Week 2 Journal — Studying Marky mark

Mark is one of those coaches who keeps you guessing. On paper, you think you know what to expect. He’s had games where he plays down to competition and looks beatable. You walk in thinking this should be a comfortable win. But then he flips that competitive switch. When that side of him shows up, the good guy disappears and you’re dealing with a completely different Mark.

Mark might be one of the coolest dudes in the league, a guy I could actually kick it with off the sticks, but when it’s game time he becomes a different person. Once he locks in, he starts seeing the field like a real coach. That’s the version I have to prepare for. You can’t prepare for “nice Mark.” You have to prepare for “locked-in Mark.”

So I sat down and watched his Week 1 game against the Bengals, then went back and studied our divisional playoff matchup from last season. That was the game I almost let slip away. Here’s what stood out.

Film Notes

Mark loves to establish the run early. First down is almost always a run, usually out of heavy sets. Once you start committing to stop it, he leans into play action, and that’s where he becomes dangerous. Most of his deep shots come off that fake, usually targeting Rashod Bateman on post or post corner routes.

His tight ends are his safety valves. With Mark Andrews gone, Isaiah Likely now fills that role. Likely doesn’t get many designed shots downfield. Most of his catches are short drags or quick reads when plays break down. But the main weapon is still Bateman. He’s the one that makes the play action hurt.

Trez Walker, number 81 in the slot, can stretch the field vertically. He can’t be ignored because he will go deep if you get too aggressive with the underneath stuff. You just have to live with the short drags and make sure they don’t turn into big gains. Once you start creeping up, he’ll hit you over the top.

His favorite concepts are deep crosses, post corners, and layered play actions. If you start running stunts or Texas fronts, he’ll recognize it and bounce outside with Lamar Jackson. He’s comfortable in shotgun inside zone looks and scrambles more than he used to. I might need to spy Travon Walker a few times just to contain him.

Defensively, Mark mixes a lot of zone. Cover 3, Cover 4, and Cover 6. He’s a very good user and lives in the middle of the field. If you’re lazy with your reads, he’ll bait you. He’ll drift off his man, lurk across the field, and pick one off. Sometimes it’s actually smart to throw at him, because if he thinks it’s not open, he’ll peel off and go chase another route. That opens up chances if you time it right.

He doesn’t disguise coverage much before the snap, so what you see is what you get. Cover 3 is his base look, but he’ll man up the curl flat to stop seams. That leaves a hole you can find if you stay patient. If he doesn’t man it up, he’ll user right in that lane, which again leaves another zone open. You just have to read it and not guess.

Takeaways from the Divisional Tape

Early in that playoff game, I had complete control. I attacked his unbalanced looks, switched formations, ran the ball, and kept him off balance. Then I got lazy. One blown coverage flipped the whole energy. From there, I got predictable. I sat in five wide for most of the second half, just like I did against the Colts.

You can’t win like that. You can’t sit in one formation for a half and expect to close a game. I stopped adapting. On defense, I abandoned what worked, my zones, and started calling Cover 0 every play trying to force a stop. That’s not coaching. That’s panic.

Writing this out makes me realize how much I hurt myself when I think a game is over before it is. That’s when I start chasing stats instead of staying locked in. The difference between good coaches and great ones is consistency. The great ones lock in every snap, every quarter, every drive.

When I’m locked in, I’m elite. When I’m not, I beat myself.

Final Keys

Defense:

Stick to my zone looks. Make him read coverage. Don’t give up cheap scrambles. Contain the edges and spy when necessary. Stay disciplined against the run.

Offense:

Run the ball early. He respects my passing game, so lanes will be there. Don’t rely too much on five wide. Mix it up. If I hit the seam, do it early before Kyle Hamilton closes that middle third. If he keeps five down linemen versus five wide, that opens new opportunities.

Remember that out and up he ran from spread Y slot was wide open.

He also bagged my China Y play twice and got a pick six off one.

When I run bunch drags, he clamps it because he knows the flow. He runs that same concept himself.

The Mindset

This week isn’t about revenge. It’s about consistency.

No lazy halves. No playing down to the moment.

Every snap, every drive, I have to play chess, not dice.

Mark brings out the best version of me, because he forces me to respect the game.

But this time, I’m flipping the switch first.

Coach Ke