 | |
| Author | Michael Lewis |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Subject | American Football |
| Genre | Non-fiction |
| Publisher | W. W. Norton & Company |
Publication date | September 2, 2006 |
| Pages | 352 |
| ISBN | 0-393-06123-X |
The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game is a book by Michael Lewis released on September 2, 2006 by W. W. Norton & Company. It focuses on American football. [1] [2]
The book is an examination of how offensive football strategy has evolved over the past three decades in two key ways: the development of the West Coast offense by Bill Walsh first at the Cincinnati Bengals and later at the San Francisco 49ers to great acclaim, and the 1981 arrival of linebacker Lawrence Taylor to the New York Giants. The increased use of the pass and the introduction of a particularly lethal pass-rusher placed an increased importance on the role of the offensive left tackle. Most quarterbacks are right-handed and in order to throw, they stand with their left shoulder facing down field. Thus, they turn their backs to linebackers and other defenders pass rushing from the left side, creating a vulnerable "blind side" that the left tackle must protect. Taylor's speed and power changed the role of outside linebacker to become a more attacking, aggressive position. This in turn caused teams to emphasize larger and more agile left tackles. When free agency was first implemented in the NFL, this new importance of the offensive line and particularly the left tackle rose to prominence with the largest increase in wages amongst all positions, with particular study of Steve Wallace and Will Wolford.
The book also features Michael Oher, the former left tackle for the Ole Miss football team, and later right tackle for the Baltimore Ravens. [3] Lewis follows Oher from his impoverished upbringing through his years at Briarcrest Christian School, his purported adoption [4] by Sean (Michael Lewis's former schoolmate) and Leigh Anne Tuohy and on to his position as one of the most highly coveted prospects in college football.
The 2009 film The Blind Side was directed by John Lee Hancock and primarily follows the story of Michael Oher. It stars Quinton Aaron as Oher, along with Sandra Bullock, Tim McGraw, and Kathy Bates. It also features appearances by several past and present college football coaches playing themselves.
Bullock would go on to win Best Actress at the 82nd Academy Awards for her portrayal of Leigh Ann Tuohy. The film was also nominated for Best Picture.
In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line, while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line. A number of NFL rules specifically address restrictions and requirements for the offensive line, whose job is to help protect the quarterback from getting sacked for a loss, or worse, fumbling. The defensive line is covered by the same rules that apply to all defensive players. Linemen are usually the largest players on the field in both height and weight, since their positions usually require less running and more strength than skill positions.
Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, playing closer to the line of scrimmage than the defensive backs (secondary), but farther back than the defensive linemen.
In gridiron football, blitzing is a tactic used by the defense to disrupt pass attempts by the offense. During a blitz, a higher than usual number of defensive players will rush the opposing quarterback, in an attempt either to tackle them or force them to hurry their pass attempt.
Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football.
The 46 defense is an American football defensive formation, an eight men in the box defense, with six players along the line of scrimmage. There are two players at linebacker depth playing linebacker technique, and then three defensive backs. The 46 defense was originally developed and popularized with the Chicago Bears by their defensive coordinator Buddy Ryan, who later became head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles and Arizona Cardinals.
Center or Centre (C) is a position in American football. The center is the innermost lineman of the offensive line on a football team's offense. The center is also the player who passes the ball between his legs to the quarterback at the start of each play.
In American football, the specific role that a player takes on the field is referred to as their "position". Under the modern rules of American football, both teams are allowed 11 players on the field at one time and have "unlimited free substitutions", meaning that they may change any number of players during any "dead ball" situation. This has resulted in the development of three task-specific "platoons" of players within any single team: the offense, the defense, and the so-called 'special teams'. Within these three separate "platoons", various positions exist depending on the jobs that the players are doing.
A tackle is a playing position in American football. Historically, in the one-platoon system prevalent in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, a tackle played on both offense and defense. In the modern system of specialized units, offensive tackle and defensive tackle are separate positions, and the stand-alone term "tackle" refers to the offensive tackle position only. The offensive tackle is a position on the offensive line, left and right. Like other offensive linemen, their objective is to block during each offensive play: physically preventing defenders from tackling or disrupting the offensive ball carrier with the intention of advancing the football downfield. The term "tackle" is a vestige of an earlier era of football in which the same players played both offense and defense.
Michael Jerome Oher is a former American football tackle who played in the National Football League (NFL) for eight seasons. He played college football at the University of Mississippi, where he earned unanimous All-American honors as a senior, and was selected by the Baltimore Ravens in the first round of the 2009 NFL Draft. Oher spent his first five seasons with the Ravens and was a member of the team that won Super Bowl XLVII. He later played one season for the Tennessee Titans and his final two for the Carolina Panthers.
On defense in American football, a pass rush is charging across the line of scrimmage towards the quarterback in an effort to stop or "sack" them. The purpose is tackling, hurrying or flushing the quarterback out of their protective pocket or the play's design.
Daniel James Audick is a former American football offensive lineman in the National Football League (NFL) from 1977 through 1984. A second generation Lithuanian American, Dan was born into a large military family as the son of Col. Albert E. Audick, Sr. and Stella Audick. After his birth, he and his nine siblings moved to military bases in France, Virginia, Tennessee, Japan, Colorado, and Los Angeles, California. As a high school senior at Wasson High School in Colorado Springs, Audick earned All-State honors as an offensive lineman while contributing to the winning of what was then the AAA-Colorado high school football championship in 1971. In 2005, Audick was inducted with his teammates and coaches into the Colorado Springs Sports Hall of Fame. Audick was a scholarship student-athlete for the University of Hawaii Warrior football team from 1972 to 1977 and a team captain in the 1976 football season. Under the pioneering leadership of Coach Larry Price, he was one of the few former Warriors who made the transition from Division II Independent to Division IA Independent and who would go on to NFL careers and coaching careers.
In American football, the 3–4 defense is a common defensive alignment consisting of three down linemen and four linebackers. It is called a "base defense" because it will readily switch to other defensive alignments as circumstances change. Alternatively, some defenses use a 4–3 defense: four down linemen and three linebackers.
In American football, a 4–3 defense is a defensive alignment consisting of four down linemen and three linebackers. It is called a "base defense" because it is the default defensive alignment used on "base downs". However, defenses will readily switch to other defensive alignments as circumstances change. Alternatively, some defenses use a 3–4 defense.
Sean Albro Tuohy is an American sports commentator and restaurateur. He played college basketball at the University of Mississippi in the 1980s.
The Blind Side is a 2009 American sports drama film written and directed by John Lee Hancock. Based on the 2006 book of the same name by Michael Lewis, the film tells the story of Michael Oher, a football offensive lineman who overcame an impoverished upbringing to play in the National Football League (NFL) with the help of Leigh Anne and Sean Tuohy. It stars Sandra Bullock as Leigh Anne, Tim McGraw as Sean, and Quinton Aaron as Oher.
John Lee Hancock Jr. is an American filmmaker. He is best known for directing the sports drama films The Rookie (2002) and The Blind Side (2009), the historical drama films The Alamo (2004), Saving Mr. Banks (2013), The Founder (2016) and The Highwaymen (2019), the crime thriller film The Little Things (2021), and the horror film Mr. Harrigan's Phone (2022).
Quinton Aaron is an American actor. He made his film debut in Michel Gondry's Be Kind Rewind. His first lead role was as Michael Oher in the 2009 film The Blind Side.
Leigh Anne Tuohy is an American businesswoman and interior designer. She was the guardian of the football player Michael Oher. Their story was featured in the 2006 book The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game and its 2009 feature film adaptation The Blind Side. In the film, Tuohy was portrayed by Sandra Bullock, who won an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award for her performance.
A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that will typically line up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the offensive guards; however, he may also line up opposite one of the tackles. Defensive tackles are typically the largest and strongest of the defensive players. Depending on a team's individual defensive scheme, a defensive tackle may be called upon to fill several different roles. These roles may include merely holding the point of attack by refusing to be moved, or penetrating a certain gap between offensive linemen to break up a play in the opponent's backfield. If a defensive tackle reads a pass play, his primary responsibility is to pursue the quarterback, or simply knock the pass down at the line if it is within arm's reach. Other responsibilities of the defensive tackle may be to pursue the screen pass or drop into coverage in a zone blitz scheme. In a traditional 4–3 defense, there is no nose tackle. Instead there is a left and right defensive tackle. Some teams, especially in the National Football League (NFL), have a nose tackle in this scheme, but most of them do not.
Timothy Joe Long is an American football player and coach. He was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings as a left tackle in 1985 and also played for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL) as a center in 1987. Also signed and played guard for the Indianapolis Colts in 1988.