, start looking at film and prepare for today’s challenge, one of the toughest of the season.
Lepsis wasn’t exactly thrilled to face the NFL’s leader in sacks.
“I’d rather have somebody who wasn’t; if someone told you otherwise they’d be lying,” Lepsis said. “Shoot, I’d much rather play against the starter at Cherry Creek High School.”
Protecting a quarterback’s blind side against players like Allen is why left tackle is one of the most important and well-compensated positions in the NFL. Lepsis’ 2007 salary is $3.15 million. Allen’s sack against the Broncos on Nov. 11 was his first in four years against Lepsis.
The one-on-one duel won’t get much television coverage today unless Allen has a big game, but it will be one of the most interesting. The two have battled often. Today will be the sixth time Lepsis and Allen have started against each other.
The physical challenges don’t change. Lepsis’ athleticism is a good match for Allen, while Allen will use his power because Lepsis is one of the lightest left tackles in the NFL. But strategic adjustments are important.
Allen said he usually watches between 10-12 hours of film on the left tackle he will face during the week. Against Lepsis, there’s a bit of a break.
“I don’t have to watch a whole lot of film on Matt because I’ve played against him so many times,” Allen said.
Allen said the most valuable film to watch was of his previous matchups with Lepsis. Allen said usually during the course of the week, he can find some weakness to exploit in each left tackle.
“You can watch other people play and say, ‘That guy has a similar style to me,’ but your best teaching tool is to watch yourself go against someone you’re getting ready to go against,” Allen said.
Lepsis said he will watch his previous meetings with Kansas City, but he prefers watching different games to see what other left tackles have done to slow down Allen.
“I’ll try and see what has worked and what doesn’t work,” Lepsis said.
In the dance between the left offensive tackle and right defensive end, the defensive player is more likely to do something out of character.
Lepsis said he makes minor adjustments based on the opponent, but his fundamentals stay the same.
“If you have to change what you’re doing every week, you’re probably not going to be around too long,” Lepsis said.
The fundamentals should work as long as Lepsis isn’t surprised much by Allen. And after so many games and film study, he knows Allen well. He has studied what pass rush moves he prefers, and which ones he uses in certain situations. Lepsis also had to figure out a counter to what he called Allen’s biggest strength, which is his understanding of leverage and getting the offensive tackle off balance.
“From that aspect I’m comfortable knowing what he’s going to do,” Lepsis said. “The problem is stopping him.”
http://www.gazette.com/sports/lepsis_30676___article.html/allen_left.html