Read option not changing draft strategy

INDIANAPOLIS - Robert Griffin III, Colin Kaepernick, Russell Wilson and Chip Kelly’s hiring in Philadelphia have NFL coaches studying up. The read option had a lot of success this past season, even helping propel the 49ers past the Packers in the playoffs and to the Super Bowl. Green Bay’s coaches are even going back to school.

"Actually our defensive staff is going to take a trip to Texas A&M,” said Packers head coach mike McCarthy at the NFL Scouting Combine. “[A&M head coach] Kevin Sumlin is someone I have great respect for, with his ability to share both from the offensive side and the defensive side, his experience in the read option. It's something in the education and preparation standpoint, we will grow as a staff, be better prepared in the future."

The read option describes a large set of possible plays, essentially, where the quarterback reads a defensive player and decides whether to hand the ball off or keep it himself and run. The Aggies used those plays with Heisman winner Johnny Manziel, and several NFL teams run the read option to some degree.

At the NFL Combine, McCarthy and other coaches acknowledged a changing sea among NFL offenses. Kaepernick and the 49ers put up 579 yards of offense in the playoff game. The Packers are not ready yet, though, to start drafting defensive players differently.

“Athletic ability is something, since I came to Green Bay, particularly going to 3-4 has been a focus,” said McCarthy. “You definitely want athletic ability, leverage, length, all those things."

Packers GM Ted Thompson says the key is finding the right spot for the right player.

"We like the same ones we liked before,” said Thompson. “We like them to run fast, be big, be strong, be competitive, all that sort of thing."

Defensive players at the Combine, getting ready to make the leap to the NFL, might have a small advantage: many of them saw read option schemes in college. Take Mike Taylor, the former Badger and Ashwaubenon High School alum who faced the system in the Big Ten.

“You need to be smart, you need to have good feet, good balance,” said Taylor. “You can't be lunging. Those running quarterbacks can get you off-balance, just keep your hips turned."

Coaches do have this off-season to prepare for what was something of a surprise last season, and the read option is sure to be well-talked about in many an NFL meeting room.

“You stay true to your preparation,” said McCarthy. “Obviously we'll spend a lot of time on the read option defensively, we won't run it with our quarterback, if that's what you're concerned about."